Winston Part II

< Lord Randolph Churchill had been a “Tory Democrat” which claimed that there was a certain relationship between the wealthy property owning classes and the working class. Tory Democracy tried to state that the Tory party was willing to help ordinary people, rather than simply existing to protect the wealthy. Winston, admiring his father, though he didn’t know him well, agreed with this philosophy and was sincere about it. He favoured the capitalist free enterprise system and admired the Empire but also wished to improve the lot of the poor, by State action. He stated that he felt there should be a minimum basic income for the poor, and after that, capitalism could reign freely. He did not support women’s suffrage, nor Home Rule for Ireland, but he was sympathetic to the cause of secular education. He wrote a book on the Siege of Malakand, in India, in 1897, and followed it by his only work of Fiction, Savrola, a novel.  He then went to Africa, where he published an account of the battle of Omdurman. In England, he used his family and society contacts to try to start his political career. He managed to get nominated to stand for parliament but he did not get elected. He went to South Africa, to cover the Boer war as a journalist, but was captured by the Boers.  He escaped and returned to England… He stood again for parliament for Oldham and this time won, but he was not well off, and at the time MPs were not paid a salary. So he had to work as a writer and speaker to earn a living... a pattern of life that would keep him busy for many years… His flamboyant nature got him noticed in Parliament…and although he was initially a Conservative, he became friendly with many Liberal MPs and began to support the Liberal party. He got on well with Liberal Imperialists like Asquith, supported Trade Unions and expressed opposition to a bill to restrict immigration into Britain, particularly Jewish immigrants.  In 1904, increasingly he was dissatisfied with the Tory party and crossed the floor to become a Liberal.