United Kingdom general election, 1852

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1847 election
1852 election
1857 election

The 1852 UK general election was very close, Lord John Russell's Whigs again winning the popular vote, but once again Conservative candidates won a very slight majority. Again the split between Protectionist Tories, led by the Earl of Derby and the Peelites made the formation of a majority government very difficult. Lord Derby's minority Protectionist government soon collapsed, bringing about a Peelite-Whig coalition government under Lord Aberdeen, one of the leading Peelites, which collapsed during the Crimean War.

[edit] Results

UK General Election 1852
Party Seats Gains Losses Net Gain/Loss Seats % Votes % Votes +/-
  Whig 324 + 32 57.9 430,882 + 4.1
  Conservative 330 + 5 41.9 311,481 - 0.5
  Chartist 0 0 1 - 1 0.2 1,541 + 0.1

Note that while the Conservatives had, in theory, a slim majority over the Whigs, the party was divided between protectionist and Peelite wings, of which the former numbered about 290 and the latter 35-40. The Whigs themselves represented a coalition of Whigs, Liberals, Radicals, and Irish nationalists. The above numbers are therefore highly misleading. Total votes cast: 743.904

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[edit] References