Gladstone's ministry of 1868-74.

Gladstone was a complex man whose liberal principles clashed with the strong Anglican conservative influences of his early life; in addition there was, as always, the need to maintain public support for his government, and the views of other MPs in his party. As a result the decisions he took during his first ministry were not always as principled as his stern conscience would advocate. But nonetheless, he was a man of great integrity who …

…right to encourage huge changes in a system that was adapting well and becoming fairer. In the end, it was this refusal to part with principled and upright statesmanship that led both to his defeat at the next election - he lost support from the Nonconformists, from the working classes, and from brewers and drinkers - and his endurance later on in the nineteenth century, when the long-term beneficial effects of his measures were recognised.