1910 Finance Act District Valuation map & schedule

  • 1910 Finance Act District Valuation map
  • 1910 Finance Act District Valuation map
  • 1911 farms based on 1910 map
Archive Notes:

Coloured map showing owners of each plot in Wheatley parish in 1910 with separate schedule of owners, occupiers, and description of land etc. For schedule of owners of more than 1 acre see record 2185.

In 1908-1909, Lloyd George, with his deep-seated dislike of large landowners, carried through a series of laws and land taxes, the implementation of the latter requiring the revaluation of land, which was completed in 1910. The idea was much hated by many at the time, but it was not finally enacted. It is now a valuable source of information for historians, as is shown later. Lloyd George’s 1909 budget was voted down by the landowners in the House of Lords, leading eventually to the Parliament Bill of 1911, which emasculated the upper chamber.

Although the proposed land tax of 20 percent of the increase in value at the point of sale was dropped, landowners knew that they were under attack, and this resulted in increased sales of land. Some made a virtue out of it, on account of the greater return from stocks and shares. While there were a few land sales from 1910, these were at depressed levels and very much higher prices were obtained in 1919. A recovery in farming occurred as the country went to war, but the benefits did not accrue to the landowners in terms of land values until after war had ended. The prestige of land holding was now in the early stages of decline with its gentry no longer needing land for social status. Instead, owner occupation of farms gradually became the norm from the early 1920s.

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