| Election Name: | 1857 United Kingdom general election |
| Country: | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1852 United Kingdom general election |
| Previous Year: | 1852 |
| Previous Mps: | List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1852 |
| Next Election: | 1859 United Kingdom general election |
| Next Year: | 1859 |
| Seats For Election: | All 654 seats in the House of Commons |
| Majority Seats: | 328 |
| Elected Mps: | List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1857 |
| Leader1: | Viscount Palmerston |
| Leader Since1: | 6 February 1855 |
| Party1: | Whigs (British political party) |
| Leaders Seat1: | Tiverton |
| Last Election1: | 324 seats, 57.9% |
| Seats1: | 377 |
| Seat Change1: | 53 |
| Popular Vote1: | 464,127 |
| Percentage1: | 64.8% |
| Swing1: | 6.9% |
| Leader2: | Earl of Derby |
| Leader Since2: | July 1846 |
| Party2: | Conservative Party (UK) |
| Leaders Seat2: | House of Lords |
| Last Election2: | 330 seats, 41.9% |
| Seats2: | 264 |
| Seat Change2: | 66 |
| Popular Vote2: | 239,712 |
| Percentage2: | 33.5% |
| Swing2: | 8.4% |
| Map Size: | 438px |
| Prime Minister | |
| Posttitle: | Prime Minister after election |
| Before Election: | Viscount Palmerston |
| Before Party: | Whigs (British political party) |
| After Election: | Viscount Palmerston |
| After Party: | Whigs (British political party) |
| Map2 Image: | File:1857 UK GE Composition diagram.svg |
| Map2 Caption: | Composition of the House of Commons after the election |
In the 1857 United Kingdom general election, the Whigs, led by Lord Palmerston, won a majority in the House of Commons as the Conservative vote fell significantly. The election had been provoked by a vote of censure in Palmerston's government over his approach to the Arrow affair which led to the Second Opium War.
There is no separate tally of votes or seats for the Peelites. They did not contest elections as an organised party but more as independent Free trade Conservatives with varying degrees of distance from the two main parties.
According to A. J. P. Taylor:
The general election of 1857 is unique in our history: the only election ever conducted as a simple plebiscite in favour of an individual. Even the "coupon" election of 1918 claimed to be more than a plebiscite for Lloyd George; even Disraeli and Gladstone offered a clash of policies as well as of personalities. In 1857 there was no issue before the electorate except whether Palmerston should be Prime Minister; and no one could pretend that Palmerston had any policy except to be himself.[1]
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