The Lloyd George Society is an organisation connected with, but not formally affiliated to, the
Liberal Democrats. It is named after
David Lloyd George, the Welsh
Liberal politician who was
British prime minister from 1916-1922. The Society was founded in the late 1950s by Liberals in
Wales when it was known as the Welsh Liberal Weekend Schools. It met, usually at a hotel in
Mid Wales
Mid Wales ( cy, Canolbarth Cymru or simply ''Y Canolbarth'', meaning "the midlands") or Central Wales refers to a region of Wales, encompassing its midlands, in-between North Wales and South Wales. The Mid Wales Regional Committee of the Senedd ...
, once a year to discuss topical political and social questions both domestic and foreign, with invited specialist guest speakers. A favourite location has been the Abernant Lake Hotel at
Llanwrtyd Wells because this was one of the
Spa towns at which Lloyd George used to spend time. Its main purpose at that time was to provide Liberal parliamentary candidates with an environment in which they could learn about the issues of the day, debate them with experts and so gain in experience and self-assurance better to equip them for the pressures of fighting general elections.
By the mid-1980s, with the development of the
Liberal-SDP Alliance, the name Welsh Liberal Weekend Schools was discarded and the group became known as the Lloyd George Society. The founding members included
Emlyn Hooson
Hugh Emlyn Hooson, Baron Hooson, (26 March 1925 – 21 February 2012) was a Welsh Liberal and then Liberal Democrat politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Montgomeryshire from 1962 until 1979.
Early life
Hooson was born at Colom ...
who was
Liberal MP for
Montgomeryshire
Montgomeryshire, also known as ''Maldwyn'' ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn meaning "the Shire of Baldwin's town"), is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It is named after its county tow ...
from 1962–79 and
Tom Ellis of the
SDP. The first Chairman was
Roger Pincham Roger James Pincham (born 28 October 1935) is a former British Liberal Party politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject ...
, former Chairman of the Liberal Party. It has continued to meet annually in Wales with expert speakers invited to talk on topical issues but over the years it has stopped being a training school for Liberal candidates and has now opened its doors to an audience who have an interest in Welsh affairs, society and culture as well as the wider British political scene. The Society also promotes an interest in the life, career and family of David Lloyd George.
At the meeting of the Society in
Llandrindod Wells in February 2009, Jennifer Longford, the daughter of
Frances Stevenson, Lloyd George's longtime mistress and his second wife, was elected as a Vice-President of the Society.
See also
*
Liberal Democrats
*
Politics of the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom is a unitary state with devolution that is governed within the framework of a parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy in which the monarch, currently Charles III, King of the United Kingdom, is the head ...
References
External links
Lloyd George SocietyWebsite of the Lloyd George Museum, Llanystumdwy
{{David Lloyd George
Politics of the United Kingdom
1950s establishments in the United Kingdom
Organizations established in the 1950s
History of the Liberal Democrats (UK)
Organisations associated with the Liberal Democrats (UK)
Welsh Liberal Democrats
David Lloyd George