While there were only two major parties in British elections – the Liberal and Conservative parties – the Liberal Party was quite capable of putting up many hundreds of candidates at elections. However, the growth of the Labour Party undermined their support and the party split (1918 –1922) saw the party effectively politically implode and though the Liberal Party continued to put up candidates at elections, their political clout had gone.
1832: 636
1835: 538
1837: 506
1841: 389
1847: 393
1852: 487
1857: 506
1859: 466
1865: 515
1868: 600
1874: 489
1880: 499
1885: 572
1886: 449
1892: 532
1895: 447
1900: 402
1906: 536
1910: 511
1910*: 467
1918: 421
1922: 485
1923: 457
1924:339
1929: 513
1931: 117
1935: 161
1945: 306
1950: 475
1951: 109
1955: 110
1959: 216
1964: 365
1966: 311
1970: 332
1974: 517
1974**: 619
1979: 577
* = December
** = October
1832 to 1868: Liberal was more formally known as Whigs. The title ‘Liberal Party’ was officially adopted in 1868. However, from 1832 to 1868 many Whigs called themselves ‘Liberals’ because the term ‘Whig’ was too associated with the aristocracy