Salisbury

The 20 Prime Ministers of the 20th Century
By Eric Midwinter

 Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury (1830-1903) Conservative politician, Prime Minister 1885-6, 1886-92 and 1895-1902, and the last to hold that office in the House of Lords. Foreign affairs were always Salisbury's main interest, and he acted as his own Foreign Secretary during most of his administrations. The great issue of the time was the expansion of the empire, and competition with other colonial powers, particularly in Africa. His last term as Prime Minister saw the initially disasterous Second Boer War, which shook British confidence and heralded the end of 'Splendid Isolation'.

Dr Eric Midwinter, formerly Director of the Centre for Policy on Ageing, Co-founder of the University of the Third Age and lately Visiting Professor of Education at Exeter University, is a social historian and author of over 50 books with a wide range of topics from cricket and comedians to education, leisure and old age. Among his books are W. G. Grace: His Life and Times; State Educator: the Life and Enduring Influence of W. E. Forster; and The Development of Social Welfare in Britain.