The Aberdeen Coalition, 1852-1855: A Study in Mid-Nineteenth-Century Party Politics

Abstract

Part I. the Formation of the coalition and its early Parliamentary successes: 1. The formation of the Aberdeen coalition, December 1852 2. The coalition cabinet 3. Peelite finance: Gladstone's first budget 4. The India Act of 1853 5. Religious issues and reform measures 6. The coalition triumphant: an assessment of the first session Part II. The Coalition and the origins of the Crimean War: 7. The Eastern Question: from the Seymour Conversations to the Vienna note 8. The Eastern Question: the failure of negotiation - August to December 1853 9. A domestic interlude - the cabinet crisis of December 1853 10. The drift to war from December 1853 to March 1854 11. Parliament, public opinion and the outbreak of war Part III. Reform and Frustration: 12. Lord John Russell's parliamentary reform bill of 1854 13. The Peelite contribution to reform in 1854 14. Frustration: the failure of the legislative programme of 1854 Part IV. The Crimean War and the fall of the coalition 15. The conduct of the war - the debate in parliament, April-August 1854 16. The conduct of the war - some diplomatic problems 17. The conduct of the war - the invasion of the Crimea 18. The end of the coalition Conclusion.