William Harcourt (politician) William Harcourt (politician) Sir William George Granville Venables Vernon Harcourt, KC (14 October 1827 – 1 October 1904) was a British lawyer, journalist and Liberal statesman. He served as Member of Parliament for various constituencies and held the offices of Home Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer under William Ewart Gladstone before becoming Leader of the Opposition. A talented speaker in parliament, he was sometimes regarded as aloof and possessing only an intellectual involvement in his causes. He failed to engender much emotional response in the public and became only a reluctant and disillusioned leader of his party. Harcourt was
1880 Oxford by-election 1880 Oxford by-election The 1880 Oxford by-election was held in May 1880 due to the incumbent Liberal MP William Vernon Harcourt becoming Home Secretary and seeking re-election to Parliament. Harcourt was defeated. Harcourt had been one of the two MPs for Oxford since 1868 and had developed a reputation as a skilled debater but without tact. In the 1880 general election he had narrowly beaten his Conservative fellow MP, Alexander William Hall. Harcourt's campaign, particularly his acceptance speech, were regarded as insulting. The Liberals formed a government and Harcourt was invited to be Home Secretary which meant that he would