Building Britain: Gladstone & Disraeli part 2

Gladstone was appalled by Disraeli's foreign policy

As Britain entered the 1870s, the turbulent relationship between Liberal Prime Minister William Gladstone and Tory Leader Benjamin Disraeli entered a new phase.

Since their first clash, almost 20 years before, they had been opponents but by the end of the decade their mutual distrust would take on a new dimension.

After a stunning Liberal victory handed Gladstone the keys to Number 10 in 1868, Disraeli retreated from the limelight.

Only a year before he had presided over a massive expansion of the electorate to include, for the first time, working class men. But this radical overhaul had not helped the Tories as the new working class voters flocked to the Liberals.

Building Britain Part 1: The Glorious Revolution Part 2: The first prime minister Part 3: The Great Reform Act Part 4: Gladstone & Disraeli part 1

British politics had been overturned, and the Tories were left floundering. They could no longer rely on the support of the upper classes alone. If they were to be returned to power, the Tories would have to re-think everything they stood for.

While the new prime minister set about a massive programme of government reforms, the Conservative leader put his mind to a finding policy which would unite the new working class voter with the traditional upper class Tory.

A national party

By the early 1870s, Disraeli had hit upon the formula he needed. Speaking in Manchester and London, he outlined his new Tory ideals.

Disraeli promised social reform to attract working class voters, but united the classes with an appeal to national pride with a strong imperial policy.

The Tories were no longer the aristocratic party, they were the national party and the strategy worked.

Faced with a choice between Gladstone's dogged programme of institutional reform and Disraeli's calls for a rejuvenated Empire, the electorate rallied behind the Tory Leader.

When an election finally came in January 1874, the tables were turned. Now it was Gladstone who was cast into the political wilderness.

At the age of 70, Disraeli had finally achieved everything he had worked towards. He was prime minister in a strong Tory Government and he finally got the chance to play the world statesman.

But Gladstone wasn't beaten. The prime minister's pursuit of a strong foreign policy would lead to the final showdown - a clash between Disraeli's realpolitik and Gladstone's idealism.

The conflict elevated the former as one of the most successful statesmen of his time, while the other became a semi-mythical figure amongst Britain's working classes.

You can watch the latest in BBC Parliament's series about the evolution of the UK's Parliament throughout the Easter recess.