10 Average Questions about Fractured British Prime Ministers

Answer: Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister from 1979-1990, succeeding James Callaghan. She won three general elections, however her poll tax policy proved to be her undoing and she was challenged for the leadership of the Conservative party. She withdrew prior to the second round of voting and was succeeded by John Major.

Answer: Tony Blair

Tony Blair became leader of the Labour party in 1994 following the unexpected death of John Smith. He reformed the party as "New Labour" and removed the party's commitment to the public ownership of utilities - Clause 4. Tony Blair won power in a landslide in the 1997 general election and won a further two elections before he voluntarily stood down, allowing Gordon Brown to succeed him.

Answer: Benjamin Disraeli

Benjamin Disraeli, also known as the First Earl of Beaconsfield served as Prime Minister twice, non-consecutively. The first was for ten months in 1868 and the second from 1874-1880. On both occasions, he was succeeded by William Gladstone.

Answer: Edward Heath

Prime Minister from 1970-1974. During his time as Prime Minister, Great Britain joined the European Economic Community (EEC) and adopted decimal currency, however the three day week was one of the reasons he lost the Premiership to Harold Wilson in the February 1974 election. He died in 2005 and is buried in Salisbury Cathedral.

Answer: Neville Chamberlain

Neville Chamberlain was Prime Minister from 1937-1940. He is perhaps best known for his "I have in my hand a piece of paper" speech and declaring "Peace for our time". He was the Prime Minister at the outbreak of World War 2 and was succeeded in 1940 by Winston Churchill.

Answer: Clement Attlee

In the first general election for ten years (due to World War 2) in 1945, Clement Attlee defeated the incumbent Prime Minister, Winston Churchill. Attlee's government created the welfare state and the National Health Service in the UK.

Answer: Winston Churchill

According to a 2002 BBC poll to find the top 100 Britons of all time, Winston was #1. With the authority of both the House of Representatives and the Senate, President Kennedy proclaimed Winston to be an "Honorary Citizen of the United States" in 1963.

Answer: Harold MacMillan

Following Anthony Eden's resignation, Harold MacMillan became Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative party in 1957. During the general election campaign of 1959 he said "most of our people have never had it so good". Whilst he won the election, the Profumo scandal rocked his government and he resigned due to ill-health in 1963.

Answer: John Major

John Major won the Conservative party's leadership election which ended Margaret Thatcher's tenure in office, although he did subsequently win the 1992 election. The Pound's exit from the Exchange Rate Mechanism, allegations of sleaze, the divisions in the party over Europe and the length of time the Conservative party had been in office (nearly 18 years) led to Tony Blair being elected in a landslide.

Answer: Ramsay MacDonald

Ramsay MacDonald was the first Labour Prime Minister in the UK, however the coalition government he formed with the Liberal party in 1923 did not last a year and the Conservatives won the 1924 election. In 1929 even though the Conservative party won more votes, as the UK has a 'first past the post' system, Ramsay MacDonald was returned to power. Again, this was with the support of the Liberals.