Editing Conservative Party (UK) (section)

=== 1867–1914: Conservatives and Unionists ===
The widening of the electoral franchise in the 19th century forced the Conservative Party to popularise its approach under [[Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby]] and [[Benjamin Disraeli]], who carried through their own expansion of the franchise with the [[Reform Act 1867]]. The party was initially opposed to further expansion of the electorate but eventually allowed passage of Gladstone's [[Representation of the People Act 1884]]. In 1886, the party formed an alliance with [[Spencer Cavendish, 8th Duke of Devonshire|Spencer Cavendish]] and [[Joseph Chamberlain]]'s new [[Liberal Unionist Party]] and, under the statesmen [[Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury|Robert Gascoyne-Cecil]] and [[Arthur Balfour]], held power for all but three of the following twenty years before suffering a heavy defeat in [[1906 United Kingdom general election|1906]] when it split over the issue of [[free trade]].

Young [[Winston Churchill]] denounced Chamberlain's attack on free trade, and helped organise the opposition inside the Unionist/Conservative Party. Nevertheless, Balfour, as party leader, introduced protectionist legislation.<ref>{{cite journal |first=Peter |last=Fraser |title=Unionism and Tariff Reform: The Crisis of 1906 |journal=Historical Journal |volume=5 |issue=2 |year=1962 |pages=149–166|doi=10.1017/S0018246X00000170 |s2cid=155026903 }}</ref> Churchill crossed the floor and formally joined the Liberal Party (he rejoined the Conservatives in 1925). In December, Balfour lost control of his party, as the defections multiplied. He was replaced by Liberal Prime Minister [[Henry Campbell-Bannerman]] who called [[1906 United Kingdom general election|an election in January 1906]], which produced a massive Liberal victory. Liberal Prime Minister [[H. H. Asquith]] enacted a great deal of reform legislation, but the Unionists worked hard at grassroots organizing. Two general elections were held in 1910, [[January 1910 United Kingdom general election|in January]] and [[December 1910 United Kingdom general election|in December]]. The two main parties were now almost dead equal in seats, but the Liberals kept control with a coalition with the [[Irish Parliamentary Party]].<ref>{{cite book |first=R. C. K. |last=Ensor |title=England, 1870–1914 |pages=373–428 |url=https://www.questia.com/library/1401979/england-1870-1914 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408081229/https://www.questia.com/library/1401979/england-1870-1914 |archive-date=8 April 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Blewett|first=Neal|author-link=Neal Blewett|title=The Peers, the Parties and the People: The British General Elections of 1910|year=1972|location=Toronto and Buffalo|publisher=University of Toronto Press|url=https://archive.org/details/peerspartiespeop0000blew/page/n5/mode/2up|url-access=registration|isbn=0-8020-1838-6}}</ref>

In 1912, the Liberal Unionists merged with the Conservative Party. In Ireland, the [[Irish Unionist Alliance]] had been formed in 1891 which merged Unionists who were opposed to [[Irish Home Rule movement|Irish Home Rule]] into one political movement. Its MPs took the Conservative whip at Westminster, essentially forming the Irish wing of the party until 1922. In Britain, the Conservative party was known as the Unionist Party because of its opposition to home rule.<ref>{{cite web |first=Leala |last=Padmanabhan |date=8 April 2015 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-30899534 |title='Conservative' or 'Tory': What's in a name? |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190220003436/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-30899534 |archive-date=20 February 2019 |work=BBC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=The [[Conservative Party Archive]] Trust |url=https://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/94891/CPA-guide-high-res-version.pdf |title=Guide to the Conservative Party Archive |publisher=[[Bodleian Library]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009073843/http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/94891/CPA-guide-high-res-version.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2016 |year=2009}}</ref> Under [[Bonar Law]]'s leadership in 1911–1914, the Party morale improved, the "radical right" wing was contained, and the party machinery strengthened. It made some progress toward developing constructive social policies.<ref>{{cite journal |first=Graham D. |last=Goodlad |title=The 'Crisis' of Edwardian Conservatism |journal=Modern History Review |year=1998 |volume=9 |issue=4 |pages=10–13}}</ref>