Alfred Henry Scott (24 June 1868 – 17 July 1939) was a British

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

politician.

Background

Scott was born in Ardwick,

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, the eldest son of Charles Henry Scott JP. He was educated at Altrincham Grammar School; Tideswell Grammar School and Lichfield Grammar School. In 1907 he married Katherine Duncan, the widow of Mr Lewis of Kentucky. He entered business as a merchant in the city."The Position in the Constituencies", ''The Times'', 18 September 1900, p.4 He was elected to Manchester City Council in 1897. At the 1900 general election he was the Liberal candidate at Manchester East, where he stood against the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

First Lord of the Treasury The first lord of the Treasury is the head of the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury exercising the ancient office of Lord High Treasurer in the United Kingdom, and is by convention also the prime minister. This office is not equivalent to the ...

Arthur Balfour Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour, (, ; 25 July 184819 March 1930), also known as Lord Balfour, was a British Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902 to 1905. As foreign secretary in the ...

. In his election address he set out his political views: he supported reform of the

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

Home Rule Home rule is government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governance wit ...

for Ireland, the

temperance movement The temperance movement is a social movement promoting temperance or complete abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and its leaders emph ...

, abolition of the House of Lords, and

nationalisation Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately-owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to pri ...

or municipalisation of land, railways and mines. At the next general election in 1906 he stood at

Ashton under Lyne Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. The population was 45,198 at the 2011 census. Historically in Lancashire, it is on the north bank of the River Tame, in the foothills of the Pennines, east of Manc ...

, and was elected as the town's Member of Parliament. Following his election to parliament, he stood down from Manchester City Council, after 9 years service. In 1907 he became Vice-President of the Association of Municipal Corporations. Whilst an MP he voted in favour of the 1908 Women's Enfranchisement Bill. He held the seat at the January 1910 election. A second general election was held in December of the same year. Scott was defeated by the Canadian millionaire

Max Aitken William Maxwell Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook (25 May 1879 – 9 June 1964), generally known as Lord Beaverbrook, was a Canadian-British newspaper publisher and backstage politician who was an influential figure in British media and politics o ...

(later Lord Beaverbrook), who had been "parachuted" in as the

Liberal Unionist The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a political ...

candidate. Scott moved to London. In 1913 he contested the 1913 London County Council election as a

Progressive Party Progressive Party may refer to: Active parties * Progressive Party, Brazil * Progressive Party (Chile) * Progressive Party of Working People, Cyprus * Dominica Progressive Party * Progressive Party (Iceland) * Progressive Party (Sardinia), Ita ...

candidate at

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

but was defeated. Despite this defeat he was immediately appointed to be a

alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...

on the

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...

. The Progressives were the municipal wing of the Liberal Party in London. He remained a member of the LCC until 1919. Scott attempted to return to the

Commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons ...

, and was the unsuccessful Liberal candidate at

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...

1918 This year is noted for the end of the First World War, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, as well as for the Spanish flu pandemic that killed 50–100 million people worldwide. Events Below, the events ...

, where the Unionist candidate was endorsed by the Coalition Government; In 1922 he stood for election to the London County Council and was defeated by a

Municipal Reform Party The Municipal Reform Party was a local party allied to the parliamentary Conservative Party in the County of London. The party contested elections to both the London County Council and metropolitan borough councils of the county from 1906 to 1945 ...

opponent in the St Pancras South East Division. Later that year he again stood as a candidate at the General Election; West Ham Stratford in

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...

and the following year he stood for parliament at

Finsbury Finsbury is a district of Central London, forming the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Islington. It borders the City of London. The Manor of Finsbury is first recorded as ''Vinisbir'' (1231) and means "manor of a man called Finn ...

in 1923.''The Times'', 26 November 1918, p.7; 27 October 1922, p.8; 27 November 1923, p.8 He retired to Birchington, Margate where he was appointed as an Alderman and served as a Justice of the Peace. He died in

Thanet Thanet may refer to: *Isle of Thanet, a former island, now a peninsula, at the most easterly point of Kent, England *Thanet District, a local government district containing the island *Thanet College, former name of East Kent College *Thanet Canal, ...

, Kent aged 71.

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, Alfred Henry 1868 births 1939 deaths Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1906–1910 UK MPs 1910 People from Ardwick Members of London County Council Progressive Party (London) politicians Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Ashton-under-Lyne