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Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour, KG, OM, PC, DL (25 July 1848 - 19 March 1930) was a British Conservative politician and statesman. He served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from July 1902 to December 1905, and as Leader of the Conservative Party from his appointment as Prime Minister to November 1911. He was a Member of Parliament from 1874 � 1922 and served as Foreign Secretary in David Lloyd George's coalition government 1916-1919. Balfour was born in East Lothian in Scotland, and first entered parliament in the 1874 general election. In 1886, Balfour was made a member of the Marquess of Salisbury's cabinet, but attained prominence as Chief Secretary for Ireland, an office which he held from 1887-1891. During his time in this post, he authored the Perpetual Crimes Act (1887) (or Coercion Act) aimed at the prevention of boycotting, intimidation and unlawful assembly in Ireland during the Irish Land War. When Salisbury resigned in July 1902, Balfour was made Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader. As Prime Minister, Balfour oversaw such events as the Entente cordiale, but his coalition was rife with internal struggle over the issue of tariff reform and in December 1905 his government relinquished power to the Liberals. The general election the following year was a disaster for the Conservatives and their Liberal Unionist allies, left with a mere 157 seats in parliament and Balfour himself lost his Manchester East seat. Balfour was rushed back to parliament in a by-election for the City of London constituency. He continued as Leader of the Opposition until November 1911, however was active in David Lloyd George's coalition government, where he was Foreign Secretary (1916-1919). Whilst in this post, he authored the Balfour Declaration of 1917, which supported the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine. Balfour stood down as an MP in 1922, and was granted a peerage. |
