Editing Joseph Chamberlain (section)

===Liberal Unionist: 1886–93===
Immediately after his resignation from Cabinet, Chamberlain launched a ferocious campaign against Gladstone's Irish proposals. His motivations combined imperial, domestic, and personal themes: imperial because the proposal threatened to weaken Parliament's control over the United Kingdom, domestic because they downplayed the Radical programme, and personal because they weakened his own standing in the party.{{sfn|Marsh|2004}}

On 9 April, Chamberlain spoke against the [[Irish Government Bill 1886|Irish Home Rule Bill]] in its first reading. Chamberlain's chances of displacing Gladstone as party leader declined dramatically and in early May, the National Liberal Federation declared its loyalty to Gladstone. On 14 May, Chamberlain attended a meeting of [[Liberal Unionist]]s, from which arose the Liberal Unionist Association, an ''ad hoc'' alliance to demonstrate the unity of anti-Home Rulers.<ref>{{cite book|author=Peter Barberis|title=Encyclopedia of British and Irish Political Organizations: Parties, Groups and Movements of the 20th Century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qps14mSlghcC&pg=PA313|year=2000|publisher=A&C Black|page=313|display-authors=etal|isbn=9780826458148}}</ref> Meanwhile, to distinguish himself from the Whigs, Chamberlain founded the National Radical Union to rival the NLF. During its second reading on 8 June, the Home Rule Bill was defeated by the combined opposition of Chamberlain radicals, Conservatives, and Whigs. In all, 93 Liberals voted against Gladstone.<ref>{{cite book|author=Patrick Jackson|title=Harcourt and Son: A Political Biography of Sir William Harcourt, 1827–1904|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y3f2twWl-jMC&pg=PA159|year=2004|publisher=Fairleigh Dickinson U P|page=159|isbn=9780838640364}}</ref>

====1886 election and Unionist government====
Parliament was dissolved, and in the [[1886 United Kingdom general election|July 1886 general election]], the Conservatives and Liberal Unionists, led by Lord Salisbury and [[Lord Hartington]], agreed to an alliance. Chamberlain's position in the alliance was awkward; unlike Hartington, he was intensely mistrusted by and unable to influence the Conservatives, and he was also despised by the Gladstonians. Gladstone himself observed, "There is a difference between Hartington and Chamberlain, that the first behaves like and is a thorough gentleman. Of the other, it is better not to speak."<ref>{{cite book|first=Andrew | last=Jones|author-link = Andrew Jones (historian)|title=The Politics of Reform 1884|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=39o8AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA44|year=1972|page=44| publisher=CUP Archive|isbn=9780521083768}}</ref> The general election was dominated by Home Rule, and Chamberlain's campaign was both Radical and intensely patriotic. The Unionist alliance took 393 seats in the House of Commons and a comfortable majority.{{sfn|Marsh|1994|pp=250–54}}

Chamberlain did not enter the [[Second Salisbury ministry|Unionist government]], aware of Conservative hostility and not wishing to alienate his Radical base. The Liberal mainstream cast Chamberlain as a villain, shouting "Judas!" and "Traitor!" as he entered the House of Commons. Unable to associate decisively with either party, Chamberlain sought concerted action with a kindred spirit from the Conservative Party, Chancellor of the Exchequer [[Lord Randolph Churchill]]. In November 1886, Churchill announced his own programme at [[Dartford]], borrowing much from Chamberlain's, including smallholdings for rural labourers and greater local government. The next month, Churchill resigned as Chancellor over military spending; when the Conservative mainstream rallied around Salisbury, Churchill's career was effectively ended, and so too was Chamberlain's hope of creating a powerful cross-party alliance of Radicals. The appointment of George Goschen to succeed Churchill isolated Chamberlain further and symbolised the strong relationship between non-Radical Liberal Unionists and the Conservatives.{{sfn|Marsh|1994|pp=255–80}}

In January 1887, Chamberlain, Trevelyan, Harcourt, [[John Morley]] and [[Lord Herschell]] participated in a series of Round Table Conferences to resolve the Liberal Party's Irish policy. Chamberlain hoped an accord would enable him to claim the Liberal leadership and influence over the Conservatives. Although a preliminary agreement was made concerning land purchase, Gladstone was unwilling to compromise further, and negotiations ended by March. In August 1887, Lord Salisbury invited Chamberlain to lead the British delegation to resolve a fisheries dispute between the United States and [[Newfoundland Colony|Newfoundland]]. The visit to the United States renewed his enthusiasm for politics and enhanced his standing with respect to Gladstone.{{sfn|Marsh|1994|pp=289–311}}

Upon his return to Britain, Chamberlain and Radicalism experienced new political success. He extracted his supporters from the Liberal Party and created the Liberal Unionist Association in 1888, associated with his National Radical Union. The Salisbury ministry implemented a number of Radical reforms as well. Between 1888 and 1889, democratic [[County council]]s were established. By 1891, measures for the provision of smallholdings had been made, and the free, compulsory education was extended to the entire country. Chamberlain wrote, "I have in the last five years seen more progress made with the practical application of my political programme than in all my previous life. I owe this result entirely to my former opponents, and all the opposition has come from my former friends."<ref>{{cite book|author=Jules Philip Gehrke|title=Municipal Anti-socialism and the Growth of the Anti-socialist Critique in Britain, 1873–1914|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=03GL7IX0DVUC&pg=PA65|year=2006|page=65|isbn=9780542793653}}</ref>

====1892 election and return to minority====
In the [[1892 United Kingdom general election|1892 general election]], Gladstone returned to power with a Liberal-Irish Nationalist coalition. The Liberal Unionists did well in Birmingham and made gains in the neighbouring [[Black Country]], and Chamberlain's son Austen entered the House of Commons unopposed for [[East Worcestershire]]. However, the Liberal Unionists were reduced to 47 seats, falling behind in an age of well-organized mass national politics, and Chamberlain's standing was accordingly weakened. Gladstone made no effort to reunite with Chamberlain, and the Liberal Unionists drew closer to the Conservatives.<ref>Ian Cawood, "The 1892 General Election and the Eclipse of the Liberal Unionists," ''Parliamentary History'' (2010) 29#3 pp 331–357.</ref> When Hartington took his seat in the House of Lords as the Duke of Devonshire, Chamberlain assumed leadership of the Liberal Unionists in the House of Commons, beginning a productive relationship with Arthur Balfour, Conservative leader in the Commons.{{sfn|Crosby|2011|p=78}}

Gladstone introduced a [[Second Home Rule Bill]] in February 1893. Although the Bill passed the House of Commons, the Lords rejected Home Rule by a huge margin. With his party divided, Gladstone prepared to [[Dissolution of the Parliament of the United Kingdom|dissolve Parliament]] on the issue of the House of Lords' veto, but was compelled to resign in March 1894 by his colleagues. He was replaced by [[Lord Rosebery]], who neglected the topic of Home Rule. Chamberlain continued to form alliances with the Conservatives.

[[File:Joseph ('Joe') Chamberlain; Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour by Sydney Prior Hall.jpg|thumb|325px|''[[Joseph Chamberlain and Arthur Balfour]]'' by [[Sydney Prior Hall]]. In 1892, Chamberlain became leader of the Liberal Unionists in the House of Commons, beginning a fruitful relationship with Conservative leader and future Prime Minister [[Arthur Balfour]] (right).]]
Chamberlain became concerned about the threat of socialism during this period, although the [[Independent Labour Party]] had only one MP, [[Keir Hardie]]. He sought to divert collectivist energy toward Unionism and continued to propose radical reforms to the Conservatives. In his 1893 "Memorandum of a Programme for Social Reform", Chamberlain made a number of suggestions to Salisbury, including old age pensions, the provision of home loans to the working class, an amendment to the [[Artisans' and Labourers' Dwellings Improvement Act 1875]] to encourage street improvements, compensation for industrial accidents, reduced train fares for workers, tighter border controls, and shorter working hours. Salisbury was guardedly sympathetic. Chamberlain also wrote an unpublished 1895 play, ''The Game of Politics'', characterising socialists as the instigators of class conflict.{{sfn|Jay|1981|p=179}}

On 21 June 1895, the Liberal government was defeated on a motion that criticised the [[Henry Campbell-Bannerman]], [[Secretary of State for War]], for shortages of [[cordite]], and Salisbury was invited to form a government.<ref>{{cite book|author=Heather Gilbert|title=The Life of Lord Mount Stephen: 1691–1921|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1D0aAAAAMAAJ|year=1965|publisher=Aberdeen UP|page=89|isbn=9780900015380}}</ref>