The early life, business career and political rise of Neville Chamberlain culminated on 28 May 1937, when he was summoned to
Buckingham Palace to "
kiss hands" and become
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Chamberlain was born in 1869; his father was the politician
Joseph Chamberlain. After a period in a firm of
chartered accountants, Neville Chamberlain spent six years in the Bahamas managing a
sisal plantation. Returning to England in 1897, he became a successful businessman, and
Lord Mayor, in his home city of
Birmingham. He was elected to the
House of Commons aged 49 in 1918, the oldest man at first election to Parliament to become prime minister. After four years on the
backbenches, he saw rapid promotion, becoming
Chancellor of the Exchequer after less than a year as a minister. He spent five years as
Minister of Health, securing the passage of many reforming acts. After two years in opposition, he became part of
Ramsey MacDonald's
National Government, and spent another five years as Chancellor. Chamberlain had long been regarded as Prime Minister
Stanley Baldwin's political heir, and when Baldwin announced his retirement, Chamberlain was seen as the only possible successor. (
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1963 – The University of East Anglia was founded in
Norwich, England, after talk of establishing such a university in the city began as early as the 19th century.
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