''The British Party System'' (1944) is a "playlet" by

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 188 ...

satirically analysing the origins of the party system in British politics in the form of a pair of conversations between scheming power-brokers at various points in history, who devise it and adapt it to suit their personal ends.

Creation

The playlet appears in Chapter III of Shaw's 1944 book ''Everybody's Political What's What?''. It was never intended for performance, and is rather an essay in the form of a mini play. A similar previous playlet ''

Arthur and the Acetone ''Arthur and the Acetone'' (1936) is a satirical playlet by George Bernard Shaw which dramatises an imaginary conversation between the Zionist Chaim Weizmann and the British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour, which Shaw presents as the "true" st ...

'' had been written in 1936 about the Balfour declaration. Shaw introduces the playlet with as comment about how party politics came into being: "What are the facts? Let me put them in the form of a little historical drama, as that comes easiest to me and is the most amusing."Shaw, Bernard, ''Complete Plays: With Prefaces'', Volume: 5., "Dodd, Mead", New York, 1963 p.819. He then goes on to explore the significance of party politics.

Plot

Scene:

Althorp Althorp (popularly pronounced ) is a Grade I listed stately home and estate in the civil parish of Althorp, in West Northamptonshire, England of about . By road it is about northwest of the county town of Northampton and about northwest ...

, the residence of the Spencers, Earls of Sunderland. King

William III William III or William the Third may refer to: Kings * William III of Sicily () * William III of England and Ireland or William III of Orange or William II of Scotland (1650–1702) * William III of the Netherlands and Luxembourg (1817–1890) N ...

and

Robert Spencer, 2nd Earl of Sunderland Robert Spencer, 2nd Earl of Sunderland, (5 September 164128 September 1702) was an English nobleman and politician of the Spencer family. An able and gifted statesman, his caustic temper and belief in absolute monarchy nevertheless made him n ...

discuss the latter's plan to create government through parties, rather than by choosing ministers on individual merit. Sunderland says that this system will ensure that members of parliament cannot function independently, but will always be under the control of the party in power for fear that the other party will take over. Both parties will have to appeal to the basic prejudices of the voting public to have a chance of power. 25 years later,

Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford (; 26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745), known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British Whigs (British political party), Whig statesman who is generally regarded as the ''de facto'' first Prim ...

and Sutherland's son

Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl of Sunderland Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl of Sunderland, KG, PC (23 April 167519 April 1722), known as Lord Spencer from 1688 to 1702, was a British statesman from the Spencer family. He served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (1714–1717), Lord Privy Seal ( ...

, argue about relative power of the King and the House of Lords. Walpole resists Sunderland's plans to restrict the number of peerages in the Upper House.

Context

Shaw follows this playlet with the provocative comment:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:British Party System 1944 plays Plays by George Bernard Shaw