Sir Walter Forrest (July 1869 – 18 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 ...

, later Liberal National politician and businessman.

Birth and family

Walter Forrest was the son of Sir William Croft Forrest, a textile manufacturer of Aldringham,

Roundhay Roundhay is a large suburb in north-east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Roundhay had a population of 22,546 in 2011. It sits in the Roundhay ward of Leeds City Council and Leeds North East parliamentary constituency. History Etymology Roundh ...

, a district of

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

. His father was a member of

Pudsey Pudsey is a market town in the City of Leeds, City of Leeds Borough in West Yorkshire, England. It is located midway between Bradford, Bradford city centre and Leeds city centre. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of ...

Corporation and seven times Mayor of Pudsey. Walter Forrest married first Kate Shillings of Pudsey. She died in 1913. They had one son. He remarried in 1915, his second wife being Mary Macduff from

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

. Forrest was a partner in his father's woollen manufacturing business. He later developed business interests in a number of companies, including investment trusts and insurance as well as heavy industry.''The Times'', 19 July 1939

Local politics

Forrest started his political career in local government. President of Pudsey Liberal Association in the 1890s, Forrest was a member of Pudsey Town Council in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

between 1900 and 1919, serving as

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from 1909 to 1912 and was later an

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 ...

. Between 1905 and 1919 he was a member of the

West Riding County Council West Riding County Council (WRCC) was the county council of the Administrative counties of England, administrative county of the West Riding of Yorkshire from 1 April 1889 to 31 March 1974. The council met at County Hall, Wakefield, County Hall i ...

for Pudsey and

Farsley Farsley is a town in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough, West Yorkshire, England to the west of Leeds city centre, east of Bradford. Farsley is situated between the two cities and near the town of Pudsey. Before April 1974, Farsley was pa ...

. He also served as a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

Parliamentary career

Forrest entered

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

at a

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as a Coalition Liberal – that is a member of the Liberal Party supporting the

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with the

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led by

David Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for leading the United Kingdom during t ...

– for the Pontefract division of

in September 1919. He held the seat until the 1922 general election when he was defeated by Tom Smith the

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

candidate. He tried unsuccessfully to re-enter Parliament at the 1923 general election as Liberal candidate for

Batley Batley is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. Batley lies south-west of Leeds, north-west of Wakefield and Dewsbury, south-east of Bradford and north-east of Huddersfield. Batley is part of the ...

but he won that constituency at the 1924 general election. He lost the seat in

1929 This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholic ...

, again to Labour. In 1922 Forrest had briefly been

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to the

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Leaving the Liberals

In 1931 Forrest joined the Conservative Party, citing his loss of faith in the policy of

Free Trade Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econo ...

in a letter he sent to

Stanley Baldwin Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley, (3 August 186714 December 1947) was a British Conservative Party politician who dominated the government of the United Kingdom between the world wars, serving as prime minister on three occasions, ...

but he later switched to the Tories’ Liberal National allies. At the time of his death, just short of his 70th birthday, he was treasurer of the London Liberal National Party and a member of the National Executive of the Liberal National Council. He was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

for political and public service in the

1935 New Year Honours The 1935 New Year Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the United Kingdom and British Empire. They were announced on the 28 of December, 1934. The recipients o ...

, becoming a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

Yorkshire heritage

Forrest was always proud of his Yorkshire birth and heritage. He was of the Society of Yorkshiremen in London and also chaired the Yorkshire Society. In 1928, after the death of

H H Asquith Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith, (12 September 1852 – 15 February 1928), generally known as H. H. Asquith, was a British statesman and Liberal Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom f ...

a memorial to the former Liberal prime minister in the form of a bronze bust and panel was unveiled in the Town Hall in

Morley Morley may refer to: Places England * Morley, Norfolk, a civil parish * Morley, Derbyshire, a civil parish * Morley, Cheshire, a village * Morley, County Durham, a village * Morley, West Yorkshire, a suburban town of Leeds and civil parish * M ...

, where he had been born. The ceremony was attended by some members of Asquith's family and Forrest, as the local Liberal MP, placed a wreath on the memorial.''The Times'', 30 October 1928 He is buried in Pudsey cemetery along with his father and his second wife, Mary.

References

External links

*
Pudsey Cemetery burial plot information
{{DEFAULTSORT:Forrest, Walter 1869 births 1939 deaths English justices of the peace Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1918–1922 UK MPs 1924–1929 People from Pudsey Politics of West Yorkshire Mayors of places in Yorkshire and the Humber Knights Bachelor Conservative Party (UK) politicians National Liberal Party (UK, 1922) politicians Members of West Riding County Council