ABSTRACT
Leader of the British Liberal Party during much of the nineteenth century, William Ewart Gladstone governed Great Britain by putting into effect many of the principles of liberalism during the reign of Queen Victoria. Gladstone was born on December 29, 1809, in Liverpool, England. At Oxford University he excelled in his studies and joined the debate club. Gladstone also sought to curb British imperialism. He granted independence to the Transvaal in South Africa, yet sent troops to occupy Egypt in 1882 after a nationalist revolt there. Gladstones hope was to remove the troops quickly; however, they remained until 1956. Combining strong religious and moral convictions with a willingness to adapt to changing circumstances, William Ewart Gladstone provided effective political leadership in Victorian Britain. His principles defined the Liberal Party in the nineteenth century and anticipated many important twentieth-century issues.
