William Gladstone

Ruth Clayton Windscheffel, The Open University, UK; Roger Swift, University of Chester, UK; and Roland Quinault, University of London, UK.

The figure of William Gladstone continues to loom large in the history of nineteenth-century Britain. Not only was he Prime Minister four times and leader of the Liberal Party for over three decades, but he also took an active interest in the intellectual, imperial, military, cultural and ecclesiastical affairs of the day. Yet despite this towering presence, there is much that still remains obscure about the motivations and beliefs of the man. Divided into five sections, Images, Personal Questions, Officialdom, and Ethics and Internationalism, this collection redresses this imbalance in the historiography, providing new perspectives on Gladstone's life.

Contents: Foreword, David Bebbington; Introduction, Ruth Clayton Windscheffel; Part I Reputations: Gladstone; a political not a cultural radical, Frank M. Turner; Gladstone and Peel's mantle, Richard A. Gaunt; Gladstone and labour, Chris Wrigley. Part II Images: Gladstone's visage: problem and performance, Joseph S. Meisel; Material Gladstones, Mark Nixon. Part III Personal Questions: Gladstone as friend, Denis Paz; Gladstone as woodsman, Peter Sewter; The health of a Prime Minister: Gladstone 1868-85, Jenny West. Part IV Gladstone as an Official: Gladstone, finance and the problems of Ireland, 1853-66, Allen Warren; Gladstone and the Ionian Islands, C. Brad Faught. Part V Ethics and Internationalism: Gladstone and war, Roland Quinault; Gladstone and the suppression of the slave trade, Richard Huzzey; Gladstone's 'greater world': free trade, empire and liberal internationalism, Deryck M. Schreuder. Part VI Epilogue: Gladstone's legacy, Eugenio Biagini; A selected bibliography, Roger Swift; Index.