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Viscount Edward Cardwell, Secretary of State for War 1868 – 1874, by George Richmond 1871
in February 1868 (with Disraeli as prime minis- ter) and the appointment of Edward Cardwell as Secretary of State for War.
Abolition
Edward Cardwell was a prominent Liberal politi- cian who, with the support of Gladstone (who succeeded Disraeli as prime minister in Decem- ber 1868) introduced the Cardwell Reforms. These were a raft of reforms introduced into the Army over the next four years. The major reforms included the abolition of purchase, centralisation of power in the War Office and the creation of a standing military reserve force based in Britain. Other reforms included the abolition of flogging, branding and other harsh punishments, the with- drawal of troops from self-governing colonies (the intention being that they should raise their own forces) and the reduction to a minimum ten years of compulsory service for enlisted men (it was previously 21 years – practically a life sen- tence which, with the existence of flogging, gave a near prison-like character to the Army!).
Gladstone had no particular specific interest in military matters, but was keen on efficiency eve- rywhere. The factors influencing reform of the Army included, not only its poor performance in the Crimean War due to incompetence and maladministration, but also the fact that the
Indian Mutiny required almost the entire usable British Army to suppress. The increasing effi- ciency and professionalism seen in Bismarck’s Prussian Army (which never had a purchase sys- tem), leading to its stunning victory over France in 1870 was also undoubtedly a factor, proving that the British tradition of ‘gentlemen soldering’ was outdated and ineffectual.
Once the decision in principle to end purchase had been made in 1870, detailed discussions fol- lowed at the War Office. After much deliberation, it was decided that officers would be compen- sated by the government at a rate broadly simi- lar to their entitlement to sell their commissions while purchase existed, including an element of the over-regulation price where it had been paid. The total value of this was estimated by the government at around at least £8M (£500M in today’s money), although it was suspected that the total value of officers’ investments was around £14M (£870M in today’s money).
The Bill was raised in the House of Commons in February 1871, with all readings being vigorously opposed at every stage by minority anti-aboli- tionists (including the group most determined to oppose the Bill known at the ‘Colonels’, com- prising a number of Conservative Party retired Army officers). The Bill, after a long struggle, finally succeeded and passed to the House of
William Ewart Gladstone, British Prime Minister 1868 – 1874 (and periods after), by Sir John Everett Millais 1879
86 HISTORICAL