Alec Douglas-Home
Alec Douglas-Home was a Conservative politician, member of the Parliament, and prime minister of the United Kingdom.
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History
Alec was the eldest son of Charles Douglas-Home and grandson of Charles Douglas-Home (same name), the earl of Home. His grandfather died in 1918, when he was still a teenager, leaving him to adopt a courtesy title of lord of Dunglass.
He first was elected to the Commons in 1931 for Lanark. He ran primarily as a Unionist, but was more importantly affiliated with the Conservatives. He was however absent from the Parliament between 1940 and 1943 due to poor health. In the 1945 elections that followed Churchill's coalition government falling apart, he lost that seat.
Douglas-Home regained his seat 5 years later, but his father died shortly after, leaving him to succeed both the earldom and a seat in the Lords. He then served in successive governments as secretary of state for Scotland, then for Commonwealth Affairs. Despite sitting in the Lords, he was appointed foreign secretary in 1960.
He emerged as the favored successor to Macmillan in 1963. Upon election as prime minister, Douglas-Home resigned his peerage and sought special election to the Commons in a Conservative stronghold district. (The last lord to serve as PM was Gascoyne-Cecil.)
In the 1964 general election, he led the Conservatives to a loss. He stepped down as party leader the next year.
He was appointed as FCO secretary in 1970 and served until the February 1974 election, which the Conservatives lost. He then chose to not seek re-election in election of October that same year. He was however created baron Home of the Hirsel and returned to the Lords. He effectively retired in 1989.