Ramsay MacDonald

The Right Honourable Ramsay MacDonald FRS
Portrait by Walter Stoneman, 1923
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
In office 5 June 1929 – 7 June 1935
Monarch	George V
Preceded by	Stanley Baldwin
Succeeded by	Stanley Baldwin
In office 22 January 1924 – 4 November 1924
Monarch	George V
Preceded by	Stanley Baldwin
Succeeded by	Stanley Baldwin
Leader of the Opposition
In office 4 November 1924 – 5 June 1929
Monarch	George V
Prime Minister	Stanley Baldwin
Preceded by	Stanley Baldwin
Succeeded by	Stanley Baldwin
In office 21 November 1922 – 22 January 1924
Monarch	George V
Prime Minister	Bonar Law Stanley Baldwin
Preceded by	H. H. Asquith
Succeeded by	Stanley Baldwin
Leader of the Labour Party
In office 22 November 1922 – 1 September 1931
Deputy	J. R. Clynes
Preceded by	J. R. Clynes
Succeeded by	Arthur Henderson
In office 6 February 1911 – 5 August 1914
Chief Whip	George Roberts Arthur Henderson
Preceded by	George Barnes
Succeeded by	Arthur Henderson
Lord President of the Council
In office 7 June 1935 – 28 May 1937
Prime Minister	Stanley Baldwin
Preceded by	Stanley Baldwin
Succeeded by	The Viscount Halifax
Leader of the House of Commons
In office 5 June 1929 – 7 June 1935
Preceded by	Stanley Baldwin
Succeeded by	Stanley Baldwin
In office 22 January – 3 November 1924
Preceded by	Stanley Baldwin
Succeeded by	Stanley Baldwin
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
In office 22 January – 3 November 1924
Preceded by	The Marquess Curzon
Succeeded by	Austen Chamberlain
Parliamentary offices Member of Parliament for the Combined Scottish Universities In office 31 January 1936 – 9 November 1937 Preceded by Noel Skelton Succeeded by Sir John Anderson Member of Parliament for Seaham In office 30 May 1929 – 25 October 1935 Preceded by Sidney Webb Succeeded by Manny Shinwell Member of Parliament for Aberavon In office 15 November 1922 – 10 May 1929 Preceded by Jack Edwards Succeeded by William Cove Member of Parliament for Leicester In office 8 February 1906 – 25 November 1918 Serving with Henry Broadhurst Franklin Thomasson Eliot Crawshay-Williams Sir Gordon Hewart Preceded by John Rolleston Henry Broadhurst Succeeded by Constituency abolished
Personal details
Born	James McDonald Ramsay (1866-10-12)12 October 1866 Lossiemouth, Scotland
Died	9 November 1937(1937-11-09) (aged 71) North Atlantic Ocean
Resting place	Holy Trinity Church, Spynie
Political party	Labour (until 1931) National Labour (from 1931)
Spouse	Margaret Gladstone ​ ​ (m. 1896; died 1911)​
Children	6, including Malcolm and Ishbel
Alma mater	Birkbeck, University of London
Profession	Politician
Signature
Ramsay MacDonald's voice A speech by Ramsay MacDonald campaigning for the Labour Party whilst in opposition (recorded 1926)

James Ramsay MacDonald FRS (né James McDonald Ramsay; 12 October 1866 – 9 November 1937) was a British statesman^[1] and politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the first who belonged to the Labour Party, leading minority Labour governments for nine months in 1924 and again between 1929 and 1931. From 1931 to 1935, he headed a National Government dominated by the Conservative Party and supported by only a few Labour members. MacDonald was expelled from the Labour Party as a result.

MacDonald, along with Keir Hardie and Arthur Henderson, was one of the three principal founders of the Labour Party in 1900. He was chairman of the Labour MPs before 1914 and, after an eclipse in his career caused by his opposition to the First World War, he was Leader of the Labour Party from 1922. The second Labour Government (1929–1931) was dominated by the Great Depression. He formed the National Government to carry out spending cuts to defend the gold standard, but it had to be abandoned after the Invergordon Mutiny, and he called a general election in 1931 seeking a "doctor's mandate" to fix the economy.

The National coalition won an overwhelming landslide and the Labour Party was reduced to a rump of around 50 seats in the House of Commons. His health deteriorated and he stood down as Prime Minister in 1935, remaining as Lord President of the Council until retiring in 1937. He died later that year.

MacDonald's speeches, pamphlets and books made him an important theoretician. Historian John Shepherd states that "MacDonald's natural gifts of an imposing presence, handsome features and a persuasive oratory delivered with an arresting Highlands accent made him the iconic Labour leader". After 1931, MacDonald was repeatedly and bitterly denounced by the Labour movement as a traitor to its cause. Since the 1960s, some historians have defended his reputation, emphasising his earlier role in building up the Labour Party, dealing with the Great Depression, and as a forerunner of the political realignments of the 1990s and 2000s.^[2]