Memorial statue to Prime Minister David Lloyd George in Parliament Square, London, United Kingdom. © 2013 John M. Shea
When the war began, Lloyd George was Chancellor of the Exchequer. The scandal of the shell shortage and the resignation of First Sea Lord Admiral John Fisher over the failed naval campaign in the Dardanelles shook the British government and forced Prime Minister Asquith to form a coalition cabinet. A member of the Liberal Party, David Lloyd George was made Minister of Munitions.In his new role, Lloyd George extended production of munitions to hundreds of small firms to meet the enormous demands of the war.An "Easterner," Lloyd George supported the continued participation of Britain on the Balkan Front.On the death of Kitchener on June 5, 1916, Lloyd George was made Secretary of State for War.Working with Conservatives, Lloyd George brought down the Asquith government, lead the formation of a new coalition cabinet, and became Prime Minister on December 7, 1916, a position he held until 1922.Frequently at odds with the military commanders, he imposed the introduction of the convoy system on the Navy, and a unified Allied command on the Army. The convoy system dramatically reduced the toll German submarines had been taking on Allied shipping. The unified command, first introduced in late 1917 as the Supreme War Council, improved coordination of Allied efforts in France, particularly after Operation Michael and the later German offensives in the spring and summer of 1918, and ultimately led to the appointment of General Ferdinand Foch as Supreme Allied Commander.After the abdication of Tsar Nicholas in the March 1917 Russian Revolution, Lloyd George opposed Great Britain's accepting the Tsar.Lloyd George lead the British delegation at the Versailles Peace Conference.
National Affiliation: Great Britain
