A short history of Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin was born on August
3rd 1867 in Bewdley, Worcestershire. He was the only son
of Alfred & Louise. His mother was formerly Louise Macdonald
whose family had artistic and literary interests. His Uncles
included the artists Sir Edward Burne-Jones and Sir Edward Poynter
and his Cousin was Rudyard Kipling.
Wilden Forge had dominated the small village
of Wilden for three hundred years and was powered by the waters of
the river Stour.
George Pearce Baldwin came from Broseley in Shropshire and moved
to Worcestershire at the turn of the 19th century. He
had twelve children, the youngest of which was Alfred born in 1841,
the year that George died.
Enoch Baldwin took over the Wilden Works
in1840 and ran the business with his nephews, Pearce & William
trading as “E.P. & W. Baldwins of Wilden”.
Alfred started work under his brothers, half
brothers, uncle and cousins
In 1866 they acquired the lease of Swindon
Works from one William Watkin, Iron Master of Amblecote Hall for a
rent of £650 per annum. They also paid, £4501– 15s - 4p to
Watkin for the plant.
In 1879, Alfred and his brothers dissolved the
partnership. Alfred then moved into Wilden House and took over the
company.
Swindon works was finally purchased in 1899,
two years before the lease was due to expire. Along with the other
Midland Works it became part of Baldwins Ltd in 1902 when the Welsh
part of the business merged with Wright Butler & Co.
On May 3rd 1879, Alfred built the
Church, Parsonage, Village Hall, School and Playing field, which he
gave to the Village of Wilden.
After graduating from Cambridge University,
Stanley Baldwin worked at Wilden Works learning the business.
He had a Cousin, Harold who lived with the
Baldwins and he was sent to learn the business at Swindon works.
Unfortunately Harold had suffered a fit while at Cambridge and
never really recovered his health so he had to give up working in
industry.
Stanley took an active part in the running of
the business. He was company secretary as well as being a partner
in the business from the time of his birth. He was deeply involved
with his father in the setting up of the merger which led to the
creation of Baldwins Ltd.in 1902. Stanley was directly responsible
for the purchase of Knight and Crowther and their works at
Stourvale and Cookley.in 1901.
Stanley Baldwin was Chairman of the
association of tinned sheet manufacture.
After entering Parliament his activities were
curtailed but he continued as Director.
Stanley Baldwins father was Conservative MP
for West Worcestershire (Bewdley) from 1892. On Alfred’s death in
1908 Stanley succeeded him as MP.
Following several ministerial appointments he
was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1922.The following
year he became Prime Minister when ill health forced Andrew Bonar
Law to retire. He soon called a general election to seek approval
for the government’s plans to introduce protective tariffs, but
failed to gain a majority. Ramsay MacDonald’s first Labour
government came to power backed by Liberal support.
It was short lived, by November 1924; the
Conservatives were back in power with a land slide majority and
Baldwin as Prime Minister.
In the General Strike of 1926, Baldwin
proclaimed a state of emergency and refused to negotiate until the
strike was over. His combination of firmness and conciliation
ensured its defeat.
The Conservatives lost the election in 1929
and Labour came back to power. Baldwin considered leaving politics
and spent most of the next two years fighting elements in his own
party. But in1931 he returned to government as a member of Ramsay
MacDonald’s National Coalition and in June 1935 he became Prime
Minister again when MacDonald resigned.
This term of office was dominated by rising
tension in Europe and the abdication crisis. Baldwin believed that
Edward V111’s wish to marry the divorcee Wallis Simpson was
unacceptable. The King was given the choice of renouncing her or
abdicating and chose to abdicate in 1936.
Baldwin resisted calls for re-armament and
took a concillary approach towards Nazi Germany.
Baldwin retired in May 1937 and was given the
title of Earl Baldwin of Bewdley and also he was made Viscount
Corvedale. Corvedale lies between Morville and Craven Arms in
Shropshire and the village of Munslow also in the Dale is where the
Baldwin family originated from, they are commemorated in the
church.
Stanley Baldwin died on September
14th 1947.at his home Astley Hall near
Stourport-on-severn. He was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium
and his ashes buried in Worcester cathedral.
His estate was probated at £ 280, 971.
Facts.
- Educated at Harrow and Trinity
College, Cambridge.
- Family- Baldwin was an only
child. He was married to Lucy Ridsdale, and had four daughters and
three sons (the first stillborn).
- Stanley’s interests were walking
in the countryside, Literature, and classical music.
- In 1917 he appealed for donations
from the rich to reduce the war dept and he gave one fifth of his
wealth to the cause. He also gave £5000 to Worcester Hospital and
£1000 to Kidderminster Hospital. Stanley borrowed £50,000 to put
into war loan and sold Iron & Steel shares to raise money
during the war. He paid the contributions to friendly societies for
every serviceman in his west Worcestershire constituency.
- During the Miners strike of 1912
he put up a notice in Wilden Works saying, he did not want men who
worked for him thrown out of employment through no fault of their
own, therefore he would make an allowance of 10 Shillings a week to
men, boys under 18 five shillings, women, five shillings and girls
under 18 two shillings and sixpence. I don’t know whether this
applied to Swindon.
The Swindon Connection
Stanley Baldwin was a frequent visitor to
Swindon and Bill Cartwright who worked in the Annealing Department
said that on one occasion he shook hands with him.
At a meeting of Swindon Parish Council to
select someone to represent them as a Governor of Swindon School,
it was proposed to ask Stanley Baldwin. He replied that if he was
elected he would do so. He was elected in 1903 and again in
1907.(From Swindon Parish Council Minutes).
Baldwin Way commemorates the Baldwin
family.
Stanley Drive (just off Wombourne Road) is in
memory of Stanley.
Albert Drive, also off Wombourne Road I was
told by a Councillor was supposed to be in memory of Alfred Baldwin
and should have been Alfred Drive. It was decided to leave it as it
was.
To end this short history of Stanley Baldwin
are some sincere words he spoke about Wilden Works. This applies
equally to Swindon works but the reader should not get the
impression that these works were home from home. The work was
extremely hard and in most cases hot, but there were some jobs
(usually low paid) that were less arduous.
“It was a place where I knew and had known
from childhood every man on the ground, a place where I was able to
talk with the men not only about the troubles in the works but
troubles at home, and their wives. It was a place where strikes and
lockouts were unknown. It was a place where the fathers and
grandfathers of the men working there had worked, and their sons
went automatically to the business.
It was a place where nobody ever got the sack,
and where we had a natural sympathy for those who were less
concerned in efficiency than in this generation, and where a large
number of old gentlemen used to spend their days sitting on the
handles of wheelbarrows smoking their pipes.”
Alf Robinson.
Contact
Cllr. R. Lees,
11 St. Johns Close,
Swindon,
South Staffordshire,
Tel: (01384) 279910
Email: r.lees@sstaffs.gov.uk
This page was last updated on: 2/27/2012