Historically, the paper was not overtly pro-Tory or Whig, but has been a long time bastion of the English Establishment and empire. The Times adopted a stance described as "peculiarly detached" at the 1945 general election; although it was increasingly critical of the Conservative Party's campaign, it did not advocate a vote for any one party. However, the newspaper reverted to the Tories for the next election five years later. It supported the <answer>Conservatives</answer> for the subsequent three elections, followed by support for both the <answer>Conservatives</answer> and the Liberal Party for the next five elections, expressly supporting a Con-Lib coalition in 1974. The paper then backed the <answer>Conservatives</answer> solidly until 1997, when it declined to make any party endorsement but supported individual (primarily Eurosceptic) candidates.
From the 1970s until 1997, The Times supported what political party?
Conservatives