William ewart gladstone biography

William Ewart Gladstone  ©Four-times Liberal prime minister of Great Britain, Gladstone was one of the dominant political figures of the Victorian era and a passionate campaigner on a huge variety of issues, including home rule for Ireland.

William Ewart Gladstone was born on 29 December 1809 in Liverpool, the son of a prosperous merchant.

He was educated at Eton and Oxford University and was elected to parliament in 1832, as a Tory. He made his mark from the start and held junior offices in Robert Peel's government of 1834 - 1835. Although he was slowly moving towards liberalism, in 1843 Gladstone entered Peel's Conservative cabinet.

William ewart gladstone biography

When the Conservatives split in 1846, Gladstone followed Peel in becoming a Liberal-Conservative. Between 1846 and 1859 Gladstone was politically isolated, although he held some cabinet posts, including chancellor of the exchequer, a position he would ultimately hold three times.

In 1859, he joined the L