The British public was incensed when, in 1922, Joseph Robinson was nominated for a position of nobility. The company he once led in dealings with South Africa had been liquidated in 1905, and Robinson had been convicted and heavily fined for fraud. How then could he be honored for “National and Imperial Services”? Soon the real reason for Robinson’s undeserved selection emerged: he had contributed £30,000 to Prime Minister Lloyd George’s political fund. But it was ultimately to no avail; under public pressure, the government forced Robinson to reject the appointment. (It is not known if he got his money back.)1

The British Honors System is presided over by the Queen, who publishes a list of up to 1,000 awardees at New Year and on her official birthday in June. The Central Honors Committee gathers the names, which are supplemented and amended by the prime minister, before going to Her Majesty for approval. Some of the honors stretch back to the 14th century and have long paid tribute to individuals for their national service or heroism. Unfortunately, some prime ministers, such as Lloyd George, have abused the system, using it as a means of political patronage and control.

In 1916, Lloyd George ousted fellow Liberal Herbert Asquith as prime minister, and the party was split, leaving the new PM short of resources. To compensate, he established a political fund that he directly controlled and filled through the sale of honors. From 1916 to 1922, he awarded an average of around 400 a year, compared with an average of less than 200 a year for the previous eight years.2 In 1917, he created the Order of the British Empire and doled out 25,000 of these titles in the next five years.3 In this heated market, prices were high; one could pay as much as £10,000 to become a knight (and be called “Sir”) and £100,000 to become a peer (and serve in the House of Lords).4

Lloyd George targeted two groups in particular. Many businessmen had made huge profits from the First World War, and as the nouveaux riches, they were eager to pay for social respectability. The prime minister eagerly tapped this group and also rewarded the press barons who provided the publicity and support his new government needed. In fact, his first peerage went to the controversial media tycoon Sir Max Aitkin in 1917.5

By the time he left Downing Street, Lloyd George was an estimated £1.5 million better off.6 Both the greedy seller and the ambitious buyers got what they wanted, exemplifying the truth of Proverbs 17:8: “A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of the one who gets it; wherever he turns he prospers.” Of course, the Bible does not speak here of spiritual prosperity, nor does it commend this route to worldly prosperity. It merely states a sad fact, one that dishonors a nation at ease with such corruption.

An Isaac Watts’ 18th-century hymn begins, “When I can read my title clear / To mansions in the skies / I bid farewell to every fear / And wipe my weeping eyes.”7 Now that is the title to be desired, and it cannot be bought by earthly funds. Furthermore, those who traffic in illicit titles and advantages in this world should anticipate fear rather than consolation when they stand in judgment before the Lord.

Footnotes:
1
John Walker, The Queen Has Been Pleased (London: Secker and Warburg, 1986), 62-63.

2
Ibid., 55-57.

3
Ibid., 56-57. The award was so debased by Lloyd George it was nicknamed “The Order of the Bad Egg.”

4
Ibid., 2-3.

5
Ibid., 98.

6
Ibid., 2.

7
Isaac Watts, “When I Can Read My Title Clear” (1707), Timeless Truths Website, http://library.timelesstruths.org/music/When_I_Can_Read_My_Title_Clear/ (accessed March 7, 2008).
article adapted from Kairos Journal

First Baptist Church of Perryville is located one and a half miles east of Rt. 222 on Rt. 40, across from the Principio Health Center.