Paddington North (UK Parliament constituency)

The area has a history of multi ethnicity, French Huguenots settled in the village of Paddington in the 18th century, and in subsequent generations there were arrivals of Greek, Jewish, and Asian groups.

Along Maida Vale, the 1930s saw the building of new mansion blocks, a type of housing that already predominated along Elgin Avenue and some of the other streets from the time they were first built (typically, the first decade of the twentieth century).

The constituency descended the social scale as one travelled to the west, with the houses becoming smaller and more cheaply built; Shirland Road was the approximate boundary of the two zones.

Following the boundary revisions of 1918, the constituency included the area of Queen's Park ward of Paddington Borough Council which had previously been a detached part of Chelsea.

They built modestly sized two storey homes which were rented out to the skilled working-class, many of whom were railway employees at Paddington station and its associated goods yard.

With the area being encircled by London, there came to be an economic motive for demolishing some of the existing low-density housing and rebuilding at higher densities for the working class.

In preparation for the 1885 general election, the creation of a new division in North West London which was potentially winnable by either the Conservatives or the Liberals excited some interest.

Lionel Louis Cohen was in his early-fifties and a leading light in the City of London Conservative Association; he was also President of the Jewish Board of Guardians.

When the meeting concluded the chairman put a motion of confidence in their candidate, but on hearing that few present supported it, did not ask for people to show their opposition: the crowd demanded it and voted strongly against Cohen.

At the end of the campaign, an issue was made in the Jewish Chronicle of Cohen's support for the Marquess of Salisbury, who had opposed the removal of legal disabilities affecting Jews in the 1850s.

Digby received the support of the local branch of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants at a meeting held on Praed Street next to Paddington station.

As polling day approached, the Conservatives became more confident of victory, believing that the Roman Catholic, Jewish and Church of England blocks of votes were likely to be solid in support of Cohen.

The Irish vote in Paddington North was sizable and Cohen's denunciation of home rule together with Kempster's support for it had its effect in reducing the impact of a strong national trend towards the Conservatives.

On polling day, a rumour circulated that Aird's company was a large employer of foreign labour to enable it to compete against British firms.

Paddington North Liberals adopted Thomas Terrell, a barrister who had trained as an analytical chemist and also wrote novels and had stood in Devonport in 1885.

Terrell started his attempt to dislodge Aird early, and held large public meetings outlining the Gladstone "London Programme".

On 25 April 1895, he was presented (by Dr John Clifford, a local Baptist Minister) with a silver tray and a framed address in honour of his service and invited to be the next Liberal candidate.

Maberly's name was similar to that of Major-General Moberly who sat on the London School Board from Paddington but was a Conservative: Moberley pointed this out at the end of the campaign.

He was a young barrister and nephew of Sir Wilfrid Lawson, Liberal MP for Cockermouth, with whom he shared his politics: his two main policies at the election were opposition to the South African war and support for temperance.

Aird was readopted and attacked the Liberals for adopting socialistic policies which would hurt trade; he supported the government on its approach in South Africa.

Local labour interest was however on the side of Fordham, who received the endorsement of the Shop Assistants' Union after giving favourable answers to questions.

Aird denied the rumour, but in July 1904 aged seventy; he announced that he would give up the seat owing to growing inability to perform his duties.

Without difficulty, the Paddington North Liberal Council selected Leo Chiozza Money, an economist and journalist who was a rising star in the party nationally with some degree of fame.

Money was aided by Dr. Clifford who had become nationally famous for leading passive resistance to the Education Act 1903 (refusing to pay taxes, among other protests).

The fact that Leo Chiozza Money was from Genoa and Strauss was Jewish led to the establishment of a committee of local electors led by Col. Stewart and Alfred Darch who declared "the present position of the voters in the division has been rendered intolerable by the action of the Liberal and Conservative Associations, each having made the grievous mistake of failing to nominate an Englishman as a candidate for the constituency".

Chiozza Money's experience as an economist led to him being praised by Winston Churchill (then a Liberal) for knowing the issues better than any; he had also become popular amongst the working men of Harrow Road.

On 27 December 1909, PC Gregory of Paddington and another officer were attacked by three men who were subsequently convicted of Grievous Bodily Harm and assault.

However, Fairbank withdrew due to ill health in July and instead Leonard Franklin (Chairman of North Paddington Liberal Association since 1908) was picked.

Strauss spent the short time of the Parliament arranging for a party of ten constituents to visit Germany to see the effect of protective tariffs.

Following the death of Lionel Cohen: *Adopted as official Liberal candidate, but party withdrew support during campaign following exposure of crooked past.