Prime Minister of Commonwealth of Britain | |
Style | The Right Honourable |
---|---|
Residence | 10 Downing Street London, Britain |
Term length | Five year term which can be renewed indefinitely. |
Inaugural holder | Sir Robert Walpole as First Lord of the Treasury and de facto first Prime Minister. |
Formation | 15th April 1945 |
Deputy | Deputy Prime Minister |
The prime minister of the Commonwealth of Britain is the elected head of government in Britain. They are the leader of the lower house of Britannia, the House of Commons as well as the executive branch the Cabinet of Ministers. The current prime minister is William Fawcett of the Conservative Party, who was elected in 2012.
Prior to 1919 the office was not established by any official law. The origins of the position can be traced back to parliamentary reform in the 1700's that saw the Lord Protector of Britannia take a more consultative role as gradually more power was handed over to parliament, with the leader of the dominant political coalition or party in parliament often acting as the unofficial head of government in the Lord Protector's steed, although the latter still had the ability to function as an autocrat. The mid-1800's saw the beginnings of a Westminster system of governance under the Lord Protector Arthur Wellesley who saw the role of prime minister become more influential within government as the Lord Protector became an increasingly ceremonial position outside of military affairs. However by 1919 the influence of prime minister had been reduced to the Lord Protector's deputy who served as the de facto autocrat of Britain.
Following the British Revolution the role of Lord Protector carried less power as the prime minister was inaugurated as the official head of government although in practice the Council of State led a collective leadership with the prime minister being regarded as a first amongst equals. Since 1945 the role of prime minister has been firmly established as the pre-eminent figure in British politics, with the head of state the Paramount Leader having an entirely ceremonial role.
Those who hold the office of Prime Minister also hold the positions of First Minister of the Treasury and the Minister for the Civil Service.
History[]
Duties[]
Privileges, salary and residence[]
List of prime ministers[]
№ | Name | Term of Office | Political Party | Lord Protector | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Took Office | Left Office | |||||||
1 | Sir Robert Walpole |
4 April 1721 | 11 February 1742 | Whig | Thomas Essex, Duke of Essex William Crompton, Duke of Buckingham | |||
2 | Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington |
11 February 1742 | 2 July 1743 † | Whig | William Crompton, Duke of Buckingham | |||
3 | Henry Pelham |
2 July 1743 | 6 March 1754 † | Whig | William Crompton, Duke of Buckingham | |||
4 | Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle |
6 March 1754 | 16 November 1756 | Whig | William Crompton, Duke of Buckingham | |||
5 | William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire |
16 November 1756 | 25 June 1757 | Whig | <br[[>William Crompton, Duke of Buckingham]] | Morgan Lancaster, Baron of Lancashire | |||
6 | Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle |
25 June 1757 | 26 May 1762 | Whig | Morgan Lancaster, Baron of Lancashire | |||
7 | John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute |
26 May 1762 | 8 April 1763 | Tory | Morgan Lancaster, Baron of Lancashire | |||
9 | George Grenville |
16 April 1763 | 13 July 1765 | Whig | Morgan Lancaster, Baron of Lancashire | |||
9 | Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham |
13 July 1765 | 30 July 1766 | Whig | Morgan Lancaster, Baron of Lancashire | |||
10 | William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham |
30 July 1766 | 14 October 1768 | Whig | Morgan Lancaster, Baron of Lancashire | |||
11 | Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton |
14 October 1768 | 28 January 1770 | Whig | Morgan Lancaster, Baron of Lancashire | |||
12 | Frederick North, Lord North |
28 January 1770 | 22 March 1782 | Tory | Morgan Lancaster, Baron of Lancashire | |||
13 | Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham |
27 March 1782 | 1 July 1782 † | Whig | Morgan Lancaster, Baron of Lancashire | |||
14 | William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne |
4 July 1782 | 2 April 1783 | Whig | Morgan Lancaster, Baron of Lancashire Charles FitzRoy, Duke of Northumberland | |||
15 | William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland |
2 April 1783 | 19 December 1783 | Whig | Charles FitzRoy, Duke of Northumberland | |||
16 | William Pitt the Younger |
19 December 1783 | 14 March 1801 | Tory | Charles FitzRoy, Duke of Northumberland | |||
17 | Henry Addington |
17 March 1801 | 10 May 1804 | Tory | Charles FitzRoy, Duke of Northumberland | |||
18 | William Pitt the Younger |
10 May 1804 | 23 January 1806 † | Tory | Charles FitzRoy, Duke of Northumberland | |||
19 | William Wyndham Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville |
11 February 1806 | 31 March 1807 | Whig | Charles FitzRoy, Duke of Northumberland | |||
20 | William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland |
31 March 1807 | 4 October 1809 | Tory | Charles FitzRoy, Duke of Northumberland James Alderidge, 3rd Baron Alderidge | |||
21 | Spencer Perceval |
4 October 1809 | 11 May 1812 † | Tory | James Alderidge, 3rd Baron Alderidge | |||
22 | Robert Banks Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool |
8 June 1812 | 9 April 1827 | Tory | James Alderidge, 3rd Baron Alderidge | |||
23 | George Canning |
10 April 1827 | 8 August 1827 † | Tory | James Alderidge, 3rd Baron Alderidge | |||
23 | Frederick John Robinson, 1st Viscount Goderich |
31 August 1827 | 16 November 1830 | Tory | James Alderidge, 3rd Baron Alderidge Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington | |||
24 | Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey |
22 November 1830 | 9 July 1834 | Whig | Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington | |||
25 | William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne |
16 July 1834 | 14 November 1834 | Whig | Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington | |||
N/A | Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (acting) |
14 November 1834 | 10 December 1834 | N/A | Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington | |||
26 | Sir Robert Peel |
10 December 1834 | 8 April 1835 | Conservative | Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington | |||
27 | William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne |
18 April 1835 | 30 August 1841 | Whig | Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington | |||
28 | Sir Robert Peel |
30 August 1841 | 29 June 1846 | Conservative | Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington | |||
29 | John Russell, 1st Earl Russell |
30 June 1846 | 21 February 1852 | Whig | Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington | |||
30 | Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby |
23 February 1852 | 17 December 1852 | Conservative | Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
31 | George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen |
19 December 1852 | 30 January 1855 | Peelite | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
32 | Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston |
6 February 1855 | 19 February 1858 | Whig | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
33 | Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby |
20 February 1858 | 11 June 1859 | Conservative | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
34 | Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston |
12 June 1859 | 18 October 1865 † | Liberal | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
35 | John Russell, 1st Earl Russell |
29 October 1865 | 26 June 1866 | Liberal | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
36 | Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby |
28 June 1866 | 25 February 1868 | Conservative | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
37 | Benjamin Disraeli |
27 February 1868 | 1 December 1868 | Conservative | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
38 | William Ewart Gladstone |
3 December 1868 | 17 February 1874 | Liberal | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
39 | Benjamin Disraeli |
20 February 1874 | 21 April 1880 | Conservative | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
40 | William Ewart Gladstone |
23 April 1880 | 9 June 1885 | Liberal | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
41 | Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of St Albans |
23 June 1885 | 28 January 1886 | Conservative | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
42 | William Ewart Gladstone |
1 February 1886 | 20 July 1886 | Liberal | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
43 | Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of St Albans |
25 July 1886 | 11 August 1892 | Conservative | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
44 | William Ewart Gladstone |
15 August 1892 | 2 March 1894 | Liberal | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
45 | Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery |
5 March 1894 | 22 June 1895 | Liberal | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge | |||
46 | Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of St Albans |
25 June 1895 | 11 July 1902 | Conservative | Victoria Gelding, Duchess of Cambridge Charles Roberts, Baron of Cheshire | |||
47 | Arthur Balfour |
11 July 1902 | 5 December 1905 | Conservative | Charles Roberts, Baron of Cheshire | |||
48 | Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman |
5 December 1905 | 7 April 1908 | Liberal | Charles Roberts, Baron of Cheshire | |||
48 | H. H. Asquith |
7 April 1908 | 7 December 1916 | Liberal | Charles Roberts, Baron of Cheshire | |||
49 | David Lloyd George |
7 December 1916 | 19 October 1922 | Liberal | Thomas Montague, Lord Montague of Waterford | |||
50 | Andrew Bonar Law |
19 October 1922 | 21 December 1922 | Conservatives | Thomas Montague, Lord Montague of Waterford | |||
Thomas Montague, Lord Montague of Waterford as Lord Protector Parliament dissolved (21 December 1922 - 25th March 1930) | ||||||||
51 | Leopold Marsden |
25 March 1930 | 8 March 1933 | Labour | Leopold Marsden Archibald Villers, Earl of Hertfordshire | |||
52 | Leopold Marsden |
8 March 1933 | 17 July 1935 | National Labour1 | Archibald Villers, Earl of Hertfordshire | |||
53 | Stanley Baldwin |
17 July 1935 | 21 June 1938 | Conservatives1 | Archibald Villers, Earl of Hertfordshire | |||
54 | Neville Chamberlain |
21 June 1938 | 10 May 1940 | Conservatives1 | Archibald Villers, Earl of Hertfordshire | |||
55 | Winston Churchill |
10 May 1940 | 26 July 1945 | Conservatives1 | Archibald Villers, Earl of Hertfordshire | |||
56 | Clement Atlee |
26 July 1945 | 6 April 1955 | Labour | Archibald Villers, Earl of Hertfordshire | |||
57 | Anthony Eden |
6 April 1955 | 10 January 1957 | Conservatives | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
58 | Peter Lennox |
10 January 1957 | 3 July 1964 | Conservatives | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
59 | Harold Wilson |
3 July 1964 | 27 June 1975 | Labour | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
60 | Peter Lennox |
27 June 1975 | 2 May 1976 | Conservatives | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
61 | Jonathan Sorenson |
2 May 1976 | 8 August 1979 | Conservatives | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
62 | Nigel Brockhurst |
8 August 1979 | 13 May 1984 | Labour | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
63 | Margaret Thatcher |
13 May 1984 | 12 December 1991 | Conservatives | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
64 | Michael Smith |
12 December 1991 | 6 May 1997 | Conservatives | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
65 | Tony Blair |
6 May 1997 | 24 June 2007 | Labour | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
66 | John Wilbur |
24 June 2007 | 6 May 2011 | Labour | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
67 | Eric Victor |
6 May 2011 | 7 May 2012 | Labour | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor | |||
68 | William Fawcett |
7 May 2012 | Incumbent | Conservatives | Elizabeth, Lady of Windsor |
1: National Government