Robert Walpole ( 1650 – 1700 ) Colonel Robert Walpole ( 18 November 1650 – 18 November 1700 ) was an English Whig politician who represented the borough of UK Parliament constituency from 1689 to 1700 in the House of Commons of England . Because he held the rank of Colonel in the militia , he was widely known as Colonel Walpole . He is mainly notable for being the father of Sir Robert Walpole . His son , who served during the reigns of George I and George II , is considered to have been the first Prime Minister of Great Britain . He is also known for being the " Guinness World Records " titular for having the world ' s longest overdue book . Early life and career . Robert Walpole was born in 1650 to Susan Walpole ( née Crane ) and Edward Walpole . His father ardently supported Charles II for restoration and would become a Knight of the Bath later in his life . Robert was born in Norfolk on the estate that the Walpole family had lived on for over four hundred years . Walpole owned Houghton Hall in Norfolk . In 1668 Walpole borrowed a German biography book about the Archbishop of Bremen from the library of Sidney Sussex College . It was finally found in 1956 when Professor John Plumb and the 5th Marquess of Cholmondeley discovered the book in Houghton Hall ' s library . The book was quickly returned , 288 years after it was checked out . He was elected to the House of Commons in 1689 where he would serve for 11 more years . During this time he would also serve as a colonel in the militia . Political career . Walpole was elected from Castle Rising to the House of Commons in January 1689 . He was considered one of the most influential whigs in Parliament at the time , and he was considered the most influential Whig in Norfolk . Walpole was also the deputy lieutenant for Norfolk serving along with the Duke of Norfolk the Lord Lieutenant of Norfolk . He also served as the guardian of the 2nd Viscount Townshend after his father ' s death . Lord Townshend would go on to marry Walpole ' s daughter Dorothy . Walpole ' s son , Sir Robert Walpole , would take on his position in the House of Commons three months after his death . His son would remain a member of Parliament for the next forty years . Private life . In 1671 Robert married Mary Burwell , the daughter of Sir Jeffrey Burwell , a local landowner . The couple had nineteen children together , two of whom were stillborn , and eight more of whom would die in infancy . He is the ancestor of all the Barons Walpole and Earls of Orford , of all creations . He is also the ancestor of the current Marquess of Cholmondeley . Some of his other descendants include the 1st Viscount Nelson , Maria , Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh , and Diana , Princess of Wales . Children . The nineteen children of Robert and Mary were : A short time after Walpole died , his eldest living son Robert became a member of Parliament , and would hold the titles of Secretary at War , Treasurer of the Navy , Paymaster of the Forces , First Lord of the Treasury , Chancellor of the Exchequer , Leader of the House of Commons , and the first Prime Minister of Great Britain . Horatio Walpole was a member of Parliament for fifty - four years from 1702 until his death in 1757 . During his political career he would serve as Secretary to the Treasury , Chief Secretary for Ireland , British Ambassador to France , Cofferer of the Household , Ambassador to the United Provinces , and the Teller of the Exchequer .