Tory

Tory, member of a former British political party, traditionally in opposition to the Whig Party. The name, derived from an Old Irish word meaning runaway or fugitive, was first applied to mid-17th-century Irishmen who, dispossessed by the English, became outlaws.

Later in the 17th century the Whigs employed the word as a term of opprobrium to supporters of the Roman Catholic king James II in particular and the monarchy in general. After the Glorious Revolution of 1688, which gave Parliament permanent supremacy over the king, the Tory Party was the party of the landed aristocracy, favoring agricultural interests and the Church of England. During the latter part of the reign of Queen Anne, beginning in 1710, the Tories reached the height of their power. After 1714, however, they were again the minority party.

In 1760 the Tories regained control of the government under George III; at this time, those American colonials who supported the British in the American Revolution were known as Tories. For 70 years the Tories retained power in Britain, but in 1830 their conservative domestic policies caused their defeat by the Whigs. During the early 1830s the Tory Party became known as the Conservative Party and the Whig Party as the Liberal Party, but the term Tory is still often used as a synonym for Conservative.

See also England; United Kingdom.