Local studies are a crucial means to understanding the actual working of the political process in the post-Reform Act period. This applies particularly to Kidderminster which was enfranchised in 1832 and where the town and parliamentary constituency covered broadly the same area throughout the period. This correlation enables valid judgements to be made about the key drivers in the twelve general elections held in Kidderminster from 1832 to 1880 and to analyse the elements of continuity and change in both the process and the issues. This thesis is based on evidence from contemporary local and national newspapers, election petition reports, local archive collections, poll books, directories and official reports. It reviews the relevant historiography and identifies and weighs what actually happened during parliamentary elections, how the parties organised themselves and their supporters, and the impact of industrial relations, the publican lobby and differences in religion. It also compares voting patterns in municipal as well as parliamentary elections. The thesis concludes that corruption and violence were embedded in the electoral process in Kidderminster. Corruption, whether in the form of outright bribery, treating or the provision of sinecures, began with the first general election in 1832 and reached its height with the campaigns of Albert Grant in 1865 and 1874. Election petitions alleging corruption were prepared after six elections, and prosecutions took place after two. The evidence from these petitions indicates that corruption was Richard Groom 4 widespread and indiscriminate. In terms of violence, including intimidation by blocking and boycotting, there were riots in 1832 and 1835, with the threat of disturbance present at virtually every election. It was the norm for the army to be stationed in or around the town in the elections of the 1830s and 1840s. This violence reached its peak in 1857 with the attempt to murder the MP Robert Lowe. The propensity for violence and corruption was fuelled both by generally hostile industrial relations where riots and destruction of property in trade disputes spilled over naturally into political divisions and by the existence of 150 public houses. The thesis also argues that no tenable conclusions can be drawn from a comparison of municipal and parliamentary elections in Kidderminster, because they were for and about entirely different things. Local elections were primarily concerned with keeping council expenditure to a minimum in order to keep rates low. Parliamentary elections, on the other hand, were far more about national issues and the opportunity to be paid for good sport.

This thesis considers the career of Lord Palmerston during the important, but hitherto rather neglected, period of his political career immediately preceding his accession to the premiership in 1855, in a broader context than has previously been attempted. By combining a high political, that is governmental, approach to the question with what might be termed a low one - essentially all non-governmental factors - the reasons for Palmerston's supposed political invincibility, or at least longevity, can be more clearly understood. Such a focus simultaneously reveals a great deal about the nature and working of the Victorian constitution and the political influence of parts of the population traditionally regarded as falling beyond its pale. Through an examination of political manoeuvring in government, making extensive use of private papers, this thesis demonstrates the extent and ways in which Palmerston was able to exercise an influence over and manipulate his Cabinet colleagues, thereby securing their approbation for his foreign policy at a time when there were great pressures from the Crown and Parliament to remove him. The analysis is followed though to the history of the Aberdeen Coalition (1852-55) to explain why Palmerston came to be allied with many of his former adversaries in the first place and secondly how he managed, from his official post at the Home Office, to continue to wield great influence over the conduct of foreign policy - a question of special importance given that it was this government which was faced with the problem of managing the Crimean War. It is clear, however, that personal and party political relationships are incomplete means by which to explain Palmerston's career and elucidate the general theme of the politics of foreign policy. Palmerston's political strength rested to a large extent on the rather nebulous perception that he was 'popular', carrying with him the support of the country and embodying the mood of the nation. Public opinion, generally conceived, had a profound and complicated impact on politics during this period, particularly on Palmerston, yet this is an aspect of Palmerston's political life rarely examined by historians. It is in this thesis' attempts to underpin an account of political life at the centre with an analysis of political forces and influences beyond that a great deal of the work's originality is to be found. Examination of the role of the press, various forms of extra-parliamentary opposition (and support) across all social classes, and parliamentary opposition, including not only on what grounds were attacks made but why and with what effect, add a unique contribution to our understanding of Palmerstonianism and demonstrate the success and considerable good fortune Palmerston enjoyed in manipulating political life to his own ends.

This thesis assesses the outcomes of the 1957 and 1963 Conservative Party Leadership Selections of Harold Macmillan and Sir Alec Douglas-Home. It analyses the two selections using an original analytical framework, that demonstrates the importance of both individual and situational criteria in determining the outcomes of leadership selections. The individual criteria are the party status of the candidates, and their actions and conduct during the selections. The situational criteria are the situation and circumstances surrounding the selections, the formal and informal aspects of the selection procedure used, and the candidates fulfilment of acceptability, electability, and governability. Acceptability, (the need to retain or maintain party unity), electability, (the need to be electable), and governability, (the ability to govern), are the three core situational criteria on which the candidates are judged. This framework was developed to offer a full and inclusive explanation of the outcomes of the two leadership selections, because the existing analyses of leadership selections has a restrictive approach, and does not offer a conclusive and systematic analysis. The thesis demonstrates that the outcomes of the 1957 and 1963 leadership selections have clear parallels and distinctions in their outcomes. Both selections produced a stop-gap leader in a time of crisis for the Conservative Party. However, the situations were clearly distinct, and this was influential in the outcome. The 1957 selection occurred following a crisis over foreign policy, while the 1963 selection occurred during a deep-seated period of domestic crisis and upheaval. In January 1957, the Conservatives had three years before a general election had to be held, while in October 1963, a general election was imminent within twelve months. The selection procedure was influential in both selections. The informal aspects of the procedure were more influential in 1957, while the procedure had become more formalised in 1963, and this prepared the way for the establishment of formal leadership elections in the Conservative Party in 1965. The choice of Macmillan and Home was made because of the circumstances in which the selections occurred, and because they fulfilled the three core criteria more conclusively than the other candidates. In both outcomes, acceptability was clearly the most important core criteria because the selections occurred at a time of severe disunity in the party, and this deemed party unity as the crucial task of the new leader. In 1957, Macmillan was selected as he fulfilled the requirements of the situation better than R. A. Butler, the other candidate. In 1963, Home became leader because of the weaknesses apparent in the other candidates, and was the compromise candidate to retain party unity. This thesis concludes that the wider individual and situational criteria set the terms of reference on which the core situational criteria of acceptability, electability, and governability are judged. The most important wider criteria were the candidates' actions during the selection, the selection procedure, and the situation that the selection occurred in. This demonstrates the utility of the analytical framework developed in the study.

At the end of 1818 the first duke of Wellington returned to Britain after making his name and fortune on the continent. Despite primarily being remembered as a military hero and diplomat, his excursion into party politics upon joining Lord Liverpool's cabinet constituted a second career that continued until the duke's death in 1852. This thesis sets out to analyse that political career from 1819 to the first Reform Act in 1832 through Wellington's unsolicited correspondence. This previously neglected source offers a revealing insight into the popular perception of politics, society and Wellington himself, which often challenges the assumptions made about press and public opinion. Indeed, these letters themselves can be regarded as a form of public opinion. Hundreds of ordinary people from across the country wrote Wellington on every matter of government and society, for personal, commercial, political or charitable reasons. They wanted patronage for themselves or friends, money and favours. They contributed to debates on Catholic Emancipation, Parliamentary Reform and Economic distress. A sizeable minority wrote anonymous, threatening letters in an attempt to intimidate Wellington, while others gave the duke their wholehearted support. These letters reveal the politicisation of 'The People' and their willingness to get involved in public debates. The correspondents often used the same language and terms of reference. They wrote with the same concerns, albeit for different reasons and with varying suggestions. These letters also provide a glimpse of the popular perception of Wellington - how this military hero was considered, in turn, to be a saviour, influential friend and 'evil nemesis' of the people. Wellington did not ignore this correspondence. Most people got a reply. Their letters were filed, discussed, forwarded to appropriate people, acted upon and investigated. Crucially, some of this correspondence influenced the duke's thinking and impacted on events. Writing a letter to a member of the ruling elite could make a difference.