In 2015, David Cameron's promise to hold a referendum on EU membership in the event of an election victory secured his Conservative Party another term in government. This united the party for the time being and prevented it from drifting into insignificance.
With the referendum coming up, he was able to negotiate further special rules for the UK from the EU. Everything went according to plan. All he had to do was to win the referendum and keep the country in the EU. But, as we know, things turned out differently. Partly because one of Cameron's own party colleagues, Boris Johnson, took advantage of this opportunity to not only support the side of the EU opponents (i.e. Brexiteers), but also to put himself at their head.
After the referendum, some newspaper articles complained that two former Eton students had taken the country hostage to a long-running personal contest, with the worse outcome for the country…
Isn't that an astonishing assumption? Should a school rivalry have decided the fate of a country? Can there be any truth in it at all? At least I find it so astonishing that I want to take a deeper look into it...
Let's start with the school. Eton is an independent school and therefore already has a special status in the British school system. It is also probably the most famous school in the world and there are good reasons for this.
Eton College was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI to provide 70 boys from poorer homes with a free education. It was only over the centuries that it became fashionable for wealthier families to send their male offspring to schools like Eton, for a fee. However, the group of boys who were originally sponsored still exist and are called King's Scholars. We have already heard of one well-known King's Scholar, Boris Johnson. Cameron was not one of them.
Today, scholarships are no longer only given to children from poorer families; they are awarded purely based on test results. And since the 1960s, education costs are no longer automatically and fully covered by the school. Coverage depends on the financial circumstances of the parents.
The scholars live on the boarding school grounds. They are therefore also known as Collegers. The other pupils live outside, spread over 24 houses in the town. They are called Oppidans, after oppidum, Latin for town. A total of around 1,300 boys aged between 12 and 18 attend the college.
Oppidans can also receive monetary support depending on their academic performance and their parents' wealth. In practice, there are hardly any differences between the two groups. However, this does not mean that the different affiliations are not maintained. Outside of lessons, students spend most of their time with the members of their houses, and there are all kinds of competitions in which the different groups compete. Collegers also have a slightly different dress code to Oppidans. If my comments remind you of the Harry Potter novels, no wonder, as the house system of British independent schools was the model for Hogwarts.
Possibly the biggest rivalry between groups is played out in a sporting way, similar to the Potter novels. Once a year, on St Andrew's Day, there is an Eton Wall Game between King's Scholars and Oppidans. The game is something of a proto-form of football and rugby. The match is played on a five metre wide strip along a 110 metre long wall built in 1717 and has been played since at least the beginning of the 19th century. If a team brings the ball into the opponent's end zone (shy) in accordance with certain rules, it is awarded a point. The ball is then thrown at a predetermined target to score a goal. If successful, the team receives nine more points. The targets are a garden gate or a tree. Incidentally, in the game between Collegers vs Oppidans a goal has not been scored since 1919.
The game illustrates another trait of my British hosts. Although they are often open to new ideas, this does not prevent them from maintaining their traditions. Continuity is also a valuable asset, no matter how eccentric the tradition may be. (The political system is another example.)
Rivalries are encouraged not only between groups, but also between individual students. They compete for prizes for academic achievement, in the state-mandated GCSE and AS-level exams, or the school's own trials. Finally, there are awards in individual subject areas. These are often judged by external experts. One of the most prestigious honours, the Newcastle Classical Prize, went to Colleger Boris Johnson in 1981.
But even students without prizes on their shelves don't have to feel bad. According to James Wood, a literary scholar and Etonian himself, the following self-image is indoctrinated: "The Etonian is marked by his air of effortless superiority." [1].
The list of celebrities who once attended the school probably contributes to the feeling of superiority. Here is a small selection: 2012 Nobel Prize winner for medicine John Gurdon, economist John Maynard Keynes, actors Hugh Laurie (Dr House) and Tom Hiddleston (Loki in the Marvel movies), writers Ian Fleming, Aldous Huxley and George Orwell, as well as a ballpark of politicians and including 18 prime ministers in addition to Cameron and Johnson. And, of course, a number of children of the aristocracy and moneyed gentry attended Eton. These include Princes Harry and William, their uncle Charles Spencer (Lady Diana's brother), Aga Khan III, Leopold III of Belgium, as well as several members of the Rothschilds, Astors and Vanderbilts.
Based on what has been written before, the confrontation between Cameron and Johnson in the referendum could therefore be interpreted as a continuation of a contest that had begun during their school days. The King's Scholar and Newcastle Classical Prize winner Johnson had to outbid Oppidan Cameron to finally become Prime Minister himself. Yes, that could have played a (small) role. Perhaps it was not a long lasting competition between them that played a role, as Johnson and Cameron were not in the same year, but perhaps the general drive to seek and win competitions that was fostered at Eton, contributed their quarrel?
But maybe there is more. When researching the background, I realised how elitist Eton is. Founded centuries ago by an English king, a history full of aristocratic or wealthy pupils, future prime ministers, Nobel Prize winners and other celebrities.
Additionally, the small village of Eton is right next to the equally small village of Windsor. Windsor Castle, one of the main castles of the British royal family and one of the country's top tourist attractions, towers above it. In other words, the whole place is full of British flags and exudes British greatness, if not British superiority. It is only a few minutes' walk from Eton College to Windsor Castle. The following photo gallery provides a few impressions of the towns.
Finally, also the family backgrounds of the two politicians seem very elitist and have little to do with the reality of many Britons. Backgrounds that must give the impression that they were destined for greatness and to rule…
Let's again take a closer look. David William Donald Cameron was born in 1966. He first attended Heatherdown School, a independent school that also counts Prince Edward and Prince Andrew among its alumni, before transferring to Eton College. Between school and university, he worked for a few months and travelled around the world, before he returned from Hong Kong through the Soviet Union back to Great Britain. In 1988, he completed his education at Oxford with a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economy.
Cameron's education is quite normal in his family. Both his father and his older brother attended Eton. His mother was denied Eton as a woman. However, Cameron's maternal grandfather attended both Eton and Oxford. The same is said to be true of Cameron's great-grandfather, great-great-grandfather and great-great-great-grandfather.
The latter three were also politicians like David, members of the Tories and MPs in the House of Commons. His great-great-grandfather was raised to lower peerage as a baronet [2]. However, Cameron himself is not a nobleman, as the title is only passed down through the closest male relative.
The baronet is not Cameron's only noble ancestor. Along the paternal line, there are initially several stockbrokers [2]. However, the family tree also includes Lady Elizabeth Fitz-Clarence, an illegitimate daughter of King William IV (1765-1837). Cameron is more closely related to William IV than Queen Elizabeth II was [3]!
There are other links to British politicians and aristocrats, but I think his family background is sufficiently described.
After his bachelor's degree, Cameron began working for the Conservative Research Department, a Tory organisation. Over the next few years he took on various roles in the party and government, such as an adviser, before becoming a Director at Carlton Communications in 1994. (I should note, with no real work experience!)
Cameron had not, however, renounced his political ambitions. In 1997, a first attempt to be elected to the House of Commons failed. He tried again in 2001. This time he succeeded in being selected as the candidate for a constituency that would almost certainly fall to the Tories and he won the seat. In 2005 Cameron – somewhat surprisingly – won the election to become the new leader of the Tory party. In 2010, under his leadership, they won the general election and he became Prime Minister.
David Cameron is certainly a brilliant man with an understanding of the big political picture. But even Princes William and Harry may have been more in touch with ordinary Britons through their military service. In his appearances in favour of remaining in the EU, which can still be found on the internet, he rationally addresses abstract problems that could arise from leaving the EU. All true and important, but they had little to do with the everyday problems of many Britons. The distance between him and his audience is almost physically palpable...
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson was more approachable, although he has a similar background to Cameron.
His father Stanley, an Oxford alumni, sat in the European Parliament for the Tories. Brother Jo, an Eton and Oxford alumni, was a member of the House of Commons between 2010 and 2019 and held various posts in government. He was Minister for Universities and Science, Minister of Transport, Minister for London and Minister of State for Universities, Science Research and Innovation.
Boris' sister Rachel, of course also an Oxford alumni, is a novelist but is best known for her journalistic work. She has written for the Financial Times, Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph. She has also dabbled in politics. After briefly being a member of the Tories, Rachel joined the LibDems. A bid to stand as a candidate in the 2017 general election was not possible due to party rules. In April 2019, she switched to the newly founded anti-Brexit party(!) Change UK and unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the European Parliament.
The family can also boast some prominent ancestors. A great-great-grandfather on Johnsons father's side was Ali Kemal Bey, one of the last interior ministers of the Ottoman Empire. And a great-great-great-grandmother was most likely the illegitimate daughter of Prince Paul von Württemberg. Through her, Johnson would also have been related to King George II (1727-1760) [4].
Johnson's own career is beautifully described in Sonia Purnell's book "Just Boris", which I can only recommend [5]. Here is a brief outline.
He was born in New York City in 1964, when his father was studying at Columbia University. During his family's stay in Brussels, he stayed in school there before attending Eton College. This was followed, of course, by studies at Oxford.
At Eton, Johnson was editor of a school newspaper and a satirical magazine at the university. He was also a member of debating societies at both institutions, where he held leading positions.
His stays at school and university overlapped with those of Cameron. The two at least knew each other, partly because they were also members of the elite Bullingdon Club, a private dining club for Oxford students known for its wealthy members, binge drinking and bad behaviour.
While Cameron was already embarking on a political career with his choice of subject, Johnson studied Literae Humaniores at Oxford, focussing on the Classics: Latin, Ancient Greek, Philosophy and the History of Ancient Rome and Greece.
After graduating in 1987, Johnson began his professional career at L.E.K. Consulting, but left the job after a week. He then picked up where he left off as a journalist and got a job as a trainee at The Times. This engagement did not last either. When it became known that Johnson had made up a quote for an article, he was sacked.
Johnson's lax approach to his profession was no accident. Already at school, he was considered lazy, complacent and notoriously late. During his presidency of the Oxford debating society, his competence and seriousness were called into question. Johnson's lack of sense of seriousness is also visually unmistakable: he grimaces in many publicly available photos or ruffled his hair to make it stand on end.
One might assume that Johnson's filou-like behaviour would stand in the way of his further rise. But the opposite was the case. Johnson has too many contacts to fall low. At the same time, his behaviour distracts from his elitist origins and helps him to ingratiate himself with his audience.
In short, after the disaster at The Times, Johnson landed a job at the conservative The Daily Telegraph. He knew its editor from an encounter in Oxford. From 1989, he wrote about the European Union (or Community) and criticized It constantly. He did not stick to the truth really, although his articles often contained a grain of it.
The most famous story centred on a snack. Johnson claimed that the Union wanted to have the Prawn Cocktail Flavour Crisp banned. A type of crisp that is particularly popular in the UK. But the EU was by no means targeting British culinary delights. In the course of standardising the regulations on sweeteners and flavourings within the EU, a list of the ingredients used was drawn up. The British side(!) forgot to include the one for the popular crisps, which meant that it almost didn't end up on the list [6].
His articles would have gotten Johnson into trouble at The Times, but not at the Daily Telegraph. Johnson's "journalistic" activities not only made him kind of famous, but also provided fertile ground for right-wing Euroscepticism among the population.
Over the next few years, he also wrote columns for GQ (about cars) and for The Spectator, another conservative magazine. His contributions were said to often arrive late. In 1999, Johnson became editor-in-chief of The Spectator, a post he held until 2005.
Johnson caused controversy in all his positions, not only because of his articles and working methods, but also because of affairs. It's a running joke among the Brits I know that nobody knows how many children Johnson actually has.
In the 2001 election, Johnson won a parliamentary seat and defended it despite all the scandals in 2005. In 2008, he stood in the election for Mayor of London and won. In 2012 he defended his post. Again despite a series of scandals. The election victories are also astonishing because he is still the only Conservative politician to have won the post (at least since the creation of the Greater London Authority in 2000).
With his filou manner, Johnson skilfully overplays his elitist background. A born entertainer, he is also a master at reading his audience and adapting to it.
He returned to the House of Commons in 2015. Many saw his return as part of his plan to become Prime Minister. Johnson is a well-known admirer of Winston Churchill, and has made no secret of his desire to follow his path. (Also, let's not forget the influence of Eton).
In February 2016, Johnson sided with the Leave campaign. He made a statement outside his home, which was followed by an article in The Spectator [7]. There, he explained his decision, which he had made despite his great love of European culture and civilisation.
However, it later became known that Johnson was not sure which side he should take until shortly before his statement was published. So he formulated a second statement in which he would have supported the Remainers. The text was published in the book All Out War by Tim Shipman and was picked up by several newspapers. It is available from The Standard [8], among others.
However, the divisiveness of the two statements did not stop Johnson from becoming the face of the Leave campaign. It followed Johnson’s recipe for success. In order to make a big impact, he did not take the facts too seriously without telling a complete untruth. This made the Colleger Johnson much more successful than the Oppidan Cameron.
Perhaps Johnson chose this path because he wanted to outdo Cameron. Perhaps because he saw a good chance to take another step towards the office of Prime Minister. But did he act because he was in strong favour of Brexit? Or because he really wanted to take care of the British people and solve at least some of the problems they suffer?
To be honest, I find the latter difficult to imagine, at least as a decisive motivation. Not only because he was obviously undecided for a long time about which side to take. After Cameron's resignation, Johnson also did not put himself forward as a candidate for the election of a new party leader and therefore Prime Minister. He was aware of the tricky situation the country found itself in and let others deal with it first. Would a politician who was concerned about the matter have acted in this way?
Apart from that, I very much doubt that anyone with Johnson's (or Cameron's!) background understands how difficult life in the country has become for many Britons and what problems they are facing. Where would the understanding come from, when one has lived their whole life in a bubble with other Eton and Oxford alumni?
Perhaps there is even a bigger problem? Don't alumni from other independent schools and elite universities also live in this bubble? How many of them have political or other responsibilities in the country?
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Note 2: The blog will go into a short winter break at Christmas. There will be more posts from February 2024 at the latest, but at somewhat greater intervals.
[5] Sonja Purnell: Just Boris, Aurum (2011)
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