Unionist government, 1895–1905

Lord Salisbury led the Government from 1895–1902 and was succeeded by Arthur Balfour.

Balfour led the Government from 1902 until resignation in 1905. The Liberal Party formed a government thereafter.

Punch cartoon, 1903. The Rand mine-owners' employment of Chinese labour on the Transvaal gold mines in British controlled South Africa was controversial and contributed to the Liberal victory in the 1906 elections.

A coalition of the Conservative and Liberal Unionist parties took power in the United Kingdom following the general election of 1895. The Conservative leader, Lord Salisbury, took office as prime minister, and his nephew, Arthur Balfour, was leader of the Commons, but various major posts went to the Liberal Unionist leaders, most notably the Liberal Unionist leader in the Lords, the Duke of Devonshire, who was made Lord President, and his colleague in the Commons, Joseph Chamberlain, who became Colonial Secretary. It was this government which would conduct the Boer War from 1899 to 1902, which was exploited by the government to help win a landslide victory in the general election of 1900.

The unionist government consisted of three ministries: the third Salisbury ministry (from June to August 1895), the fourth Salisbury ministry (from August 1895 to 1900), the fifth Salisbury ministry (from 1900 to 1902), and then the Balfour ministry (from 1902 onwards).

Trade Reform

Balfour succeeded Salisbury as prime minister in 1902, and the government would eventually falter after Chamberlain proposed his scheme for tariff reform, whose partial embrace by Balfour led to the resignation of the more orthodox free traders in the Cabinet.

Chinese miners in South Africa

After the conclusion of the Boer War the British government sought to rebuild South Africa's economy which had been devastated by the war. An important part of the rebuilding effort was to get the gold mines of the Witwatersrand, the richest in history and a major cause of the war, back in production as soon as possible. Because the government decreed that white labour was too expensive and black labourers were reluctant to return to the mines, the Union government decided to import 63,000 contracted workers from China.

This was deeply unpopular at the time as popular opinion in much of the western world, including Britain, was hostile to Chinese immigration. It also happened at a time when poverty and unemployment amongst lower class British workers was very high. On 26 March 1904 a demonstration against Chinese immigration to South Africa was held in Hyde Park and was attended by 80,000 people.^[1]^:107 The Parliamentary Committee of the Trade Union Congress then passed a resolution declaring that:

That this meeting consisting of all classes of citizens of London, emphatically protests against the action of the Government in granting permission to import into South Africa indentured Chinese labour under conditions of slavery, and calls upon them to protect this new colony from the greed of capitalists and the Empire from degradation.^[2]

Fall from power

With his majority greatly reduced and defeat in the next election seeming inevitable, Balfour resigned in December 1905, leading to the appointment of a Liberal government under Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman. In the general election which followed, all but three members of the Balfour cabinet were defeated in their bids for re-election, including Balfour himself.

Cabinets

Salisbury ministry

Salisbury ministries
June–August 1895 1895–1900 1900–1902
Salisbury (1897)
Date formed	Third: 25 June 1895 Fourth: 8 August 1895 Fifth: 25 October 1900
Date dissolved	Third: 8 August 1895 Fourth: 25 October 1900 Fifth: 11 July 1902
People and organisations
Head of state	Victoria (1895–1901) Edward VII (1901–1902)
Head of government	Lord Salisbury
Head of government's history	1895–1902
Member parties	Conservative Party Liberal Unionist Party
Status in legislature	Majority (coalition)
Opposition party	Liberal Party
Opposition leaders	Sir William Vernon Harcourt (1896–1898) Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman (1898–1902) in the House of Commons Lord Rosebery (1895–1897) Lord Kimberley (1897–1902) Lord Spencer (1902) in the House of Lords
History
Election(s)	1895 general election 1900 general election
Legislature term(s)	25th Parliament (UK) 26th Parliament (UK) 27th Parliament (UK)
Predecessor	Rosebery ministry
Successor	Balfour ministry

Changes

In November 1900, the cabinet was completely reorganised:

Balfour ministry

Balfour ministry
1902–1905

Date formed	11 July 1902
Date dissolved	5 December 1905
People and organisations
Head of state	Edward VII
Head of government	Arthur Balfour
Member parties	Conservative Party Liberal Unionist Party
Status in legislature	Majority (coalition)
Opposition party	Liberal Party
Opposition leaders	Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman in the House of Commons Lord Spencer (1902–1905) Lord Ripon (1905) in the House of Lords
History
Legislature term(s)	27th Parliament (UK)
Predecessor	Fifth Salisbury ministry
Successor	First C-Bannerman ministry

Changes

May 1903 – Lord Onslow succeeds R.W. Hanbury at the Board of Agriculture.
September–October 1903 – Lord Londonderry succeeds the Duke of Devonshire as Lord President, while remaining also President of the Board of Education. Lord Lansdowne succeeds Devonshire as Leader of the House of Lords, remaining also Foreign Secretary. Lord Salisbury succeeds Balfour as Lord Privy Seal. Austen Chamberlain succeeds Ritchie at the Exchequer. Chamberlain's successor as Postmaster-General is not in the Cabinet. Alfred Lyttelton succeeds Joseph Chamberlain as Colonial Secretary. St John Brodrick succeeds Lord George Hamilton as Secretary for India. Hugh Arnold-Forster succeeds Brodrick as Secretary for War. Andrew Graham-Murray succeeds Lord Balfour of Burleigh as Secretary for Scotland.
March 1905 – Walter Hume Long succeeds George Wyndham as Irish Secretary. Gerald Balfour succeeds Long at the Local Government Board. Lord Salisbury, remaining Lord Privy Seal, succeeds Balfour at the Board of Trade. Lord Cawdor succeeds Lord Selborne at the Admiralty. Ailwyn Fellowes succeeds Lord Onslow at the Board of Agriculture.

List of Ministers

Cabinet members are listed in bold face.

Office	Name	Date	Notes
Prime Minister	The Marquess of Salisbury (3rd)	25 June 1895 – 11 July 1902	also Leader of the House of Lords
Prime Minister	Arthur Balfour	12 July 1902 – 4 December 1905	also Leader of the House of Commons
First Lord of the Treasury and Leader of the House of Commons	Arthur Balfour	29 June 1895 – 4 December 1905
Chancellor of the Exchequer	Sir Michael Hicks Beach	29 June 1895
	Charles Ritchie	11 August 1902
	Austen Chamberlain	9 October 1903
Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury and Government Chief Whip in the House of Commons	Sir William Walrond, Bt	29 June 1895
	Sir Alexander Acland-Hood, Bt	8 August 1902
Financial Secretary to the Treasury	Robert William Hanbury	29 June 1895
	Austen Chamberlain	7 November 1900
	William Hayes Fisher	8 August 1902
	Arthur Elliot	10 April 1903
	Victor Cavendish	9 October 1903
Junior Lords of the Treasury	Henry Torrens Anstruther	6 July 1895 – 11 October 1903
	William Hayes Fisher	6 July 1895 – 8 August 1902
	Lord Stanley	6 July 1895 – 7 November 1900
	Ailwyn Fellowes	7 November 1900 – 15 March 1905
	Henry Forster	8 August 1902 – 4 December 1905
	Lord Balniel	11 October 1903 – 4 December 1905
	Lord Edmund Talbot	16 June 1905 – 4 December 1905
Lord Chancellor	The Lord Halsbury	29 June 1895	created Earl of Halsbury 19 January 1898
Lord President of the Council	The Duke of Devonshire	29 June 1895	also Leader of the House of Lords 12 July 1902 – 13 October 1903
Lord President of the Council	The Marquess of Londonderry	19 October 1903
Lord Privy Seal	The Viscount Cross	29 June 1895
	The Marquess of Salisbury (3rd)	12 November 1900
	Arthur Balfour	14 July 1902	also Leader of the House of Commons
	The Marquess of Salisbury (4th)	17 October 1903
Secretary of State for the Home Department	Sir Matthew White Ridley, Bt	29 June 1895
	Charles Thomson Ritchie	12 November 1900
	Aretas Akers-Douglas	11 August 1902
Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department	Jesse Collings	3 July 1895
Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department	Thomas Cochrane	11 August 1902
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs	The Marquess of Salisbury (3rd)	29 June 1895
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs	The Marquess of Lansdowne	12 November 1900	also Leader of the House of Lords 13 October 1903 – 4 December 1905
Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs	George Curzon	20 June 1895
	St John Brodrick	15 October 1898
	Viscount Cranborne	12 November 1900	succeeded as 4th Marquess of Salisbury 22 August 1903
	Earl Percy	9 October 1903
Secretary of State for War	The Marquess of Lansdowne	4 July 1895
	St John Brodrick	12 November 1900
	H. O. Arnold-Forster	12 October 1903
Under-Secretary of State for War	St John Brodrick	4 July 1895
	George Wyndham	10 October 1898
	The Lord Raglan	13 November 1900
	The Earl of Hardwicke	8 August 1902
	The Earl of Donoughmore	12 October 1903
Financial Secretary to the War Office	Joseph Powell-Williams	3 July 1895
	Lord Stanley	1 January 1901
	William Bromley-Davenport	12 October 1903
Secretary of State for the Colonies	Joseph Chamberlain	29 June 1895
Secretary of State for the Colonies	Alfred Lyttelton	9 October 1903
Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies	The Earl of Selborne	28 June 1895
	The Earl of Onslow	26 November 1900
	The Duke of Marlborough	22 July 1903
Secretary of State for India	Lord George Hamilton	4 July 1895
Secretary of State for India	St John Brodrick	9 October 1903
Under-Secretary of State for India	The Earl of Onslow	5 July 1895
	The Earl of Hardwicke	17 January 1901
	Earl Percy	18 August 1902
	vacant	29 November 1904
	The Marquess of Bath	20 January 1905
First Lord of the Admiralty	George Goschen	29 June 1895
	The Earl of Selborne	12 November 1900
	The Earl Cawdor	27 March 1905
Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty	William Ellison-Macartney	29 June 1895
	H. O. Arnold-Forster	7 November 1900
	E. G. Pretyman	11 October 1903
Civil Lord of the Admiralty	Austen Chamberlain	6 July 1895
	E. G. Pretyman	7 November 1900
	Arthur Lee	11 October 1903
President of the Board of Agriculture	Walter Long	4 July 1895
	Robert William Hanbury	16 November 1900
	The Earl of Onslow	20 May 1903
	Ailwyn Fellowes	14 March 1905
President of the Board of Education	The Duke of Devonshire	3 March 1900
President of the Board of Education	The Marquess of Londonderry	11 August 1902
Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Education	Sir William Anson, Bt	11 August 1902
Chief Secretary for Ireland	Gerald Balfour	4 July 1895
	George Wyndham	9 November 1900
	Walter Long	12 March 1905
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland	The Earl Cadogan	29 June 1895
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland	The Earl of Dudley	11 August 1902
Lord Chancellor of Ireland	The Lord Ashbourne	29 June 1895
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster	The Viscount Cross	29 June 1895
	The Lord James of Hereford	4 July 1895
	Sir William Walrond, Bt	11 August 1902
President of the Local Government Board	Henry Chaplin	29 June 1895
	Walter Long	12 November 1900
	Gerald Balfour	14 March 1905
Parliamentary Secretary to the Local Government Board	Thomas Wallace Russell	30 June 1895
	John Lawson	12 November 1900
	Arthur Frederick Jeffreys	27 June 1905
Postmaster-General	The Duke of Norfolk	6 July 1895
	The Marquess of Londonderry	10 April 1900	entered the Cabinet 7 November 1900
	Austen Chamberlain	11 August 1902
	Lord Stanley	9 October 1903
Secretary for Scotland	The Lord Balfour of Burleigh	29 June 1895
	Andrew Murray	9 October 1903
	The Marquess of Linlithgow	2 February 1905
President of the Board of Trade	Charles Ritchie	29 June 1895
	Gerald Balfour	12 November 1900
	The Marquess of Salisbury (4th)	14 March 1905
Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade	The Earl of Dudley	29 June 1895
Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade	Bonar Law	8 August 1902
First Commissioner of Works	Aretas Akers-Douglas	4 July 1895
First Commissioner of Works	The Lord Windsor	11 August 1902
Vice-President of the Committee on Education	Sir John Eldon Gorst	4 July 1895	office abolished 8 August 1902 and replaced by that of Secretary to the Board of Education
Paymaster-General	The Earl of Hopetoun	16 July 1895
	The Duke of Marlborough	1899
	Sir Savile Crossley, Bt	11 March 1902
Attorney General	Sir Richard Webster	8 July 1895
Attorney General	Sir Robert Finlay	11 May 1900
Solicitor General	Sir Robert Finlay	30 August 1895
Solicitor General	Sir Edward Carson	11 May 1900
Lord Advocate	Sir Charles Pearson	11 July 1895
	Andrew Murray	14 May 1896
	Charles Dickson	17 October 1903
Solicitor General for Scotland	Andrew Murray	11 July 1895
	Charles Dickson	14 May 1896
	David Dundas	17 October 1903
	Edward Theodore Salvesen	2 February 1905
	James Avon Clyde	17 October 1905
Attorney General for Ireland	John Atkinson	8 July 1895
Solicitor General for Ireland	William Kenny	28 August 1895
	Dunbar Plunket Barton
	George Wright	30 January 1900
	James Campbell	8 July 1903
Lord Steward of the Household	The Earl of Pembroke	16 July 1895
Lord Chamberlain of the Household	The Earl of Lathom	16 July 1895
	The Earl of Hopetoun	7 December 1898
	The Earl of Clarendon	21 September 1900
Vice-Chamberlain of the Household	Ailwyn Fellowes	10 July 1895
	Sir Alexander Acland-Hood, Bt	3 December 1900
	The Lord Wolverton	17 November 1902
Master of the Horse	The Duke of Portland	16 July 1895
Treasurer of the Household	Marquess of Carmarthen	10 July 1895	succeeded as 10th Duke of Leeds 23 December 1895
	Viscount Curzon	11 February 1896
	Victor Cavendish	4 December 1900
	Marquess of Hamilton	13 October 1903
Comptroller of the Household	Lord Arthur Hill	10 July 1895
Comptroller of the Household	The Viscount Valentia	19 October 1898
Captain of the Gentlemen-at-Arms	The Lord Belper	16 July 1895
Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard and Government Chief Whip in the House of Lords	The Earl of Limerick	16 July 1895
	The Earl Waldegrave	26 August 1896
Master of the Buckhounds	The Earl of Coventry	16 July 1895
Master of the Buckhounds	The Lord Chesham	1 November 1900	office abolished 1900
Mistress of the Robes	The Duchess of Buccleuch	16 July 1895
Lords in Waiting	The Lord Churchill	16 July 1895 – 4 December 1905
	The Lord Harris	16 July 1895 – 4 December 1900
	The Lord Henniker	16 July 1895 – 1 November 1895
	The Lord Lawrence	16 July 1895 – 4 December 1905
	The Earl of Ranfurly	16 July 1895 – 21 April 1897
	The Earl Waldegrave	16 July 1895 – 9 September 1896
	The Earl of Clarendon	17 July 1895 – 30 October 1900
	The Viscount Bridport	30 June 1884 – 18 February 1901
	The Earl of Kintore	1 November 1895 – 4 December 1905
	The Lord Bagot	9 September 1896 – 2 July 1901
	The Earl of Denbigh	22 April 1897 – 4 December 1905
	The Earl Howe	30 October 1900 – 1 October 1903
	The Lord Kenyon	4 December 1900 – 4 December 1905
	The Earl of Erroll	19 October 1903 – 4 December 1905

References

C. Cook and B. Keith, British Historical Facts 1830–1900

↑ Yap, Melanie; Leong Man, Dainne (1996). Colour, Confusion and Concessions: The History of the Chinese in South Africa. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. p. 510. ISBN 962-209-423-6.
↑ Official programme of the great demonstration in Hyde Park, [S.l.:s.n.]; Richardson (1904). Chinese mine labour in the Transvaal. London: Parliamentary Committee of the Trade Union Congress. pp. 5–6. |access-date= requires |url= (help)

Preceded by Rosebery ministry	Government of the United Kingdom 1895–1905	Succeeded by First Campbell-Bannerman ministry

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