A Great Electioneer and His Motives Reconsidered: The 4th Duke of Newcastle

Gaunt, Richard A.

Abstract

The fourth duke of Newcastle (1785-1851) is recognised as one of the most prominent peers with electoral influence in early-19 th century Britain. This article considers the way in which he deployed that influence and the purposes to which it was turned. The essay explains why Newcastle became a leading symbol of the campaign for parliamentary reform and details the nature of his opposition to the Bill which eventually became the 'Great' Reform Act of 1832. In some respects, Newcastle was an atypical electioneer, because he was less overtly concerned with the desire for office, patronage or income. On the other hand, the methods by which that influence was deployed, and the anti-reform purposes to which it was turned, meant that he was inevitably numbered amongst the reactionary forces opposing political change in this period.

Citation

Gaunt, R. A. (2020). A Great Electioneer and His Motives Reconsidered: The 4th Duke of Newcastle. Parliamentary History, 39(1), 190-204. https://doi.org/10.1111/1750-0206.12484

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Sep 5, 2019
• Online Publication Date: Feb 10, 2020
• Publication Date: Feb 10, 2020
• Deposit Date: Oct 14, 2019
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 11, 2022
• Journal: Parliamentary History
• Print ISSN: 0264-2824
• Electronic ISSN: 1750-0206
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 39
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 190-204
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1750-0206.12484
• Keywords: Reform Act; Duke of Newcastle; Elections; House of lords; Earl Grey; Aldborough; Boroughbridge; Newark; East Retford; parliamentary reform; Sociology and Political Science; History
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2826858
• Publisher URL: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1750-0206.12484
• Additional Information: This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Gaunt, R.A. (2020), A Great Electioneer and His Motives Reconsidered: The 4th Duke of Newcastle. Parliamentary History, 39: 190-204., which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1111/1750-0206.12484. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions.