Leader of the Conservative Party (UK): Difference between revisions

Leader of the Conservative Party
Leader of the Conservative Party
	File:Conservative logo 2006.svg
	Incumbent; Theresa May MP; since 11 July 2016
Inaugural holder	Robert Peel (de facto); Andrew Bonar Law (de jure)
Formation	1834 (de facto); 1922 (de jure)

Browse history interactively

← Previous edit Next edit →

Content deleted Content added

VisualWikitext

Inline

Revision as of 15:07, 14 July 2016

The Leader of the Conservative Party is the most senior politician within the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. The post is currently held by Theresa May, who succeeded David Cameron on 11 July 2016.

Background

The foundation of the Conservative Party is conventionally dated to the Tamworth Manifesto delivered on 18 December 1834 by Sir Robert Peel.

Until 1922, there was no formal "Leader of the Conservative Party". There was a leader of the Conservative party in each of the two Houses, and they were regarded as equal unless one of them was either the Prime Minister or a former Prime Minister, or if a particular crisis (as in 1846–1847 or 1916) had resulted in one clearly asserting authority over the other. In the periods when this was not the case (1881–1885, 1911–1916, 1921–1922) there was no clear "Leader of the Conservative Party" — this contributed to some of the internal party conflict at the time. The distinction of the leaders is often overlooked by many and there are lists in circulation that assume the eventual single leader who emerged after a period of equal leadership was the leader from the outset. However this was not always the case — for example in 1881 it was widely expected that the Commons leader Sir Stafford Northcote would be the next Conservative Prime Minister, but by the time the party had returned to government in 1885 political developments had resulted in the Lords leader Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury having the stronger claim for the premiership.

When the Parliament Act 1911 reduced the power of the Lords, it seemed likely that the leader in the Commons would be preeminent. But that was not formally recognised for another eleven years, and there were several occasions when members of the Lords were strongly considered for the leadership of the whole party after this time. Since 1922 an overall leader has been formally elected by a joint meeting of MPs, peers, and prospective parliamentary candidates, even when the party is in opposition. Until 1965 this election was a rubber-stamp for the individual who had already been asked by the monarch to form a government; the leadership did not fall vacant at any time when the party was in opposition during this period. Since 1965 a succession of ballots have been held to choose between competing candidates. This was instigated by Alec Douglas-Home in 1964 after the confused circumstances of his own elevation in 1963.

Overall Leader of the Conservative Party, 1834–1922

Overall leader (Birth–Death)	Country of birth	Constituency / Title	Took office	Left office	Prime Minister (term)
Sir Robert Peel (1788–1850)	England	Tamworth	18 December 1834^[1]	29 June 1846	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1834–35
					style="background-color: Template:British Whig Party/meta/color" \|	Melbourne 1835–41
					style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1841–46
Edward Smith-Stanley 14th Earl of Derby from 1851 (1799–1869)	England	Baron Stanley until 1851 Earl of Derby from 1851	29 June 1846	27 February 1868	style="background-color: Template:British Whig Party/meta/color" \|	Russell 1846–52
					style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1852
					style="background-color: Template:Peelite/meta/color" \|	Aberdeen 1852–55
					style="background-color: Template:British Whig Party/meta/color" \|	Palmerston 1855–58
					style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1858–59
					style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Palmerston 1859–65
					style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Russell 1865–66
					style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1866–68
Benjamin Disraeli 1st Earl of Beaconsfield from 1876 (1804–1881)	England	Buckinghamshire until 1876 Earl of Beaconsfield from 1876	27 February 1868	19 April 1881	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1868
					style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Gladstone 1868–74
					style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1874–80
					rowspan="2" style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Gladstone 1880–85
Vacant Leader of the Lords – 3rd Marquess of Salisbury Leader of the Commons – Stafford Northcote			19 April 1881	23 June 1885		Gladstone 1880–85
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil 3rd Marquess of Salisbury (1830–1903)	England	Marquess of Salisbury	23 June 1885	11 July 1902	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1885–86
					style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Gladstone 1886
					style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1886–92
					style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Gladstone 1892–94
					style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Rosebery 1894–95
					style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1895–1902
Arthur Balfour (1848–1930)	Scotland	Manchester East until 1906 City of London from 1906	11 July 1902	13 November 1911	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1902–05
					style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	C.-Bannerman 1905–08
					height=20 style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color; border-bottom:solid 0 gray" \|	Asquith 1908–16
Vacant Leader of the Lords – 5th Marquess of Lansdowne Leader of the Commons – Andrew Bonar Law			13 November 1911	10 December 1916^[2]	style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color; border-top:solid 0 gray" \|	Asquith 1908–16
Andrew Bonar Law (1858–1923)	New Brunswick, Canada	Bootle until 1918 Glasgow Central from 1918	10 December 1916^[3]	21 March 1921	rowspan="2" style="background-color: Template:Liberal Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Lloyd George 1916–22
Vacant Leader of the Lords – Lord Curzon Leader of the Commons – Austen Chamberlain			21 March 1921	23 October 1922		Lloyd George 1916–22

Leader of the Conservative Party (1922–present)

Leader (Birth–Death)	Portrait	Country of birth	Constituency / Title	Took office	Left office	Prime Minister (term)
Andrew Bonar Law (1858–1923)		New Brunswick, Canada	Glasgow Central	23 October 1922 (party meeting.)	28 May 1923	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself
Stanley Baldwin (1867–1947)		England	Bewdley	28 May 1923 (party meeting.)	31 May 1937	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1923–24
						style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	MacDonald 1924
						style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1924–29
						style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	MacDonald 1929–35
						style="background-color: Template:National Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	MacDonald 1929–35
						style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1935–37
Neville Chamberlain (1869–1940)	File:Neville chamberlain1921.jpg	England	Birmingham Edgbaston	31 May 1937 (party meeting.)	9 October 1940
						style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1937-40
						style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Churchill May–October 1940
Winston Churchill (1874–1965)		England	Epping until 1945 Woodford from 1945	9 October 1940 (party meeting.)	21 April 1955	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1940–45
						style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Attlee 1945–51
						style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1951–55
Anthony Eden (1897–1977)	File:Sir Anthony-Eden number 10 Official.jpg	England	Warwick and Leamington	21 April 1955 (party meeting.)	22 January 1957	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself
Harold Macmillan (1894–1986)	File:Harold Macmillan number 10 official.jpg	England	Bromley	22 January 1957 (party meeting.)	11 November 1963	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself
Alec Douglas-Home (1903–1995)		England	Earl of Home until 1963 Kinross and Western Perthshire from 1963	11 November 1963 (party meeting.)	27 July 1965	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1963–64
Alec Douglas-Home (1903–1995)		England		11 November 1963 (party meeting.)	27 July 1965	rowspan="2" style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Wilson 1964–70
Edward Heath (1916–2005)		England	Bexley until 1974 Sidcup from 1974	27 July 1965	11 February 1975		Wilson 1964–70
						style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1970–74
						rowspan="2" style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Wilson 1974–76
Margaret Thatcher (1925–2013)		England	Finchley	11 February 1975	28 November 1990		Wilson 1974–76
						style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Callaghan 1976–79
						style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	herself 1979–90
John Major (1943–)		England	Huntingdon	28 November 1990	19 June 1997	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 1990–97
William Hague (1961–)		England	Richmond, Yorks	19 June 1997	13 September 2001	rowspan="3" style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color; border-bottom:solid 0 gray" \|	Blair 1997–2007
Iain Duncan Smith (1954–)		Scotland	Chingford and Woodford Green	13 September 2001	6 November 2003
Michael Howard (1941–)		Wales	Folkestone and Hythe	6 November 2003	6 December 2005
David Cameron (1966–)		England	Witney	6 December 2005	13 July 2016	height=20 style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color; border-top:solid 0 gray" \|
						style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Brown 2007–10
						style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	himself 2010–16
Theresa May (1956–)		England	Maidenhead	11 July 2016	incumbent'	style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	Cameron 2016
						style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" \|	herself 2016–present

House of Lords and Commons leaders

Leaders in the House of Lords 1834–present

Those asterisked were considered the overall leader of the party.

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington 1834–1846
Edward Smith-Stanley, 1st Baron Stanley (14th Earl of Derby from 1851) 9 March 1846 – 27 February 1868* – elected at a party meeting – see below
James Howard Harris, 3rd Earl of Malmesbury 1868–1869 – appointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli MP
Hugh Cairns, 1st Baron Cairns 1869–1870 – elected at a party meeting – see below
Charles Gordon-Lennox, 6th Duke of Richmond 1870–21 August 1876 – elected at a party meeting – see below
Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield 21 August 1876 – 19 April 1881* – became Leader on elevation to the peerage
Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury 9 May 1881 – 1902 – elected at a party meeting – see below (overall leader from 1885)
Spencer Cavendish, 8th Duke of Devonshire 1902–1903 – appointed by Prime Minister Arthur Balfour MP
Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne 1903–1916 – appointed by Prime Minister Arthur Balfour MP
George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Earl Curzon of Kedleston (1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston from 1921) 1916–1925 – appointed Leader of the House by Prime Minister David Lloyd George MP
James Gascoyne-Cecil, 4th Marquess of Salisbury 1925–1931 – appointed by Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin MP
Douglas Hogg, 1st Viscount Hailsham 1931–1935 – took over post 'at the request of Mr Baldwin'^[4]
Charles Vane-Tempest-Stewart, 7th Marquess of Londonderry 1935
E. F. L. Wood, 3rd Viscount Halifax 1935–1938
James Stanhope, 7th Earl Stanhope 1938–1940
Thomas Inskip, 1st Viscount Caldecote 1940
E. F. L. Wood, 3rd Viscount Halifax 1940
George Lloyd, 1st Baron Lloyd 1940–1941
Walter Guinness, 1st Baron Moyne 1941–1942
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, Viscount Cranborne (5th Marquess of Salisbury from 1947) 1942–1957
Alec Douglas-Home, 14th Earl of Home 1957–1960
Quintin Hogg, 2nd Viscount Hailsham 1960–1963
Peter Carington, 6th Baron Carrington 1963–1970
George Jellicoe, 2nd Earl Jellicoe 1970–1973
David Hennessy, 3rd Baron Windlesham 1973–1974
Peter Carington, 6th Baron Carrington 1974–1979
Christopher Soames, Baron Soames 1979–1981
Janet Young, Baroness Young 1981–1983
William Whitelaw, 1st Viscount Whitelaw 1983–1988
John Ganzoni, 2nd Baron Belstead 1988–1990
David Waddington, Baron Waddington 1990–1992
John Wakeham, Baron Wakeham 1992–1994
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, Viscount Cranborne 1994–1998
Thomas Galbraith, 2nd Baron Strathclyde 1998–2013
Jonathan Hill, Baron Hill of Oareford 2013–2014
Tina Stowell, Baroness Stowell of Beeston 2014–present

Leaders in the House of Commons 1834–1922

Those asterisked were considered the overall leader of the party.

Sir Robert Peel 18 December 1834^[1]–1846*
Lord George Bentinck 1846–1847
Charles Manners, Marquess of Granby 9 February 1848 – 4 March 1848 – elected at a party meeting – see below
None 1848–1849
Jointly Benjamin Disraeli, Charles Manners, Marquess of Granby and John Charles Herries 1849–1852^[5] – elected at a party meeting – see below
Benjamin Disraeli 1852–21 August 1876 (overall leader from 27 February 1868)
Sir Stafford Northcote 21 August 1876 – 24 June 1885 – appointed by Prime Minister the Earl of Beaconsfield
Sir Michael Hicks Beach 24 June 1885 – 3 August 1886 – appointed by Prime Minister the Marquess of Salisbury
Lord Randolph Churchill 3 August 1886 – 14 January 1887 – appointed by Prime Minister the Marquess of Salisbury
William Henry Smith 17 January 1887 – 6 October 1891 – appointed by Prime Minister the Marquess of Salisbury
Arthur Balfour 1891–13 January 1906^[6] – appointed by Prime Minister the Marquess of Salisbury – (overall leader from 1902)
Joseph Chamberlain 1906
Arthur Balfour 1906–13 November 1911*
Andrew Bonar Law 13 November 1911 – 21 March 1921 – elected at a party meeting – see below (overall leader from 1916)
Austen Chamberlain 21 March 1921 – 23 October 1922 – elected at a party meeting – see below

Elections of Conservative leaders by party meeting

House of Commons

No.	Date of meeting	Name of leader elected	Category attending meeting	Location of meeting	Chair	Proposer	Seconder	Refs
1.	9 February 1848	Charles Manners, Marquess of Granby	Protectionist commoners	The residence of George Bankes MP				^[7] ^[8]
2.	1 February 1849	Benjamin Disraeli, Charles Manners, Marquess of Granby, John Charles Herries		The residence of Edward Smith-Stanley, Baron Stanley of Bickerstaffe				^[9]
3.	13 November 1911	Andrew Bonar Law	Unionist Members of Parliament	Carlton Club, Pall Mall	Henry Chaplin, senior Privy Councillor on the Unionist benches (appointed 1885)	Walter Long	Austen Chamberlain	^[10]
4.	21 March 1921	Austen Chamberlain	Unionist Members of Parliament	Carlton Club, Pall Mall	Lord Edmund Talbot, Conservative Chief Whip	Captain Ernest George Pretyman	Sir Edward Coates, 'a back bencher and one of the rank and file'	^[11]
5.	23 October 1922	Andrew Bonar Law	Unionist peers, MP's and candidates	Hotel Cecil, The Strand	The Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, Leader of the House of Lords	The Marquess Curzon of Kedleston	Stanley Baldwin, 'chosen ... to be the spokesman for the House of Commons'	^[12]
6.	28 May 1923	Stanley Baldwin	'Conservative Party'	Hotel Cecil, The Strand	The Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, Leader of the House of Lords	The Earl of Derby	Captain Ernest George Pretyman 'a member of the House of Commons who [had] been a colleague in that House of Mr Bonar Law for something over 25 years'	^[13]
7.	31 May 1937	Neville Chamberlain	'peers and M.P.s who receive the Conservative whip, ... prospective candidates who have been adopted by constituency associations, and ... members of the executive committee of the National Union of Conservative and Unionist associations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.'	Caxton Hall, Caxton Street	The Viscount Halifax, Leader of the House of Lords	The Earl of Derby	Winston Churchill (Privy Councillor since 1907)	^[14]
8.	9 October 1940	Winston Churchill	'Peers and M.P.s who receive the Conservative whip, ... prospective candidates who have been adopted by constituency associations, and ... members of the Executive Committee of the National Union of Conservative and Unionist Associations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.'	London	The Viscount Halifax, Leader of the House of Lords	The Viscount Halifax	Sir George Courthope 'one of the senior back benchers of the party'	^[15]
9.	21 April 1955	Sir Anthony Eden	'Conservative and National Liberal members of the two Houses of Parliament, Conservative and National Liberal parliamentary candidates and members of the executive committee of the National Union of Conservative and Unionist Associations'	Church House, Dean's Yard, Westminster	The Marquess of Salisbury, Leader of the House of Lords	The Marquess of Salisbury	Richard Austen Butler (Privy Councillor since 1939)	^[16]
10.	22 January 1957	Harold Macmillan	'Conservative and Unionist members of the House of Lords and the House of Commons, ... prospective parliamentary candidates and ... members of the executive committee of the National Union of Conservative and Unionist Associations. National Liberal members of both Houses of Parliament and adopted prospective candidates were also present'		The Marquess of Salisbury, Leader of the House of Lords	The Marquess of Salisbury	Richard Austen Butler (Privy Councillor since 1939)	^[17]
11.	11 November 1963	Sir Alec Douglas-Home	'members of both Houses of Parliament taking the Conservative whip, prospective candidates who [had] been adopted by constituency associations, members of the executive of the mass party, and National Liberal MP's and adopted prospective candidates'	Church House, Dean's Yard, Westminster	The Lord Carrington, Leader of the House of Lords	The Lord Carrington	Geoffrey Lloyd, 'the senior Conservative Privy Councillor in the Commons next in line to Sir Winston Churchill' (appointed 1943)	^[18]

House of Lords

No.	Date of meeting	Name of leader elected	Category attending meeting	Location of meeting	Chair	Proposer	Seconder	Notes
1.	9 March 1846	Edward Smith-Stanley, Baron Stanley of Bickerstaffe	Peers	The residence of Charles Gordon-Lennox, 5th Duke of Richmond	Archibald Montgomerie, 13th Earl of Eglinton			^[19]
2.	15 February 1869	Hugh Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns	23 peers		James Harris, 3rd Earl of Malmesbury	James Harris, 3rd Earl of Malmesbury		^[20]
3.	26 February 1870	Charles Gordon-Lennox, 6th Duke of Richmond	Peers	The Carlton Club		Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury	Edward Stanley, 15th Earl of Derby	^[21]
4.	9 May 1881	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury	Conservative members of the House of Lords	The residence of William Nevill, 1st Marquess of Abergavenny	William Nevill, 1st Marquess of Abergavenny	Charles Gordon-Lennox, 6th Duke of Richmond	Hugh Cairns, 1st Earl Cairns	^[22]

Notes

References

^ ^a ^b Date of the Tamworth Manifesto
^ Date on which Bonar Law became Leader of the House of Commons
^ Date on which he became Leader of the House of Commons
^ The Times, 17 June 1931
^ Granby resigned 'either in the end of December [1851] or on one of the first days of January [1852]': Monypenny, William Flavelle; Buckle, George Earle (1914). The life of Benjamin Disraeli, earl of Beaconsfield, Volume III. New York: The Macmillan Company. pp. 312–3.
^ Date on which he failed to be elected in Manchester East
^ "A Cabinet Council was held at half-past 2 o'clock." Times [London, England] 10 Feb. 1848: 4. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 25 July 2014.
^ Malmesbury, The Right Hon. [James Howard Harris,] the [3rd] Earl of (1885). Memoirs of an Ex-Minister. London: Longmans, Green, and Co. pp. 151–2.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ Monypenny, William Flavelle; Buckle, George Earle (1914). The life of Benjamin Disraeli, earl of Beaconsfield, Volume III. New York: The Macmillan Company. pp. 138–9.
^ "The Unionist Leadership." Times [London, England] 14 Nov. 1911: 9. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.
^ "Unionist M.P.s' New Leader." Times [London, England] 22 Mar. 1921: 12. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.
^ "Unionists Elect Mr. Bonar Law." Times [London, England] 24 Oct. 1922: 18. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 25 July 2014.
^ "Conservative Leader." Times [London, England] 29 May 1923: 19. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.
^ "The New Leader And The Old." Times [London, England] 1 June 1937: 17+. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.
^ "Conservative Leader." Times [London, England] 10 Oct. 1940: 2. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.
^ Our Political Correspondent. "Sir A. Eden as Leader." Times [London, England] 22 Apr. 1955: 12. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.
^ "Mr. Macmillan states Party philosophy", The Times, London, 23 January 1957
^ Our Political Correspondent. (12 November 1963), "Prime Minister is Ageless", The Times, London, p. 12 {{citation}}: |last= has generic name (help)
^ Malmesbury, The Right Hon. [James Howard Harris,] the [3rd] Earl of (1885). Memoirs of an Ex-Minister. London: Longmans, Green, and Co. p. 124.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ Malmesbury, The Right Hon. [James Howard Harris,] the [3rd] Earl of (1885). Memoirs of an Ex-Minister. London: Longmans, Green, and Co. p. 645.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ "We are enabled to state that, in compliance with." Times [London, England] 28 Feb. 1870: 9. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 26 July 2014.
^ "Meeting Of The Conservative Peers." Times [London, England] 10 May 1881: 10. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 25 July 2014.

[Tamworth-1] Date of the Tamworth Manifesto

[2] Date on which Bonar Law became Leader of the House of Commons

[3] Date on which he became Leader of the House of Commons

[4] The Times, 17 June 1931

[5] Granby resigned 'either in the end of December [1851] or on one of the first days of January [1852]': Monypenny, William Flavelle; Buckle, George Earle (1914). The life of Benjamin Disraeli, earl of Beaconsfield, Volume III. New York: The Macmillan Company. pp. 312–3.

[6] Date on which he failed to be elected in Manchester East

[7] "A Cabinet Council was held at half-past 2 o'clock." Times [London, England] 10 Feb. 1848: 4. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 25 July 2014.

[8] Malmesbury, The Right Hon. [James Howard Harris,] the [3rd] Earl of (1885). Memoirs of an Ex-Minister. London: Longmans, Green, and Co. pp. 151–2.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

[9] Monypenny, William Flavelle; Buckle, George Earle (1914). The life of Benjamin Disraeli, earl of Beaconsfield, Volume III. New York: The Macmillan Company. pp. 138–9.

[10] "The Unionist Leadership." Times [London, England] 14 Nov. 1911: 9. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.

[11] "Unionist M.P.s' New Leader." Times [London, England] 22 Mar. 1921: 12. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.

[12] "Unionists Elect Mr. Bonar Law." Times [London, England] 24 Oct. 1922: 18. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 25 July 2014.

[13] "Conservative Leader." Times [London, England] 29 May 1923: 19. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.

[14] "The New Leader And The Old." Times [London, England] 1 June 1937: 17+. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.

[15] "Conservative Leader." Times [London, England] 10 Oct. 1940: 2. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.

[16] Our Political Correspondent. "Sir A. Eden as Leader." Times [London, England] 22 Apr. 1955: 12. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 19 July 2014.

[17] "Mr. Macmillan states Party philosophy", The Times, London, 23 January 1957

[18] Our Political Correspondent. (12 November 1963), "Prime Minister is Ageless", The Times, London, p. 12 {{citation}}: |last= has generic name (help)

[19] Malmesbury, The Right Hon. [James Howard Harris,] the [3rd] Earl of (1885). Memoirs of an Ex-Minister. London: Longmans, Green, and Co. p. 124.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

[20] Malmesbury, The Right Hon. [James Howard Harris,] the [3rd] Earl of (1885). Memoirs of an Ex-Minister. London: Longmans, Green, and Co. p. 645.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

[21] "We are enabled to state that, in compliance with." Times [London, England] 28 Feb. 1870: 9. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 26 July 2014.

[22] "Meeting Of The Conservative Peers." Times [London, England] 10 May 1881: 10. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 25 July 2014.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20]

[21]

[22]

@@ Line 16: / Line 16: @@
 The foundation of the Conservative Party is conventionally dated to the [[Tamworth Manifesto]] delivered on 18 December 1834 by Sir [[Robert Peel]].
-Until 1922, there was no formal "Leader of the Conservative Party". There was a leader of the Conservative party in each of the two Houses, and they were regarded as equal unless one of them was either the [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] or a former Prime Minister, or if a particular crisis (as in 1846–1847 or 1916) had resulted in one clearly asserting authority over the other. In the periods when this was not the case (1881–1885, 1911–1916, 1921–1922) there was no clear "Leader of the Conservative Party" — this contributed to some of the internal party conflict at the time. The distinction of the leaders is often overlooked by many and there are lists in circulation that assume the eventual single leader who emerged after a period of equal leadership was the leader from the outset. However this was not always the case — for example in 1881 it was widely expected that the Commons leader [[Stafford Northcote, 1st Earl of Iddesleigh|Sir Stafford Northcote]] would be the next Conservative [[Prime Minister]], but by the time the party had returned to government in 1885 political developments had resulted in the Lords leader [[Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury]] having the stronger claim for the premiership.
+Until 1922, there was no formal "Leader of the Conservative Party". There was a leader of the Conservative party in each of the two Houses, and they were regarded as equal unless one of them was either the [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] or a former Prime Minister, or if a particular crisis (as in 1846–1847 or 1916) had resulted in one clearly asserting authority over the other. In the periods when this was not the case (1881–1885, 1911–1916, 1921–1922) there was no clear "Leader of the Conservative Party" — this contributed to some of the internal party conflict at the time. The distinction of the leaders is often overlooked by many and there are lists in circulation that assume the eventual single leader who emerged after a period of equal leadership was the leader from the outset. However this was not always the case — for example in 1881 it was widely expected that the Commons leader [[Sir Stafford Northcote]] would be the next Conservative [[Prime Minister]], but by the time the party had returned to government in 1885 political developments had resulted in the Lords leader [[Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury]] having the stronger claim for the premiership.
 When the [[Parliament Act 1911]] reduced the power of the Lords, it seemed likely that the leader in the Commons would be preeminent. But that was not formally recognised for another eleven years, and there were several occasions when members of the Lords were strongly considered for the leadership of the whole party after this time. Since 1922 an overall leader has been formally elected by a joint meeting of MPs, [[British peerage|peers]], and [[prospective parliamentary candidate]]s, even when the party is in opposition. Until 1965 this election was a [[Rubber stamp (politics)|rubber-stamp]] for the individual who had already been asked by the monarch to form a government; the leadership did not fall vacant at any time when the party was in opposition during this period. Since 1965 a succession of ballots have been held to choose between competing candidates. This was instigated by [[Alec Douglas-Home]] in 1964 after the confused circumstances of his own elevation in 1963.
@@ Line 205: / Line 205: @@
 |-
 | style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
-| ''himself'' {{small|1937–40}}
+| ''himself'' {{small|1937-40}}
 |-
-| rowspan="2" style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
+| style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
-! style="font-weight:normal"|[[Winston Churchill|Churchill]] {{small|May–Oct.1940}}
+! style="font-weight:normal"|[[Winston Churchill|Churchill]] {{small|May–October 1940}}
 |-
 | rowspan="3"|[[Winston Churchill]]<br /><small>(1874–1965)</small>
@@ Line 216: / Line 216: @@
 | rowspan="3"|9 October<br />1940<br /><small>(''party meeting''.)</small>
 | rowspan="3"|21 April<br />1955
+| style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
 | ''himself'' {{small|1940–45}}
 |-
@@ Line 258: / Line 259: @@
 | rowspan="3"|{{flag|England}}
 | rowspan="3"|[[Bexley (UK Parliament constituency)|Bexley]] <small>until 1974</small><br />[[Sidcup (UK Parliament constituency)|Sidcup]] <small>from 1974
-| rowspan="3"|27 July<br />1965<br /><small>(''[[Conservative Party (UK) leadership election, 1965|elected]]'')</small>
+| rowspan="3"|27 July<br />1965
 | rowspan="3"|11 February<br />1975
 |-
@@ Line 271: / Line 272: @@
 | rowspan="3"|{{flag|England}}
 | rowspan="3"|[[Finchley (UK Parliament constituency)|Finchley]]
-| rowspan="3"|11 February<br />1975<br /><small>(''[[Conservative Party (UK) leadership election, 1975|elected]]'')</small>
+| rowspan="3"|11 February<br />1975
 | rowspan="3"|28 November<br />1990
 |-
@@ Line 284: / Line 285: @@
 | {{flag|England}}
 | [[Huntingdon (UK Parliament constituency)|Huntingdon]]
-| 28 November<br />1990<br /><small>(''[[Conservative Party (UK) leadership election, 1990|elected]]'')</small>
+| 28 November<br />1990
 | 19 June<br />1997
 | style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
@@ Line 293: / Line 294: @@
 | {{flag|England}}
 | [[Richmond (Yorks) (UK Parliament constituency)|Richmond, Yorks]]
+| 19 June<br />1997
-| 19 June<br />1997<br /><small>(''[[Conservative Party (UK) leadership election, 1997|elected]]'')</small>
 | 13 September<br />2001
 | rowspan="3" style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}; border-bottom:solid 0 gray" |
@@ Line 302: / Line 303: @@
 | {{flag|Scotland}}
 | [[Chingford and Woodford Green (UK Parliament constituency)|Chingford and Woodford Green]]
-| 13 September<br />2001<br /><small>(''[[Conservative Party (UK) leadership election, 2001|elected]]'')</small>
+| 13 September<br />2001
 | 6 November<br />2003
 |-
@@ Line 309: / Line 310: @@
 | {{flag|Wales}}
 | [[Folkestone and Hythe (UK Parliament constituency)|Folkestone and Hythe]]
+| 6 November<br />2003
-| 6 November<br />2003<br /><small>(''[[Conservative Party (UK) leadership election, 2003|unopposed]]'')</small>
 | 6 December<br />2005
 |-
@@ Line 316: / Line 317: @@
 | rowspan="3"|{{flag|England}}
 | rowspan="3"|[[Witney (UK Parliament constituency)|Witney]]
-| rowspan="3"|6 December<br />2005<br /><small>(''[[Conservative Party (UK) leadership election, 2005|elected]]'')</small>
+| rowspan="3"|6 December<br />2005
 | rowspan="3"|13 July<br />2016
 | height=20 style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}; border-top:solid 0 gray" |
@@ Line 326: / Line 327: @@
 | ''himself'' {{small|2010–16}}
 |-
-| [[Theresa May]]<br /><small>(1956–)</small>
+| rowspan="3"|[[Theresa May]]<br /><small>(1956–)</small>
-| [[File:Theresa May UK Home Office (cropped).jpg|60px]]
+| rowspan="3"|[[File:Theresa May UK Home Office (cropped).jpg|60px]]
-| {{flag|England}}
+| rowspan="3"|{{flag|England}}
-| [[Maidenhead (UK Parliament constituency)|Maidenhead]]
+| rowspan="3"|[[Maidenhead(UK Parliament constituency)|Maidenhead]]
-| 11 July<br />2016<br /><small>(''[[Conservative Party (UK) leadership election, 2016|elected]]'')</small>
+| rowspan="3"|11 July<br />2016<br />
+| rowspan="3"|''incumbent'
-| ''Incumbent''
+| style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
+| Cameron {{small|2016}}
+|-
 | style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
-| ''herself'' {{small|2016–}}
+| ''herself'' {{small|2016–present}}
 |}