British History: Prime Ministers (with Pictures)
 

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[LEFT][SIZE=4]Robert Walpole 1715-1742

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[/SIZE][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][B]Robert Walpole[/B] was born in Houghton in 1676. Educated at Eton and King's College, Cambridge, he intended to enter the Church but changed his mind and became active in politics instead. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Walpole, a Whig, was elected to the House of Commons in 1701. An outstanding orator, Walpole was appointed Secretary of War in 1708 and Treasurer of the Navy in 1710. [/FONT][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]After the collapse of the Whig government Walpole was accused of corruption and spent a short period in the Tower of London. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]In 1714 Queen Anne became very ill. The true heir to the throne was James Stuart, the son of [/FONT][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=3][COLOR=#000000]James II[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]. Many Tory ministers supported James becoming king. However, James Stuart was a Catholic and was strongly opposed by the Whigs. A group of Whigs visited Anne just before she died and persuaded her to sack her Tory ministers. With the support of the Whigs, Queen Anne nominated Prince George[/FONT] [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]of Hanover as the next king of Britain. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]When George arrived in England, he knew little about British politics nor could he speak very much English. George therefore became very dependent on the Whigs who had arranged for him to become king. This included Walpole who was made Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1715.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Walpole was such a powerful figure in the government he became known as Prime Minister, the first in Britain's history. He was also given 10 Downing Street by G, which became the permanent home of all future Prime Ministers.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Walpole believed that the strength of a country depended on its wealth. The main objective of Walpole's policies was to achieve and maintain this wealth. For example, he helped the business community sell goods by removing taxes on foreign exports.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Walpole [/FONT][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] did all he could to avoid war, as he believed it drained a country of its financial resources. However, in 1739 Britain became involved in a war with Spain. [/FONT][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=3][COLOR=#000000]George II[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT] [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]was in favour of the war and became Britain's last king to lead his troops into battle. Walpole, who thought the war was unnecessary, did not provide the dynamic leadership needed
during a war. The Tory opposition accused Walpole of not supplying enough money for the British armed forces. Walpole gradually lost the support of the House of Commons, and in February 1742 he was forced to resign from office.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Sir Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, died in 1745.[/FONT]

[SIZE=4]Earl of Bute 1762[/SIZE]

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[LEFT][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=3][COLOR=#000000]John Stuart, the son of 2nd Earl of Bute, was born in 1713. He succeeded his father in 1723 and by 1737 had become one of Prince Frederick's lords of the bedchamber. When Prince Frederick died in 1751 Bute joined the staff of his son, the Prince of Wales.

In 1760 George succeeded his grandfather, George II, as king. George and Bute decided to try and break the power of the Whigs in Parliament. A year after becoming king, Bute was invited to become prime minister. This decision upset a large number of MPs who considered Bute to be incompetent and under the control of the king.

John Wilkes became Bute's leading critic in the House of Commons. In June 1762 Wilkes established [I]The North Briton[/I], a newspaper that severely attacked the king and his Prime Minister. After one article that appeared on 23rd April 1763, George III and his ministers decided to prosecute Wilkes for seditious libel. Wilkes was arrested but at a court hearing the Lord Chief Justice ruled that as an MP, Wilkes was protected by privilege from arrest on a charge of libel. His discharge was greeted with great popular acclaim and Wilkes left the court as a champion of liberty.

Some people believed that Bute was attempting to extend monarchical power and after street demonstrations against him in 1763 he resigned. Bute continued to advise George III and members of the House of Commons complained that he was attempting to undermine the new Prime Minister, George Grenville. After coming under increasing pressure from his government, the king agreed in 1765 to stop consulting Bute.

Although Bute withdrew from political life, Whigs continued to accuse him of secretly advising the king. John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute, died in 1792.

[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][SIZE=4]William Pitt 1783-1801, 1804-1806[/SIZE]

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[LEFT]Doubt in the dates.
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][SIZE=3][COLOR=#000000] William Pitt was born at Hayes near Bromley, Kent on 28th May 1759. He suffered from poor health and was educated at home. His father, William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, was the former M.P. for Old Sarum and one of the most important politicians of the period. The Earl of Chatham was determined that his son would eventually become a member of the House of Commons and at an early age William was given lessons on how to become an effective orator.

When William was fourteen he was sent to Pembroke Hall, Cambridge. His health remained poor and he spent most of the time with his tutor, the Rev. George Pretyman. William, who studied Latin and Greek, received his M.A. in 1776.

William grew up with a strong interest in politics and spent much of his spare time watching debates in parliament. On 7th April 1778 he was present when his father collapsed while making a speech in the House of Lords and helped to carry his dying father from the chamber.

In 1781 Sir James Lowther arranged for William Pitt to become the M.P. for Appleby. He made his first speech in the House of Commons on 26th February, 1781. William Pitt had been well trained and afterwards, Lord North, the prime minister, described it as the "best speech" that he had ever heard.

Soon after entering the House of Commons, William Pitt came under the influence of Charles Fox, Britain's leading Whig politician. Pitt joined Fox in his campaign for peace with the American colonies. On 12th June he made a speech where Pitt insisted that this was an "unjust war" and urged Lord North's government to bring it to an end.

Pitt also took an interest in the way that Britain elected Members of Parliament. He was especially critical of the way that the monarchy used the system to influence those in Parliament. Pitt argued that parliamentary reform was necessary for the preservation of liberty. In June 1782 Pitt supported a motion for shortening the duration of parliament and for measures that would reduce the chances of government ministers being bribed.

When Lord Frederick North's government fell in March 1782, Charles Fox became Foreign Secretary in Rockingham's Whig government. Fox left the government in July 1782, as he was unwilling to serve under the new prime minister, Lord Sherburne. Short of people willing to serve him, Sherburne appointed the twenty-three year old Pitt as his Chancellor of the Exchequer. Fox interpreted Pitt's acceptance of this post as a betrayal and after this the two men became bitter enemies.

On the 31st March, 1783, Pitt resigned and declared that he was "unconnected with any party whatever". Now out of power, Pitt turned his attention once more to parliamentary reform. On 7th May he proposed a plan that included: (1) checking bribery at elections; (2) disfranchising corrupt constituencies; (3) adding to the number of members for London. His proposals were defeated by 293 to 149. Another bill that he introduced on 2nd June for restricting abuses in public office was passed by the House of Commons but rejected by the House of Lords.

In Parliament he opposed Charles Fox's India Bill. Fox responded by making fun of Pitt's youth and inexperience and accusing him of following "the headlong course of ambition". George III was furious when the India Bill was passed by the House of Commons. The king warned members of the House of Lords that he would regard any one who voted for the bill as his enemy. Unwilling to upset the king, the Lords rejected the bill by 95 votes to 76.

The Duke of Portland's administration resigned and on 19th December, 1783, the king invited William Pitt to form a new government. At the age of only twenty-four, Pitt became Britain's youngest prime minister. When it was announced that Pitt had accepted the king's invitation, the news was received in the House of Commons with derisive laughter.

Pitt had great difficulty finding enough people to join his government. Except for himself, his cabinet of seven contained no members of the House of Commons. Charles Fox lead the attack on Pitt and although defeated in votes several times in the House of Commons, he refused to resign. After building up his popularity in the country, Pitt called a general election on 24th March, 1784. Pitt's timing was perfect and 160 of Fox's supporters were defeated at the polls. Pitt himself stood for the seat of Cambridge University.

Pitt now had a majority in the House of Commons and was able to persuade parliament to pass a series of measures including the India Act that established dual control of the East India Company. Pitt also attacked the serious problem of smuggling by reducing duties on those goods that were mainly being imported illegally into Britain. The success of this measure established his reputation as a shrewd politician.

In April 1785 Pitt proposed a bill that would bring an end to thirty-six rotten boroughs and to transfer the seventy-two seats to those areas where the population was growing. Although Pitt spoke in favour of reform, he refused to warn the House of Commons that he would resign if the measure was defeated. The Commons came to the conclusion that Pitt did not feel strongly about reform and when the vote was taken it was defeated by 248 votes to 174. Pitt accepted the decision of the Commons and never made another attempt to introduce parliamentary reform.

The general election of October 1790 gave Pitt's government an increased majority. For the next few years Pitt was occupied with Britain's relationship with France. Pitt had initially viewed the French Revolution as a domestic issue which did not concern Britain. However, Pitt became worried when parliamentary reform groups in Britain appeared to be in contact with French revolutionaries. Pitt responded by issuing a proclamation against seditious writings.

When Pitt heard that King Louis XVI had been executed in January 1793, he expelled the French Ambassador. In the House of Common's Charles Fox and his small group of supporters attacked Pitt for not doing enough to preserve peace with France. Fox therefore blamed Pitt when France declared war on Britain on 1st February, 1793.

Pitt's attitude towards political reform changed dramatically after war was declared. In May 1793 Pitt brought in a bill suspending Habeas Corpus. Although denounced by Charles Fox and his supporters, the bill was passed by the House of Commons in twenty-four hours. Those advocating parliamentary reform were arrested and charged with sedition. Tom Paine managed to escape but others such as Thomas Hardy, John Thellwall and Thomas Muir were imprisoned.

Pitt decided to form a great European coalition against France and between March and October 1793 he concluded alliances with Russia, Prussia, Austria, Spain, Portugal and some German princes. At first these tactics were successful but during 1794 Britain and her allies suffered a series of defeats. To pay for the war, Pitt was forced to increase taxation and to raise a loan of £18 million. This problem was made worse by a series of bad harvests. When going to open parliament in October 1795, George III was greeted with cries of 'Bread', 'Peace' and 'no Pitt'. Missiles were also thrown and so Pitt immediately decided to pass a new Sedition Bill that redefined the law of treason.

Britain's continuing financial difficulties convinced Pitt to seek peace with France. These peace proposals were rejected by the French in May 1796 and William Pitt once again had to introduce new taxes. This included duties on horses and tobacco. The following year Pitt introduced additional taxes on tea, sugar and spirits. Even so, by November 1797, Britain had a budget deficit of £22 million. On several occasions Pitt was in physical danger from angry mobs and he had to be constantly protected by an armed guard. Pitt's health began to deteriorate and newspapers began reporting that the prime minister had suffered a mental breakdown and was insane. Pitt responded by passing new laws that enabled the government to suppress and regulate newspapers.

Britain's financial problems continued and in his budget of December 1798 William Pitt introduced a new graduated income tax. Beginning with a 120th tax on incomes of £60 and rising by degrees until it reached 10% on incomes of over £200. Pitt believed that this income tax would raise £10 million but in fact in 1799 the yield was just over £6 million.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

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[COLOR=#000000][B][COLOR=#8080ff]James Gillray[/COLOR][COLOR=#8080ff], [I]William Pitt's Policy of Income Tax[/I] (1799)[/COLOR][/B][/COLOR]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][COLOR=#000000]In 1797 Pitt appointed Lord Castlereagh as his Irish chief secretary. This was a time of great turmoil in Ireland and in the following year Castlereagh played an important role in crushing the Irish uprising. Castlereagh and Pitt became convinced that the best way of dealing with the religious conflicts in Ireland was to unite the country with the rest of Britain under a single Parliament. The policy was unpopular with the borough proprietors and the members of the Irish Parliament who had spent large sums of money purchasing their seats. Castlereagh appealed to the Catholic majority and made it clear that after the Act of Union the government would grant them legal equality with the Protestant minority. After the government paid compensation to the borough proprietors and promising pensions, official posts and titles to members of the Irish Parliament, the Act of Union was passed in 1801.

George III disagreed with Pitt and Castlereagh's policy of Catholic Emancipation. When Pitt discovered that the king had approached Henry Addington to become his prime minister, he resigned from office. Although Pitt had been paid £10,500 a year as prime minister, he was now deeply in debt and for a while he feared that he would be declared bankrupt. A group of friends agreed to help but it was only after selling his family home that he was able to satisfy his creditors.

In May 1804 Henry Addington resigned from office and once again William Pitt became prime minister. Lord Castlereagh was appointed Secretary for War but many leading politicians, including Charles Fox, refused to serve under Pitt. Out of the twelve man cabinet, only Pitt and Castlereagh were from the House of Commons.

With Napoleon planning to invade England, Pitt quickly formed a new coalition with Russia, Austria and Sweden. When the French were defeated at the Battle of Trafalgar on 21st October 1805, Pitt was hailed as the savior of Europe. However, Napoleon fought back and in December, 1805 he triumphed over the Russians and Austrians at Austerlitz.

Pitt was devastated by the news of Napoleon's victory and soon after was taken seriously ill. William Pitt died on 16th January, 1806. He was so heavily in debt that the House of Commons had to raise £40,000 to pay off his creditors.[/COLOR][/FONT]
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[SIZE="4"][B]Lord Grenville 1806-1807[/B][/SIZE]

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Henry Addington was born in 1759. Henry's father, Dr. Anthony Addington, had several important patients including the prime minister, Lord Chatham and his son, William Pitt. After being educated at Winchester School and Oxford University he became a lawyer.

Addington's friendship with the Pitt family helped him obtain the seat for Devizes in 1784. Later that year, William Pitt, like his father before him, became prime minister of Britain. Henry Addington was a loyal supporter of Pitt's Tory administration. Although Addington was only thirty, in 1789 Pitt suggested that he should become speaker of the House of Commons. Addington agreed with the proposal and with the help of Pitt was elected as speaker. The post received a salary of £6,000 a year and this enabled Addington to purchase a large estate in Reading.

William Pitt's policy of Catholic Emancipation so upset King George III that he asked Addington to help him remove his prime minister. After discussing the matter with Pitt, Addington agreed, and in 1801 he became Britain's new prime minister. Several ministers such as George Canning and Lord Castlereagh who agreed with Pitt's policy on Catholics, refused to serve under Addington. Henry Addington was an unpopular prime minister and in 1804 large numbers of his own party turned against him and he decided to resign.

The following year Addington was granted the title of Lord Sidmouth and agreed to serve as a minister in Pitt's government. However, he only served under William Pitt for six months. When Pitt refused to promote Viscount Sidmouth's friends he resigned from the cabinet.

In 1812 Lord Liverpool became prime minister and he offered Sidmouth the post of Home Secretary in his new government. Viscount Sidmouth now had the responsibility of dealing with social unrest in Britain. This included making machine-breaking an offence punishable by death. On one day alone, fourteen Luddites were executed in York. Social unrest continued and in 1817, Sidmouth was responsible for the passing of what became known as the Gagging Acts. This resulted in the arrest and imprisonment of radical journalists such as Richard Carlile.

The unpopularity of Sidmouth increased in 1819 after he wrote a letter supporting the action of the magistrates and the Manchester & Salford Yeomanry at what opponents called the Peterloo Massacre. In November 1819, Sidmouth persuaded Parliament to pass a series of repressive measures that became known as the Six Acts. Sidmouth retired from office in 1821. He continued to support the Tories in parliament and voted against Catholic Emancipation in 1829 and the Reform Act of 1832. Lord Sidmouth died on 15th February 1844.
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[SIZE="4"]Duke of Portland 1807-1809[/B][/SIZE]

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William Cavendish Bentinck, the eldest son of the 2nd Duke of Portland, was born in 1738. Educated at Eton and Oxford University, in 1761 Bentinck was elected to represent the Woeby constituency. After a year in the House of Commons, Bentinck's father died and he therefore became the 3rd Duke of Portland.

In July 1765, Portland entered Lord Rockingham's Whig cabinet, where he served as lord chamberlain until the fall of the government the following year. The Duke of Portland returned to power in 1782 when Lord Rockingham appointed him as lord lieutenant of Ireland.

For a short period in 1783 the Duke of Portland became leader of the Whig administration. The Duke of Portland's government was concerned with the power of the East India Company and in 1783 Charles Fox attempted to persuade Parliament to pass a bill that would replace the company's directors with a board of commissioners. George III made it known to the House of Lords that he would consider anyone voting with the Bill an enemy. As a result of this interference, Portland's government resigned.

William Pitt, a Tory, replaced Portland as Prime Minister and held office for the next eighteen years. In 1794, Portland and a group of the Whigs entered a formal alliance with Pitt. Portland became Home Secretary and played an important role in the passing of the Act of Union in 1801. The Duke of Portland also served as Home Secretary under Henry Addington who was Prime Minister between 1801 and 1804.

When Lord Grenville resigned in 1807 over the refusal of George III to accept Catholic Emancipation, the Duke of Portland agreed to form a new administration. Now sixty-nine years old and in poor health, Portland remained in office until shortly before his death in 1809.

[SIZE="4"][B]Spencer Perceval 1809-1812[/B][/SIZE]

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Spencer Perceval, the son of the 2nd Earl of Egmont, was born in 1762. After being educated at Harrow and Trinity College, Cambridge, he became a lawyer.

In 1796 Perceval was elected MP for Northampton. In the House of Commons Perceval became a strong supporter of William Pitt and the Tory group in Parliament. When Henry Addington became Prime Minister in 1801 he appointed Perceval as his solicitor-general. The following year he was promoted to attorney-general.

When Lord Portland became Prime Minister in 1807 he appointed Perceval as his Chancellor of the Exchequer. Perceval got on well with George III and loyally supported the king's opposition to Catholic Emancipation.

When Portland died in 1809, Spencer Perceval accepted the king offer to become Prime Minister. Perceval's period of power coincided with an economic depression and considerable industrial unrest. This resulted in his government introducing repressive methods against the Luddites. This included the Frame-Breaking Act which made the destruction of machines a capital offence.

Perceval held the post until 1812 when he became the only British Prime Minister in history to be assassinated. Spencer Perceval was shot when entering the lobby of the House of Commons by John Bellingham, a failed businessman from Liverpool. Bellingham, who blamed Perceval for his financial difficulties, was later hanged for his crime.

[SIZE="4"][B]Lord Liverpool 1812-1827[/B][/SIZE]

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Robert Jenkinson, the eldest son of the first Earl of Liverpool, was born on 7th June, 1770. He was educated at Charterhouse and Christ Church, Cambridge. At the age of twenty Robert was granted the seat of Appleby, a pocket borough owned by Sir James Lowther. Robert Jenkinson was a Tory and in May 1793, he spoke against Earl Grey's attempt to introduce parliamentary reform.

In February 1801, the Prime Minister, Viscount Sidmouth, promoted Jenkinson to the cabinet. Two years later Sidmouth granted Jenkinson the title Lord Hawkesbury in November 1803. When Pitt replaced Sidmouth as Prime Minister in 1804, Jenkinson became leader of the government in the House of Lords.

On the death of his father in December, 1808, Jenkinson became the second Earl of Liverpool. WhenSpencer Perceval became prime minister in 1809 he appointed Lord Liverpool as secretary of war and the colonies. Perceval was assassinated in 1812, by a deranged bankrupt who blamed the government for his troubles, and Lord Liverpool was asked to become Britain's new prime minister.

Lord Liverpool was to remain in office for fifteen years. At first Liverpool was a popular prime minister. In 1815 British forces were victorious at the Battle of Waterloo. The abdication of Napoleon and the successful conclusion of the French Wars improved the public standing of Lord Liverpool's government. It was hoped that with the end of the conflict in Europe Lord Liverpool's government would be able to concentrate on introducing the social reforms that were much needed in Britain.

Liverpool disagreed with those who advocated reform. He reacted to the growth in the radical press by increasing the tax on newspapers. Radical journalists such as Robert Carlile and Henry Hetherington, responded by campaigning for an end to all taxes on knowledge.

In 1817 Britain endured an economic recession. Unemployment, a bad harvest and high prices produced riots, demonstrations and a growth in the Hampden Club movement. Lord Liverpool's government reacted by suspending Habeas Corpus for two years.

The economic situation gradually improved and Liverpool hoped that a reduction in taxation would prevent a revival of radicalism when the suspension of Habeas Corpus came to an end in 1818. This was not the case, and the summer of 1819 saw a series of large gatherings in favour of parliamentary reform, culminating in the massive public meeting at Manchester on 16th August 1819.

Lord Liverpool made it clear that he fully supported the action of the magistrates and the Manchester and Salford Yeomanry. Radicals reacted by calling what happened in St. Peter's Fields, the Peterloo Massacre, therefore highlighting the fact that Liverpool's government was now willing to use the same tactics against the British people that it had used against Napoleon and the French Army.

Liverpool's government decided to take action to prevent further large meetings demanding social reform. In November 1819 Parliament was assembled and it quickly passed the Six Acts. In 1822 Liverpool used similar methods to deal with the distress and disaffection in Ireland.

Liverpool found the heavy burden of running a divided country increasingly stressful. Liverpool began to suffer health problems and on 17th February, 1827, he had a stroke. Liverpool was forced to resign and although he lived for nearly two more years, he was rarely conscious. Lord Liverpool died on 4th December, 1828.

[SIZE="4"][B]George Canning 1827[/B][/SIZE]

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George Canning was born in London on 11th April, 1770. George's father died when he was one year old leaving the family in poor financial circumstances. George was helped by his mother's brother, who paid for him to be educated at Eton College. A star pupil, George went to Christ Church, Oxford before becoming a lawyer in 1790.

George Canning's uncle, a reformer, arranged for him to meet leading Whig politicians such as Charles Fox. After a period under the influence of Fox, George Canning met the Tory, William Pitt. The two men became friends and in 1793 Pitt helped Canning become MP for the rotten borough of Newtown in the House of Commons.

In 1796 William Pitt appointed Canning as secretary of state for Foreign Affairs. This was the first of a series of posts held under Pitt that included: commissioner of the board of control (1799-1800), paymaster-general (1800-1801) and treasurer of the navy (1801). After Pitt resigned in 1801, Canning joined the opposition to Henry Addington's government. Over the next few years Henry Addington suffered from Canning's parliamentary attacks. Canning was especially critical of Addington's refusal to accept Catholic Emancipation.

In May 1804 William Pitt returned to power and Canning was once again given the post of treasurer of the navy. After Pitt's death in 1806, Canning became foreign minister in the Duke of Portland's government. Canning played an important role in planning the war against France. It was Canning's idea to seize the Danish Fleet. This severely weakened Napoleon's forces and was a a contributing factor to his eventually defeat. Canning promised to send more troops to the Duke of Wellington who was fighting in Portugal. Canning was furious when he discovered that the secretary of war, Lord Castlereagh, sent the troops to Holland instead. A bitter argument took place and eventually Castlereagh challenged Canning to a duel on Putney Heath on 21st September, 1809. The two men missed with their first shots but eventually Castlereagh wounded Canning in the thigh.

Canning left government and for the next few years Canning concentrated on writing. He contributed to the Anti-Jacobin Review and with Sir Water Scott helped to establish the Quarterly Review. Canning contributed several articles on political subjects including the need for full political and religious rights for Catholics. However, Canning was a strong opponent of any increase in the number of people who could vote in parliamentary elections.

In 1812 Canning became MP for Liverpool. Canning was invited by the new prime minister, Lord Liverpool, to become foreign minister. Canning refused office because he was unwilling to serve in the same government as Lord Castlereagh. Liverpool approached Canning on several occasions to join his government and eventually he changed his mind and in 1816 became president of the board of control. After Castlereagh committed suicide in 1822, Canning replaced him as foreign minister. George Canning held the post of foreign minister for the next five years.

When Lord Liverpool resigned in 1827 King George IV interviewed Robert Peel, the Duke of Wellington and George Canning for the post of prime minister. When the king appointed Canning, Wellington, Peel and several other leading Tories resigned from the government. Canning was forced to rely on the support of the Whigs to hold on to power. Those Whigs who accepted government posts had to promise not to raise the issue of parliamentary reform.

Canning first concern was to tackle the problem of the Corn Laws. On 1st March, 1827, Canning introduced the proposal that foreign wheat should be admitted at a 20s. duty when the price had fallen to 60s. This new sliding scale enabled the duty to fall as the price rose, and to rise as the price fell. The Duke of Wellington led the fight against this measure and although passed by the House of Commons, it was defeated in the House of Lords.

Even before being appointed prime minister, George Canning's health was in decline. The strain of office made matters worse and on 29th July he informed George IV that he was seriously ill. Canning was taken to the home of the Duke of Devonshire and on 8th August, 1827, he died in the same room in which, twenty-one years before, his first political influence, Charles Fox, had passed away.

[SIZE="4"][B]Viscount Goderich 1827-28[/B][/SIZE]

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Frederick Robinson, second son of Baron Grantham, was born in London in 1782. After being educated at Harrow and Cambridge University, he trained as a lawyer. However, he ended his studies when he was offered the post as private secretary to the Earl of Hardwicke, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.

At the 1806 General Election, Robinson was elected to represent the Carlow in the House of Commons. He held the seat for a year but in the next General Election he switched to Ripon.

In 1809 the Duke of Portland appointed him as his under-secretary for the colonies and the following year he accepted the post of lord of the admiralty under Spencer Perceval. When Lord Liverpool became Prime Minister in 1812, Robinson became President of the Board of Trade.

In 1815 Robinson was responsible for the introduction of the new Corn Laws. In the street riots that followed, Robinson's house in Old Burlington Street was attacked and valuable pictures and pieces of furniture were destroyed. Robinson supported the Six Acts and unsuccessfully opposed the appointment of a select committee to look into agricultural distress. Robinson also spoke on several occasions against Whig attempts to introduce parliamentary reform.

In 1823 Robinson became Chancellor of the Exchequer. With the support of William Huskisson at the Board of Trade, Robinson reduced duties on rum, coal, foreign wool and raw silk. Robinson experienced problems balancing the budget and in 1827 asked the new Prime Minister, George Canning, to grant him a peerage and an easier job in the government. Canning agreed with this request and Robinson became Viscount Goderich and gave him the post of Secretary of State for War.

When Canning died in August 1827, George IV asked Goderich to become Prime Minister. His colleagues feared that he had been chosen because the king felt he could control him better than other leading politicians. Goderich found it impossible to stop the conflict between the Whigs and Tories in the cabinet and on 8th January, 1828, he resigned from office. Goderich was disappointed when the new Prime Minister, the Duke of Wellington, decided against offering him a post in his government.

When the Whig, Lord Grey, took office in November, 1830, Goderich was appointed Secretary of State for War. Goderich now emerged as one of the leading liberals in the government. He fully supported parliamentary reform and argued for an end to slavery.

In April, 1833 he was granted a new title, the Earl of Ripon. Later that year he had the responsibility of taking the Slavery Abolition Act through the House of Lords. In May, 1834, he resigned from the government over the proposed Irish Church Commission, a move that he feared would result in a loss of power for the Church of England.

The Earl of Ripon returned to government in August, 1841, when he was appointed by Robert Peel as his President of the Board of Trade. He was then given the task of reforming the Corn Laws. After the passing of the 1846 Corn Law Act. Ripon resigned from office. Frederick Robinson, Earl of Ripon, died on 14th May, 1847.

[SIZE="4"][B]Duke of Wellington 1828-1830 [/B][/SIZE]

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Arthur Wellesley, the son of the Earl of Mornington, was born in Dublin in 1769. After being educated at Eton and a military school at Angers he received a commission in the 73rd Infantry. Eventually Wellesley obtained the rank of captain and became aide-de-camp to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland.

In 1797 Wellesley was sent to India. With Napoleon gaining victories in Egypt, Wellesley was dispatched to deal with Tippoo Sahib of Mysore. As brigade commander under General George Harris he impressed his superiors throughout the Seringapatam expedition and was made administrator of the conquered territory.

Wellesley returned to England in 1805 and the following year he was elected as the MP for Rye in Sussex. A year after entering the House of Commons, the Duke of Portland appointed Wellesley as his Irish Secretary. Although a member of the government, Arthur Wellesley remained in the army and in 1808 he was sent to aid the Portuguese against the French. After a victory at Vimeiro he returned to England but the following year he was asked to assume command of the British Army in the Peninsular War. In 1812 the French were forced out of Spain and Wellesley reinforced his victory against the French at Toulouse.

In 1814 Wellesley was granted the title, the Duke of Wellington. He was then put in command of the forces which defeated Napoleon at Waterloo in June, 1815. Parliament rewarded this military victory by granting Wellington the Hampshire estate of Strathfieldsaye.

In 1818 the Duke of Wellington returned to politics when he accepted the invitation of Lord Liverpool to join his Tory administration as master-General of the Ordnance. In 1829 Wellington assisted Robert Peel in his efforts to reorganize the Metropolitan Police.

In 1828 Wellington replaced Lord Goderich as prime minister. Although Wellington and the Home Secretary, Robert Peel, had always opposed Catholic Emancipation they began to reconsider their views after they received information on the possibility of an Irish rebellion. As Peel said to Wellington: "though emancipation was a great danger, civil strife was a greater danger". King George IV was violently opposed to Catholic Emancipation but after Wellington threatened to resign, the king reluctantly agreed to a change in the law.

In 1830 unemployment in rural areas began to grow and the invention of the threshing machine posed another threat to the economic prosperity of the farm labourer. The summer and autumn of 1830 saw a wave of riots, rick-burnings and machine-breaking. In a debate in the House of Lords in November, Earl Grey, the Whig leader, suggested that the best way to reduce this violence was to introduce parliamentary reform. The Duke of Wellington replied that the existing constitution was so perfect that he could not imagine any possible alternative that would be an improvement on the present system. In the speech Wellington made it clear that he had no intention of introducing parliamentary reform. When news of what Wellington had said in Parliament was reported, his home in London was attacked by a mob. Now extremely unpopular with the public, Wellington began to consider resigning from office.

On 15th November, 1830 Wellington's government was defeated in a vote in the House of Commons. The new king, William IV, was more sympathetic to reform than his predecessor and two days later decided to ask Earl Grey to form a government. As soon as Grey became prime minister he formed a cabinet committee to produce a plan for parliamentary reform. Details of the proposals were announced on 3rd February 1831. The bill was passed by the House of Commons by a majority of 136, but despite a powerful speech by Earl Grey, the bill was defeated in the House of Lords by forty-one.

Wellington attended the opening of the Liverpool to Manchester Railway but was deeply upset by the way he was booed and hissed by the crowds as his train entered Manchester. This was a reaction to his views on the Peterloo Massacre and his opposition to the 1832 Reform Act. This experience made him hostile to the railways and he warned that cheap travel may result in revolution. However, Wellington later changed his mind about the railways after he developed a close relationship with George Hudson. Hudson helped Wellington make a great deal of money by advising him when to buy and sell railway shares.

Wellington retired from public life in 1846 but in 1848 he organised a military force to protect London against possible Chartist violence at the large meeting at Kennington Common. Arthur Wellesley, the Duke of Wellington died in 1852 and is buried in St Paul's Cathedral.

[SIZE="4"][B] Earl Grey 1830-1834[/B][/SIZE]

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Charles Grey was born at Fallodon on 13th March 1764. His father, General Sir Charles Grey, was one of Britain most important military commanders. He was later granted the titles Viscount Howick and Earl Grey. After being educated at Winchester and King's College, Cambridge, Charles Grey toured Europe.

At the age of twenty-two Charles Grey he became the Member of Parliament for Northumberland. Although his father was a staunch Tory, Grey soon became a follower of Charles Fox, the leader of the Radical Whigs in the House of Commons. Like Fox, Grey disliked William Pitt and was a consistent critic of the British Prime Minister.

Grey did not agree with those who advocated universal suffrage but he did feel that there was a strong need to improve the parliamentary system in Britain. In April 1792, Grey joined with a group of pro-reform Whigs to form the Friends of the People. Three peers (Lord Porchester, Lord Lauderdale and Lord Buchan) and twenty-eight Whig MPs joined the group. Other leading members included Richard Sheridan, Major John Cartwright, Lord John Russell, George Tierney, Thomas Erskine and Samuel Whitbread. The main objective of the the society was to obtain "a more equal representation of the people in Parliament" and "to secure to the people a more frequent exercise of their right of electing their representatives". Charles Fox was opposed to the formation of this group as he feared it would lead to a split the Whig Party.

On 30th April 1792, Charles Grey introduced a petition in favour of constitutional reform. He argued that the reform of the parliamentary system would remove public complaints and "restore the tranquillity of the nation". He also stressed that the Friends of the People would not become involved in any activities that would "promote public disturbances". Although Charles Fox had refused to join the Friends of the People, in the debate that followed, he supported Grey's proposals. When the vote was taken, Grey's proposals were defeated by 256 to 91 votes.

On 6th May 1793, Charles Grey once again introduced a parliamentary reform bill. Grey argued that one of the basic principles established by the Glorious Revolution of 1688 was the freedom of elections to the House of Commons. Grey added that "a man ought not to be governed by laws, in the framing of which he had not a voice, either in person or by his representative, and that he ought not to be made to pay any tax to which he should not have consented in the same way." Grey also attacked William Pitt, the Prime Minister, for the way that he exploited the present system. Grey pointed out that Pitt had created 30 new peers who nominated or indirectly influenced the return of a total of 40 MPs.

Charles Fox and Richard Sheridan supported Grey in the debate that followed. Robert Jenkinson and Lord Mornington, spoke against. So also did William Pitt who argued that any reform at this time would give encouragement to the Radicals in Britain who were supporting the French Revolution. When the vote was taken, Grey's proposals were defeated by 282 to 41. Members of the Friends of the People now realised they had no chance of persuading the House of Commons to accept parliamentary reform and the group disbanded.

In 1794 Charles Grey spoke against the suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act and the following year he opposed the Seditious Meetings Bill. Frustrated by Pitt's refusal to consider parliamentary reform, Charles Grey decided to stop attending debates at the House of Commons. After a three year absence Grey returned in 1800 to oppose the Act of Union with Ireland.

In April 1803 Henry Addington offered Grey a place in his coalition government he refused with the comment that he would not take office without Charles Fox. When Fox entered the cabinet in January 1806, Grey joined him as first Lord of the Admiralty.

After the death of Charles Fox on 13th September, 1806, Charles Grey became leader of the Whig section of the government. Grey now became Foreign Secretary and leader of the House of Commons and was responsible for the act abolishing the African Slave Trade. In March 1807 George III ordered Lord Grenville's government not to introduce any more controversial measures. Grenville's government believed this instruction was unconstitutional and they resigned.

Charles Grey's father died on 16th November 1807. He now inherited his father's title and moved to the House of Lords. Although he was no longer in the House of Commons Earl Grey continued to play an active role in politics. He took part in the campaign forCatholic Emancipation and changes in the parliamentary system but was unsuccessful in persuading Lord Liverpool and his Tory government to introduce reforms. Grey opposed the renewal of war with France in 1815 and denounced the Gagging Acts imposed in 1817.

In June 1830 Earl Grey made an impressive speech on the need for parliamentary reform. The Duke of Wellington, the prime minister and leader of the Tories in Parliament, replied that the "existing system of representation was as near perfection as possible". It was now clear that the Tories would be unwilling to change the electoral system and that if people wanted reform they had to give their support to the Whigs.

On 15th November, 1830 Wellington's government was defeated in a vote in the House of Commons. The new king, William IV, was more sympathetic to reform than his predecessor and decided to ask Earl Grey to form a government. As soon as Grey became prime minister he formed a cabinet committee to produce a plan for parliamentary reform. Details of the proposals were announced on 3rd February 1831. The bill was passed by the House of Commons by a majority of 136, but despite a powerful speech by Earl Grey, the bill was defeated in the House of Lords by forty-one.

The defeat of the Reform Act resulted in Earl Grey calling a general election. The Whigs were popular with the electorate and after the election they had a larger majority than before in the House of Commons. A second reform bill was also defeated in the House of Lords. When people heard the news, riots took place in several British towns. Nottingham Castle was burnt down and in Bristol the Mansion House was set on fire.

In 1832 Earl Grey tried again but the House of Lords refused to pass the bill. Grey now appealed to William IV for help. He agreed to Grey's request to create a large number of new Whig peers. When the Lords heard the news, they agreed to pass the Reform Act. On 7th June the Bill received the Royal Assent and large crowds celebrated in the streets of Britain.

Earl Grey now called another general election and in the new reformed House of Commons, Grey had a majority of over a hundred. The Whigs were now able to introduce and pass a series of reforming measures. This included an act for the abolition of slavery in the colonies and the 1833 Factory Act. After the passing of the 1834 Poor Law Earl Grey decided to resign from office. Charles Grey died on 17th July, 1845.

[SIZE="4"][B]Lord Melbourne 1834, 1835-1841[/B][/SIZE]

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William Lamb, son of Lord Melbourne, was born in London in 1779. After being educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge he became a lawyer. As a young man, Lamb became a member of a group of Radicals that included Leigh Hunt, Percy Bysshe Shelley, William Hazlitt, Henry Brougham, Lord Byron, and Thomas Barnes. Whereas Hunt, Shelley, Byron, Hazlitt and Barnes concentrated on writing, Brougham and Lamb went into politics. In 1805 Lamb became Whig MP for Leominster.

In the same year that he entered the House of Commons, Lamb married Lady Caroline Ponsonby. The marriage was not successful and 1812 Lady Lamb scandalized London society by having an affair with Lord Byron.

In 1827 George Canning, the Tory prime minister, offered William Lamb the post of chief secretary of Ireland. The following year he inherited his father's title and moved to the House of Lords. When Earl Grey and his Whig government took power in November, 1830, Lord Melbourne became home secretary. By this time Melbourne was a moderate Whig and had severe doubts about the wisdom of parliamentary reform. However, he decided to fight the case from within and did not resign from the government during the fight for the 1832 Reform Act.

William IV resented the fact that Lord Grey had forced the Reform Act on him. However, Grey was so popular with the general public that he was unable to take action against him. After Grey resigned in 1834 Melbourne was asked to became prime minister. Melbourne was not an ambitious man and had to be persuaded to take the post. William IV was now in a much stronger position and after four months the king dismissed the Whig government and appointed the Tory, Sir Robert Peel as his new prime minister.

As there were more Whigs than Tories in the House of Commons, Sir Robert Peel found government very difficult. Peel was only able to pass legislation that was supported by the Whigs and on 8th April 1835 he resigned from office. William IV was forced to reappoint Melbourne as his prime minister.

The following year Melbourne was involved in a serious sexual scandal. For many years Melbourne had been friends with Caroline Norton, the wife of a former Tory MP. George Norton, who had serious financial problems, went to see Melbourne and asked for £1400. When Melbourne refused, Norton accused him of having an affair with his wife. For a while the Tories thought that the scandal would bring Melbourne's government down. However, Norton had no evidence that his wife and Melbourne were having an affair and he was eventually forced to abandon his court case.

William IV died in 1837. His replacement, the eighteen year old Queen Victoria, unlike William, was willing to listen to the advice of her prime minister. Melbourne, whose wife and only child had recently died, became her mentor. An apartment was made available for him at Windsor Castle and it was estimated that Melbourne spent six hours a day with Victoria. Her feelings for Melbourne were clearly expressed in her journal. On one occasion she wrote: "he is such an honest, good kind-hearted man and is my friend, I know it."

Some people objected to this close relationship. Melbourne's old friend, Thomas Barnes, the editor of The Times wrote "Is it for the Queen's service - is it for the Queen's dignity - is it becoming - is it commonly descent?" In the autumn of 1837 a rumour circulated that the 18 year old Victoria was considering marrying the 58 year old Melbourne. Queen Victoria wrote in her diary that she was growing very fond of Melbourne and loved listening to him talk: "Such stories of knowledge; such a wonderful memory; he knows about everybody and everything,; who they were and what they did. He has such a kind and agreeable manner; he does me the world of good."

Lord Melbourne was opposed to some of the measures being advocated by some of the more radical Whigs such as Lord John Russell and Henry Brougham. This included the proposal for the secret ballot and the idea of state education. Russell, the Home Secretary in Melbourne's government, did manage to introduce some progressive legislation. His first measure concerned the reform of local government. For many years most English towns had been under the control of a self-elected body of aldermen and councillors. Under the terms of the Municipal Corporations Act, these men now had to be elected by the whole body of ratepayers.

In 1836 Lord John Russell was responsible for several new reforms including the establishment of the civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths, and the legislation of the marriage of dissenters in their own chapels. The following year Russell proposed a bill that would reduce the number of offences to which capital punishment was applicable.

In 1839 Melbourne resigned after a defeat in the House of Commons. Sir Robert Peel, the Tory leader, now became prime minister. It was the custom for the Queen's ladies of the bedchamber should be of the some political party as the government. Peel asked Victoria to replace the Whig ladies with Tory ladies. When Victoria refused, Peel resigned and Melbourne and the Whigs returned to office.

Melbourne resigned as prime minister in 1841. Queen Victoria wrote in her diary that she was "deeply affected" by this event. They continued to exchange letters until pressure was applied on Queen Victoria to bring an end to the relationship. Lord Melbourne died in 1848.

[SIZE="4"][B]Sir Robert Peel 1834-1835, 1841-1846[/B][/SIZE]

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Robert Peel was born in Bury, Lancashire, on 5th February, 1788. His father, Sir Robert Peel (1750-1830), was a wealthy cotton manufacturer and member of parliament for Tamworth. Robert was trained as a child to become a future politician. Every Sunday evening he had to repeat the two church sermons that he had heard that day.

Robert Peel was educated at Harrow School and Christ Church, Oxford, where he won a double first in classics and mathematics. In 1809 Sir Robert Peel rewarded his son academic success by buying him the parliamentary seat of Cashel in Tipperary (exchanged for Chippenham in 1812). Robert Peel entered the House of Commons in April 1809, at the age of twenty-one. Like his father, Robert Peel supported the Duke of Portland's Tory government. He made an immediate impact and Charles Abbott, the Speaker of the House of Commons, described Peel's first contribution to a debate as the "the best first speech since that of William Pitt."

After only a year in the House of Commons the Duke of Portland offered him the post of under-secretary of war and the colonies. Working under Lord Liverpool, Peel helped to direct the military operations against the French.

When Lord Liverpool became prime minister in May 1812, Peel was appointed as chief secretary for Ireland. In his new post Peel attempted to bring an end to corruption in Irish government. He tried to stop the practice of selling public offices and the dismissal of civil servants for their political views. At first Peel also attempted to end those aspects of government that gave preference to Protestants over Catholics. However, Robert Peel was not successful in carrying out this policy and eventually he became seen as one of the leading opponents to Catholic Emancipation.

In 1814 he decided to suppress the Catholic Board, an organisation started by Daniel O'Connell. This was the start of a long conflict between the two men. In 1815 Peel challenged O'Connell to a duel. Peel travelled to Ostend but O'Connell was arrested on the way to fight the duel.

In 1817 Robert Peel decided to retire from his post in Ireland. This upset the Irish Protestants in the House of Commons and fifty-seven of them signed a petition urging him not to leave a post that they believed he had "administered with masterly ability". Oxford University acknowledged Peel's "services to Protestantism" by inviting him to become its member of the House of Commons.

In 1822 Peel rejoined Lord Liverpool's government when he accepted the post of Home Secretary. Over the next five years Peel was responsible for large-scale reform in the legal system. This involved repealing over 250 old statutes.

Lord Liverpool was struck down by paralysis in February 1827 and was replaced by George Canning as prime minister. Canning was an advocate of Catholic Emancipation and as Peel was strongly opposed to this, he felt he could not serve under the new prime minister and resigned from office. After the death of Canning Peel returned to government as Home Secretary in the government led by the Duke of Wellington.

On 26th July, 1828, Lord Anglesey, wrote to Peel arguing that Ireland was on the verge of rebellion and asked him to use his influence to gain concessions for the Catholics. Although Peel had opposed Catholic Emancipation for twenty years, Lord Anglesey's letter encouraged him to reconsider his position. Peel now wrote to Wellington saying that "though emancipation was a great danger, civil strife was a greater danger". He also added that as William Pitt had rightly said: "to maintain a consistent attitude amid changed circumstances is to be a slave of the most idle vanity". Although the Duke of Wellington agreed with Peel, King George III was violently opposed to Catholic Emancipation. When Wellington's government threatened to resign the king reluctantly agreed to a change in the law. When Peel introduced the Catholic Emancipation Act on 5th March, 1829, he told the House of Commons that the credit for the measure belonged to his long-time opponents, Charles Fox and George Canning.

For a long time politicians had been concerned about the problems of law and order in London. In 1829 Robert Peel decided to reorganize the way London was policed. As a result of this reform, the new metropolitan police force became known as "Peelers" or "Bobbies".

In November 1830, Wellington's government was replaced by a new administration headed by Earl Grey. For the first time in over twenty years in the House of Commons, Peel was now a member of the opposition. Peel was totally against Grey's proposals for parliamentary reform. Between 12th and 27th July 1831, Peel made forty-eight speeches in the House of Commons against this measure. One of Peel's main arguments was that the system of rotten boroughs had enabled distinguished men to enter parliament.

After the passing of the 1832 Reform Act the Tories were heavily defeated in the general election that followed. Although victorious at Tamworth, Peel, now leader of the Tories, only had just over hundred MPs he could rely on to support him against Earl Grey's government.

In November 1834 King William IV dismissed the Whig government and appointed Robert Peel as his new prime minister. Peel immediately called a general election and during the campaign issued what became known as the Tamworth Manifesto. In his election address to his constituents in Tamworth, Peel pledged his acceptance of the 1832 Reform Act and argued for a policy of moderate reforms while preserving Britain's important traditions. The Tamworth Manifesto marked the shift from the old, repressive Toryism to a new, more enlightened Conservatism.

The general election gave Peel more supporters although there were still more Whigs than Tories in the House of Commons. Despite this, the king invited Peel to form a new administration. With the support of the Whigs, Peel's government was able to pass the Dissenters' Marriage Bill and the English Tithe Bill. However, Peel was constantly being outvoted in the House of Commons and on 8th April 1835 he resigned from office.

In August 1841 Robert Peel was once again invited to form a Conservative administration. Over the last few years Britain had been spending more than it was earning. Peel decided the government had to increase revenue. On 11th March, 1842, he announced the introduction of income-tax at sevenpence in the pound. He added, that he hoped that this was enable the government to reduce duties on imported goods.

In 1843 Peel once more had problems with Daniel O'Connell, who was leading the campaign against the Act of Union. O'Connell announced a large meeting to be held at Clontarf. The British government pronounced it illegal and when O'Connell continued to go ahead with his planned Clontarf meeting he was arrested and imprisoned for conspiracy. Peel attempted to overcome the religious conflict in Ireland by setting up the Devon Commission to inquire into the "state of the law and practice in respect to the occupation of land in Ireland." He also increased the grant to Maynooth, a college for the education of the Irish priesthood, from £9,000 to £26,000 a year.

However, Peel's attempts to improve the situation in Ireland was severely damaged by the 1845 potato blight. The Irish crop failed, therefore depriving the people of their staple food. Peel was informed that three million poor people in Ireland who had previously lived on potatoes would require cheap imported corn. Peel realised that they only way to avert starvation was to remove the duties on imported corn. Although the Corn Laws were repealed in 1846, the policy split the Conservative Party and Peel was forced to resign.

Robert Peel continued to attend the House of Commons and gave considerable support to Lord John Russell and his administration in 1846-47. On 28th June 1850 he gave an important speech on Greece and the foreign policy of Lord Palmerston. The following day, while riding up Constitution Hill, he was thrown from his horse. Peel was badly hurt and on 2nd July, 1850, he died from his injuries.

[SIZE="4"][B]Lord John Russell 1846-1852, 1865-1866[/B][/SIZE]

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John Russell, the third son of the 6th Duke of Bedford, was born in London on 17th August, 1792. The Duke of Bedford supported parliamentary reform and along with Lord Grey, Richard Sheridan, Thomas Erskine and Samuel Whitbread was a member of the Society of Friends of the People. Before he inherited his title in 1802 the Duke of Bedford had been the MP for Tavistock.

Russell suffered from poor health and after a short spell at Westminster School, he was educated at home. The Duke of Bedford encouraged his son to take an interest in politics and Russell, like his father, developed a sympathy for the poor. At the age of fourteen he wrote in his diary, "What a pity that he who steals a penny loaf should be hung, whilst he who steals thousands of the public money should be acquitted."

In 1809 Russell went to Edinburgh University. Soon after he finished his studies in 1812 his father arranged for him to be elected to the family seat of Tavistock. He was also granted the courtesy title, Lord Russell. In the House of Commons Russell supported the Whigs and in 1817 he made a passionate speech against the decision by Lord Liverpool and his government to suspend Habeas Corpus. Russell also took an active part in the campaign for parliamentary reform.

At the general election of 1820 Russell switched from Tavistock to Huntingdonshire. For the next twelve years Russell was the leader of the Whig campaign in the House of Commons for parliamentary reform. When he proposed the motion for an investigation into parliamentary representation in 1822, the motion was defeated by 105 votes. An attempt by Lord Russell to introduce a bill to reduce bribery at elections also ended in failure.

In the general election of 1826 Russell was defeated at Huntingdonshire but in December of that year was returned for the Irish borough of Bandon. In February 1828 he proposed a bill that would repeal the Test and Corporation Acts. Russell was totally opposed to this law under which no Catholic or Protestant Non-conformist could hold public office. Supported by Robert Peel, Lord Palmerston and William Huskisson the bill was passed with a majority of forty-five. The following year Lord Russell led the successful campaign for the Catholic Relief Bill. As a result of these measures Catholic Emancipation was finally achieved.

After the Duke of Wellington resigned in November 1830, Lord Grey formed a Whig administration. Russell was offered the post of postmaster-general. Grey also asked Russell to join a government committee to look into the need for parliamentary reform. Russell was also chosen to explain to the House of Commons the government's proposals for changing the electoral system.

Lord Russell introduced the bill in the House of Commons in March 1831. After it was rejected by the House of Lords he reintroduced it on December 1831. As a result of Lord Russell's perseverance the Reform Act was finally passed on 7th June, 1832.

After the general election for the new reformed House of Commons, the Whig government had a majority of 315. Earl Grey and his colleagues were now in a position to try and introduce a series of reforms. Russell was one of the most important figures in this campaign for change. In 1834 he introduced the Dissenters' Marriage Bill and the Irish Tithe Bill.

In November, 1834 Lord Althorp, the leader of theHouse of Commons, succeeded to the peerage on the death of his father. William IV objected when the post was offered to Lord Russell and took the opportunity to dismiss the Whig government. Sir Robert Peel was invited by the king to form a Tory government. Outnumbered by Whig MPs, Peel found the task very difficult and his government suffered several defeats in the House of Commons. After Peel lost a vote on 3rd March, 1835 concerning the Irish Church, he resigned and was replaced by Lord Melbourne as prime minister.

Lord Russell became the Home Secretary in Melbourne's new Whig government. Russell's first reforming measure concerned the reform of local government. For many years most English towns had been under the control of a self-elected body of aldermen and councillors. Under the terms of the Municipal Corporations Act, these men now had to be elected by the whole body of ratepayers.

In 1836 Lord Russell was responsible for several new reforms including the establishment of the civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths, and the legalisation of the marriage of dissenters in their own chapels. The following year Russell proposed a bill that would reduce the number of offences to which capital punishment was applicable. Russell also presented plans to reform the 1834 Poor Law but before these measures could be passed the death of William IV resulted in a dissolution of parliament. The subsequent general election resulted in Tory gains. Lord Melbourne's government remained in power but its reduced majority made it impossible for Russell to continue with his plans for parliamentary reform. Despite these difficulties Lord Russell was able to steer bills establishing reformatories for juvenile offenders and new Irish Poor Law through parliament.

Lord Russell had for a long time been a advocate of reforming the Corn Laws. This eventually became the policy of Lord Melbourne's government. However, when the proposed changes were defeated by thirty-six votes on 18th May, 1841, the government resigned. The following general election resulted in Sir Robert Peel becoming prime minister.

Although Lord Russell was opposed to most of Peel's policies, he fully supported his plans to reform the Corn Laws. In a speech he made on 22nd November 1845, Russell called for a total repeal of the corn laws. Peel was also coming to the same conclusion and with Whig support, the corn laws were finally abolished on 26th June 1846.

When Sir Robert Peel resigned the following month, Lord Russell was asked to form a new government. Russell immediate problem was to deal with the potato famine in Ireland. Russell attempted to help by allocating £10 million to be spent on public works in Ireland. Russell also vigorously supported John Fielden in his campaign for factory reform. This resulted in the passing of the 1847 Factory Act. The following year he managed to persuade parliament to accept his government's Public Health Act that gave municipalities powers to set up local boards of health.

In December 1851 Lord Russell sacked his foreign minister, Lord Palmerston, after he had recognised the government formed by Napoleon III in France without consulting with his fellow cabinet ministers. Palmerston gained revenge by proposing an amendment to the Militia Bill that was carried by eleven votes. As a result of this defeat Russell resigned and was replaced by the Earl of Derby.

Russell returned to the government when Lord Aberdeen became prime minister in 1852. In December Russell brought before the cabinet a new parliamentary reform bill. Many members of the cabinet, including Lord Palmerston, disagreed with the measure and threatened to resign. Disappointed by the lack of support from his colleagues, Russell decided to leave office. For the next four years Russell concentrated on writing books about his political hero, Charles Fox. His books published during this period included Memorials and Letters of Fox (1853) and Life and Times of Fox (1859).

In 1859 Russell became foreign secretary in Lord Palmerston's government. The following year Russell introduced a new parliamentary reform act into the House of Commons. The bill which included reducing the qualification for the franchise to £10 in the counties to £6 in towns was not supported by Lord Palmerston and did not become law.

In July 1861 he was raised to the peerage as Earl Russell. He continued to hold the office of foreign secretary and when Lord Palmerston died in October, 1865, Russell once again became prime minister. One of his first decisions was to try again to persuade parliament to accept the parliamentary reform proposals that had been rejected in 1860. The majority of the MPs in the House of Commons were still opposed to further reform and after the government was defeated on a vote on 18th June 1866, Earl Russell resigned.

After leaving office Russell continued to attend the House of Lords where he supported and voted for the 1867 Parliamentary Reform Act. He was also one of the main campaigners for the 1870 Education Act. Earl Russell died on 28th May 1878.

[SIZE="4"][B]Earl of Derby 1852, 1858-1859, 1866-1868 [/B][/SIZE]

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Edward Stanley, the son of the 13th Earl of Derby, was born at Knowsley Park, Lancashire in 1799. He was educated at Eton and Christ College, Oxford and entered parliament for Stockbridge in 1820. The seat had been purchased for him by his father from Joseph Barham, a West Indian planter who was in financial difficulties.

Stanley supported the Whigs in Parliament but did not make a speech during his four years in the House of Commons. In 1826 he moved from Stockbridge to Preston, a constituency where one of the candidates was selected by the Derby family and the other by the people of the town.

Although a supporter of the Whigs, Stanley agreed in 1827 to join the Tory government led by George Canning. Stanley became under secretary of the colonies and retained the post under the next Prime Minister, Lord Goderich. However, Stanley considered the Duke of Wellington too reactionary and refused to serve in his administration (1828-1830).

Stanley returned to government in 1830 when he accepted the post of chief secretary of Ireland under the Whig Prime Minister, Earl Grey. Stanley did not share Grey's enthusiasm for parliamentary reform and was one of the main reasons why he was defeated at Preston by Henry Orator Hunt in the election that was held that year. He was not out of the House of Commons for long and he returned as MP for Windsor in February 1831.

Stanley's views become more conservative as he grew older and by 1833 considered Earl Grey to be too radical. In May of that year he left the government and became the leader of a group of about fifty independent MPs who obtained the name Stanleyites.

In 1841 Stanley agreed to join the Conservative government led by Robert Peel. Stanley became colonial secretary and was responsible for the Canadian Corn Bill. However, he disagreed with the policy of Sir Robert Peel to repeal the Corn Laws in Britain. Stanley now became one of the leader of the group that became known as the Protectionists.

In 1851 Stanley succeeded his father as 14th Earl of Derby. When the leader of the Whigs, Lord John Russell, resigned as Prime Minister in 1852, the Earl of Derby tried to form a government. Several leading figures, including Lord Palmerston and the Duke of Wellington refused to join the administration. One man who did accept a post was his son, Edward Stanley, who became under secretary for foreign affairs. When the House of Commons defeated his budget proposals in December 1852, he resigned.

Six years later the Earl of Derby returned as head of a minority government. Benjamin Disraeli, Derby's Chancellor of the Exchequer, suggested that Conservatives should extend the franchise. Disraeli told Derby that "our party is now a corpse, but it appears to me that, in the present perplexed state of affairs, a Conservative public pledge to parliamentary reform, a bold and decided course, might not only put us on our legs, but greatly help the country." Derby rejected the idea and as his own son, Edward Stanley, said to Disraeli, "he does not care for office, but wishes to keep things as they are and impede progress." In February 1858, Derby's government resigned after losing a vote of no confidence.

In 1866 the Earl of Derby became Prime Minister for a third time. Benjamin Disraeli, the new leader of Hose of Commons, pointed out that although attempts by Lord John Russell and William Gladstone to extend the franchise had failed, he believed that if the Liberals returned to power, they would certainly try again. Disraeli argued that unless the Conservatives took action they were in danger of being seen as an anti-reform party. This time Derby accepted Disraeli's arguments and in 1867 his government proposed a new Reform Act. Although some members of the Cabinet such as Lord Carnarvon and Lord Cranborne (later the Marquis of Salisbury) resigned in protest against this extension of democracy, the 1867 Reform Act was passed.

By 1868 the Earl of Derby was in poor health and he was forced to retire from office and was replaced by Benjamin Disraeli. Edward Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby, died later that year.