Joseph Chamberlain Amongst the dignitaries present were former Prime Minister Arthur Balfour, Bonar Law, Chamberlain's sons Austen and Neville (then Lord Mayor of Birmingham), and other members of the Chamberlain, Hutton and Martineau families. Winston Churchill called Chamberlain "a splendid piebald: first black, then white, or, in political terms, first fiery red, then true blue". This is the conventional view of Chamberlain's politics, that he became gradually more conservative, beginning to the left of the Liberal party and ending to the right of the Conservatives. An alternative view is that he was always a radical in home affairs and an imperialist in
Rise of Neville Chamberlain offices, with Austen Chamberlain writing, "The meeting today rejected our advice. Other men who have given other counsels must inherit our burden". Bonar Law was recalled from retirement to lead the Unionists as Prime Minister. Neville Chamberlain was in Canada at the time of the meeting and so was not forced to choose between supporting his brother's leadership and bringing down a Prime Minister he despised. Many frontbench Unionists refused to serve under Bonar Law, who was forced to form his Cabinet from lower-ranking party members. Liberal MP Winston Churchill, who would lose his seat in the upcoming election, dubbed