Misplaced Pages

#192807

94-564: The Peerage Act 1963 (c. 48) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that permits female hereditary peers and all Scottish hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords and allows newly inherited hereditary peerages to be disclaimed. A disclaimed peerage remains without a holder until the death of the disclaimer, and his heir succeeds to the peerage. The Act resulted largely from

188-685: A Scottish crofter from the Isle of Arran . Macmillan considered himself a Scot. Macmillan received an intensive early education, closely guided by his American mother. He learned French at home every morning from a succession of nursery maids, and exercised daily at Mr Macpherson's Gymnasium and Dancing Academy, around the corner from the family home. From the age of six or seven he received introductory lessons in classical Latin and Greek at Mr Gladstone's day school , close by in Sloane Square . Macmillan attended Summer Fields School , Oxford (1903–06). He

282-462: A bulwark against Soviet totalitarianism and to prevent a recurrence of the horrors of Nazi rule. Although Macmillan played an important role in drafting the " Industrial Charter " ("Crossbencher" in the Sunday Express called it the second edition of The Middle Way ) he now, as MP for a safe seat, adopted a somewhat more right-wing public persona, defending private enterprise and fiercely opposing

376-529: A few years of the peerage being accepted, Michael Benn was killed in action in the Second World War . Tony Benn, his younger brother, became heir apparent to the peerage and was elected to the House of Commons in 1950. Not wishing to leave it for the other House, he campaigned through the 1950s for a change in the law. In 1960, the 1st Viscount died and Tony Benn inherited the title, automatically losing his seat in

470-569: A move which Churchill favoured. In June 1944 he argued for a British-led thrust up the Ljubljana Gap into Central Europe (Operation "Armpit") instead of the planned diversion of US and Free French forces to the South of France ( Operation Dragoon ). This proposal impressed Churchill and General Alexander , but did not meet with American approval. Eden sent out Robert Dixon to abolish the job of Resident Minister, there being then no job for Macmillan back in

564-401: A number of stages before it can become law. In theory, this allows the bill's provisions to be debated in detail, and for amendments to the original bill to also be introduced, debated, and agreed to. In bicameral parliaments, a bill that has been approved by the chamber into which it was introduced then sends the bill to the other chamber. Broadly speaking, each chamber must separately agree to

658-460: A private member's bill). In Australia, the bill passes through the following stages: In Canada, the bill passes through the following stages: The committee considers each clause of the bill, and may make amendments to it. Significant amendments may be made at the committee stage. In some cases, whole groups of clauses are inserted or removed. However, if the Government holds a majority, almost all

752-708: A pro-British regime to remain in power, as Churchill had demanded in the Percentages agreement the previous autumn. In 1947 the US would take over Britain's role as "protector" of Greece and Turkey, to keep the Soviets out of the Mediterranean, the so-called " Truman Doctrine ". Macmillan was also the minister advising General Keightley of V Corps , the senior Allied commander in Austria responsible for Operation Keelhaul , which included

846-418: A public career even for the "innocent party". Macmillan and Lady Dorothy lived largely separate lives in private thereafter. The stress caused by that may have contributed to Macmillan's nervous breakdown in 1931. He was often treated with condescension by his aristocratic in-laws and was observed to be a sad and isolated figure at Chatsworth in the 1930s. John Campbell suggests that Macmillan's humiliation

940-610: A series of operations. He was still on crutches at the Armistice of 11 November 1918 . His hip wound took four years to heal completely, and he was left with a slight shuffle to his walk and a limp grip in his right hand from his previous wound, which affected his handwriting. Macmillan saw himself as both a "gownsman" and a "swordsman" and would later display open contempt for other politicians (e.g. Rab Butler , Hugh Gaitskell , Harold Wilson ) who, often through no fault of their own, had not seen military service in either World War. Of

1034-468: A specific chamber. For example, bills imposing a tax , or involving public expenditure , are introduced into the House of Commons in the United Kingdom, Canada's House of Commons , Lok Sabha of India and Ireland's Dáil as a matter of law. Conversely, bills proposed by the Law Commission and consolidation bills traditionally start in the House of Lords . Once introduced, a bill must go through

SECTION 10

#1732847936193

1128-543: A tank and was under sniper fire at the British Embassy. Despite the hostility of large sections of British and American opinion, who were sympathetic to the guerrillas and hostile to what was seen as imperialist behaviour, he persuaded a reluctant Churchill, who visited Athens later in the month, to accept Archbishop Damaskinos as Regent on behalf of the exiled King George II . A truce was negotiated in January 1945, enabling

1222-541: Is presented to the Governor General , who gives it royal assent . Although the Governor General can refuse to assent a bill, this power has never been exercised. Bills being reviewed by Parliament are assigned numbers: 2 to 200 for government bills, 201 to 1000 for private member's bills , and 1001 up for private bills . They are preceded by C- if they originate in the House of Commons, or S- if they originate in

1316-770: The Battle of the Somme ) in September 1916, he was severely wounded, and lay for over twelve hours in a shell hole, sometimes feigning death when Germans passed, and reading Aeschylus in the original Greek . Raymond Asquith , eldest son of the prime minister, was a brother officer in Macmillan's regiment and was killed that month. Macmillan spent the final two years of the war in King Edward VII's Hospital in Grosvenor Gardens undergoing

1410-673: The Free French leader Charles de Gaulle . Macmillan wrote in his diary during the Casablanca conference: "I christened the two personalities the Emperor of the East and the Emperor of the West and indeed it was rather like a meeting of the late Roman empire". For Macmillan, the "remarkable and romantic episodes" as President Roosevelt met Prime Minister Churchill in Casablanca convinced him that personal diplomacy

1504-467: The Free French government in Algeria (after the liberation of mainland France , he later continued as Ambassador to France from November 1944) and Noel Charles as Ambassador to Italy to reduce Macmillan's influence. In May 1944 Macmillan infuriated Eden by demanding an early peace treaty with Italy (at that time a pro-Allied regime under Badoglio held some power in the southern, liberated, part of Italy),

1598-526: The Hailsham peerage his father (Quintin Hogg) had disclaimed, but did not have to disclaim it himself to continue sitting in the House of Commons. In 2004, Michael Ancram inherited the marquessate of Lothian on the death of his father, and was also able to continue sitting as an MP. On their retirements from the House of Commons, Lord Lothian and Lord Hailsham entered the House of Lords as life peers, while Lord Thurso

1692-507: The House of Commons for his old seat in 1931 . Macmillan spent the 1930s on the backbenches. In March 1932 he published "The State and Industry" (not to be confused with his earlier pamphlet "Industry and the State"). In September 1932 he made his first visit to the Soviet Union. Macmillan also published "The Next Step". He advocated cheap money and state direction of investment . In 1933 he

1786-534: The Lord Chancellor within one year of succeeding to the peerage, or within one year after the passage of the Act, or, if under the age of 21 at the time of succession, before the peer's 22nd birthday. If, at the time of succession, the peer is a member of the House of Commons, then the instrument must be delivered within one month of succession, and until such an instrument is delivered, the peer may neither sit nor vote in

1880-594: The Peerage of England , the Peerage of Scotland , the Peerage of Great Britain , and the Peerage of the United Kingdom . No provision was made by the Act for titles in the Peerage of Ireland to be disclaimed, as the entitlement of new Irish representative peers to be elected to sit in the House of Lords was considered to have lapsed after most of Ireland became independent as the Irish Free State in December 1922 (and

1974-590: The Special Relationship with the United States from the wreckage of the 1956 Suez Crisis (of which he had been one of the architects), and facilitated the decolonisation of Africa. Reconfiguring the nation's defences to meet the realities of the nuclear age, he ended National Service , strengthened the nuclear forces by acquiring Polaris , and pioneered the Nuclear Test Ban with the United States and

SECTION 20

#1732847936193

2068-507: The Act, thirty one peers in the Peerage of Scotland also had held titles in the respective peerages of England, Great Britain and the United Kingdom and were thus members of the House of Lords. When William Wedgwood Benn , Tony Benn 's father, agreed to accept the Viscountcy, he ascertained that the heir-apparent, his eldest son Michael, did not plan to enter the House of Commons. However, within

2162-561: The Cabinet list, was a poisoned chalice, writing in his diary (28 October 1951) that it was "not my cup of tea at all ... I really haven't a clue how to set about the job". It meant obtaining scarce steel, cement and timber when the Treasury were trying to maximise exports and minimise imports. 'It is a gamble—it will make or mar your political career,' Churchill said, 'but every humble home will bless your name if you succeed.' By July 1952 Macmillan

2256-517: The Conservative Party . He was a One Nation Tory of the Disraelian tradition and supported the post-war consensus . He supported the welfare state and the necessity of a mixed economy with some nationalised industries and strong trade unions. He championed a Keynesian strategy of deficit spending to maintain demand and pursuit of corporatist policies to develop the domestic market as

2350-682: The Conservatives faced landslide defeat after the war, causing Channon to write (6 Sep 1944) of "the foolish prophecy of that nice ass Harold Macmillan". In October 1942 Harold Nicolson recorded Macmillan as predicting "extreme socialism" after the war. Macmillan nearly resigned when Oliver Stanley was appointed Secretary of State in November 1942, as he would no longer be the spokesman in the Commons as he had been under Cranborne. Brendan Bracken advised him not to quit. After Harry Crookshank had refused

2444-459: The Duke's daughter Lady Dorothy was announced on 7 January 1920. He relinquished his commission on 1 April 1920. As was common for contemporary former officers, he continued to be known as 'Captain Macmillan' until the early 1930s and was listed as such in every general election between 1923 and 1931. As late as his North African posting of 1942–43 he reminded Churchill that he held the rank of captain in

2538-614: The Elder . Her nephew William Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington , married Kathleen Kennedy , a sister of John F. Kennedy . In 1929, Lady Dorothy began a lifelong affair with the Conservative politician Robert Boothby , an arrangement that scandalised high society but remained unknown to the general public. Philip Frere, a partner in Frere Cholmely solicitors, urged Macmillan not to divorce his wife, which at that time would have been fatal to

2632-830: The Greeks in the American empire. You will find the Americans much as the Greeks found the Romans—great big, vulgar bustling people, more vigorous than we are and also more idle, with more unspoiled virtues, but also more corrupt. We must run AFHQ ( Allied Forces Headquarters ) as the Greek slaves ran the operations of the Emperor Claudius ". At the Casablanca Conference Macmillan helped to secure US acceptance, if not recognition, of

2726-466: The Guards reserve. On his return to London in 1920 he joined the family publishing firm Macmillan Publishers as a junior partner. In 1936, Harold and his brother Daniel took control of the firm, with the former focusing on the political and non-fiction side of the business. Harold resigned from the company on appointment to ministerial office in 1940. He resumed working with the firm from 1945 to 1951 when

2820-469: The House as well was defeated by ninety votes to eight. The Act removed the disqualification of peers of Ireland, by virtue of an Irish peerage, to vote in elections for members of the House of Commons; and to sit in the British House of Commons without losing the privilege of peerage. The Act also granted suo jure hereditary women peers (other than those in the Peerage of Ireland) the right to sit in

2914-620: The House of Commons Chamber. Macmillan finally attained office by serving in the wartime coalition government as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Supply from 1940. Channon commented (29 May 1940) that there was "some amusement over Harold Macmillan's so obvious enjoyment of his new position". Macmillan's job was to provide armaments and other equipment to the British Army and Royal Air Force . He travelled up and down

Peerage Act 1963 - Misplaced Pages Continue

3008-625: The House of Commons as a member for the constituency of Bristol South East . In the ensuing by-election , however, Benn was re-elected to the Commons, despite being disqualified. An election court ruled that he could not take his seat , instead awarding it to the runner-up, the Conservative Malcolm St Clair . In 1963, the Conservative Government agreed to introduce a Peerage Bill, allowing individuals to disclaim peerages; it received royal assent on 31 July 1963. Tony Benn

3102-496: The House of Lords Act 1999 were: The holder of the Earldom of Newburgh wasn't eligible as she was an Italian citizen. Act of parliament A draft act of parliament is known as a bill . In other words, a bill is a proposed law that needs to be discussed in the parliament before it can become a law. In territories with a Westminster system , most bills that have any possibility of becoming law are introduced into parliament by

3196-581: The House of Lords, which introduced twelve new women to the House. This was not the first time that women were members of the House of Lords; the Life Peerages Act 1958 allowed all life peers (men and women) to sit in the House. The 2nd Baroness Ravensdale had already entered the Lords in 1958 through the receipt of a life peerage. The women who took their seats in the House after the Peerage Act 1963 and before

3290-648: The Irish Parliament, the Oireachtas , bills pass through the following stages. Bills may be initiated in either the Dáil or the Seanad, and must pass both houses. In New Zealand, the bill passes through the following stages: A draft piece of legislation is called a bill ; when this is passed by Parliament it becomes an act and part of statute law. There are two types of bill and act, public and private . Public acts apply to

3384-725: The Italian armistice in August 1943, between the fall of Sicily and the Salerno Landings . This caused friction with Eden and the Foreign Office. He was based at Caserta for the rest of the war. He was appointed UK High Commissioner for the Advisory Council for Italy late in 1943. He visited London in October 1943 and again clashed with Eden. Eden appointed Duff Cooper as Representative to

3478-488: The Labour government in the House of Commons. With the Conservative victory in 1951 Macmillan became Minister of Housing & Local Government under Churchill, who entrusted him with fulfilling the pledge to build 300,000 houses per year (up from the previous target of 200,000 a year), made in response to a speech from the floor at the 1950 Party Conference. Macmillan thought at first that Housing, which ranked 13 out of 16 in

3572-449: The Liberal vote let him win in 1924 . In 1927, four MPs, including Boothby and Macmillan, published a short book advocating radical measures. In 1928, Macmillan was described by his political hero, and now Parliamentary colleague, David Lloyd George, as a "born rebel". Macmillan lost his seat in 1929 in the face of high regional unemployment. He almost became Conservative candidate for

3666-549: The Magistrate's Court Act 1980 (c. 43). Until the 1980s, acts of the Australian state of Victoria were numbered in a continuous sequence from 1857; thus the Age of Majority Act 1977 was No. 9075 of 1977. Harold Macmillan Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton , (10 February 1894 – 29 December 1986) was a British statesman and Conservative politician who

3760-490: The Mediterranean (SACMED), which proved helpful in his career, and Richard Crossman later recalled that Macmillan's "Greeks in the Roman Empire" metaphor dated from this time (i.e., that as the US replaced Britain as the world's leading power, British politicians and diplomats should aim to guide her in the same way that Greek slaves and freedmen had advised powerful Romans). Macmillan told Crossman: "We, my dear Crossman, are

3854-730: The November 1945 by-election in Bromley . In his diary Harold Nicolson noted the feelings of the Tory backbenchers: "They feel that Winston is too old and Anthony (Eden) too weak. They want Harold Macmillan to lead them." He was a member of the British delegation to the Consultative Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1949 to 1951, and played a prominent role – as a key aide and ally of Winston Churchill – in pressing for greater European integration as

Peerage Act 1963 - Misplaced Pages Continue

3948-579: The Senate. For example, Bill C-250 was a private member's bill introduced in the House. Bills C-1 and S-1 are pro forma bills, and are introduced at the beginning of each session in order to assert the right of each Chamber to manage its own affairs. They are introduced and read a first time, and then are dropped from the Order Paper . In the Parliament of India , every bill passes through following stages before it becomes an Act of Parliament of India : In

4042-436: The Soviet Union. After the Skybolt Crisis undermined the Anglo-American strategic relationship, he sought a more active role for Britain in Europe, but his unwillingness to disclose United States nuclear secrets to France contributed to a French veto of the United Kingdom's entry into the European Economic Community and independent French acquisition of nuclear weapons in 1960 . Near the end of his premiership, his government

4136-440: The UK, but he managed to prevent his job being abolished. Churchill visited Italy in August 1944. On 14 September 1944 Macmillan was appointed Chief Commissioner of the Allied Control Commission for Italy (in succession to General Noel Mason-MacFarlane ). He continued to be British Minister Resident at Allied Headquarters and British political adviser to "Jumbo" Wilson , now Supreme Commander, Mediterranean. On 10 November 1944 he

4230-587: The actress wife of Irish dramatist Seán O'Casey , was another female friend, Macmillan publishing her husband's plays. Although she is said to have replaced Lady Dorothy in Macmillan's affections, there is disagreement over how intimate they became after the deaths of their respective spouses, and whether he proposed. Macmillan contested the depressed northern industrial constituency of Stockton-on-Tees in 1923 . The campaign cost him about £200-£300 out of his own pocket; at that time candidates were often expected to fund their own election campaigns. The collapse in

4324-412: The amendments which are agreed to in committee will have been tabled by the Government to correct deficiencies in the bill or to enact changes to policy made since the bill was introduced (or, in some cases, to import material which was not ready when the bill was presented). The debate on each stage is actually debate on a specific motion. For the first reading, there is no debate. For the second reading,

4418-423: The calendar year, with the first act passed being chapter 1, and so on. In the United Kingdom, legislation has referenced by year and chapter number since 1963 ( Acts of Parliament Numbering and Citation Act 1962 ). Each act is numbered consecutively based on the date it received royal assent, for example the 43rd act passed in 1980 would be 1980 chapter 43. The full reference includes the (short) title and would be

4512-465: The country to co-ordinate production, working with some success under Lord Beaverbrook to increase the supply and quality of armoured vehicles . Macmillan was appointed Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies in 1942, in his own words "leaving a madhouse to enter a mausoleum". Though a junior minister he was a member of the Privy Council , and he spoke in the House of Commons for Colonial Secretaries Lord Moyne and Lord Cranborne . Macmillan

4606-442: The daughter of the 9th Duke of Devonshire , on 21 April 1920. Her great-uncle was Spencer Cavendish, 8th Duke of Devonshire , who was leader of the Liberal Party in the 1870s, and a close colleague of William Ewart Gladstone , Joseph Chamberlain and Lord Salisbury . Lady Dorothy was also descended from William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire , who served as prime minister from 1756 to 1757 in communion with Newcastle and Pitt

4700-632: The end of 1918 Macmillan joined the Guards Reserve Battalion at Chelsea Barracks for "light duties". On one occasion he had to command reliable troops in a nearby park as a unit of Guardsmen was briefly refusing to reembark for France, although the incident was resolved peacefully. The incident prompted an inquiry from the War Office as to whether the Guards Reserve Battalion "could be relied on". Macmillan then served in Ottawa , Canada, in 1919 as aide-de-camp (ADC) to Victor Cavendish, 9th Duke of Devonshire , then Governor General of Canada , and his future father-in-law. The engagement of Captain Macmillan to

4794-466: The engine of growth. Benefiting from favourable international conditions, he presided over an age of affluence , marked by low unemployment and high—if uneven—growth. In his speech of July 1957 he told the nation it had "never had it so good", but warned of the dangers of inflation, summing up the fragile prosperity of the 1950s. He led the Conservatives to success in 1959 with an increased majority. In international affairs, Macmillan worked to rebuild

SECTION 50

#1732847936193

4888-445: The event of defeat. Macmillan returned to England after the European war, feeling himself 'almost a stranger at home'. He was Secretary of State for Air for two months in Churchill's caretaker government , 'much of which was taken up in electioneering', there being 'nothing much to be done in the way of forward planning'. Macmillan indeed lost Stockton in the landslide Labour victory of July 1945 , but returned to Parliament in

4982-412: The following stages: There are special procedures for emergency bills, member's bills (similar to private member's bills in the UK Parliament), committee bills, and private bills. In Singapore, the bill passes through these certain stages before becoming into an Act of Parliament. Acts passed by the Parliament of England did not originally have titles, and could only be formally cited by reference to

5076-585: The forced repatriation of up to 70,000 prisoners of war to the Soviet Union and Josip Broz Tito 's Yugoslavia in 1945. The deportations and Macmillan's involvement later became a source of controversy because of the harsh treatment meted out to Nazi collaborators and anti-partisans by the receiving countries, and because in the confusion V Corps went beyond the terms agreed at Yalta and Allied Forces Headquarters directives by repatriating 4000 White Russian troops and 11,000 civilian family members. Macmillan toyed with an offer to succeed Duff Cooper as MP for

5170-436: The general right of hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords, and the consequent removal of the general disability of such peers to sit in or vote for the House of Commons, it is no longer necessary for hereditary peers to disclaim their peerages for this purpose. In 2001, the 3rd Viscount Thurso became the first British hereditary peer to be elected to the Commons and take his seat. Later that year, Douglas Hogg inherited

5264-534: The government. This will usually happen following the publication of a " white paper ", setting out the issues and the way in which the proposed new law is intended to deal with them. A bill may also be introduced into parliament without formal government backing; this is known as a private member's bill . In territories with a multicameral parliament, most bills may be first introduced in any chamber. However, certain types of legislation are required, either by constitutional convention or by law, to be introduced into

5358-451: The high rate of unemployment in Stockton. He opposed the appeasement of Germany practised by the Conservative government. He rose to high office during the Second World War as a protégé of Prime Minister Winston Churchill . In the 1950s Macmillan served as Foreign Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer under Anthony Eden . When Eden resigned in 1957 following the Suez Crisis , Macmillan succeeded him as prime minister and Leader of

5452-414: The independent candidate, Lindsay , at the 1938 Oxford by-election . He wrote a pamphlet "The Price of Peace" calling for alliance between Britain, France and the USSR, but expecting Poland to make territorial "accommodation" to Germany (i.e. give up the Danzig corridor ). In "Economic Aspects of Defence", early in 1939, he called for a Ministry of Supply. Macmillan visited Finland in February 1940, then

5546-474: The job, Macmillan attained real power and Cabinet rank late in 1942 as British Minister Resident at Algiers in the Mediterranean, recently liberated in Operation Torch . He reported directly to the Prime Minister instead of to the Foreign Secretary , Anthony Eden . Oliver Lyttelton had a similar job at Cairo, while Robert Murphy was Macmillan's US counterpart. Macmillan built a rapport with US General Dwight D. Eisenhower , then Supreme Allied Commander in

5640-467: The last surviving Irish representative peer had died in 1961). The Act granted peers of Scotland the same right to sit in the House of Lords as peers of England, Great Britain or the United Kingdom, thereby ending the election of Scottish representative peers and increasing the number of peers of Scotland in the Lords (who did not already sit as holder of another British peerage) from 16 to about 46. An amendment that would have allowed Irish peers to sit in

5734-446: The leadership of both the Labour and Conservative parties. Macmillan supported Chamberlain's first flight for talks with Hitler at Berchtesgaden, but not his subsequent flights to Bad Godesberg and Munich. After Munich he was looking for a "1931 in reverse", i.e. a Labour-dominated coalition in which some Conservatives would serve, the reverse of the Conservative-dominated coalition which had governed Britain since 1931. He supported

SECTION 60

#1732847936193

5828-488: The lifting of sanctions on Italy after her conquest of Abyssinia . "Chips" Channon described him as the "unprepossessing, bookish, eccentric member for Stockton-on-Tees" and recorded (8 July 1936) that he had been sent a "frigid note" by Conservative Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin . Baldwin later mentioned that he had survived by steering a middle course between Macmillan and John Gretton , an extreme right-winger. The Next Five Years Group, to which Macmillan had belonged,

5922-458: The lower House. Prior to the House of Lords Act 1999 , a hereditary peer could not disclaim a peerage after having applied for a writ of summons to Parliament; now, however, hereditary peers do not have the automatic right to a writ of summons to the House. A peer who disclaims the peerage loses all titles, rights and privileges associated with the peerage; if they are married, so does their spouse. No further hereditary peerage may be conferred upon

6016-449: The motion is "That this bill be now read a second time and be referred to [name of committee]" and for third reading "That this bill be now read a third time and pass." In the Committee stage, each clause is called and motions for amendments to these clauses, or that the clause stand part of the bill are made. In the Report stage, the debate is on the motions for specific amendments. Once a bill has passed both Houses in an identical form, it

6110-426: The parliamentary session in which they were passed, with each individual act being identified by year and chapter number. Descriptive titles began to be added to the enrolled acts by the official clerks, as a reference aid; over time, titles came to be included within the text of each bill. Since the mid-nineteenth century, it has also become common practice for acts to have a short title , as a convenient alternative to

6204-505: The party was in opposition. According to Michael Bloch , there have long been rumours that Macmillan was expelled from Eton for homosexuality. Macmillan's biographer D. R. Thorpe is of the view that he was removed by his mother when she discovered that he was being "used" by older boys. Dick Leonard reports that Alistair Horne refers to "inevitable rumours" and that "he left for the 'usual reasons' for boys to be expelled from public schools". Macmillan married Lady Dorothy Cavendish ,

6298-483: The person, but a life peerage may be. The peerage remains without a holder until the death of the peer who had made the disclaimer, whereupon it descends to his or her heir in the usual manner. The one-year window after the passage of the Act soon proved to be of importance at the highest levels of British politics, after the resignation of Harold Macmillan as Prime Minister in October 1963. Two hereditary peers wished to be considered to replace him, but by this time it

6392-400: The protests of Labour politician Tony Benn , then the 2nd Viscount Stansgate . Under British law at the time, peers of England , peers of Great Britain and peers of the United Kingdom who met certain qualifications, such as age (21), were automatically members of the House of Lords and could not sit in or vote in elections for the other chamber, the House of Commons . At the time of

6486-410: The right hand and receiving a glancing bullet wound to the head in the Battle of Loos in September 1915, Macmillan was sent to Lennox Gardens in Chelsea for hospital treatment, then joined a reserve battalion at Chelsea Barracks from January to March 1916, until his hand had healed. He then returned to the front lines in France. Leading an advance platoon in the Battle of Flers–Courcelette (part of

6580-408: The safe Conservative seat of Westminster St George's . Criticised locally for his long absence, he suggested that Lady Dorothy stand for Stockton in 1945, as she had been nursing the seat for five years. She was apparently willing. However, it was thought better for him to be seen to defend his seat, and Lord Beaverbrook had already spoken to Churchill to arrange that Macmillan be given another seat in

6674-414: The safe seat of Hitchin in 1931. However the sitting MP, Guy Kindersley cancelled his retirement plans, in part because of his own association with the anti-Baldwin rebels and his suspicion of Macmillan's sympathy for Oswald Mosley 's promises of radical measures to reduce unemployment. Instead, the resignation of the new candidate at Stockton allowed Macmillan to be re-selected there, and he returned to

6768-473: The same version of the bill. Finally, the approved bill receives assent; in most territories this is merely a formality and is often a function exercised by the head of state . In some countries, such as in France, Belgium, Luxembourg , Spain and Portugal, the term for a bill differs depending on whether it is initiated by the government (when it is known as a "draft"), or by the parliament (a "proposition", i.e.,

6862-563: The scholars and exhibitioners of his year, only he and one other survived the war. As a result, he refused to return to Oxford to complete his degree, saying the university would never be the same; in later years he joked that he had been "sent down by the Kaiser ". Owing to the impending contraction of the Army after the war, a regular commission in the Grenadiers was out of the question. However, at

6956-469: The sometimes lengthy main titles. The Short Titles Act 1892 , and its replacement the Short Titles Act 1896 , gave short titles to many acts which previously lacked them. The numerical citation of acts has also changed over time. The original method was based on the regnal year (or years) in which the relevant parliamentary session met. This has been replaced in most territories by simple reference to

7050-803: The subject of great sympathy in Britain as it was being invaded by the USSR , then loosely allied to Nazi Germany. His last speech from the backbenches was to attack the government for not doing enough to help Finland. Britain was saved from a potentially embarrassing commitment when the Winter War ended in March 1940. Macmillan voted against the Government in the Norway Debate of May 1940, helping to bring down Neville Chamberlain as prime minister, and tried to join in with Colonel Josiah Wedgwood singing " Rule, Britannia! " in

7144-529: The war not intervened. He obtained a First in Honour Moderations , informally known as 'Mods' (consisting of Latin and Greek, the first half of the four-year Oxford Literae Humaniores course, informally known as "Classics"), in 1914. With his final exams over two years away, he enjoyed an idyllic Trinity term at Oxford, just before the outbreak of the First World War. Volunteering as soon as war

7238-598: The whole of the UK or a number of its constituent countries – England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Private acts are local and personal in their effect, giving special powers to bodies such as local authorities or making exceptions to the law in particular geographic areas. In the United Kingdom Parliament, each bill passes through the following stages: In the Scottish Parliament, bills pass through

7332-528: Was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1957 to 1963. Nicknamed " Supermac ", he was known for his pragmatism , wit, and unflappability . Macmillan was seriously injured as an infantry officer during the First World War. He suffered pain and partial immobility for the rest of his life. After the war he joined his family book-publishing business , then entered Parliament at the 1924 general election for Stockton-on-Tees . Losing his seat in 1929, he regained it in 1931, soon after which he spoke out against

7426-411: Was elected as an excepted hereditary peer after losing reelection as an MP. Since the chief purpose for the Act ended in 1999, there has only been one further disclaimer: Christopher Silkin, 3rd Baron Silkin , disclaimed his title in 2002. As of 2024, the barony of Silkin is the only title currently disclaimed under the terms of the Peerage Act 1963. The Peerage Act 1963 only applies to titles held in

7520-443: Was Third Scholar at Eton College , but his time there (1906–10) was blighted by recurrent illness, starting with a near-fatal attack of pneumonia in his first half (term); he missed his final year after being taken ill, and was taught at home by private tutors (1910–11), notably Ronald Knox , who did much to instil his High Church Anglicanism . He won an exhibition (scholarship) to Balliol College, Oxford . In his youth, he

7614-469: Was already criticising Butler (then Chancellor of the Exchequer) in his diary, accusing him of "dislik(ing) and fear(ing) him"; in fact there is no evidence that Butler regarded Macmillan as a rival at this stage. In April 1953 Beaverbrook encouraged Macmillan to think that in a future leadership contest he might emerge in a dead heat between Eden and Butler, as the young Beaverbrook (Max Aitken as he had been at

7708-625: Was also particularly impressed by a speech by Lloyd George at the Oxford Union Society in 1913, where he had become a member. Macmillan was a protégé of the president of the Union Society Walter Monckton , later a Cabinet colleague; as such, he became secretary then junior treasurer (elected unopposed in March 1914, then an unusual occurrence) of the Union, and would in his biographers' view "almost certainly" have been president had

7802-674: Was an admirer of the policies and leadership of a succession of Liberal prime ministers, starting with Henry Campbell-Bannerman , who came to power when Macmillan was 11 years old and H. H. Asquith , whom he later described as having "intellectual sincerity and moral nobility", and particularly of Asquith's successor, David Lloyd George , whom he regarded as a "man of action", likely to accomplish his goals. Macmillan went up to Balliol College in 1912, where he joined many political societies. His political opinions at this stage were an eclectic mix of moderate conservatism, moderate liberalism and Fabian socialism. He read avidly about Disraeli , but

7896-606: Was appointed Acting President of the Allied Commission (the Supreme Commander being President). Macmillan visited Greece on 11 December 1944. As the Germans had withdrawn, British troops under General Scobie had deployed to Athens, but there were concerns that the pro-communist Greek resistance, EAM and its military wing ELAS , would take power (see Dekemvriana ) or come into conflict with British troops. Macmillan rode in

7990-455: Was born on 10 February 1894, at 52 Cadogan Place in Chelsea , London, to Maurice Crawford Macmillan, a publisher, and the former Helen (Nellie) Artie Tarleton Belles, an artist and socialite from Spencer, Indiana . He had two brothers, Daniel, eight years his senior, and Arthur, four years his senior. His paternal grandfather, Daniel MacMillan , who founded Macmillan Publishers , was the son of

8084-414: Was considered requisite that a prime minister sit in the Commons. The 2nd Viscount Hailsham and the 14th Earl of Home took advantage of the Act to disclaim their peerages, despite having inherited them in 1950 and 1951 respectively. Sir Alec Douglas-Home , as Lord Home now became, was chosen as prime minister; both men later returned to the House of Lords as life peers . Since the abolition in 1999 of

8178-579: Was declared, Macmillan was commissioned as a temporary second lieutenant in the King's Royal Rifle Corps on 19 November 1914. Promoted to lieutenant on 30 January 1915, he soon transferred to the Grenadier Guards . He fought on the front lines in France , where the casualty rate was high, including the probability of an "early violent death". He served with distinction and was wounded on three occasions. Shot in

8272-449: Was first a major cause of his odd and rebellious behaviour in the 1930s then, in subsequent decades, made him a harder and more ruthless politician than his rivals Eden and Butler. The Macmillans had four children: Lady Dorothy died on 21 May 1966, aged 65. In old age, Macmillan was a close friend of Ava Anderson, Viscountess Waverley , née Bodley, the widow of John Anderson, 1st Viscount Waverley . Eileen O'Casey , née Reynolds,

8366-652: Was given responsibility for increasing colonial production and trade, and signalled the future policy direction when in June 1942 he declared: The governing principle of the Colonial Empire should be the principle of partnership between the various elements composing it. Out of partnership comes understanding and friendship. Within the fabric of the Commonwealth lies the future of the Colonial territories. Macmillan predicted that

8460-515: Was rocked by the Vassall Tribunal and the Profumo affair , which to cultural conservatives and supporters of opposing parties alike seemed to symbolise moral decay of the British establishment. Following his resignation, Macmillan lived out a long retirement as an elder statesman, being an active member of the House of Lords in his final years. He died in December 1986 at the age of 92. Macmillan

8554-472: Was the best way to deal with Americans, which later influenced his foreign policy as prime minister. On 22 February 1943, Macmillan was badly burned in a plane crash, trying to climb back into the plane to rescue a Frenchman. He had to have a plaster cast put on his face. In his delirium he imagined himself back in a Somme casualty clearing station and asked for a message to be passed to his mother, now dead. Together with Gladwyn Jebb he helped to negotiate

8648-557: Was the first peer to make use of the Act. St Clair, fulfilling a promise he had made at the time of taking his seat, accepted the office of Steward of the Manor of Northstead the previous day, thereby disqualifying himself from the House ( outright resignation is prohibited ), and Benn was then re-elected in Bristol South East at the ensuing by-election. To disclaim a hereditary peerage, the peer must deliver an instrument of disclaimer to

8742-417: Was the sole author of "Reconstruction: A Plea for a National Unity". In 1935 he was one of 15 MPs to write "Planning for Employment". His next publication, "The Next Five Years", was overshadowed by Lloyd George's proposed "New Deal" in 1935. Macmillan Press also published the work of the economist John Maynard Keynes . Macmillan resigned the government whip (but not the Conservative party one) in protest at

8836-444: Was wound up in November 1937. His book The Middle Way appeared in June 1938, advocating a broadly centrist political philosophy both domestically and internationally. Macmillan took control of the magazine New Outlook and made sure it published political tracts rather than purely theoretical work. In 1936, Macmillan proposed the creation of a cross-party forum of antifascists to create democratic unity but his ideas were rejected by

#192807