By: History.com Editors

1997

Labour Party returns to power in Britain

History.com Editors

Published: February 09, 2010

Last Updated: January 24, 2025

After 18 years of Conservative rule, British voters give the Labour Party, led by Tony Blair, a landslide victory in British parliamentary elections. In the poorest Conservative Party showing since 1832, Prime Minister John Major was rejected in favor of Scottish-born Blair, who at age 43 became the youngest British prime minister in more than a century.

Blair studied law at Oxford and joined the Labour Party in 1975. In 1983, he was elected to Parliament from Sedgefield and became the party’s spokesperson on treasury affairs in 1985, and trade and industry in 1987. In the next year, he joined the shadow cabinet as energy secretary and in 1993 became shadow home secretary. In 1994, he was elected leader of the Labour Party, and during the next three years he orchestrated Labour’s ideological shift to the middle, borrowing such popular Conservative policies as free-market reforms. In May 1997, his “new” Labour Party won a resounding victory, and he was sworn in as prime minister. With Blair at its helm, the Labour Party went on to win three consecutive general-election victories. Blair was re-elected in 2001 and 2005, despite his support for U.S. President George W. Bush and the war in Iraq, which was unpopular among many Brits. He served longer as prime minister than any other Labour Party member in history.

Timeline

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1851

First-ever “Great Exhibition” opens in London

On May 1, 1851, the Great Exhibition opens to wide acclaim in the Crystal Palace in London. Inside the Crystal Palace, a giant glass-and-iron hall designed by Sir Joseph Paxton, more than 10,000 exhibitors set up eight miles of tables. Technological wonders from around the world were on display, but the exposition was clearly dominated […]

1852

Adventurer and performer Calamity Jane is born

On May 1, 1852, the adventurer and performer Calamity Jane is born near Princeton, Missouri. The myths and fabrications concerning the life of Calamity Jane are so numerous it is difficult to discover her true story. Legend has it that at various times Jane worked as a dishwasher at Fort Bridger, a laborer on the […]

1898

The U.S. destroys Spanish Pacific fleet in Battle of Manila Bay

At Manila Bay in the Philippines, the U.S. Asiatic Squadron destroys the Spanish Pacific fleet in the first battle of the Spanish-American War. Nearly 400 Spanish sailors were killed and 10 Spanish warships wrecked or captured at the cost of only six Americans wounded. The Spanish-American War had its origins in the rebellion against Spanish […]

1915

International Congress of Women adopts resolutions on peace, women’s suffrage

On May 1, 1915 in The Hague, Netherlands, the International Congress of Women adopts its resolutions on peace and women’s suffrage. The congress, also referred to as the Women’s Peace Conference, was the result of an invitation by a Dutch women’s suffrage organization to women’s rights activists around the world to gather in peaceful assemblage […]

Members of the Women's Peace Party arrive for the International Congress of Women, a four-day antiwar protest held at The Hague. Frieda Lawrence and Jane Addams have their names written above them.

1926

Ford factory workers get 40-hour week

On May 1, 1926, Ford Motor Company becomes one of the first companies in America to adopt a five-day, 40-hour week for workers in its automotive factories. The policy would be extended to Ford’s office workers the following August.  Henry Ford’s Detroit-based automobile company had broken ground in its labor policies before. In early 1914, […]

1931

Empire State Building dedicated

President Herbert Hoover officially dedicates New York City’s Empire State Building, pressing a button from the White House that turns on the building’s lights.

Al Smith and Empire State Building Replica

1941

“Citizen Kane” released

Citizen Kane, now revered as one of the greatest movies in history, makes its debut at the RKO Palace Theater on May 1, 1941. It had originally been intended to open at Manhattan’s Radio City Music Hall. But months before its release, Orson Welles’ landmark film began generating such controversy that the venue eventually refused […]

1955

Babe Didrikson Zaharias wins final LPGA tournament of her career

On May 1, 1955, Babe Didrikson Zaharias, one of the greatest athletes in sports history, wins the Peach Blossom LPGA Tournament in Spartanburg, S.C. The victory, the 41st LPGA title of her career, comes as a Didrikson Zaharias continues her battle with colon cancer. After a strong start to the tournament, Didrikson falters in the […]

1958

First “Law Day” observed

On May 1, 1958, the United States celebrates its first “Law Day,” one day after President Eisenhower announces the observance to honor the role of law in the creation of the U.S. Three years later, Congress followed suit by passing a joint resolution establishing May 1 as Law Day. The idea of a Law Day […]

1960

American U-2 spy plane shot down over Soviet Union

An American U-2 spy plane is shot down while conducting espionage over the Soviet Union. The incident derailed an important summit meeting between President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev that was scheduled for later that month. The U-2 spy plane was the brainchild of the Central Intelligence Agency, and it was a […]

Francis Gary Powers holds a model of a U-2 spy plane as he testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Powers' plane was shot down by the Soviets, and he was tried and convicted of spying in the USSR.

1963

Gloria Steinem publishes first half of her undercover Playboy exposé “A Bunny’s Tale”

After enduring a brief but grueling stint as a Bunny in Manhattan’s Playboy Club, feminist writer Gloria Steinem publishes the first half of her landmark account, “A Bunny’s Tale,” in SHOW magazine on May 1, 1963. Steinem’s undercover reporting increased her profile and stripped back the glamorous facade of Hugh Hefner‘s empire to reveal a world of […]

1967

Elvis Presley marries Priscilla Beaulieu

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2002

Former NBA All-Star Jayson Williams indicted for manslaughter

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History.com Editors

HISTORY.com works with a wide range of writers and editors to create accurate and informative content. All articles are regularly reviewed and updated by the HISTORY.com team. Articles with the “HISTORY.com Editors” byline have been written or edited by the HISTORY.com editors, including Amanda Onion, Missy Sullivan, Matt Mullen and Christian Zapata.

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Citation Information

Article title
Labour Party returns to power in Britain
Website Name
History
Date Accessed
March 25, 2025
Publisher
A&E Television Networks
Last Updated
January 24, 2025
Original Published Date
February 09, 2010

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