1.
Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
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The position is not legally entitled to cabinet standing on its own, so all Government House Leaders must simultaneously hold another portfolio. In recent years, sinecure assignments have been used to give House Leaders cabinet standing while allowing them to focus entirely on house business, the current House Leader is Bardish Chagger. The Government House Leader works on the governments behalf by negotiating with the House Leaders of the Opposition parties and this often includes discussion over timetables and may include concessions to demands by opposition parties to ensure quick passage of a bill or opposition support. The expansion of government responsibilities during the war led to Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King deciding to delegate the House leadership to one of his ministers, in 1946, the position of Government House Leader was formally recognized. In 1968, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau designated the Government House Leader as President of the Queens Privy Council for Canada, under Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, the roles of Government House Leader and President of the Privy Council were separated in 1989. Under Mulroney and his successors, the position of House Leader would often be held by someone who was named a Minister of State without any portfolio responsibilities specified. Since 2003, this Minister of State status has been obscured in all, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed Bardish Chagger as House Leader on August 22,2016. She retained the Minister of Small Business and Tourism portfolio, Chagger is Canadas first female House Leader. For a time, with the position having evolved into a full-time job, the Martin government created these positions so that the Minister of State title is effectively invisible. An amendment to the Salaries Act made this unnecessary by listing the Government House Leader as a minister, the Turner Ministry never convened the House, so Ouellet never technically served as Government House Leader. He was also named Minister of State for Economic and Regional Development, during this period Erik Nielsen, the Conservative House Leader when the party had been in Opposition, had the position of President of the Queens Privy Council for Canada. In practice this meant that Nielsen was senior Government House Leader in all but name and this situation ended when Hnatyshyn became President of the Privy Council on February 27,1985. From August 27,1987 Mazankowski was also President of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for Privatization, from September 15,1988 he was also Minister of Agriculture. The Campbell Ministry never convened the House, so Lewis never technically served as Government House Leader, leBlanc took over the portfolio after the resignation of Hunter Tootoo
Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
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Incumbent
Dominic LeBlanc since November 4 2015
Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
2.
United Kingdom
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
United Kingdom
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Stonehenge, in
Wiltshire, was erected around 2500 BC.
United Kingdom
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Flag
United Kingdom
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The
Bayeux Tapestry depicts the
Battle of Hastings, 1066, and the events leading to it.
United Kingdom
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The
Treaty of Union led to a single united kingdom encompassing all Great Britain.
3.
Andrea Leadsom
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Andrea Jacqueline Leadsom PC MP is a British Conservative Party politician who was appointed Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 14 July 2016. She has been a Member of Parliament representing South Northamptonshire since 2010, after graduating with a degree in political science at the University of Warwick, she worked in junior roles, including as a personal assistant, at Barclays and Invesco Perpetual. Leadsom was first elected to the House of Commons in the constituency South Northamptonshire in the 2010 general election, Leadsom was a prominent member of the Leave campaign during the 2016 EU referendum and gained standing in referendum TV debates. On David Camerons resignation, Leadsom became one of five candidates in the election for the leadership of the governing Conservative Party, and thereby for the prime ministership. Leadsom had been criticised for suggesting that May was unsuitable to be Prime Minister as she had no children, may appointed Leadsom as Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in her first cabinet. Leadsom was born in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, the daughter of Richard and she attended Tonbridge Girls Grammar School, then read Political Science at the University of Warwick, graduating with a 2,2 in 1987. After graduation, Leadsom began a career in the sector as a debt trader for Barclays de Zoete Wedd. For Barclays itself, she served as Deputy Director in the Financial Institutions team from 1993, in this role, she said she was given a ringside seat in the collapse of Barings Bank. Leadsom clashed with the then-head of Barclay Investments, Bob Diamond, who tried to persuade her to return to work soon after a pregnancy. Later she would claim to have been a Director at Barclays, from 1997 to 1999, Leadsom served as director of her brother-in-laws hedge fund, De Putron Fund Management. Peter de Putron is her sisters husband, according to records at Companies House, Leadsom was promoted to board director for Marketing in 1998 under her maiden name. Leadsom was Head of Corporate Governance and a Senior Investment Officer at Invesco Perpetual from 1999 to 2009, approval for individuals to manage funds or deal with clients is needed from the financial services regulator, which Leadsom held from December 2002 to February 2003. Leadsom was a Councillor on South Oxfordshire District Council between 2003 and 2007 and she contested Knowsley South constituency in the 2005 general election and was on the Conservative A-List. Leadsom was selected to stand as the candidate in the newly created South Northamptonshire constituency in June 2006. In 2009, ConservativeHome said that she was defending a notional Conservative majority of 11,356, at the 2010 general election in May, Leadsom was elected with a majority of more than 20,000. On entering the House of Commons she was appointed a member of the Treasury Select Committee, on 25 October 2011, Leadsom was one of 81 Conservative MPs to defy the party whip and vote in favour of holding a referendum on the UKs membership of the European Union. This led to a sharp ruction with George Osborne at the time, in July 2012, during the Libor scandal, she was widely reported on for her contribution to the Treasury Select Committees questioning of Bob Diamond. At a subsequent hearing she questioned Paul Tucker, who stated that the government had not conspired with the Bank to fix rates
Andrea Leadsom
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Andrea Leadsom
MP
4.
Robert Walpole
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Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, KG, KB, PC, known before 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British statesman who is generally regarded as the de facto first Prime Minister of Great Britain. Although the exact dates of his dominance are a matter of scholarly debate and he dominated the Walpole–Townshend ministry and the Walpole ministry and holds the record as the longest-serving Prime Minister in British history. Speck says that Walpoles uninterrupted run of 20 years as Prime Minister is rightly regarded as one of the feats of British political history. He was a Whig from the class, who was first elected to Parliament in 1701. He was a squire and looked to country gentlemen for his political base. Hoppit says Walpoles policies sought moderation, he worked for peace, lower taxes, growing exports and he avoided controversy and high-intensity disputes, as his middle way attracted moderates from both the Whig and Tory camps. Dickinson sums up his role, Walpole was one of the greatest politicians in British history. He played a significant role in sustaining the Whig party, safeguarding the Hanoverian succession and he established a stable political supremacy for the Whig party and taught succeeding ministers how best to establish an effective working relationship between Crown and Parliament. Walpole was born in Houghton, Norfolk, in 1676, Horatio Walpole, 1st Baron Walpole was his younger brother. As a child, Walpole attended a school at Massingham. Walpole entered Eton College in 1690 where he was considered an excellent scholar and he left Eton on 2 April 1696 and matriculated at Kings College, Cambridge on the same day. On 25 May 1698 he left Cambridge after the death of his only remaining brother, Edward. Walpole had planned to become a clergyman but as he was now the eldest surviving son in the family, in November 1700 his father died, and Walpole succeeded to the estate. A paper in his fathers handwriting, dated 9 June 1700, shows the estate in Norfolk and Suffolk to have been nine manors in Norfolk. As a young man, Walpole had bought shares in the South Sea Company, which monopolized trade with Spain, the speculative market for slaves, rum and mahogany spawned a frenzy that had ramifications throughout Europe when it collapsed. However, Walpole had bought at the bottom and sold at the top, adding greatly to his inherited wealth, Walpoles political career began in January 1701 when he won a seat in the general election at Castle Rising. He left Castle Rising in 1702 so that he could represent the borough of Kings Lynn. Like his father, Robert Walpole was a member of the Whig Party, in 1705, Walpole was appointed by Queen Anne to be a member of the council for her husband, Prince George of Denmark, Lord High Admiral
Robert Walpole
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The Right Honourable The Earl of Orford
KG KB PC
Robert Walpole
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Armorial of Walpole: Or, on a fesse between two chevrons sable three crosses crosslet of the field
Robert Walpole
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Sir Robert Walpole
Robert Walpole
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1740 political cartoon depicting Walpole as the
Colossus of Rhodes, alluding to his reluctance to engage Spain and France militarily
5.
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
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Ministers of the Crown, and especially Cabinet ministers, are selected primarily from the elected members of House of Commons, and also from the House of Lords, by the Prime Minister. Cabinet ministers are heads of government departments, mostly with the office of Secretary of State for, the collective co-ordinating function of the Cabinet is reinforced by the statutory position that all the Secretaries of State jointly hold the same office, and can exercise the same powers. The Cabinet is the ultimate decision-making body of the executive within the Westminster system of government in constitutional theory. The political and decision-making authority of the cabinet has been reduced over the last several decades. The Cabinet is the committee of Her Majestys Privy Council, a body which has legislative, judicial and executive functions. Its decisions are implemented either under the existing powers of individual government departments. Since the reign of King George I the Cabinet has been the executive group of British government. Both he and George II made use of the system, as both were not native English speakers, unfamiliar with British politics, and thus relied heavily on selected groups of advisers, the term minister came into being since the royal officers ministered to the sovereign. The name and institution have been adopted by most English-speaking countries, and this development grew out of the exigencies of the First World War, where faster and better co-ordinated decisions across Government were seen as a crucial part of the war effort. All these demanded a highly organised and centralised Government centred on the Cabinet, Cabinet ministers, like all ministers, are appointed and may be dismissed by the monarch at pleasure on the advice of the Prime Minister. The allocation and transfer of responsibilities between ministers and departments is generally at the Prime Ministers discretion. The extent to which the Government is collegial varies with political conditions, any change to the composition of the Cabinet involving more than one appointment is customarily referred to as a reshuffle, a routine reshuffle normally occurs every summer. The number in addition to the Prime Minister is currently 21, the Cabinet Secretary does not have a political appointment such as Secretary of State and is not a member of the Cabinet, but is the professional Head of Her Majestys Civil Service. In formal constitutional terms, the Cabinet is a committee of Her Majestys Most Honourable Privy Council, all Cabinet members are made Privy Counsellors shortly after appointment if not already Privy Counsellors, but only selected Privy Counsellors are appointed to the Cabinet or invited to attend. MPs and peers in the Cabinet use the style the Right Honourable The Cabinet has come to be made up almost entirely of members of the House of Commons, the Leader of the House of Lords is a member of the House of Lords. Otherwise it is rare for a peer to sit in the Cabinet, the Lord Chancellor was formerly the presiding officer of the House of Lords, but since 2007 need not be a member of the Lords, and members of the House of Commons have been appointed. The number of ministers who are peers has increased since 1997. Occasionally cabinet members are selected from outside the Houses of Parliament, harold Wilson appointed Frank Cousins and Patrick Gordon Walker to the 1964 cabinet despite their not being MPs at the time
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
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The Cabinet table
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
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United Kingdom
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
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Buildings
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
6.
House of Commons of the United Kingdom
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The House of Commons of the United Kingdom is the lower house of the countrys parliament. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster, officially, the full name of the house is, The Honourable the Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Parliament assembled. The House is a body consisting of 650 members known as Members of Parliament. Members are elected to represent constituencies by first-past-the-post and hold their seats until Parliament is dissolved, under the Parliament Act 1911, the Lords power to reject legislation was reduced to a delaying power. The Government is primarily responsible to the House of Commons and the prime minister stays in office only as long as he or she retains the support of a majority of its members. Although it does not formally elect the prime minister, the position of the parties in the House of Commons is of overriding importance, by convention, the prime minister is answerable to, and must maintain the support of, the House of Commons. Since 1963, by convention, the minister is always a member of the House of Commons. The Commons may indicate its lack of support for the Government by rejecting a motion of confidence or by passing a motion of no confidence, confidence and no confidence motions are sometimes phrased explicitly, for instance, That this House has no confidence in Her Majestys Government. Many other motions were considered confidence issues, even though not explicitly phrased as such, in particular, important bills that form a part of the Governments agenda were formerly considered matters of confidence, as is the annual Budget. Parliament normally sits for a term of five years. Subject to that limit, the minister could formerly choose the timing of the dissolution of parliament. By this second mechanism, the government of the United Kingdom can change without a general election. In such circumstances there may not even have been a party leadership election, as the new leader may be chosen by acclaim. A prime minister may resign if he or she is not defeated at the polls. In such a case, the premiership goes to whoever can command a majority in the House of Commons, in practice this is usually the new leader of the outgoing prime ministers party. Until 1965, the Conservative Party had no mechanism for electing a new leader, when Anthony Eden resigned as PM in 1957 without recommending a successor and it fell to the Queen to appoint Harold Macmillan as the new prime minister, after taking the advice of ministers. By convention, all ministers must be members of the House of Commons or of the House of Lords, a handful have been appointed who were outside Parliament, but in most cases they then entered Parliament either in a by-election or by receiving a peerage. Since 1902, all ministers have been members of the Commons
House of Commons of the United Kingdom
House of Commons of the United Kingdom
House of Commons of the United Kingdom
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The House of Commons in the early 19th century by
Augustus Pugin and
Thomas Rowlandson.
House of Commons of the United Kingdom
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Another picture of the old House of Commons chamber. Note the dark veneer on the wood, which was purposely made much brighter in the new chamber.
7.
Sinecure
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A sinecure means an office that requires or involves little or no responsibility, labour, or active service. Sinecures have historically provided a potent tool for governments or monarchs to distribute patronage, while recipients are able to store up titles, a sinecure is not necessarily a figurehead, which generally requires active participation in government, albeit with a lack of power. A sinecure can also be given to an individual whose primary job is in another office, for example, the Government House Leader in Canada is often given a sinecure ministry position so that he or she may become a member of the Cabinet. Similar examples are the Lord Privy Seal and the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in the British cabinet, other sinecures operate as legal fictions, such as the British office of Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Chiltern Hundreds, used as a legal excuse for resigning from Parliament. Such sinecure rectories were expressly granted by the patron and they were abolished by parliament under the Ecclesiastical Commissioners Act of 1840. Such cases eventually ceased to exist, the term is also used of any office or place to which salary emoluments or dignity but no duties are attached. They were prevalent in the 18th century, but were abolished by statutes during that. Below is a list of extant sinecures by Country, Lord Mackay of Clashfern Halsburys Laws of England, 4th ed. Vol.14, Ecclesiastical Law, Smith, W. A Dictionary of Christian Antiquities, Being a Continuation of the Dictionary of the Bible, J. B. Burr Pub. Co. pp. Sinecure. Definition on Enciclopedia Treccani Maurilio Guasco, Storia del clero, Bari, Laterza, p.20
Sinecure
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Girolamo and cardinal
Marco Cornaro investing Marco, abbot of
Carrara, with his
benefice,
Titian, ca 1520
8.
Prime Minister
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A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss members of the cabinet. In most systems, the minister is the presiding member. In parliamentary systems fashioned after the Westminster system, the minister is the presiding and actual head of government. In such systems, the head of state or the head of states official representative usually holds a ceremonial position. The prime minister is often, but not always, a member of the Legislature or the Lower House thereof and is expected with other ministers to ensure the passage of bills through the legislature. In some monarchies the monarch may also exercise powers that are constitutionally vested in the crown. The first actual usage of the prime minister or Premier Ministre was used by Cardinal Richelieu when in 1625 he was named to head the royal council as prime minister of France. Louis XIV and his descendants generally attempted to avoid giving this title to their chief ministers, the term prime minister in the sense that we know it originated in the 18th century in the United Kingdom when members of parliament disparagingly used the title in reference to Sir Robert Walpole. Over time, however, the title became honorific and remains so in the 21st century, the monarchs of England and the United Kingdom had ministers in whom they placed special trust and who were regarded as the head of the government. Examples were Thomas Cromwell under Henry VIII, William Cecil, Lord Burghley under Elizabeth I, Clarendon under Charles II and these ministers held a variety of formal posts, but were commonly known as the minister, the chief minister, the first minister and finally the prime minister. The power of ministers depended entirely on the personal favour of the monarch. Although managing the parliament was among the skills of holding high office. Although there was a cabinet, it was appointed entirely by the monarch, when the monarch grew tired of a first minister, he or she could be dismissed, or worse, Cromwell was executed and Clarendon driven into exile when they lost favour. Kings sometimes divided power equally between two or more ministers to prevent one minister from becoming too powerful, late in Annes reign, for example, the Tory ministers Harley and St John shared power. The monarch could no longer any law or impose any tax without its permission. It is at point that a modern style of prime minister begins to emerge. A tipping point in the evolution of the prime ministership came with the death of Anne in 1714, George spoke no English, spent much of his time at his home in Hanover, and had neither knowledge of, nor interest in, the details of English government
Prime Minister
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The prime ministers of five members of the
Commonwealth of Nations at the 1944
Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference.
Prime Minister
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Statue of
John A. Macdonald (1815–1891), first Canadian prime minister.
9.
Lord President of the Council
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The Lord President of the Council is the fourth of the Great Officers of State of the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord High Treasurer and above the Lord Privy Seal. The Lord President usually attends and is responsible of presiding over meetings of the Privy Council, in the modern era, the holder is by convention always a member of one of the houses of Parliament and the office is a Cabinet post. The Lord President is currently David Lidington as of 14 July 2016, the Privy Council meets once a month, wherever the Sovereign may be residing at the time, to give formal approval to Orders in Council. Only a few Privy Counsellors need attend such meetings, and only invited to do so at the Governments request. As the duties of the Lord President are not onerous, the post has often given to a government minister whose responsibilities are not department-specific. In recent years it has been most typical for the Lord President to also serve as Leader of the House of Commons or Leader of the House of Lords. Before the change of government in 2010, the Lord President was Peter Mandelson, examples of this practice are the meetings in New Zealand in 1990 and 1995, when Geoffrey Palmer and James Bolger respectively were acting Lords President. In the 19th century, the Lord President was generally the cabinet responsible for the education system. This role was gradually scaled back in the late 19th and early 20th centuries but remnants of it remain, a particularly vital role was played by the Lord President of the Council during the Second World War. The Lord President served as chairman of the Lord Presidents Committee and this committee acted as a central clearing house for dealing with the countrys economic problems. This was vital to the running of the British war economy. Winston Churchill, clearly believing that this wartime co-ordinating role was beneficial, introduced a similar, the so-called overlord ministers included Frederick Leathers as Secretary of State for the Co-ordination of Transport, Fuel and Power and Frederick Marquis, 1st Baron Woolton as Lord President. Wooltons job was to co-ordinate the then separate ministries of agriculture, the Lord President has no role in the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. Privy Council Office Vice-President of the Executive Council President of the Queens Privy Council for Canada Sinecure
Lord President of the Council
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Incumbent
Chris Grayling since 8 May 2015
Lord President of the Council
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Spencer Cavendish, 8th Duke of Devonshire
Lord President of the Council
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Charles Vane-Tempest-Stewart, 6th Marquess of Londonderry
Lord President of the Council
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Robert Crewe-Milnes, 1st Marquess of Crewe
10.
Lord Privy Seal
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The Lord Privy Seal is the fifth of the Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and above the Lord Great Chamberlain. The office is one of the sinecure offices of state. Originally, its holder was responsible for the personal seal. Today, the holder of the office is given a seat in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. Since the premiership of Clement Attlee, the position of Lord Privy Seal has frequently been combined with that of Leader of the House of Lords or Leader of the House of Commons. The office of Lord Privy Seal, unlike those of Leader of the Lords or Commons, is eligible for a ministerial salary under the Ministerial and other Salaries Act 1975. The office does not confer membership of the House of Lords, leading to Ernest Bevins remark on holding office that he was neither a Lord, nor a Privy. During the reign of Edward I, prior to 1307, the Privy Seal was kept by the Controller of the Wardrobe, the Lord Privy Seal was the president of the Court of Requests during its existence
Lord Privy Seal
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Incumbent
Tina Stowell, Baroness Stowell of Beeston since 15 July 2014
Lord Privy Seal
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Arms of
Her Majesty's Government
Lord Privy Seal
–
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury
Lord Privy Seal
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Arthur Balfour
11.
First Secretary of State
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First Secretary of State is an honorific title occasionally used within the Government of the United Kingdom. The title, which implies seniority over all other Secretaries of State, has no powers or authority attached to it beyond that of any other Secretary of State. The title is not always in use, so there have sometimes been extended gaps between successive holders of the title, the most lengthy of which being the 25 years between 1970 and 1995. The last holder was George Osborne, having held the post from May 2015 until July 2016, the post of Deputy Prime Minister had been created in 1942 for Clement Attlee, the leader of the Labour Party in Winston Churchills wartime coalition ministry. The post indicated that the holder ranked second in government, after the Prime Minister, for this reason, the Deputy Prime Minister concurrently held other offices, entitling him to a place in cabinet. The title First Secretary of State indicated the rank as a Secretary of State. The title was created in 1962 for Deputy Prime Minister R. A. Butler, michael Heseltine and John Prescott were also relieved of their cabinet portfolios when serving as Deputy Prime Minister, and were therefore additionally appointed First Secretary of State. In 1964, Prime Minister Harold Wilson established the alternative usage, Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
First Secretary of State
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Incumbent
George Osborne since 8 May 2015
First Secretary of State
–
Arms of
Her Majesty's Government
12.
Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
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The Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is a senior member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. They do not assume the duties and powers of the Prime Minister in the absence, illness, or death. The Deputy Prime Minister does not automatically succeed the Prime Minister when the latter is incapacitated, the designation of someone to the role of Deputy Prime Minister may provide additional practical status within the cabinet, enabling exercise of de facto, if not de jure, power. The Deputy Prime Minister usually deputises for the Prime Minister at official functions, the post of Deputy Prime Minister is not currently in use, having been left empty since the end of the coalition government following the 2015 UK general election. Many theories exist as to the absence of a formal post of Deputy Prime Minister in Britains uncodified constitution, theoretically the sovereign possesses the unrestricted right to choose someone to form a government following the death, resignation or dismissal of a Prime Minister. However, only two Deputy Prime Ministers have gone on to become Prime Minister, clement Attlee won the 1945 general election and succeeded Winston Churchill after their coalition broke up but only after a two-month interval when Attlee was not a member of the government. Anthony Eden succeeded Churchill as Prime Minister not because he had been Deputy Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Ministership, where it exists, may bring with it practical influence depending on the status of the holder, rather than the status of the position. Rab Butler held the post in 1962/63 under Harold Macmillan, but was passed over for the premiership in favour of Alec Douglas-Home, during the Heath administration of the 1970s, the title of Deputy Prime Minister was not formally used. However in his Memoirs, Home Secretary Reginald Maudling describes himself as Deputy Prime Minister under Heath from 1970 to his resignation in 1972 over the Poulson affair, William Armstrong, head of the Civil Service, was also called Heaths Deputy Prime Minister. William Whitelaw was Margaret Thatchers deputy from 1979–1988, a post he combined with that of Home Secretary in 1979–83, sir Geoffrey Howe was given the title in 1989, on being removed from the post of Foreign Secretary. He resigned as Deputy Prime Minister in 1990, making a speech that is widely thought to have hastened Thatchers downfall. Thatchers successor John Major did not appoint a Deputy Prime Minister until 1995, in 2001 this superdepartment was split up, with Prescott being given his own Office of the Deputy Prime Minister with fewer specific responsibilities. Following the 2010 general election, which returned a hung parliament, as leader of the smaller of the two parties in the coalition, Nick Clegg was appointed Deputy Prime Minister on the advice of the new Prime Minister, Conservative leader David Cameron. He chose instead to appoint the Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne as First Secretary of State - his effective deputy, after the 2016 referendum on European Union membership, Camerons successor as Prime Minister, Theresa May, also did not appoint an individual to the post. She did not appoint a replacement for Osborne as First Secretary of State either, the most recent Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg maintained an office at the Cabinet Office headquarters,70 Whitehall, which is linked to 10 Downing Street. Cleggs predecessor, John Prescott, maintained his office at 26 Whitehall. The office is not a single department and as such is part of. Given that there is no office of Deputy Prime Minister, with the position being recreated on a case by case basis
Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
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Buildings
Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
–
United Kingdom
Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
13.
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
–
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is the head of Her Majestys Government in the United Kingdom. The prime minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Monarch, to Parliament, to their political party, the office is one of the Great Offices of State. The current prime minister, Theresa May, leader of the Conservative Party, was appointed by the Queen on 13 July 2016. The position of Prime Minister was not created, it evolved slowly and erratically over three hundred years due to acts of Parliament, political developments, and accidents of history. The office is therefore best understood from a historical perspective, the origins of the position are found in constitutional changes that occurred during the Revolutionary Settlement and the resulting shift of political power from the Sovereign to Parliament. The political position of Prime Minister was enhanced by the development of political parties, the introduction of mass communication. By the start of the 20th century the modern premiership had emerged, prior to 1902, the prime minister sometimes came from the House of Lords, provided that his government could form a majority in the Commons. However as the power of the aristocracy waned during the 19th century the convention developed that the Prime Minister should always sit in the lower house. As leader of the House of Commons, the Prime Ministers authority was further enhanced by the Parliament Act of 1911 which marginalised the influence of the House of Lords in the law-making process. The Prime Minister is ex officio also First Lord of the Treasury, certain privileges, such as residency of 10 Downing Street, are accorded to Prime Ministers by virtue of their position as First Lord of the Treasury. As the Head of Her Majestys Government the modern Prime Minister leads the Cabinet, in addition the Prime Minister leads a major political party and generally commands a majority in the House of Commons. As such the incumbent wields both legislative and executive powers, under the British system there is a unity of powers rather than separation. In the House of Commons, the Prime Minister guides the process with the goal of enacting the legislative agenda of their political party. The Prime Minister also acts as the face and voice of Her Majestys Government. The British system of government is based on an uncodified constitution, in 1928, Prime Minister H. H. Asquith described this characteristic of the British constitution in his memoirs, In this country we live. Our constitutional practices do not derive their validity and sanction from any Bill which has received the assent of the King, Lords. They rest on usage, custom, convention, often of slow growth in their early stages, not always uniform, the relationships between the Prime Minister and the Sovereign, Parliament and Cabinet are defined largely by these unwritten conventions of the constitution. Many of the Prime Ministers executive and legislative powers are actually royal prerogatives which are still vested in the Sovereign
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
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Incumbent
David Cameron since 11 May 2010
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
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Arms of
Her Majesty's Government
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
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Late in the 17th century Treasury Ministers began to attend the Commons regularly. They were given a reserved place, called the Treasury Bench, to the Speaker's right where the Prime Minister and senior Cabinet members sit today
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
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Portrait of Sir
Robert Walpole, studio of
Jean-Baptiste van Loo, 1740. Walpole is considered to have been Britain's first Prime Minister.
14.
Cabinet Office
–
The Cabinet Office is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for supporting the Prime Minister and Cabinet of the United Kingdom. It is composed of units that support Cabinet committees and which co-ordinate the delivery of government objectives via other departments. It currently has just over 2,000 staff, most of work in Whitehall. Staff working in the Prime Ministers Office are part of the Cabinet Office and this also includes working with the Treasury to drive efficiency and reform across the public sector. Other functions include oversight of the Crown Commercial Service and the accreditation of Social Impact Contractors, the department was formed in December 1916 from the secretariat of the Committee of Imperial Defence under Sir Maurice Hankey, the first Cabinet Secretary. Traditionally the most important part of the Cabinet Offices role was facilitating collective decision-making by the Cabinet and it also contains miscellaneous units that do not sit well in other departments. For example, The Historical Section was founded in 1906 as part of the Committee for Imperial Defence and is concerned with Official Histories, the Joint Intelligence Committee was founded in 1936 and transferred to the department in 1957. It deals with intelligence assessments and directing the national organisations of the UK. The Ceremonial Branch was founded in 1937 and transferred to the department in 1981 and it was originally concerned with all ceremonial functions of state, but today it handles honours and appointments. In modern times the Cabinet Office often takes on responsibility for areas of policy that are the priority of the Government of the time, the units that administer these areas migrate in and out of the Cabinet Office as government priorities change. The Cabinet Office Ministers are as follows, All of the Cabinet Offices ministers are Cabinet members, the Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Home Civil Service is Sir Jeremy Heywood, the Permanent Secretary and Chief Executive of the Home Civil Service is John Manzoni. The Cabinet Office also supports the work of, the Leader of the House of Commons, the Leader of the House of Lords, and the Whips Office. Cabinet Committees have two key purposes, To relieve the burden on the Cabinet by dealing with business that does not need to be discussed at full Cabinet. Appeals to the Cabinet should be infrequent, and Ministers chairing Cabinet Committees should exercise discretion in advising the Prime Minister whether to allow them. To support the principle of responsibility by ensuring that, even though a question may never reach the Cabinet itself. In this way, the judgement is sufficiently authoritative that Government as a whole can be expected to accept responsibility for it. In this sense, Cabinet Committee decisions have the authority as Cabinet decisions. The main building of the Cabinet Office is at 70 Whitehall, remains of Henry VIIIs tennis courts from the Palace of Whitehall can be seen within the building
Cabinet Office
–
Cabinet Office, Whitehall
Cabinet Office
–
The entrance to the Cabinet Office.
Cabinet Office
–
Buildings
Cabinet Office
15.
First Lord of the Treasury
–
The First Lord of the Treasury is the head of the commission exercising the ancient office of Lord High Treasurer in the United Kingdom, and is now always also the Prime Minister. As of the beginning of the 17th century, the running of the Treasury was frequently entrusted to a commission, as of 1714, it has permanently been in commission. The commissioners have always since that date been referred to as Lords Commissioners of the Treasury, the term Prime Minister was initially, but decreasingly, used as a term of derogation, it was first used officially in a royal warrant only in 1905. William Pitt the Younger once opined that the Prime Minister ought to be the person at the head of the finances, as of 1827, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has always been Second Lord of the Treasury when he was not also Prime Minister. By convention, the other Lords Commissioners of the Treasury are also Government Whips in the House of Commons,10 Downing Street is the official residence of the First Lord of the Treasury, and not of the Prime Minister. As all modern prime ministers have simultaneously been First Lord of the Treasury, thereafter the posts of First Lord of the Treasury and Prime Minister have continually been held by the same person, see the list of 20th century British prime ministers. Chief Baron of the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury List of Lords Commissioners of the Treasury E. B, roy, ed. Handbook of British Chronology, 3rd Edition Haydn, Joseph Timothy. The Book of Dignities HM Government, First Lord of the Treasury
First Lord of the Treasury
–
Incumbent
David Cameron, MP since 11 May 2010
First Lord of the Treasury
–
Arms of
Her Majesty's Government
First Lord of the Treasury
–
Buildings
First Lord of the Treasury
16.
Chancellor of the Exchequer
–
The office is a British Cabinet-level position. The chancellor is responsible for all economic and financial matters, equivalent to the role of Secretary of the Treasury or Minister of Finance in other nations. The position is considered one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor of the Exchequer is now always Second Lord of the Treasury as one of the Lords Commissioners for executing the office of Lord High Treasurer. Formerly, in cases when the Chancellorship was vacant, the Lord Chief Justice of the Kings Bench would act as Chancellor pro tempore, the last Lord Chief Justice to serve in this way was Lord Denman in 1834. The earliest surviving records which are the results of the audit, date from 1129–30 under King Henry I. The Chancellor controlled monetary policy as well as fiscal policy until 1997, the Chancellor also has oversight of public spending across Government departments. The current Chancellor of the Exchequer is Philip Hammond and he is entrusted with a certain amount of misery which it is his duty to distribute as fairly as he can. The Chancellor has considerable control over other departments as it is the Treasury which sets Departmental Expenditure Limits, the amount of power this gives to an individual Chancellor depends on his personal forcefulness, his status within his party and his relationship with the Prime Minister. Gordon Brown, who became Chancellor when Labour came into Government in 1997, had a personal power base in the party. One part of the Chancellors key roles involves the framing of the annual year budget, as of 2017, the first is the Autumn Budget, also known as Budget Day which forecasts government spending in the next financial year and also announces new financial measures. The second is a Spring Statement, also known as a mini-Budget, britains tax year has retained the old Julian end of year,24 March /5 April. From 1993, the Budget was in spring, preceded by an annual autumn statement. This was then called Pre-Budget Report, the Autumn Statement usually took place in November or December. The 1997,2001,2002,2003,2006,2007,2008,2012 and 2016 Budgets were all delivered on a Wednesday, although the Bank of England is responsible for setting interest rates, the Chancellor also plays an important part in the monetary policy structure. He sets the target which the Bank must set interest rates to meet. Under the Bank of England Act 1998 the Chancellor has the power of appointment of four out of nine members of the Banks Monetary Policy Committee – the so-called external members. The Act also provides that the Government has the power to give instructions to the Bank on interest rates for a period in extreme circumstances. This power has never officially used. At HM Treasury the Chancellor is supported by a team of four junior ministers
Chancellor of the Exchequer
–
Incumbent
George Osborne since 12 May 2010
Chancellor of the Exchequer
–
Arms of
Her Majesty's Government
Chancellor of the Exchequer
–
Budget box or Gladstone box, c. 1860
Chancellor of the Exchequer
–
John Bourchier, 2nd Baron Berners
17.
Whig (British political faction)
–
The Whigs were a political faction and then a political party in the parliaments of England, Scotland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom. Between the 1680s and 1850s, they contested power with their rivals, the Whigs origin lay in constitutional monarchism and opposition to absolute monarchy. The Whigs played a role in the Glorious Revolution of 1688, and were the standing enemies of the Stuart kings and pretenders. The Whigs took full control of the government in 1715, and remained dominant until King George III, coming to the throne in 1760. The Whig Supremacy was enabled by the Hanoverian succession of George I in 1714, the Whigs thoroughly purged the Tories from all major positions in government, the army, the Church of England, the legal profession, and local offices. The Partys hold on power was so strong and durable, historians call the period from roughly 1714 to 1783 the age of the Whig Oligarchy. The first great leader of the Whigs was Robert Walpole, who maintained control of the government through the period 1721–1742, his protégé was Henry Pelham, who led from 1743 to 1754. Both parties were founded on rich politicians, more than on votes, there were elections to the House of Commons. The Whig Party slowly evolved during the 18th century, later on, the Whigs drew support from the emerging industrial interests and wealthy merchants, while the Tories drew support from the landed interests and the royal family. The term Whig was originally short for whiggamor, a term meaning cattle driver used to describe western Scots who came to Leith for corn. In the reign of Charles I the term was used during Wars of the Three Kingdoms to refer derisively to a faction of the Scottish Covenanters who called themselves the Kirk Party. It was then applied to Scottish Presbyterian rebels who were against the Kings Episcopalian order in Scotland, Whig was a term of abuse applied to those who wanted to exclude James on the grounds that he was a Roman Catholic. The fervent Tory Samuel Johnson often joked that the first Whig was the Devil, the Whigs, under Lord Shaftesburys leadership, wished to exclude the Duke of York from the throne due to his Catholicism, his favouring of monarchical absolutism and his connections to France. They believed the Duke, if allowed to inherit the throne, would endanger the Protestant religion, liberty, the first Exclusion Bill was supported by a substantial majority on its second reading in May 1679. In response, King Charles prorogued Parliament and then dissolved it and this new parliament did not meet for thirteen months, because Charles wanted to give passions a chance to die down. When it met in October 1680, an Exclusion Bill was introduced and passed in the Commons without major resistance, Charles dissolved Parliament in January 1681, but the Whigs did not suffer serious losses in the ensuing election. The next Parliament first met in March, at Oxford, but Charles dissolved it only after a few days, when he made an appeal to the country against the Whigs, and determined to rule without Parliament. In February, Charles had made a deal with the French King Louis XIV, without Parliament, the Whigs gradually crumbled, mainly due to the Rye House Plot
Whig (British political faction)
–
Equestrian portrait of William III by
Jan Wyck, commemorating the landing at Brixham, Torbay, 5 November 1688
Whig (British political faction)
–
John Somers, 1st Baron Somers
Whig (British political faction)
–
In A Block for the Wigs (1783), caricaturist
James Gillray caricatured Fox's return to power in a coalition with North. George III is the blockhead in the centre.
18.
Samuel Sandys, 1st Baron Sandys
–
Samuel Sandys, 1st Baron Sandys, PC was a British politician in the 18th century. He held numerous posts in the government of the United Kingdom, namely Chancellor of the Exchequer, Leader of the House of Commons, Cofferer of the Household and he was also a Justice in Eyre and Member of Parliament for Worcester and holder of the Sandys Barony. He was the son of Edwin Sandys, MP of Ombersley, Worcestershire – himself a descendant of Edwin Sandys, Baron Sandys married Letitia, eldest daughter and co-heiress of Sir Thomas Tipping, 1st Baronet. They had seven sons and the eldest, Edwin, inherited his title upon his death when his post chaise overturned on Highgate Hill, Edwin Sandys, 2nd Baron Sandys christened 14 May 1726 Ombersley, Worcs. Martin Sandys, christened 24 November 1726 Ombersley, Worcs and his daughter Mary inherited the estates upon the 2nd Barons death in 1797 and was granted the Barony with a special remainder to her younger sons in 1802. Cokayne, George E. Sandys of Ombersley, complete peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, extant, extinct, or dormant. Vol. VII, S to T. George Bell & Sons, hanham, A. A. Sandys, Samuel, first Baron Sandys of Ombersley
Samuel Sandys, 1st Baron Sandys
–
The Right Honourable The Lord Sandys
PC
19.
Worcester (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Worcester is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Since 1885 it has elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election, 1918-1950, The County Borough of Worcester. 1950-1983, The County Borough of Worcester, the Municipal Borough of Droitwich, 1983-1997, The City of Worcester, and the District of Wychavon wards of Drakes Broughton, Inkberrow, Lenches, Pinvin, Spetchley, and Upton Snodsbury. The constituency covers the city of Worcester, with exactly the same boundaries as the city and it borders the Mid Worcestershire constituency to the east, and West Worcestershire to the west. A Conservative seat for many years, Worcester was represented by the high-profile Conservative cabinet minister Peter Walker for three decades, from a by-election in 1961 until he stood down in 1992, Peter Luff held the seat until 1997, when he moved to the redrawn Mid Worcestershire constituency. Michael Foster of the Labour Party took the seat in the 1997 general election, Peter Walkers son, Robin Walker, was elected as the Conservative MP in 2010. The constituency is marginal and was selected as a target by the Labour Party in 1997, many political commentators and journalists look on Worcester as having the demographic statistics which most closely mirror those in the United Kingdom as a whole. As such the term Worcester woman has come into use as a description for a swing voter. Constituency created in 1295 General Election 1939/40, Another general election was required to place before the end of 1940. List of Parliamentary constituencies in Herefordshire and Worcestershire Worcester woman
Worcester (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Boundary of Worcester in Worcestershire.
20.
Henry Pelham
–
Henry Pelham, PC, FRS was a British Whig statesman, who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 27 August 1743 until his death. He was the brother of Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle. Pelham is generally considered to have been Britains third Prime Minister after Sir Robert Walpole, Pelhams premiership was relatively uneventful in terms of domestic affairs. In foreign affairs, Great Britain fought in several wars, upon Pelhams death, his brother Newcastle took full control of the ministry. He was educated at Westminster School and Hart Hall, Oxford, hertford College, Oxford, the present-day incarnation of Hart Hall, still honours him in the title of its drinking club, the Sir Henry Pelham Gentlemens Sporting Society. As a volunteer he served in Dormers regiment at the Battle of Preston in 1715, spent some time on the Continent, through strong family influence, and the recommendation of Robert Walpole, he was chosen in 1721 as Lord of the Treasury. The following year he was returned for Sussex county, in 1724 he entered the ministry as Secretary at War, but this office he exchanged in 1730 for the more lucrative one of Paymaster of the Forces. He made himself conspicuous by his support of Walpole on the question of the excise and he, Newcastle, and the Prime Minister would often meet at Houghton Hall in Norfolk, where they would draw up much of the countrys policy. These meetings became known as the Norfolk Congress, with Walpole, he served as a founding governor of the popular charity the Foundling Hospital when it opened its doors in 1739. In 1742 a union of parties resulted in the formation of an administration in which Pelham became Prime Minister the following year, Pelham served as First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Leader of the House of Commons. In November 1744, the Pelhams forced Lord Carteret out of the ministry, Pelham bluntly told the king that either Carteret step down, or the Pelhamites would, thereafter Pelham shared power with his brother, the Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne. Pelham was regarded as the figure, but rank and influence made his brother very powerful in the Cabinet. In spite of an attachment, there were occasional disputes between them, which sometimes led to further difficulties. One of their terms was to insist that the king should have confidence in a ministry. The Augustan era was essential to the development of prime ministerial power as being entirely dependant on a Commons majority, while the king struggled with his headstrong son, Frederick, Prince of Wales, his sons uncertain constitutional position was high in the Leicester House party set. In 1748 Frederick, a Tory, planned to bring down the Pelhamites at an election due the following year. Prime Minister called a poll in 1748 by asking the king to dissolve parliament in 1747. The prince and his father, the king grew to one another with unspeakable animosity
Henry Pelham
–
The Right Honourable Henry Pelham
Henry Pelham
–
Pelham, c. 1720
Henry Pelham
–
Pelham's brother the
Duke of Newcastle with whom he enjoyed a prodigious political partnership, despite their occasional personal disagreements. Newcastle ultimately succeeded him as
Prime Minister in 1754.
Henry Pelham
–
Southern Secretary
21.
Broad Bottom ministry
–
The Broad Bottom ministry was a coalition administration of 1744–46 and 1746–54 in the Parliament of Great Britain. It was led by the Pelham brothers, Henry Pelham as Prime Minister, early in 1746 the king wished a change of Prime Minister, and Pelham lost power, but only briefly. Returning to office he put in place a broad coalition. It persisted until his death in 1754, beyond the more senior ministers listed below, other significant figures in the ministry from 1746 were Henry Fox as Secretary at War and William Pitt as Paymaster of the Forces
Broad Bottom ministry
–
History
22.
Thomas Robinson, 1st Baron Grantham
–
Thomas Robinson, 1st Baron Grantham, KB PC was a British diplomatist and politician. He was a son of Sir William Robinson, Bt of Newby-on-Swale, Yorkshire. His elder brother was Rear Admiral Sir Tancred Robinson, during 1741 he sought to make peace between the empress Maria Theresa and Frederick the Great, but in vain, and in 1748 he represented his country at the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle. He was made a Knight Companion of the Bath in 1742, returning to England he sat in parliament for Christchurch from 1749 to 1761. In 1750, he was appointed to the Privy Council, in November 1755 he resigned, and in April 1761 he was created Baron Grantham. He was Master of the Great Wardrobe 1749–1754 and again 1755–1760 and he died in London on 30 September 1770. He married Frances, daughter of Thomas Worsley of Hovingham, on 13 July 1737 and he was succeeded in the peerage by his eldest son, Thomas. The town of Grantham, New Hampshire in the United States of America is named after Robinson
Thomas Robinson, 1st Baron Grantham
–
The Right Honourable The Lord Grantham
KB PC
Thomas Robinson, 1st Baron Grantham
–
Caricature of George Bubb Dodington and Sir Thomas Robinson
23.
Christchurch (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Christchurch is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 1997 by Christopher Chope of the Conservative Party. The original Christchurch constituency, a borough, existed from 1572 until 1918. The constituency was re-created as a county constituency in 1983 from parts of the seats of Christchurch and Lymington, North Dorset and New Forest. It has since 1983 seen strong Conservative majorities, with the exception of a 1993 by-election caused by the death of Robert Adley when it was won by Diana Maddock a Liberal Democrat. The Conservatives regained the seat at the general election in 1997, despite their landslide defeat nationally. Having recovered from an early-1990s by-election loss, it is a safe Conservative seat, bournemouth airport is located within the seat. General Election 1914/15, Another General Election was required to place before the end of 1915. W. S. Craig British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885, compiled and edited by F. W. S, craig British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, compiled and edited by F. W. S
Christchurch (UK Parliament constituency)
–
A.A. Allen
Christchurch (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Boundary of Christchurch in Dorset.
24.
Henry Fox, 1st Baron Holland
–
Henry Fox, 1st Baron Holland, PC was a leading British politician of the 18th century. He identified primarily with the Whig faction and he was the father of Charles James Fox. He was the son of Sir Stephen Fox and his second wife the former Christiana Hope. He squandered most of it soon after attaining his majority, there he made the acquaintance of a woman of fortune, who became his patroness and was so generous to him that, after several years’ absence, he was in a position to return home. In 1735 he entered Parliament as Member for Hindon in Wiltshire and he became a protégé and devoted supporter of Sir Robert Walpole, the long-standing Prime Minister, achieving unequalled and unenviable proficiency in the worst political arts of his master and model. He earned particular notice with a speech in parliament calling on Britain to support its European allies and he generally aligned with the government Whigs rather than the Patriot Whig faction that opposed them. Until 1742 this meant the government of Walpole, but afterward and it was the government of Henry Pelham to which he lent his support. A skilled speaker, he was able to hold his own against Pitt himself and this helped him progress in the House of Commons, becoming an indispensable member of several administrations. He served as Surveyor-General of Works from 1737 to 1742, as Member for Windsor from 1741 to 1761 and he had eloped with and married the much younger Lady Caroline Lennox, daughter of the Duke of Richmond, in 1744. She was later created Baroness Holland, of Holland in the County of Lincoln, the noted Whig politicians Charles James Fox and the 3rd Baron Holland were his son and grandson, respectively. Another son was the general Henry Edward Fox and he was known for his tendency to spoil his children, whom he allowed to mingle with the numerous public figures who came to dine at the Fox household. Fox was appointed Secretary at War and member of the Privy Council in 1746 and he had also gained fame on the continent as military commander of Britains forces there. He had built himself a political following in London and, perhaps most importantly to Fox. Fox soon grew to be a favourite of George II as well, by the early 1750s, Fox and Pitt were both viewed as likely future leaders of the country. This pushed their rivalry to yet further lengths, Fox through his office as War Secretary was closer to the top office while Pitt languished in opposition. In 1754, the death of Pelham brought their rivalry to a head. The new Prime Minister, Pelhams brother, the Duke of Newcastle and this job would command immense prestige and influence, and Pitt and Fox were considered the outstanding favourites to attain it. Newcastle, fearing the ambitions of both men, ultimately chose neither and instead selected Sir Thomas Robinson
Henry Fox, 1st Baron Holland
–
Henry Fox, 1st Baron Holland, by
John Giles Eccardt, after
Jean Baptiste van Loo, circa 1740
Henry Fox, 1st Baron Holland
–
Fox and
William Pitt became bitter political rivals, despite both belonging to the Whig faction
Henry Fox, 1st Baron Holland
–
In 1755 Fox formed a political alliance with the
Duke of Newcastle, but their government soon fell. Newcastle later made an agreement with Fox's enemy, William Pitt forming the
Pitt-Newcastle Ministry.
Henry Fox, 1st Baron Holland
–
Kingsgate Castle in Kent was built by Holland, although most of the current structure is Victorian.
25.
Windsor (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Windsor /ˈwɪnzə/ is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2005 by Adam Afriyie of the Conservative Party. The constituency covers the town of Windsor and various portions of the surrounding area, 1868–1918, The boundaries of the parliamentary borough were extended by the Parliamentary Boundaries Act 1868. Between 1885–1918 the seat to the north of the Thames was the Wycombe division of Buckinghamshire, 1918–1950, The parliamentary borough was abolished and replaced by a county division named Windsor. 1997–2010, In 1997 the Windsor constituency was recreated to sever off the town of Maidenhead to the northwest. Instead Windsor was joined by Eton and part of Slough Borough Council north of the Thames, wards were, from the Borough of Bracknell Forest, Ascot, Cranbourne and St Marys, from the Borough of Slough, Foxborough ward. In local elections the opposition party has been the Liberal Democrats. Affluent villages and small towns along the River Thames and around the Great Park have continued to contribute to large Conservative majorities, from Wraysbury to Ascot. Containing one of the least social welfare-dependent demographics and among the highest property prices, at the 2010 election, only two areas voted more strongly towards the Conservative Party, Richmond foremost followed by Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire. Windsor has had parliamentary representation for centuries, first sending a member in 1301 and it elected two members of parliament until 1868, when the constituency was reformed and its representation reduced to one MP. In 1974, the constituency was abolished and a one, Windsor. However, in 1997 the constituency was recreated, the early political history of the area was strongly influenced by the monarch and members of his or her family. Windsor Castle has been an important royal residence throughout the history of the constituency, the pre-1832 franchise of the borough was held by inhabitants paying scot and lot. On 2 May 1689 the House of Commons had decided that the electorate should be limited to the members of Windsor Corporation and this was disputed after the next election, in 1690, when the Mayor submitted two returns of different members. The House of Commons reversed the decision of the previous Parliament, there were 278 electors in 1712. Namier and Brooke estimated that, in 1754–1790, there were about 300 electors, during part of the 18th century the Duke of Cumberland and the Beauclerk family had political interests in the borough. King George III became personally involved in the hotly contested 1780 general election, George encouraged local landowner Peniston Portlock Powney to stand by paying him £2,500 from the Kings personal account. The King wished to defeat Admiral Keppel, an incumbent, the monarch went so far as to canvass tradesmen who dealt with the royal household. After this royal interference in the election, Keppel lost by a narrow 16 votes, Namier and Brooke suggest the Windsor electorate had an independent streak and were difficult to manage
Windsor (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Location of
Berkshire within England.
26.
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham
–
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, PC, FRS was a British statesman of the Whig group who led the government of Great Britain twice in the middle of the 18th century. Historians call him Pitt of Chatham, or William Pitt the Elder to distinguish from his son, William Pitt the Younger, Pitt was also known as The Great Commoner, because of his long-standing refusal to accept a title until 1766. Pitt was a member of the British cabinet and its leader from 1756 to 1761. He again led the ministry, holding the title of Lord Privy Seal. Much of his power came from his brilliant oratory, Peters argues his statesmanship was based on a clear, consistent, and distinct appreciation of the value of the Empire. The British parliamentary historian Peter D. G, Thomas argues that Pitts power was based not on his family connections but the extraordinary parliamentary skills by which he dominated the House of Commons. He displayed a commanding manner, brilliant rhetoric, and sharp debating skills that cleverly utilized broad literary and historical knowledge. Pitt was the grandson of Thomas Pitt, the governor of Madras, known as Diamond Pitt for having discovered and this transaction, as well as other trading deals in India, established the Pitt family fortune. He made further purchases and became one of the dominant political figures in the West Country controlling seats such as the rotten borough of Old Sarum. Williams father was Robert Pitt, the eldest son of Governor Pitt and his mother was Harriet Villiers, the daughter of Edward Villiers-FitzGerald and the Irish heiress Katherine FitzGerald. Both Williams paternal uncles Thomas and John were MPs, while his aunt Lucy married the leading Whig politician, William Pitt was born at Golden Square, Westminster, on 15 November 1708. His older brother Thomas Pitt had been born in 1704, there were also five sisters, Harriet, Catherine, Ann, Elizabeth, and Mary. From 1719 William was educated at Eton College along with his brother, William disliked Eton, later claiming that a public school might suit a boy of turbulent disposition but would not do where there was any gentleness. It was at school that Pitt began to suffer from gout, in 1726 Governor Pitt died, and the family estate at Boconnoc passed to Williams father. When he died the year, Boconnoc was inherited by Williams elder brother. In January 1727, William was entered as a commoner at Trinity College. There is evidence that he was a reader, if not a minutely accurate classical scholar. William diligently cultivated the faculty of expression by the practice of translation and re-translation, in these years he became a close friend of George Lyttelton, who would later become a leading politician
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham
–
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham by
Richard Brompton, 1772
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham
–
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham
–
The huge monument to William Pitt the Elder, in the
Guildhall, London stands opposite an equally huge monument to his son, William Pitt the Younger in a balanced composition
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham
–
Governor
Thomas "Diamond" Pitt.
27.
1757 caretaker ministry
–
The caretaker ministry was the government of Great Britain for a short time in 1757, during the Seven Years War. In 1756, King George II of Great Britain was reluctantly compelled to accept a ministry dominated by William Pitt the Elder as Secretary of State, the nominal head of this ministry, as First Lord of the Treasury, was William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire. On 6 April 1757, following Pitts opposition to the execution of Admiral Byng, the King, who detested Pitt, dismissed him and his brother-in-law Lord Temple, who had been First Lord of the Admiralty. The result of events was to demonstrate beyond doubt that the Great Commoner was indispensable to the formation of a ministry strong enough to prosecute a major war. Devonshire was left at the head of a government that was far too weak to survive long. Horace Walpole in his Memoirs of the Reign of King George III called it a mutilated, enfeebled, half-formed system, one of the major problems of the caretaker ministry was that it included no figure capable of taking the lead in the House of Commons. It also lacked the support of the most significant factions in the House of Commons, the King, after discussions with Devonshire and Newcastle in May 1757, authorised Philip Yorke, 1st Earl of Hardwicke to be his emissary to try to negotiate for a new ministry. Devonshire resigned the office of First Lord of the Treasury to take up the less demanding responsibilities of Lord Chamberlain, notes, The office of Lord Chancellor was in commission during this ministry. Holdernesse continued to serve as Secretary of State for the Northern Department, as no separate Chancellor of the Exchequer had been appointed, Mansfield held the post pro tempore by virtue of being Lord Chief Justice. The post of Leader of the House of Commons was vacant, one, From Sir Robert Walpole to Sir Robert Peel. The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Great Britain in the Seven Years War
1757 caretaker ministry
–
18th century
28.
Bath (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Bath is a constituency in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom represented by Ben Howlett of the Conservative Party. Perhaps its best-known representatives have been the two with international profiles, William Pitt the Elder and Chris Patten, Bath is an ancient constituency which has been constantly represented in Parliament since boroughs were first summoned to send members in the 13th century. Bath was one of the cities summoned to send members in 1295 and represented ever since, like almost all English constituencies before the Great Reform Act of 1832, it originally returned two members to each Parliament. The precise way in which its MPs were chosen in medieval times is unknown, but in Bath, the Common Council retained its independence in most periods and took pride in electing suitable MPs who either had strong local connections or a national reputation. Nor was there any suggestion of bribery or other corruption, prolific in other independent constituencies, but Pitts influence also waned when he fell out with the Council over the Treaty of Paris. In the final years before the Reform Act, however, local magnates exerted more influence in Bath. Palmer had succeeded as MP Earl Camden who held one of the nominations before 1802, at the time of the Reform Act, the Marquess of Bath was still being listed as influencing one of the seats, though the second was considered independent once more. The Great Reform Act opened up the franchise to all resident householders whose houses were valued at least £10 a year, the constituency boundaries were also slightly extended, but only to take in those areas where the city proper had filled. The franchise was reformed in 1867 and 1885 with only minor boundary changes. Bath was lucky to retain double-member representation in the 1885 reforms – its electorate of under 7,000 was near the lower limit, a situation that lasted until 1918 reforms. The continued Liberal strength was unusual for a prosperous and predominantly middle-class town, baths representation was reduced to a single member in 1918. From 1945 to 1975 Bath Labour presented the main challengers came within 800 votes of taking the seat in 1966. The Liberal revival in the 1970s saw the two more left-wing parties swap places, helped by the adoption of a nationally known candidate, the formation of the SDP–Liberal Alliance made Bath a realistic target. The SDP came 1500 votes from winning in 1987 under Malcolm Dean, at each election since 1992 a different [Conservative candidate has taken second place. After winning two intervening elections, in 2010 Foster achieved his highest majority to date of 11,883 votes and this result followed the trend in the south-west led by the election performance of Nick Clegg and reflects a loss of the villages mentioned. Bath is one of only two UK Parliament constituencies to be surrounded by another constituency, Bath is entirely surrounded by the North East Somerset constituency. The other constituency, York Central, is surrounded by York Outer. Between 1997 and 2010, it included some outlying villages such as Southstoke
Bath (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Sidney Daniels
Bath (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Constituency location within
Bath and North East Somerset, Somerset
Bath (UK Parliament constituency)
–
E.H. Spender
29.
George Grenville
–
George Grenville, PC was a British Whig statesman who rose to the position of Prime Minister of Great Britain. Grenville was born into a political family and first entered Parliament in 1741 as an MP for Buckingham. He emerged as one of Cobhams Cubs, a group of members of Parliament associated with Lord Cobham. In 1754 Grenville became Treasurer of the Navy, a position he held twice until 1761, in October 1761 he chose to stay in government and accepted the new role of Leader of the Commons causing a rift with his brother-in-law and political ally William Pitt who had resigned. Grenville was subsequently made Northern Secretary and First Lord of the Admiralty by the new Prime Minister Lord Bute, on 8 April 1763, Lord Bute resigned, and Grenville assumed his position as Prime Minister. His government tried to bring public spending under control and pursued a foreign policy. His best known policy is the Stamp Act, a tax in Great Britain onto the colonies in America. Grenville had increasingly strained relations with his colleagues and the King and in 1765 he was dismissed by George III, for the last five years of his life Grenville led a group of his supporters in opposition and staged a public reconciliation with Pitt. George Grenville was born at Wotton House on 14 October 1712 and he was the second son of Richard Grenville and Hester Temple. He was one of five brothers, all of whom became MPs and his sister Hester Grenville married the leading political figure William Pitt. His elder brother was Richard Grenville, later the 2nd Earl Temple and it was intended by his parents that George Grenville should become a lawyer. Grenville received his education at Eton College and at Christ Church, Oxford and he entered Parliament in 1741 as one of the two members for Buckingham, and continued to represent that borough for the next twenty-nine years until his death. He was disappointed to be giving up what appeared to be a legal career for the uncertainties of opposition politics. In Parliament he subscribed to the Boy Patriot party, which opposed Sir Robert Walpole, in December 1744 he became a Lord of the Admiralty in the administration of Henry Pelham. He allied himself with his brother Richard and with William Pitt in forcing Pelham to give them promotion by rebelling against his authority, in June 1747, Grenville became a Lord of the Treasury. In 1754 Grenville was made Treasurer of the Navy and Privy Councillor, opposition to European entanglements was a cornerstone of Patriot Whig thinking. He and Pitt joined the opposition, haranguing the Newcastle government, Grenville and Pitt both championed the formation of a British militia to provide additional security rather than the deployment of Hessian mercenaries favoured by the government. As the military situation deteriorated following the loss of Minorca, the government grew increasingly weak until it was forced to resign in Autumn 1756, Pitt then formed a government led by the Duke of Devonshire
George Grenville
–
The Right Honourable George Grenville
George Grenville
–
Coat of arms of Grenville of Wotton Underwood, Buckinghamshire: Vert, on a cross argent five torteaux
George Grenville
–
Stowe House, Buckinghamshire, the political base of the
Cobham faction. In 1749 ownership of the estate passed to Grenville's brother
Richard.
George Grenville
–
Lord Bute, Prime Minister between 1762 and 1763, under whom Grenville served and who he later succeeded
30.
Buckingham (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Buckingham /ˈbʌkɪŋm̩/ is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 1997 by John Bercow, who later became Speaker of the House of Commons. 1885–1918, The Municipal Borough of Buckingham, the Sessional Divisions of Ashendon, Buckingham, Newport, and Stony Stratford, and part of the Sessional Division of Winslow. 1950–1974, The Municipal Borough of Buckingham, the Urban Districts of Bletchley, Linslade, Newport Pagnell, and Wolverton, and the Rural Districts of Buckingham, Newport Pagnell, Wing, and Winslow. 1974–1983, The Municipal Borough of Buckingham, the Urban Districts of Bletchley, Newport Pagnell, and Wolverton, and the Rural Districts of Buckingham, Newport Pagnell, Wing, and Winslow. The constituency takes up a part of central Buckinghamshire, covering much of the Aylesbury Vale district including the town of Buckingham. To the north, the part of ceremonial Buckinghamshire forms two Borough of Milton Keynes constituencies. The seat has sent MPs since 1542 — its standard double representation was halved in 1868, in the twentieth century, the constituency was held by the Conservative Party for most of the time. However, a Labour Party MP served Buckingham from 1945 until 1951, Aidan Crawley, before the periodic review effected in 1983, the new town of Milton Keynes, including its older parts such as Bletchley and Fenny Stratford was in the constituency. The review followed the previous national review in 1974 and recognised the large increase in electorate in the seat, the sitting Buckingham MP William Benyon stood for the then-created Milton Keynes constituency where he was elected. The residual seat was won in 1983 by Conservative George Walden, Walden retired in 1997, and John Bercow won the following general elections in 2001,2005,2010 and 2015. Constituency created 1 In both 2015 and 2010, John Bercow stood as The Speaker seeking re-election, list of Parliamentary constituencies in Buckinghamshire Notes References Sources Iain Dale, ed. The Times House of Commons 1929,1931,1935, the Times House of Commons 1945. The Times House of Commons 1950, the Times House of Commons 1955. Nomis Constituency Profile for Buckingham — presenting data from the ONS annual population survey and other official statistics
Buckingham (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Sir Harry Verney
Buckingham (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Boundary of Buckingham in
Buckinghamshire.
Buckingham (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Frederick Verney
31.
Bute ministry
–
John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute served as Prime Minister of Great Britain during 1762–1763. He resigned following criticism of his signing of the Treaty of Paris with its perceived lenient terms for France. The Bute ministry was made up largely of the members as its successor. George III favoured Bute, but could not keep him in government, lord North, The Prime Minister Who Lost America. Great Britain in the Seven Years War Cider Bill of 1763
Bute ministry
–
18th century
32.
Grenville ministry
–
The Grenville ministry was a British Government headed by George Grenville which served between 16 April 1763 –13 July 1765. Grenvilles government was made up largely of the members as Butes had. George III had a violent dislike of the new government because of his resentment of the way they had replaced his favourite Bute. During its two years, the Ministry confronted growing discontent in Britains American colonies which were to lead to the American War of Independence breaking out in 1775, the Ministry also had to deal with the antics of John Wilkes. The Kings violent dislike of Grenville eventually forced him to him as first minister and replaced him with the Marquess of Rockingham. Lord North, The Prime Minister Who Lost America
Grenville ministry
–
18th century
33.
Henry Seymour Conway
–
Field Marshal Henry Seymour Conway was a British general and statesman. A brother of the 1st Marquess of Hertford, and cousin of Horace Walpole and he eventually rose to the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Forces. Conway was the son of Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Baron Conway by his third wife. He entered Eton College in 1732 and from that time enjoyed a friendship with his cousin Horace Walpole. Conway joined the Molesworths Regiment of Dragoons on 27 June 1737 as a lieutenant and he was transferred to the 1st Foot Guards and was promoted to captain on 14 February 1741 and to captain-lieutenant on 10 May 1742. During the War of Austrian Succession he served on the staff of Field Marshal George Wade at Dettingen in June 1743, appointed colonel of the 48th Foot on 6 April 1746, he took part in Culloden later that month during the Jacobite Rebellion. His next battle, in July 1747, was at Lauffeld, in which he escaped death, being captured by the French. In July 1749, he transferred from the 48th Foot to the 34th Foot, Conway was elected unopposed to the Irish Parliament in 1741 for Antrim County, and to the British Parliament for Higham Ferrers in December 1741 on the recommendation of Sir Robert Walpole. He was elected in 1747 for Penryn and for St Mawes in 1754 and he was promoted to major-general on 12 March 1755. In April 1755, he was unexpectedly appointed Chief Secretary for Ireland by William Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington and he then finally took his seat for County Antrim in the Irish House of Commons in October 1755. He became a Groom of the Bedchamber in April 1757 to both George II and George III, Conway was the British military second in command on the Rochefort expedition in 1757, and repeatedly advocated an attack on Fort Fouras, but his colleagues would only agree a night attack. Ultimately the expedition returned to Portsmouth having achieved nothing, though Mordaunt was acquitted by his court-martial, the affair damaged both their reputations. In his displeasure, George II refused to employ Conway on the 1758 campaigns and he was not employed again until the next reign, except that he was sent to sign a cartel for an exchange of prisoners at Sluys in 1759. On 21 April 1759 he became colonel of the 1st The Royal Dragoons, in 1761, he served in Germany as deputy to John Manners, Marquess of Granby, the British commander in the army led by Ferdinand of Brunswick. At the Battle of Villinghausen in July 1761 he commanded a corps which was at the centre of the line and he was also present at the Battle of Wilhelmsthal in June 1762, and captured the castle of Waldeck the following month. After peace preliminaries were signed at Fontainebleau in November, he supervised the embarkation of British troops from Europe, Conway was re-elected to the House of Commons in April 1761, this time for Thetford and on 4 July 1761 he became a member of the Privy Council. This led to the publication of accusation and counter-accusation in pamphlets, following his resignation in January 1768, Conway returned to the military, and was made a full general on 26 May 1772 and Governor of Jersey on 22 October 1772. He remained an important figure in the Commons, opposing the British attempt to suppress the American Revolt and he was rewarded with a cabinet position and the office of Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in the new Rockingham ministry in March 1782
Henry Seymour Conway
–
Field Marshal The Honourable Henry Seymour Conway
Henry Seymour Conway
–
Waldeck Castle, captured by Conway in 1762 during the Seven Years War
34.
Rockingham Whigs
–
The Rockingham Whigs in 18th century British politics were a faction of the Whigs led by Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham from about 1762 until his death in 1782. The Rockingham Whigs briefly held power from 1765 to 1766 and again in 1782, when the new king, George III, came to the throne in 1760, he was determined to reassert royal power and take the patronage mechanism away from Newcastle and his faction. In fact, the faction showed less interest in holding office than in preventing a reassertion of royal power and they were prepared to unite with reformers of all kinds to preserve the constitutional settlement of 1689. But their essentially aristocratic and oligarchic character prevented them from collaborating with Country Party reformers advocating radical or populistic measures and they also opposed the British position which led to the American Revolution and sought reconciliation after it. The writer and philosopher Edmund Burke, who served as Rockinghams private secretary, was one of the leading spokesmen in the House of Commons. They did not favor Irish constitutional goals but when out of power they used Irish problems to embarrass the government, in power again in 1782, the Rockinghamites made concessions to the Patriots demand for Irish legislative independence. They sought and failed to obtain a permanent solution that would have involved British control over external legislation and they also failed to implement British party models in Ireland. Rockinghamites Charles James Fox and Burke were actively involved in Irish issues, says Powell, the former opportunistically, the new government was led by Rockingham and began to seek peace terms, laying the foundations for the Treaty of Paris agreed in 1783. After Rockinghams death, the Duke of Portland became the head of the Rockingham Whig party, the Rockingham Whigs and the Country Tradition, Parliamentary History, Feb 1989, Vol.8 Issue 1, pp 90–115 Elofson, W. M. The Rockingham Whigs in Transition, The East India Company Issue 1772-1773, English Historical Review Vol.104,413, pp. 947–974 in JSTOR OGorman, Frank. Party and Burke, The Rockingham Whigs, Government & Opposition, April 1967, Vol.3 Issue 1, pp 92–110 Powell, Martyn J. British Party Politics and Imperial Control, The Rockingham Whigs and Ireland 1765-1782, Parliamentary History, Nov 2002, Vol.21 Issue 3, pp 325–50
Rockingham Whigs
–
Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham.
35.
First Rockingham ministry
–
The First Rockingham ministry was a British ministry headed by the Marquess of Rockingham which served between 1765 and 1766 during the reign of George III. The government was made up mainly of his followers known as the Rockingham Whigs, the most influential member of the government was the Duke of Newcastle, a former Prime Minister, who served as Lord Privy Seal. It is often referred to as the government ever to have been made up almost entirely of members of the Jockey Club – Rockingham being a prominent patron. Rockingham was noted for his ignorance of foreign affairs, and his Ministry failed to reverse the growing isolation of Britain within Europe, the Ministry fell in 1766 and was replaced by one headed by William Pitt. Three Victories and a Defeat, The Rise and Fall of the First British Empire
First Rockingham ministry
–
18th century
36.
Chatham ministry
–
The Chatham ministry was a British government led by William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham that ruled between 1766 and 1768. Because of Pitts former prominence before his title, it is referred to as the Pitt ministry. Unusually for a politician considered to be Prime Minister, Pitt was not First Lord of the Treasury during the administration, Chatham was ill with gout for long periods, and his government struggled to fulfill its various goals. Soon after, Chatham managed to alienate the heretofore cautiously friendly Rockingham faction by dismissing their ally Lord Edgcumbe. In the midst of crisis in early 1767 Chatham apparently had a nervous breakdown. In the fall of 1768, the Bedfords persuaded Grafton that it would be necessary to remove Shelburne from the ministry and this threatened dismissal roused Chatham, who in October 1768 resigned his post alongside Shelburne. Lord Chatham and the Whig Opposition
Chatham ministry
–
18th century
37.
Frederick North, Lord North
–
Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford, KG, PC, more often known by his courtesy title, Lord North, which he used from 1752 until 1790, was Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1770 to 1782. He led Great Britain through most of the American War of Independence and he also held a number of other cabinet posts, including Home Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer. Norths reputation among historians has swung back and forth and it reached its nadir in the late nineteenth century when he was depicted as a creature of the king and an incompetent who lost the American colonies. In the early twentieth century a revisionism emphasized his strengths in administering the Treasury, handling the House of Commons, Herbert Butterfield, however, argued that his indolence was a barrier to efficient crisis management, he neglected his role in supervising the entire war effort. Lord North was born in London on 13 April 1732, at the house at Albemarle Street, just off Piccadilly. His father, the first Earl, was at the time Lord of the Bedchamber to Prince Frederick, North was descended from the 1st Earl of Sandwich and was related to Samuel Pepys and the 3rd Earl of Bute. He at times had a turbulent relationship with his father Francis North, 1st Earl of Guilford. In his early years the family was not wealthy, though their situation improved in 1735 when his father inherited property from his cousin, fredericks mother, Lady Lucy Montagu, died in 1734. His father remarried, but his stepmother, Elizabeth North, also died in 1745, one of his stepbrothers was Lord Dartmouth, who remained a close friend for life. He was educated at Eton College between 1742 and 1748, and at Trinity College, Oxford where in 1750 he was awarded an MA, after leaving Oxford he travelled in Europe on the Grand Tour with Dartmouth, visiting Leipzig where he studied at the University of Leipzig. He visited Vienna, Milan, and Paris, returning to England in 1753 and he soon developed a reputation as a good administrator and parliamentarian, and was generally liked by his colleagues. In November 1763 he was chosen to speak for the Government concerning radical MP John Wilkes, Wilkes had made a savage attack on both the Prime Minister and the King in his newspaper The North Briton, which many thought libelous. Norths motion that Wilkes be expelled from the House of Commons passed by 273 votes to 111, Wilkes expulsion took place in his absence, as he had already fled to France following a duel. When a government headed by the Whig magnate Lord Rockingham came to power in 1765, North left his post and he turned down an offer by Rockingham to rejoin the government, not wanting to be associated with the Whig grandees that dominated the Ministry. He returned to office when Pitt returned to head a government in 1766. North was appointed Joint Paymaster of the Forces in Pitts ministry, as Pitt was constantly ill, the government was effectively run by the Duke of Grafton, with North as one of its most senior members. In December 1767, he succeeded Charles Townshend as Chancellor of the Exchequer, with the resignation of the secretary of state Henry Seymour Conway in early 1768, North became Leader of the Commons as well. He continued to serve when Pitt was succeeded by Grafton in October, when the Duke of Grafton resigned as Prime Minister, North formed a government on 28 January 1770
Frederick North, Lord North
–
Portrait by
Nathaniel Dance.
Frederick North, Lord North
–
In The State Tinkers (1780),
James Gillray caricatured North (on his knees) and his allies as incompetent tinkers of the National Kettle. George III cries out in rapture in the rear.
Frederick North, Lord North
–
French caricature on the government of Frederick North after the defeat of Grenada (1779).
Frederick North, Lord North
–
This modern Silver medallion commemorates the motion of no confidence against Lord North on 27 February 1782 to end the American War of Independence. Subsequently Prime Minister Lord North resigned in March 1782.
38.
Banbury (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Banbury is an Oxfordshire constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom since 2015 by Victoria Prentis of the Conservative Party. The constituency is commonly, but erroneously, referred to as the North Oxfordshire constituency, in terms of electorate, Banbury was the 13th largest constituency in the United Kingdom and the largest in Oxfordshire at the time of the 2010 general election. The constituency was created January 26,1554 through the efforts of Henry Stafford, until 1885 it was a parliamentary borough, consisting only of the town of Banbury, since then it has been a county constituency, consisting of the northern part of Oxfordshire. It was the constituency represented by Lord North, the Prime Minister during the American War of Independence, due to its nature as a safe Conservative seat, its MPs since 1922 have all served long terms in office. Every MP for Banbury since 1922 has been knighted, at the 2010 election, the constituency had the second largest population of any constituency in the United Kingdom after the Isle of Wight. The constituency is heavily involved in agriculture, as well as modern industry, Research and Development, public services. Despite a close election in 1923, the largest vote since 1922 has at each election been for a Conservative Party candidate to serve it, in 2010 Tony Baldry almost doubled his large majority as the second party became the Liberal Democrats. The Conservative vote share and majority were increased at the 2015 general election, 1885-1918, The Municipal Borough of Banbury, and the Sessional Divisions of Banbury and Bloxham, Chadlington, and Wootton North. 1918-1950, The Municipal Boroughs of Banbury, Chipping Norton, and Woodstock, the Urban District of Witney, and the Rural Districts of Banbury, Chipping Norton, Witney, General Election 1914/15, Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The Times House of Commons 1929,1931,1935, the Times House of Commons 1945. The Times House of Commons 1950, the Times House of Commons 1955. Robert Beatson, A Chronological Register of Both Houses of Parliament Stanley T. Bindoff et al, the House of Commons,1509 –1558,1, Appendices, constituencies, members A – C, Volume 4. D Brunton & D H Pennington, Members of the Long Parliament F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885 The Constitutional Year Book for 1913
Banbury (UK Parliament constituency)
–
CB Fry
Banbury (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Boundary of Banbury in Oxfordshire.
Banbury (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Banbury
39.
British Tory Party
–
The first Tories emerged in 1678 in England, when they opposed the Whig-supported Exclusion Bill which set out to disinherit the heir presumptive James, Duke of York. This party ceased to exist as a political entity in the early 1760s. A few decades later, a new Tory party would rise to establish a hold on government between 1783 and 1830, with William Pitt the Younger followed by Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool. When the Whigs subsequently regained control, the Representation of the People Act 1832 removed the rotten boroughs, in the following general election, the Tory ranks were reduced to 180 MPs. Under the leadership of Robert Peel, the Tamworth Manifesto was issued, however, Peel lost many of his supporters by repealing the Corn Laws, causing the party to break apart. One faction, led by the Earl of Derby and Benjamin Disraeli, survived to become the modern Conservative Party and this action resulted from this parliament not allowing him to levy taxes without yielding to its terms. In the beginning of the Long Parliament, the Kings supporters were few in number, the increasing radicalism of the Parliamentary majority, however, estranged many reformers even in the Parliament itself and drove them to make common cause with the King. By the end of the 1640s, the radical Parliamentary programme had become clear, reduction of the King to a powerless figurehead, and replacement of Anglican episcopacy with a form of Presbyterianism. This prospective form of settlement was prevented by a coup détat which shifted power from Parliament itself to the Parliamentary New Model Army, the Army had King Charles I executed and for the next eleven years the British kingdoms operated under military dictatorship. Charles II also restored episcopacy in the Church of England and these acts did not reflect the Kings personal views and demonstrated the existence of a Royalist ideology beyond mere subservience to the Court. These interests would soon coalesce as the Whigs, as a political term, Tory entered English politics during the Exclusion Bill crisis of 1678–81. The Whigs were those who supported the exclusion of James, the Duke of York from the succession to thrones of Scotland and England & Ireland, and the Tories were those who opposed the Exclusion Bill. The Whigs tried to link the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, the Duke of Ormonde, with the foremost Irish Tory, Redmond OHanlon, in a supposed plot to murder Titus Oates. The Whig Bishop of Meath, Henry Jones, offered OHanlon a pardon and a bribe if he would testify to Parliament that Ormonde was plotting a French invasion. In December 1680, the government seized these letters and the plan collapsed. they call me names, Jesuit, Papish, Tory. I hear further since that this is the distinction they make instead of Cavalier and Roundhead, now they are called Torys, the rebellion of Monmouth, the candidate of the radical Whigs to succeed Charles II, was easily crushed and Monmouth himself executed. In the long run, however, Tory principles were to be severely compromised, James II, however, during his reign fought for a broadly tolerant religious settlement under which his co-religionists could prosper—a position anathema to conservative Anglicans. James attempts to use the church to promote policies that undermined the churchs own unique status in the state
British Tory Party
–
James, Duke of York painted in a Romanesque costume.
British Tory Party
–
Tories
British Tory Party
–
James Stuart was the Pretender during the
Jacobite rising of 1715. Gaining some Tory support, it was thus used to discredit them by the Whigs.
British Tory Party
–
William Pitt the Younger.
40.
Grafton ministry
–
The Grafton ministry was the British government headed by Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton which served between 14 October 1768 –28 January 1770. In order to maintain a parliamentary majority, Grafton had drawn the Bedford Whigs into the ministry at the end of 1767. The government was criticised for its handling of foreign affairs, particularly for allowing the Republic of Corsica. It was subject to a series of attacks in what known as the Junius Letters. Lord North, The Prime Minister who lost America
Grafton ministry
–
Duke of Grafton
41.
Charles James Fox
–
His father Henry, a leading Whig of his day, had similarly been the great rival of Pitts famous father. He rose to prominence in the House of Commons as a forceful and eloquent speaker with a notorious and colourful life, though his opinions were rather conservative. Fox became a prominent and staunch opponent of George III, whom he regarded as a tyrant, he supported the American Patriots. Briefly serving as Britains first Foreign Secretary in the ministry of the Marquess of Rockingham in 1782, he returned to the post in a coalition government with his old enemy Lord North in 1783. After Pitts death in January 1806, Fox served briefly as Foreign Secretary in the Ministry of All the Talents of William Grenville, before he died on 13 September 1806, aged 57. Fox was born at 9 Conduit Street, London, the surviving son of Henry Fox, 1st Baron Holland, and Lady Caroline Lennox. Henry Fox was an ally of Robert Walpole and rival of Pitt the Elder and he had amassed a considerable fortune by exploiting his position as Paymaster General of the forces. Foxs elder brother, Stephen became 2nd Baron Holland and his younger brother, Henry, had a distinguished military career. The stories of Charless over-indulgence by his father are legendary. It was said that Charles once expressed a desire to break his fathers watch and was not restrained or punished when he duly smashed it on the floor. In later life he was always to have carried a copy of Horace in his coat pocket. On this trip, Charles was given an amount of money with which to learn to gamble by his father. These three pursuits – gambling, womanising and the love of things and fashions foreign – would become, once inculcated in his adolescence, Fox entered Hertford College, Oxford, in October 1764, although he would later leave without taking a degree, rather contemptuous of its nonsenses. For the 1768 general election, Henry Fox bought his son a seat in Parliament for the West Sussex constituency of Midhurst, though Charles was still nineteen, thus he spent much of his early years unwittingly manufacturing ammunition for his later critics and their accusations of hypocrisy. A supporter of the Grafton and North ministries, Fox was prominent in the campaign to punish the radical John Wilkes for challenging the Commons and he thus opened his career by speaking in behalf of the Commons against the people and their elected representative. Consequently, both Fox and his brother, Stephen, were insulted and pelted with mud in the street by the pro-Wilkes London crowds, however, between 1770 and 1774, Foxs seemingly promising career in the political establishment was spoiled. Behind these incidents lay his familys resentment towards Lord North for refusing to elevate the Holland barony to an earldom, but the fact that such a young man could seemingly treat ministerial office so lightly was noted at court. George III, also observing Foxs licentious private behaviour, took it to be presumption and he drifted from his rather unideological family-oriented politics into the orbit of the Rockingham Whig party
Charles James Fox
–
The Right Honourable Charles James Fox
Charles James Fox
–
Charles James Fox, c.1802, National Gallery of Scotland
Charles James Fox
–
The
Declaration of Independence by
John Trumbull
Charles James Fox
–
Portrait of
George III by
Allan Ramsay (1762)
42.
Westminster (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Westminster was a parliamentary constituency in the Parliament of England to 1707, the Parliament of Great Britain 1707–1800 and the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801. It returned two members to 1885 and one thereafter, the constituency was first known to have been represented in Parliament in 1545 and continued to exist until the redistribution of seats in 1918. The constituencys most famous former representatives are Charles James Fox and John Stuart Mill, the City of Westminster is a district of Inner London. Its southern boundary is on the bank of the River Thames. It is located to the west of the City of London, to the south of Holborn and St. Pancras and to the east of Kensington, before 1545 the area which became this borough constituency was represented as part of the county constituency of Middlesex. Until 1885 the constituency had two representatives, in the 1885 redistribution of seats the Westminster area was divided into three single-member seats. The official definition of the areas included was the Westminster district, in the north-east was the constituency of Strand and to the west that of St Georges, Hanover Square. In the 1918 redistribution the Metropolitan Borough was divided into two single member constituencies, Westminster St Georges in the west and Westminster Abbey in the east, the Abbey division incorporated the area of the 1885–1918 Westminster constituency. This was a constituency, because it represented the centre of British government and had such a large electorate that it was independent of the control of a patron. Before the Reform Act 1832 the right to vote was held by the male inhabitants paying Scot and Lot and this was an extensive franchise, by the standards of that era. Westminster had the largest electorate of any borough in the Kingdom, only the largest county constituency of Yorkshire had more voters. Sedgwick estimated the electorate at about 8,000 in the first half of the eighteenth century, namier and Brooke estimated that there were about 12,000 voters later in the century. The large size of the electorate made contested elections immensely expensive, in the sixteenth century the Church officials associated with Westminster Abbey had a large influence in the area, but as the community became bigger that became less important. The Court had some influence, because of the royal residences. The use of funds to bribe the electorate was not unknown. Local landowners who were prepared to stir up ill-will by threatening to evict or raise the rents of tenants voting the wrong way, unlawful means were sometimes used to make sure that the right candidates were elected. In 1722 the election of two Tories was declared void because of rioting which prevented some Whigs voting, in 1741 a Whig returning officer called upon the assistance of some troops to close the poll before the Tory candidates could catch up to the Whig votes. The Treasury spent the enormous sums of more than £8,000 in 1780 and £9,000 in 1784, in unsuccessful attempts to defeat the opposition Whig leader Charles James Fox
Westminster (UK Parliament constituency)
–
Westminster in the Metropolitan area from 1868 to 1885.
43.
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
–
The office is a cabinet-level position, and is considered one of the Great Offices of State. It is considered a similar to that of Foreign Minister in other countries. The Foreign Secretary also has oversight for the Secret Intelligence Service. The current Foreign Secretary is former London Mayor Boris Johnson, who was appointed by Prime Minister Theresa May in July 2016, the India Office was a predecessor department of the Foreign Office. The Foreign Secretary is a member of the Cabinet, and the post is considered one of the Great Offices of State, the Foreign Secretary works out of the Foreign Office in Whitehall. The posts official residences are 1 Carlton Gardens in London and Chevening in Kent, in the 2006 reshuffle, Margaret Beckett became the first woman to hold the post
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
–
Incumbent The Rt Hon
Philip Hammond MP since 14 July 2014
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
–
Arms of
Her Majesty's Government
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
–
Charles James Fox
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
–
The Lord Grantham
44.
Second Rockingham ministry
–
This is a list of the principal holders of government office during the second premiership of Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, from March to July 1782. The government of Lord North resigned on 22 March 1782 after losing a motion of no confidence following the British defeat at the Siege of Yorktown during the American War of Independence, the Whig Lord Rockingham, previously Prime Minister from 1765–1766, formed a government. The death of Rockingham on 1 July 1782 caused a split in the ministry, the Home Secretary Lord Shelburne was appointed to succeed him but several members of the government refused to serve under him and resigned. These Portland Whigs allied in opposition with Lord North and brought down Shelburnes government in March 1783, members of the Cabinet are in bold face
Second Rockingham ministry
–
18th century
45.
Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney
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Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney PC, was a British politician who held several important Cabinet posts in the second half of the 18th century. The cities of Sydney in Nova Scotia, Canada, and Sydney in New South Wales, Australia were named in his honour, Thomas Townshend the youngers mother was Albinia, daughter of John Selwyn. He was educated at Clare College, Cambridge, Townshend was elected to the House of Commons in 1754 as Whig member for Whitchurch in Hampshire, and held that seat till his elevation to the peerage in 1783. He initially aligned himself with his great-uncle the Duke of Newcastle and he held the offices of Clerk of the Household to the Prince of Wales and Clerk of the Green Cloth from 1761 to 1762. During the ministry of Lord Chatham and the Duke of Grafton he supported the position his cousin Charles Townshend was in regard to the American revenue program. Townshend was forced out of office in June 1768 by Grafton who wanted Rigby as Paymaster of the Forces to gain favour with the Duke of Bedford, Townshend remained in opposition until the end of Lord Norths ministry and spoke frequently in the House of Commons against the American war. Although he had no close party connection, he was inclined toward the Chathamites and he took office again as secretary at war in the second Rockingham ministry. When Lord Shelburne became Prime Minister in July 1782, Townshend succeeded him as Home Secretary, among the matters requiring attention that he inherited from Shelburne was a scheme for attacking the Spanish possessions in South America. A memorandum which Shelburne wrote to him at this time listing matters requiring his urgent attention said, expeditions require to be set forward—Major Dalrymple has a Plan against the Spanish Settlements. For assistance in planning the expedition, Townshend turned to Captain Arthur Phillip, the expedition sailed on 16 January 1783, under the command of Commodore Sir Robert Kingsmill. Phillip was given command of one of the ships of the line, shortly after sailing an armistice was concluded between Great Britain and Spain. Townshend was created Baron Sydney of Chislehurst and entered the House of Lords on 6 March 1783 and he opposed the Fox-North coalition and returned to political office with Pitt, serving as Home Secretary from 1783 to 1789. In Canada, Sydney, Nova Scotia on Cape Breton Island, was founded by British Col. Joseph Frederick Wallet DesBarres in 1785, Lord Sydney appointed Col. DesBarres governor of the new colony of Cape Breton Island. Following the loss of the North American colonies, Sydney, as Home Secretary in the Pitt Government, was given responsibility for devising a plan to settle convicts at Botany Bay. His choice of Arthur Phillip as Governor was inspired and Phillips leadership was instrumental in ensuring the penal colony survived the years of struggle. On 26 January 1788, Phillip named Sydney Cove in honour of Sydney, in 1789 Townshend was created Viscount Sydney. In choosing the name Sydney when he was raised to the peerage in 1783, Thomas Townshend demonstrated his pride in descent from the Sidney family, who had been eminent opponents of Stuart absolutism. Sydney thought of himself as a Whig, by which he meant he was opposed to any increase in the power, the name Sydney was a synonym in the eighteenth century political lexicon for opposition to tyranny and absolutism
Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney
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The Right Honourable The Viscount Sydney
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Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney
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Frognal House by George Shepherd appears in Thomas Ireland's History of Kent published c. 1830.
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