1905 - 1908

Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman (1836-1908) was the son of a successful Glasgow businessman. He entered Parliament in 1868 as a radical Liberal. He climbed the ministerial ranks slowly, but by Gladstone's fourth government of 1892 he was in the cabinet and Secretary of State for war. After its defeat of 1895 and Gladstone's retirement the Liberal party fell into disarray. Campbell-Bannerman took the job of Leader of the party in 1899, and despite being seen as a stop-gap, managed to hold it together despite severe divisions over imperial policy. Under his Leadership, the Liberals finally regained power in 1905, obtaining a landslide victory in the general election of 1906, and embarking on a radical programme of social reform. But Campbell-Bannerman was already ill, and he resigned in 1908 after a series of heart attacks, and died a few weeks later.