Rise of Neville Chamberlain his eighteenth birthday. In later years, as Chamberlain rose to the heights of British politics, he seldom visited the school, did not enrol his own son, and rarely spoke of his time there. Joseph Chamberlain then sent Neville to Mason College (which later developed into the University of Birmingham), which both emphasised the politician's connection to Birmingham and catered to the interest in science which Neville had shown at Rugby. Neville Chamberlain studied metallurgy and engineering for two years, but had little interest in the subjects. In 1889 his father apprenticed him to a firm of accountants. Within six months,
Neville Chamberlain leaked of the outcome of the meetings before Chamberlain's return, causing delight among many in London but gloom for Churchill and his supporters. Chamberlain returned to London in triumph. Large crowds mobbed Heston, where he was met by the Lord Chamberlain, the Earl of Clarendon, who gave him a letter from King George VI assuring him of the Empire's lasting gratitude and urging him to come straight to Buckingham Palace to report. The streets were so packed with cheering people that it took Chamberlain an hour and a half to journey the nine miles (14 km) from Heston to the