"The War office kept three sets of figures - one to mislead the public, another to mislead the cabinet and the third to mislead itself." - H. H. Asquith
Herbert H. Asquith: 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom 1908-1916.
His government saw the likes of the suffrage movement, the fight for Irish Home Rule, and social reform.
Asquith’s time as Prime Minister saw some of the most notable political turmoil of the Twentieth-Century.
However, the largest challenge in Asquith’s Premiership emerged in 1914, when Europe was pulled into the First World War.
Declaring war saw a renewal in Asquith’s popularity as the nation looked to him to lead them to victory.
However, in 1915 the munitions crisis encouraged hard attacks on the government.
Distracted by the need to put through a conscription bill, Asquith’s government was slow to respond to the Irish rebellion.
By the end of 1916 Asquith’s government fell to David Lloyd George, who remained Prime Minister until 1922.
Constructed from notes Asquith kept at the time, Memories and Reflections is a remarkable autobiographical account of Asquith’s time as Prime Minister, the wartime opposition leader and beyond.
Herbert H Asquith (1852-1928) was born in Yorkshire. His father died when Asquith was 7, so he spent the remainder of his childhood in a boarding school. After working as a barrister, Asquith ran as Liberal Candidate for East Fife. He held this seat for over thirty years. In 1914 he was Prime Minister and took Britain to war in Europe. He was awarded a peerage in 1924.
