Harold Macmillan

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Harold Macmillan

• Probably the Best Post War Prime Minister Britain
  Has Ever Had!

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The Right Honourable Maurice Harold Macmillan

• Born in 1894 in Brixton, south London
• Educated at Eton and Oxford University
• He served with distinction in WW1
• He was injured on three occasions but decided to
  keep fighting for his country which shows
  tremendous bravery and patriotism
• During WW2 he worked with the wartime coalition
  government
• He was the First Earl of Stockton

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Positions in Government

• October 1951 Minister of Housing (rebuilding
  housing destroyed in the war, clearing slums etc)
• October 1954 Minister of Defence (ensuring the
  security of the UK and its territory abroad)
• April 1955 Foreign Secretary
• 1955-1957 Chancellor of the Exchequer

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Harold Macmillan, Prime Minister

• Macmillan came into power on the 11th January
  1957 and retired in 1963
• He led a Conservative government
• His time as Chancellor of the Exchequer impacted
  significantly upon his policies whilst Prime
  Minister he showed an understanding of the
  economy unparalleled by his successors
• He believed that to have a more successful
  economy it was important to seek high employment.
  His economic policies went against the advice of
  his treasury ministers who wanted strict controls
  on money which would lead to a rise in
  unemployment

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• All of his treasury ministers retired in 1958
  after Macmillan had been in office for just a
  year
• Macmillan won the next general election in 1959
  which shows his popularity with the British
  people
• The economy boomed and the country enjoyed stable
  prices
• During his premiership independence was granted
  to Malaya and Ghana (1957), Nigeria (1960) and
  Kenya (1963)
• He created the Economic Development Council in
  1961 to help former British Colonies like Africa

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• The defence of Britain was of vital importance to
  Macmillan and he consequently increased stocks of
  nuclear missiles
• In 1961 the government ordered a wage freeze due
  to a problem with the countrys Balance of
  Payments. More money was leaving the country than
  entering it
• In 1963 Macmillan's Secretary of War John Profumo
  lied to the House of Commons about having an
  affair with a teenage show girl.
• This was a great embarassment to Macmillan and
  his time in office is best known for The Profumo
  Affair

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• As usual the Liberals offer a mixture of sound
  and original ideas. Unfortunately none of the
  sound ideas is original and none of the original
  ideas is sound. Harold Macmillan

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Retirement

• Because of the embarrassing Profumo affair and
  wage freeze the government became increasingly
  more unpopular with the public until Macmillan
  decided to retire
• Harold Macmillan retired on the 19th October
  1963
• He received the Order of Merit from the Queen as
  recognition of his greatness and was made the
  Earl of Stockton

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Maurice Harold Macmillan
Died 1986
1894 - 1986
Rest In Peace SuperMac