 He did not return to politics until 1852, when having differed from Lord John Russell over the Corn Laws, he stood for Hertfordshire as a Conservative.Bulwer-Lytton held that seat until 1866, when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Lytton of Knebworth in the County of Hertford.In 1858 he entered Lord Derby's government as Secretary of State for the Colonies, thus serving alongside his old friend Disraeli.