History of William Pitt 'The Elder', 1st Earl of Chatham - GOV.UK GOV.UK William Pitt 'The Elder', 1st Earl of Chatham Whig 1766 to 1768 Born 15 November 1708, Westminster, London Died 11 May 1778, Hayes, Middlesex Dates in office Whig Interesting facts Pitt is credited with the birth of the British Empire. Such activities made him very popular with the people and he became known as the ‘Great Commoner’. “Unlimited power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it.” William Pitt ‘the Elder’ dominated British politics in the middle of the eighteenth century, although was only prime minister for 2 years. A wildly popular politician with great influence, he effectively served as prime minister throughout the earlier premierships of the Duke of Devonshire and the Lord Newcastle . His appreciated the relationship between war and trading success and chose his military campaigns to increase national trade. Conquering India, Canada, the West Indies and West Africa were all immensely beneficial to Britain’s merchants. Read more about William Pitt ‘the Elder’, on the History of government blog .

Help us improve GOV.UK British Prime Ministers: William Pitt 1757-61, 1766-68 WHIG William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, known as 'the Great Commoner', dominated the political scene influencing government from within and without. He is remembered for his vocal criticism of harsh British policy levied against the American colonies and his skills as a wartime leader during the Seven Years' War. Pitt was the son of a member of Parliament and the grandson of Thomas Pitt who had helped to build British trade in India. He entered Parliament in 1735 at the age of 27 after attending Oxford. He gained attention by leading the Patriot faction in opposition to prime minister Sir Robert Walpole, but his skills at oratory did not establish for him a power base. His first office was as paymaster-general,1746, where he made a name for himself by his honesty and failure to take financial advantage of the office. Discouraged by his lack of progress within government, he turned to criticizing the Duke of Newcastle, and his government's war policy, resulting in his dismissal in 1755.

After Newcastle resigned in 1756, Pitt formed a government with George Grenville and the Duke of Devonshire. Pitt and Grenville argued over the administration of the war and in April, 1757, King George II dismissed Pitt. After several months with virtually no government, Pitt was recalled to government at the outbreak of the Seven Years' War to form a coalition government with Newcastle. Pitt served very effectively as a wartime prime minister with Newcastle attending to domestic affairs. He sent a strengthened British fleet to blockade French ports and provided supplies to Frederick the Great of Prussia. His policies resulted in victory over the French in India and Canada and on the seas. He sought to continue the war until France was completely defeated, and broaden the war by declaring against Spain. He met with opposition by other ministers and disagreement by George III. He resigned in 1761 and spent the next five years criticizing the government. He called the 1763 Peace of Paris "too lenient", encouraged criticism of the House of Commons and denounced British policy toward the American colonies gaining him a following both at home and in the colonies.

Second Ministry (1766-68) In July, 1766, Pitt was recalled to form and lead another coalition government. This time, he met with little success as prime minister. He entered the House of Lords as Earl of Chatham which proved a disaster. His government was unable to deal with the problems in America; he supported the Americans against the king, but was not for independence; and in fact, proved incapable of governing at home as well. His most loyal ministers resigning around him, Pitt fell into depression and resigned his office October 1768. Pitt did not leave the political arena. He continued to speak out against British policy in the colonies and fight for parliamentary reform, but he gained little following. He was a statesman, not a politician. He collapsed in the Lords speaking out against the withdrawal of troops from the colonies and died a month later in 1778 at the age of 70. PHOTO CREDIT: Detail of a portrait of William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, by William Hoare. Part of the Carnegie Institute Permanent Collection. From the Collections of the Pennsylvania Department, The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.

Perspective 1757 - Frederick the Great is victorious at Prague over the Austrians. General Robert Clive establishes British rule in India with victories in Bengal, Calcutta and Plassey. The first public concert is held in Philadelphia. "The London Chronicle" comes on the scene. 1758 - The Seven Years' War continues. East Prussia is held by the Russians. The Prussians blockade Olmutz. The British take Louisburg. Austrian troops lay seige to Neisse and defeat Frederick the Great at Hochkirch. 1759 - Austria defeats Frederick the Great at Kunersdorf. The British take Quebec from the French; Generals Montcalm and Wolfe are killed in the campaign. Scottish poet Robert Burns is born. Voltaire writes "Candide". 1760 - Russians burn Berlin. King George II dies and is succeeded by George III, his grandson. Josiah Wedgewood famous pottery works are founded in Staffordshire, England. London's Botanical Gardens in Kew are opened. Edmund Hoyle, establishes the rules for whist. Second Ministry 1766 - Repeal of the Stamp Act.

Britain's right to tax the colonies is restated in the Declaratory Act. Mason-Dixon Line is laid down by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon, two English surveyors. Theatre Royal in Bristol opens. Czarina Catherine the Great of Russia declares freedom of worship. The first paved sidewalk is finished in Westminster, London. Henry Cavendish discovers hydrogen is lighter than air. 1767 - Taxes on imports to the colonies are levied including tea, glass, paper and dyes. Chaos in India; General Clive leaves. The Assembly of New York refuses to support the quartering of troops and is suspended. Jesuits are expelled from Spain.

Copyright ©2007 Britannia.com, LLC William Pitt, the Elder | prime minister of United Kingdom | Britannica.com William Pitt, the Elder prime minister of United Kingdom Written By: Alternative Titles: 1st Earl of Chatham, Viscount Pitt of Burton-Pynsent, The Great Commoner William Pitt, the Elder Prime minister of United Kingdom Also known as 1st Earl of Chatham, Viscount Pitt of Burton-Pynsent The Great Commoner Augustus William Pitt, the Elder, also called (from 1766) 1st Earl of Chatham, Viscount Pitt of Burton-Pynsent, byname The Great Commoner (born November 15, 1708, London —died May 11, 1778, Hayes, Kent, England ), British statesman, twice virtual prime minister (1756–61, 1766–68), who secured the transformation of his country into an imperial power. William Pitt, the Elder, detail of a painting from the studio of W.

Hoare, 1754; in the National … Courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery, London Background and education Pitt was born in London of a distinguished family. His mother, Lady Harriet Villiers, daughter of Viscount Grandison, belonged to the Anglo-Irish nobility; his father, Robert Pitt, member of Parliament , was the son of Thomas (“Diamond”) Pitt , governor of the East India Company ’s “factory” at Madras (now Chennai ), India, where he made a vast fortune and secured one of the world’s largest diamonds (sold in 1717 to the regent of France). “Diamond” Pitt had returned from India with a despotic temper made devilish with spleen and gout; he quarrelled violently with his wife and declared war on “that hellish confusion that is my family,” but he treated his grandson William with affection. Father Robert was mean and cantankerous , and the Villiers blood was notoriously unstable. William inherited the gout , as well as a haughty temper and a strain of manic depression. Such was the background and the smoky, explosive inheritance that was suddenly to blaze into genius.

But William’s passionate temper and Pitt truculence had to be disciplined , so he was sent to Eton College , where he acquired social polish and learned to be aloof and yet agreeable, to be politely insolent . Delicate health and the early onset of gout deprived him of field sports and hunting, but he learned to ride with a good seat and take his port wine, and he enjoyed the select company of clever and well-connected friends—the two Grenvilles (one to be Earl Temple; the other, George, to be first minister to George III ), George Lyttelton , Charles Pratt (to become a follower of Pitt and, as the 1st Earl Camden, a member of his 1766 ministry), and other men who would later become influential in politics, as well as Henry Fielding , author of Tom Jones. But Pitt hated the brutal harshness of Eton and determined to have his own sons educated at home. He continued his education at Trinity College , Oxford , but left after a year without taking a degree. He then spent several months at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands, probably studying law.

Britannica Stories Scientists Ponder Menopause in Killer Whales His classical education made him think, act, and speak in the grand Roman manner. His favourite poet was Virgil , and he never forgot the patriotic lessons of Roman history; he constantly read Cicero , the golden-tongued orator who could yet lash offenders with his indignation. Later, in Parliament, his organ-like voice could be distinctly heard outside the House. This voice, perfect timing, and splendid gestures were worthy of David Garrick , the greatest actor of the day and a personal friend; Pitt’s lean, tall, commanding figure, combined with a Roman beaky nose and hawklike eyes—large and gray but turning black when he was roused—overwhelmed all onlookers. To his countrymen he was to become almost a divine portent, a voice from the Delphic oracle. For the present, possessed of a mere £100 a year, he nevertheless rejected the church, a younger son’s last resort as a career.

While he was vegetating on a small family property in Cornwall , which he called a “cursed hiding-place” in one of his many letters to his adored sister and confidante, clever Nan (Ann) Pitt, help came from a politically powerful millionaire nobleman, Lord Cobham, who lived in splendour in a palatial mansion and vast park at Stowe, in Buckinghamshire , to which William and his friends paid visits. Cobham sent William abroad on “The Grand Tour” of Europe (only France and Switzerland were visited, however) and later bought him a cornetcy—a commission—in his own regiment of horse (1731). Early political career Structures of Government: Fact or Fiction? In 1735 Pitt was offered one of the “pocket” borough s his brother controlled, in Wiltshire , and entered Parliament . He belonged to the small group known as “Cobham’s cubs” and the “boy patriots,” the connection of family friends and place hunters whom Cobham was mobilizing to oppose the ministry of Sir Robert Walpole (later the 1st earl of Orford).

Walpole had governed England since 1720, monopolizing patronage, and had—they thought—become too ready to compromise in foreign affairs for the sake of peace. The “patriots” joined other discontented Whigs such as John Carteret (later Earl Granville ) and William Pulteney (later the 1st earl of Bath ) to rally opposition forces behind Frederick Louis , prince of Wales, who was vehemently estranged from his father, King George II . Britannica Lists & Quizzes Editor Picks: Exploring 10 Types of Basketball Movies There were no formal political parties in the 18th century, and political power, together with the financial opportunities it brought, was a gift of patronage from a handful of landowning family oligarchies and from the monarch himself; nor was there a formal opposition in Parliament, and opposition to the king’s ministry was regarded as factious and even traitorous.

Pitt’s maiden speech in Parliament was so critical of the ministry that it provoked Walpole to deprive him of his military commission, to “muzzle this terrible young cornet of horse.” In 1737 the Prince of Wales made Pitt one of his court officials with a salary of £400 a year. He was still a relatively poor dependent of a powerful Whig clan but already showed an independence of mind and a readiness to appeal to public opinion outside Parliament that were new in English political life: when Walpole dismissed him from his cornetcy, he ostentatiously drove about London in a one-horse chaise to underline his poverty. His talents as an orator had already become clear. He repeatedly referred to the “voice of England,” which had to be sought outside Parliament because Parliament was so packed with placemen and sinecurists. He claimed to speak for the commercial interests and even for the colonies overseas, the latter scarcely represented in the Commons.

He was using arguments that carried far beyond the close interests of the Whig families; but he made lasting and valuable friendship with the rich sugar planter-aldermen of the City of London in his opposition to Walpole’s cautious handling of the disputes with Spain over West Indian trade. Walpole at last fell from power in 1742 and was replaced by a ministry that included his old colleagues Thomas Pelham-Holles , the 1st duke of Newcastle, and Philip Yorke, the 1st earl of Hardwicke, with Carteret as secretary of state. Pulteney was silenced by the grant of a peerage. The “boy patriots,” of whom Pitt was the acknowledged leader, were still excluded. They opposed Carteret even more vigorously than they had Walpole. In the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–48), Pitt, a former warmonger, now vigorously opposed the sending of men and subsidies to check the French by protecting Hanover (the king’s territory in Germany) and condemned Carteret as a “Hanover troop minister”: for this he was never forgiven by his sovereign .

Connect with Britannica Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram Pinterest Pitt insisted that French power should be opposed at sea and in its colonial possessions, not on the Continent. When Carteret was forced to resign in 1744, Newcastle and his brother Henry Pelham took office and wanted to include Pitt in their ministry, but George II refused to accept him, though he did accept Cobham, Lyttelton, and Grenville. It was at this time that Pitt first appeared in Parliament swathed in bandages, on crutches, and with a huge gout boot on his foot, parading his illness. But, in the Jacobite rising of 1745 (the Forty-five Rebellion ), Pitt gained new stature as the one effective statesman. In February 1746 the king agreed to appoint Pitt joint vice treasurer of Ireland at £3,000 a year, and two months later he became paymaster general of the forces; he bowed very low as he kissed the king’s hands, but George wept with rage. The post of paymaster was one of the most sought after in government, with ample opportunity for corruption.

There was an outcry from Pitt’s friends, who suspected he had been bought, but he proceeded to show both his contempt for moneymaking and his integrity as an honest but comparatively poor man by ostentatiously refusing to take for himself any more than the official salary of more than £4,000 a year: he put the interest that paymasters before had appropriated to themselves, together with the accounts of the paymaster’s funds, into the Bank of England and won the people’s hearts again. He introduced many reforms into the administration, and, though he supported the Pelhams’ alliance with Hanover (which was a change of tack), he tried also to strengthen British naval power. Trending Topics Open Door policy A legacy of £10,000 from the old duchess of Marlborough at this time, left to Pitt “for the noble defence he has made for the support of the laws of England, and to prevent the ruin of his country,” enabled him to indulge in more lavish expenditure and generosity. He spent a good deal on landscape gardening and bought a new property near London. After a furious quarrel, he became estranged from his sister Nan, who had been his hostess for years.

When Henry Pelham died in office in 1754, Pitt hoped for advancement, but, after much reshuffling and intrigue, Newcastle and Henry Fox (later 1st Baron Holland ) abandoned him for the sake of expediency. He then became ill and retired to a new house at Bath , groaning “I wish for nothing but a decent and innocent retreat, not to afford the world the ridiculous spectacle of being passed by every boat that navigates the river.” An invalid and an aging bachelor, he suddenly fell in love with Lady Hester Grenville, became engaged at once, and was married by November 1754. She was 33 and he 46, and she adored him, possibly from the times in her childhood when he had visited Stowe with her brothers. She was attractive, clever, patient, and eminently practical—particularly about money, arranging mortgages, satisfying creditors, and pouring away her own fortune, in his last years of grandiose extravagance, to protect him. Pelham, detail of a portrait by John Shackleton, c.

1752; in the National Portrait Gallery, … Courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery, London It proved to be an ideally happy marriage with a well-ordered, loving home and family (“the infantry” Pitt called them); later he was to be found making hay with them at Hayes Place, his house in Kent , going for picnics, and chasing butterflies. He magically became healthy and happy, ready for his last big parliamentary fight for high office. But first, because of his attacks on Newcastle’s ministry, he was dismissed, penniless, from the pay office in 1755. His brother-in-law Earl Temple helped with an annuity of £1,000. Leadership during Seven Years’ War The outbreak of the Seven Years’ War gave Pitt his supreme opportunity for statesmanship. The war began with heavy losses and considerable confusion of policy. The popular demand for Pitt became irresistible, and he declared, “I am sure I can save this country , and nobody else can.” In November 1756 he formed a ministry that excluded Newcastle, with the Duke of Devonshire as its nominal head.

In June 1757 Newcastle returned to office on the understanding that he should control all the patronage and leave Pitt to conduct the war. Pitt determined that it should be in every sense a national war and a war at sea. He revived the militia, reequipped and reorganized the navy, and sought to unite all parties and public opinion behind a coherent and intelligible war policy. He seized upon America and India as the main objects of British strategy: he sent his main expeditions to America, to ensure the conquest of Canada , and supported the East India Company and its “heaven-born general,” Robert Clive , in their struggle against the French East India Company . He subsidized and reinforced the armies of Frederick the Great of Prussia to engage the French on the Continent, while the British Navy harassed the French on their own coasts, in the West Indies , and in Africa. Choosing good generals and admirals, he inspired them with a new spirit of dash and enterprise. His hand, eye, and voice were everywhere.

By 1759, the “year of victories,” Horace Walpole, man of letters and son of Sir Robert Walpole, wrote with reluctant admiration, “Our bells are worn out threadbare with ringing for Victories.” Pitt, the “Great Commoner,” was known and feared throughout the world. This resolute and concerted policy was too much for Bourbon France, and, by the terms of the Treaty of Paris in 1763, Great Britain remained supreme in North America and India, held Minorca as a Mediterranean base, and won territory in Africa and the West Indies . Pitt had given Britain a new empire besides preserving and consolidating the old. But, before the war ended, he had been forced to resign. In 1760 George III came to the throne resolved, as was his chief adviser, the Earl of Bute , to end the war. When Pitt failed to persuade his colleagues to declare war on Spain to forestall its entry into hostilities, he resigned in October 1761. He alone was not tired of war. He never considered its carnage or the ruin facing a bankrupt country. He had tended to concentrate the whole conduct of government into his own hands and worked with furious energy.

His haughty manner, which alienated many, and his high-handed treatment of affairs had earned him respect and admiration but little friendship. John Stuart, 3rd earl of Bute, detail of an oil painting by Sir Joshua Reynolds; in the National … Courtesy of The National Portrait Gallery, London When his resignation was accompanied by a peerage for Hester and an annuity to her of £3,000, there was again an outburst of abuse and scurrility. Just as when he had accepted the pay office, this acceptance of a peerage and a pension for his wife seemed to be the result of a political bargain. As rewards for his immense services they were meagre enough, but it was some measure of his unique reputation for highminded disinterestedness that his accepting them should provoke so much bitter disillusionment. His effigy was burned, and Hester was reviled as Lady Cheat’em. Pitt attacked the terms of the Treaty of Paris as an inadequate recognition of Great Britain’s worldwide success. But, though his popular appeal was soon restored, his career as war minister was over. Last years Pitt fell back on his gout and his gardening.

In 1765 an admirer left him a splendid estate at Burton Pynsent in Somerset , where he planted avenues of noble trees. He was frequently at Bath, where they stood up in the Pump Room when he drank the water. He now had the attacks of “gout in the head” that led to bouts of insanity. When Bute resigned in 1763, he was succeeded by George Grenville, and Pitt’s attacks on the administration completed a breach between the two brothers-in-law. Pitt was becoming a champion of liberty, condemning the high-handed action taken by the ministry against a member of Parliament, John Wilkes , whose paper , the North Briton, had attacked the King’s speech at the opening of Parliament and who eventually had to flee abroad. Inactive in 1764 and 1765, Pitt reentered the stage in January 1766 to deliver a passionate plea for imperial liberty on behalf of the American colonists who had resisted the Stamp Act and to demand that act’s repeal. John Wilkes, engraving from a manifesto commemorating his fight against general warrants and for … Courtesy of the trustees of the British Museum; photograph, J.R. Freeman & Co. Ltd.

In July the king asked him to form a ministry drawn from all sections of the houses of Parliament. Pitt’s judgment and wisdom were impaired at this time, and, never having paid attention to manoeuvring among political connections, he found it difficult to form a coherent ministry. It was a fiasco rightly called a “tessellated pavement” by his political opponent Edmund Burke . Pitt himself chose the secondary post of lord privy seal, for which he was created earl of Chatham, but this meant abandoning the House of Commons and the possibility of influencing it directly by his oratory there. The “Great Commoner” retired to the Lords and fell ill for another two years, leaving a rudderless government, under the luckless duke of Grafton and Charles Townshend , to abandon his policies. Engulfed in a black fit of insanity, Pitt withdrew completely and in 1768 resigned office. He acquired a group of followers in the House of Commons and, in an alliance with Lord Rockingham ’s group of opposition Whigs, offered a threat to Lord North’s ministry, but this opposition was, in the end, without results. Edmund Burke.

Stock Montage/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Pitt’s last years were clouded by illness, yet he was to reappear in the House of Lords —with ever greater difficulty—as an elder statesman. He continued to plead for generous treatment of the American colonists though he did not wish to grant them independence, partly for fear of their falling into the hands of France; in 1775 he hurriedly introduced a bill designed to suspend repressive measures at Boston and to maintain the legislative authority of Parliament over the Colonies while using the Continental Congress established at Philadelphia as a body for assessing the monetary contributions of each colony. Although the bill was summarily rejected, it indicates how Pitt would have handled the American problem. His last speech, against any diminution of an empire based on freedom, closed a political career that had become devoted to a reconciliation of imperial power with constitutional liberty. Pitt died on May 11, 1778, falling back into the arms of his son William who was reading to him the passage in Homer ’s Iliad on Hector ’s farewell. He was buried in Westminster Abbey with all the funeral pomp he could have desired and with public grief.

More about William Pitt, the Elder 14 References found in Britannica Articles Assorted References BBC - History - Historic Figures: Pitt the Younger (1759 - 1806) z William Pitt © Pitt the Younger was British prime minister during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars and helped to define and strengthen the office of the prime minister. William Pitt was born on 28 May 1759 in Kent, the son of the earl of Chatham (William Pitt the Elder), himself a famous statesman. Pitt studied at Cambridge University, graduating when he was 17. In early 1781, he was elected to parliament aged 21. In 1782, he became chancellor of the exchequer. The following years were marked by the battle between George III and the radical Charles Fox, whom the king detested. Matters deteriorated when Fox forged an alliance with the previously loyal Lord North. The two men defeated the government and George was forced to ask them to take control. Fox became Pitt's lifelong political rival. In December 1783, George III dismissed their coalition and asked Pitt to form a government.

He was, at 24, the youngest man to become prime minister. He was immediately defeated in parliament but refused to resign. George III was prepared to abdicate rather than let Fox in again. In 1784, parliament was dissolved for a general election, which Pitt won. His government worked to restore public finances, severely strained by the cost of the American War of Indepence and later by war with France. Pitt imposed new taxes - including Britain's first income tax - and reduced both smuggling and frauds. He also simplified customs and excise duties. His other concerns were imperial and foreign policy. The India Act of 1784 asserted increased government power over the East India Company and the vast areas of India it controlled. But revolutionary France remained the greatest concern and in 1793, the French declared war on Britain. In 1798, there was a rebellion in Ireland, influenced by the ideas of the French Revolution. Pitt had long felt that union of the two countries was necessary and brought in an Act of Union which came into effect in January 1801.

Yet fierce royal opposition to his attempt to abolish restrictions on Catholicism in Ireland forced his resignation in 1801. Three years later, with Napoleon threatening invasion, the king was forced to ask Pitt to form a government and he became prime minister again in May 1804. Thanks to Pitt's efforts, Britain joined the Third Coalition against France (made up of Austria, Russia and Sweden) and in 1805 the British inflicted a serious defeat on the French navy at the Battle of Trafalgar. However the Coalition collapsed and this imposed a severe strain on Pitt's already weakened health. He died on 23 January 1806 and was buried in Westminster Abbey.

William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, Prime Minister (1708 - 1778) - Genealogy William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, Prime Minister Also Known As: "The Great Commoner", "The Right Honorable 1st Earl of Chatham" Birthdate: In Office 30 July 1766 – 14 October 1768 as Prime Minister Managed by: Nov 15 1708 - Westminster, London, England Death: May 11 1778 - Hayes, Kent, Delaware, United States Wife: Nov 15 1708 - Westminster, London, England Death: May 11 1778 - Hayes, Kent, Delaware, United States Parents: Robert Pitt, Lady Harriet Pitt (born Villiers) Wife: Nov 15 1708 - Greater London, England, United Kingdom Death: May 11 1778 - Hayes (Kent), Bromley, Greater London, United Kingdom Parents: Robert Pitts, Harriet Pitts (born Villiers) Siblings: ...dham (born Pitt), Ann* Beasley (born Pitt),

 Harriet Corbet, (Twin) (born Pitt), Elizabeth Hannan Then Bagnall (born Pitt), Mary Lee (born...

1708 - Westminster London England UK Death: 1778 - Hayes Kent England UK Parents: Robert (Mp) Pitt, Harriet Pitt (born De Villiers) Siblings: Thomas Pitt, Catherine Pitt, Harriet (Twin To Ann) Beasley (born Pitt), Walter Pitts, Anne Beasley (born Pitt), Mary Pitt, Elizabeth Pitt Wife: Nov 15 1708 - Westminster, London, Middlesex, England Death: May 11 1778 - Hayes, Kent, England Parents: Robert Pitt, Harriet Pitt (born Villiers) Siblings: ...harine Needham (born Pitt), Ann Beasley (born Pitt), Harriet Corbett (born Pitt), Elizabeth Hannan/bagnall (born Pitt), Mary Lee (born Pitt) Wife: Hester Countess Chatham Pitt (born Grenville) Children: Nov 15 1708 - Greater London, England, United Kingdom Death: May 11 1778 - Hayes (Kent), Bromley, Greater London, United Kingdom Parents: Robert Pitt, Harriet Pitt (born Villiers) Siblings: Lord Londonderry (Thomas) Pitt, Elizabeth Hannam (

born Pitt) Wife: Nov 15 1708 - Westminster, Great Britain Death: May 11 1778 - Hayes in Kent Parents: Robert Pitt, Harriet Pitt (born Villiers) Siblings: Lord Londonderry (Thomas) Pitt, Elizabeth Pitt Wife: Nov 15 1708 - Westminster, Middlesex, England, Great Britain Death: May 11 1778 - Hays, Middlesex, England, Great Britain Parents: Robert Pitt, Lady Harriet Pitt Wife: Nov 15 1708 - Golden Square, Westminster, London, England Death: May 11 1778 - Hayes, Kent Co., England Parents: Robert Pitt, Harriet Pitt (born Fitzgerald) Siblings: Catherine Pitt, Ann Pitt, Harriet Pitt, Thomas Pitt, Elizabeth Pitt, Mary Pitt Wife: Hester Pitt, Countess Chatham (born Grenville) Children: Nov 15 1708 - Westminster, Middlesex, England, Great Britain Death: May 11 1778 - Hays, Middlesex, England, Great Britain Parents: Robert Pitt, Harriet Pitt (born Villiers) Wife

: Hester Pitt, Countess of Chatham Son: brother About William Pitt the Elder, 1st Earl of Chatham, Prime Minister William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham PC (15 November 1708 – 11 May 1778) was a British Whig statesman who achieved his greatest fame leading Britain during the Seven Years' War (known as the French and Indian War in North America).

He again led the country (holding the official title of Lord Privy Seal) between 1766-68. He is often known as William Pitt, the Elder to distinguish him from his son, William Pitt the Younger. He was also known as The Great Commoner, because of his long-standing refusal to accept a title until 1766. The major American city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is named after him, as are numerous other cities and towns in the United States, Canada, and Australia. See link for more: -------------------- Sir William was the last Earl of Chatham since his son Thomas married a commoner. Sir William was made Chancellor of the Exchequer and later formed a government in which he had to face the opposition of a large parliamentry opposition majority. In 1784 he returned to power, and introduced a number of financial reforms, re-organising the East India Company, and doning away with many sinecures in the Customs Service. He established the Sinking Fund in 1786. He suppressed the Irish Rebellion 1798, and effected the union of the two Parliaments by the Act of 1800.

Sir William also prevented Napoleon from gaining world power by sending Arthur Wellesley, (afterwards Duke of Wellington) across the channel to intercept Napoleon in his triumphal march across Europe; Wellesley met Napoleon at Waterloo and gave him such a thrashing that he fled, with the remnant of his beaten Army to France, where he was afterwards taken prisoner and banished to St. Helena - although he escaped and made a further attempt for world power he failed, and spent the rest of his life in exile. Pitt was voted £30,000 for his patriotism, and his services to his country; that after telling him if he persisted in sending an army after Napolean he would plunge the country into such debt that it would never recover. Pitt is said to have spoken in favour of sending an army across the channel for two and a half hours, telling the house that they had better be poor, than slaves to a foreign power, his eloquence prevailed; he was said to be the most eloquent speaker Britain had ever had, and Her greatest Prime Minister.

------------------------- William Pitt (1708-1778) was British secretary of state during the French and Indian War and later served as Prime Minister of Great Britain. Named secretary of state in 1757, Pitt resolved to commit whatever resources were necessary to defeat the French in North America and on the European continent. He provided generous funding to Prussia, Britain's ally in the Seven Years' War, for troops to tie down French forces in Europe. He also funded the expansion of provincial militias in North America. By the summer of 1758, the British had 50,000 men in uniform in North America, serving as British regulars or in colonial provincial regiments—a number equal to the entire white population of New France. Pitt resigned in 1761 when the king refused to pursue a more complete defeat of France or to declare war against Spain. Pitt's policies led to British success in the French and Indian War. But they also left Britain with a tremendous debt, and a larger empire to administer. During the ensuing controversies between Britain and its America colonies, Pitt sympathized with the Americans, especially in their opposition to the Stamp Act.

But as Prime Minister (1766-68) he was unsuccessful in crafting a policy that could reconcile the ambitions of Britain and America. About Ft. Pitt A Virginia colonial militia outpost, Fort Prince George (aka Capt. William Trent's Fort), was first located here in April 1754 (originally proposed two miles downriver on the Ohio on "Fort Hill" at McKees Rocks), but the French soon captured and destroyed it. The French then soon built Fort DuQuesne at the point, but they burned it down to prevent its capture by the British in November 1758. It was an 80-feet square log stockade, with earthen outer works along the Allegheny River. The British built the stockaded Fort Mercer (or Capt. Hugh Mercer's Fort) in the winter of 1758 - 1759 (its stone magazine stood until 1852, now the site of a railroad terminal) as a temporary defense until Fort Pitt was completed. The much larger Fort Pitt was completed in 1761, only to be abandoned in 1772. It was unsuccessfully attacked by Pontiac in June 1763.

Five brick blockhouses were built outside the fort in 1764. Only one still exists, Bouquet's Redoubt, the oldest structure in western Pennsylvania. The fort was claimed and known as Fort Dunmore by Virginia after 1772. The Virginia state militia returned in 1778, and occupied it for the duration of the American Revolution. The fort then became a Federal military supply depot until 1792, when it was finally abandoned. The museum is in a recreated bastion (Monongahela Bastion). References: William Pitt, the Elder Blog William Pitt, the Elder The elder William Pitt, later the first Earl of Chatham, was the driving force behind the British victory in the Seven Years War, known as the French and Indian War in North America. The extensive triumph was instrumental in establishing a truly global empire. Pitt was born in Westminster, England, the son of a prominent family whose wealth had been made in India. He was educated at Eton and Oxford, and entered the House of Commons at age 27. There he joined with other young members in opposing the foreign policies of Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole.

This opposition was embarrassing to the Crown and touched off lasting antipathy between Pitt and George II. During the War of the Austrian Succession in the 1740s, Pitt grew in public admiration while serving as army paymaster, where he displayed unusual foresight, honesty and a refusal to enrich himself at public expense. After warfare resumed in North America in 1755, Pitt lost his government position because of his constant criticism of the prime minister and the governmentï¿½s war plan. However, the dreadful showing of the British forces soon brought him back to power. Reluctantly, George II named him secretary of state in 1756 and in the following year Pitt joined with the Duke of Newcastle in forming a new government. Never lacking in self-confidence, he declared, ï¿½I know that I can save this country, and that no one else can." By 1758, Pitt controlled the war effort almost single-handedly. His decisive contributions included: He saw North America, not Europe, as the pivotal ingredient in the creation of a great empire. He liberally subsidized the Prussians to handle the bulk of the conflict on the continent, while concentrating on America.

He publicly identified France as the prime opponent, a position that won support from leading merchants and the masses, thus cementing popular backing for the war effort. Pitt gained American support for the conflict by paying subsidies to the colonial governments that provided soldiers and supplies. He showed little patience with unproductive military leaders. Lord Loudoun, the successor to Edward Braddock , was relieved of his command after his failure at Louisbourg . Jeffrey Amherst and James Wolfe , among others, filled the void with startling success. Despite victories in North America, Europe, West Africa, India and the West Indies, the new monarch, George III, forced Pittï¿½s resignation in 1761. The former secretary of state spent the next few years as a leader of the opposition. He was a vocal critic of the Peace of Paris (1763), arguing that the terms were far too lenient in light of the overpowering British victory. He saw no reason for the return of West Indian islands to France, and Cuba and the Philippines to Spain. Pitt gained further adulation in the American colonies by his opposition to government programs for imposing new taxes, particularly the Stamp Act tax (1765).

Pitt returned to power in 1766 as Prime Minister and was made Earl of Chatham and Lord Privy Seal. His ability to mold events had been sharply diminished by declining health, which left him playing second fiddle to Charles Townshend, the chancellor of the exchequer. The infamous Townshend Duties were enacted in 1767 over Pittï¿½s protests. He resigned in 1768. In the following years, Pitt made occasional appearances in the House of Lords, usually to plead for a more sympathetic treatment of the American colonists. After war erupted, Pitt urged that every effort be made to secure peace, but he ï¿½ the great architect of empire ï¿½ would not accept the idea of independence. Pitt died a few days after collapsing in the House of Lords, where he was delivering a speech on the troubled relationship with the American colonies. William Pitt the elder demonstrated great skills as a wartime leader, particularly in the areas of grand strategy and organization. However, his contributions were limited by inattention to administrative matters and his inability to adjust to the give-and-take of political life.

In an ironic turn of events, Pitt gained great popularity in America during the French and Indian war by lavishing cash reimbursements on the colonists for their military expenses. Those excesses, however, helped to create a massive public debt at home. Post-war efforts to collect a portion of that obligation through taxes in the colonies would lead to estrangement, independence and ultimately the disintegration of the empire. - - - Books You May Like Include: ---- William Pitt 'The Elder' (Whig, 1766-1768) | History of government William Pitt 'The Elder' (Whig, 1766-1768) — No 10 guest historian series , Past prime ministers William Pitt the Elder, first Earl of Chatham, was an important war leader who found it harder to govern in peace time. Born in November 1708, Pitt’s grandfather and father were both MPs and his grandfather, Thomas, had been governor of Madras. Pitt was a pupil at Eton from 1719 until 1726. He entered Trinity College, Oxford in 1727 but rapidly moved on to study in Utrecht.

His elder brother inherited the family estates and William had to seek other employment. His Etonian friend, George Lyttelton, introduced him to Richard Temple, Viscount Cobham in 1731 and Pitt gained a commission in Temple’s regiment. William Pitt the Elder Youthful opposition William Pitt was elected to the family pocket borough of Old Sarum in 1735. He quickly sided with the opposition to Walpole , joining Cobham’s nephews Richard Grenville and Lyttelton as a member of the group known as ‘Cobham’s cubs’. Opposition to the ministry in the eighteenth century was frequently associated with the heir to the throne and Pitt and the cubs moved closer to Frederick, Prince of Wales. Pitt was very critical of Walpole’s handling of relations with Spain in the late 1730s and spoke strongly in the debates in early 1742 that ultimately led to Walpole’s resignation. Patriot figurehead The political situation following Walpole’s departure was fluid. Pitt remained firmly in opposition and spoke out strongly against a policy of European intervention which he associated with the prioritisation of Hanoverian over British interests.

Unnecessary expenditure on foreign troops, along with concerns about the size of the national debt, the expansion of the army and the growing power of the executive were central to a ‘ patriot ’ position from the 1730s onwards. Henry Pelham and the Duke of Newcastle found Pitt’s comments tactically useful in seeking to moderate the interventionist instincts of George II and his Secretary of State , John, Lord Carteret but Pitt’s outspokenness meant that George was initially unwilling to admit him to office. Pitt’s pressure on Pelham and Newcastle finally yielded dividends in 1746 when he was made Vice-Treasurer of Ireland and then Paymaster of the Forces. Importantly, neither office required personal contact with the King. Pitt was a dedicated Paymaster. He worked hard and refused to take advantage of the opportunities to enrich himself. His parliamentary speeches from this period suggest that he had become more sympathetic to a policy of continental involvement, no doubt helped by his increasing attachment to Newcastle. It was through Newcastle’s influence that he was elected as MP for Seaford in 1747 and then Aldborough in 1754.

Although widely acknowledged as a formidable Commons performer, Pitt lacked a large personal following and George II still treated him with suspicion. He was not promoted to a position of influence when Newcastle formed an administration in 1754. His attempts to form an alliance with Henry Fox, the War Secretary, faltered and Pitt began to drift towards theopposition based in Leicester House, where the future George III, Frederick’s son, held court. Pitt’s connections with the cubs were reinforced when he married Lady Hester Grenville, sister of Richard Grenville, Earl Temple, and George Grenville , in November 1754. The marriage yielded five children, including William Pitt the Younger. Political comings and goings The worsening international situation created new opportunities. Pitt was concerned that the tensions between France and Britain in the American colonies might provoke a general European conflict. Reviving patriot arguments in the Commons led to him being dismissed from office. Newcastle’s administration collapsed in 1756. Pitt refused to serve with both Newcastle and Fox and eventually achieved the position of influence he craved as Secretary of State in Devonshire’s short-lived administration. Yet, Pitt’s position was still difficult.

He lacked a firm majority in the Commons and his enemies were circling. The Duke of Cumberland managed to force his father, the King, to remove Temple and Pitt in April 1757 and an ‘interministerium’ followed before Newcastle returned as First Lord and Pitt as Secretary of State in June 1757. Success in war The Newcastle-Pitt administration steered Britain successfully through the Seven Years War (1756-63). 1759 was to be a year of military success in Europe, Canada and India and there is some truth to Pitt’s subsequent claim that ‘American had been conquered in Germany’. Like many before him, Pitt discovered the wisdom in office of a foreign policy that protected Britain’s colonial interests with a strong navy but also used Britain’s financial resources to intervene in Europe. George III’s accession changed things. Pitt had drifted away from the new King and his favourite minister, Lord Bute , since the mid-1750s. They were now keen to pursue a policy of peace. Pitt’s appeals for a vigorous continuation of the war fell on stony ground and he resigned in October 1761.

Coping with peace Pitt’s political position over the next few years was difficult. George Grenville had separated from him and his relations with Newcastle and the Rockinghamites were frosty. There were intermittent negotiations: each time an administration was in trouble, Pitt’s name was mentioned as a potential replacement. In 1766, following the collapse of the first Rockingham ministry, Pitt finally agreed to lead an administration but as Lord Privy Seal, rather then First Lord. Poor health, which had been a recurrent feature of his political career, led him to accept a peerage and he became Earl of Chatham. He had hoped to revive Britain’s alliances in northern Europe which he felt had been fatally damaged at the end of the Seven Years War. In this, and in attempts to resolve the American crisis, he was unsuccessful. By October 1768, having failed to achieve his aims, a weary Chatham begged the King to allow him to resign. George III accepted, determined to keep him out of office henceforth. Chatham’s health revived sufficiently for him to act in concert with the Rockinghamites at various points in the 1770s.

The Earl of Shelburne slowly emerged as Pitt's chief lieutenant, although Chatham’s instinctive suspicion of political connection meant his personal parliamentary following was small. He died in May 1778 and received a funeral in Westminster Abbey at public expense. His nickname of ‘the great commoner’ reflected a broader truth: his political career before he took his peerage in 1766 was considerably more successful than thereafter. Pitt the Elder resigns | History Today Pitt the Elder resigns Pitt the Elder resigned on October 5th, 1761, at the age of 52. William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham by Richard Brompton The accession of George III in 1760 crippled the career of one of Britain’s greatest prime ministers and one of the architects of the British Empire. William Pitt the Elder had an upper-crust background as a Villiers on his mother’s side and the grandson of Thomas Pitt, who had made a fortune in India. It looks as if he inherited a tendency to manic depression. A younger son and not himself well off, he was sent to Eton, which he disliked and where he started on a lifelong martyrdom to gout.

In 1735, aged 26, he entered Parliament as member for the Pitt family’s pocket borough of Old Sarum. He was a Whig but political parties of today’s kind did not exist and Pitt was one of a group in Parliament known as ‘Cobham’s cubs’, assembled by a rich relative, Lord Cobham, to challenge Sir Robert Walpole’s administration. The ‘cubs’ took the side of the Prince of Wales against his father, George II, and Pitt became one of the prince’s officials, which did not endear him to the king. It soon became clear that Pitt was a coming man. Tall and lean with a long, commandingly beaky nose, he was a compelling speaker. Horace Walpole later told a friend that a Pitt speech in Parliament contained ‘more humour, wit, vivacity, finer language, more boldness, in short more astonishing perfections’ than he could imagine. Pitt was a vigorous patriot and complained that Parliament was too full of careerists to have any proper concern for the national interest. Widespread public opinion agreed with him. Politicians were not held in high esteem, but Pitt attracted growing approval and support outside Parliament.

Walpole fell from power in 1742 and was soon replaced by a ministry led by Henry Pelham and his brother, the 1st Duke of Newcastle. They wanted to include Pitt in the administration and in 1746 he was appointed paymaster general of the forces, which reduced George II to tears of rage. The post was a byword for its opportunities for corruption and other paymasters general had made themselves fortunes, but Pitt refused to accept more than his official salary. He took care to publicise the fact, which boosted his public reputation. The Seven Years War which began in 1754 proved to be the making of Pitt. Great Britain and Prussia were the major powers on one side, France, Austria, Russia and later Spain on the other, but many lesser powers were involved and it was fought across the world. A key factor was the rivalry between Britain and France to build empires in America and Asia. Pitt believed that he was the only person who could see Britain safely through the war and public opinion agreed with him. After long and complicated manoeuverings, in 1757 Pitt became in effect prime minister by popular demand, in alliance with Newcastle.

Temperamentally a loner, high-handed and difficult to get to know or to like, he was one of the most effective war ministers in British history. He strengthened the navy and sent it to attack the French in the West Indies and West Africa and make an invasion of Britain impossible. He dispatched expeditions to take Canada from the French and supported Robert Clive in establishing British supremacy in India. In Europe money and men were sent to aid Prussia under Frederick the Great. One sensational victory followed another to huge popular delight until in the annus mirabilis of 1759 Horace Walpole recorded that ‘Our bells are worn out threadbare with ringing for victories.’ In 1760, however, George III came to the throne with his chief adviser, Lord Bute, who was determined to take a new direction. Most of Pitt’s cabinet had grown uneasy with the prime minister’s dominance, his popularity in the country and the huge amounts of money the war was costing. When he argued for a strike against Spain to prevent it joining the war against Britain, the cabinet refused. He felt he had no choice but to resign, at the age of 52.

His great days were over and when he was appointed in 1766 to form a new administration he was not physically up to the task and he was suffering from bouts of mental trouble, which he called ‘gout in the brain’. He retreated to the House of Lords as Earl of Chatham and in 1768, trapped in recurrent fits of insanity, he left office. He died on May 11th, 1778, aged 69, while his son William – another Pitt who would make his mark – was reading him the passage in the Iliad on the Trojan hero Hector’s farewell. His monument in Westminster Abbey salutes him with the words that under him ‘Divine providence exalted Great Britain to a height of prosperity and glory unknown to any former age’. William Pitt (the Elder), Earl of Chatham (1708-1778) William Pitt (the Elder), Earl of Chatham (1708-1778) Marjie Bloy , Ph. D., Senior Research Fellow, the Victorian Web [ Victorian Web Home —> Political History —> Prime Ministers ] William Pitt.

who served as Prime Minister from 30 July 1766 to 14 October 1768, was born on 15 November 1709, the second son and fourth of seven children of Robert Pitt and his wife Lady Harriet Villiers. The family was not aristocratic and the politicians in the family relied on connections and their own abilities to make their way in life. Between 1719 and 1726, Pitt was educated at Eton and then went up to Trinity College Oxford. He left there in 1728 before graduating and took a place at the University of Utrecht. Pitt then was provided with a Cornetcy in Cobham's Regiment (the King's Own Regiment of Horse) in 1731 but was dismissed in 1736 for a sarcastic speech he made in parliament. Cobham was his uncle. Pitt undertook a foreshortened "grand tour" in 1733-4, visiting only France and Switzerland. Pitt entered political life in 1735 when he was elected as MP for Old Sarum, the family's rotten borough.

In 1737 he was appointed Groom of the Bedchamber to the Prince of Wales. In this period of his life, Pitt opposed Walpole's government and sat on a Committee of Enquiry into Walpole's use of Civil List money. In October 1744 he was bequeathed ï¿½10,000 by the Duchess of Marlborough for his opposition to Walpole. The money was well-received because Pitt was perpetually in debt. In 1746 Pitt was appointed Paymaster General, a post which carried Cabinet status. He worked hard in Pelham's ministry and on the death of the PM (in 1754) expected to be rewarded by the incoming PM and Pelham's brother, the Duke of Newcastle . When Newcastle did nothing to help Pitt, he was indignant and wrote a letter of complaint to the PM. Newcastle then arranged for Pitt to represent the rotten borough of Aldborough in 1754. In the same year, Pitt married Hester Grenville, sister of Earl Temple and George Grenville . Hester was 23 years his junior.

The couple had three sons and two daughters: William ( Pitt the Younger ) was their second son. In 1756 the Seven Years' War broke out; Pitt was Secretary of State with sole charge of the direction of the war and foreign affairs. During the early years of the war, Britain suffered a number of reversals but late in 1758 the army began to make inroads into French control of Canada including the capture of Fort Duquesne which was renamed Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania). In 1759 Quebec surrendered after the death of Generals Wolfe (British) and Montcalme (French) in the battle for the town. Pitt had fulfilled his promise to "save his country". He then wanted to press home Britain's advantage by declaring war on Spain before the Spanish had time to prepare for and declare war on Britain. This was always a likelihood since the French and Spanish royal families were related and had signed the "Family Compact" to provide mutual assistance in time of war. The new king, George III, and his advisers - particularly the Earl of Bute - were reluctant to extend the war. Pitt's position was made untenable and he resigned in 1761.

The king and Bute, pleased to have Pitt out of office, offered him a variety of posts including the governorship of Canada and the Chancellorship of the Duchy of Lancaster-offices that would keep Pitt out of parliament. He refused all these offers but hinted that rewards for his relatives would be welcome. He accepted a pension of ï¿½3,000 for his own lifetime and for that of his wife and his son. Mrs. Pitt was created Baroness Chatham: she was lampooned as "Lady Cheat'em" for some time. In 1762, Bute was obliged to declare war on Spain, just as Pitt had proposed a year earlier. However, at the end of the year, Bute had begun negotiations for a peace. Pitt returned to parliament to deliver a scathing, three-hour speech attaching the proposals: the performance was enshrined in Dalrymple's poem, The Rodondo. Bute found the burdens of office too much to bear and in 1763 was replaced by George Grenville, Pitt's brother-in-law who was PM until July 1765.

In January 1765, Sir William Pysent - a total stranger - left his Somerset estate of Burton Pysent to Pitt. The estate was worth about ï¿½40,000. In the same year the king made overtures to Pitt for the formation of a ministry. Pitt was in poor health and also was aware that he was the king's last resort for PM so he refused. Rockingham formed a short-lived ministry and in 1766 Pitt became PM in his own right but now elevated to the peerage as the Earl of Chatham. By accepting the peerage he lost all credibility as the "Great Commoner" and was unable to control the House of Commons which he had ruled by sheer force of personality as 'Mr. Pitt'. The king wanted a stable, positive government and thought that would be the result of appointing Chatham. Chatham had support from the independent gentlemen in the House of Commons, merchants, businessmen, the City and industry: it should have been a strong government. The Americans also trusted Pitt after his handling of the Seven Years' War and because of his anti-Stamp Act speeches. George III politically abandoned Bute and gave Chatham his full backing.

Edmund Burke said that George III bribed Pitt with the peerage. Chatham said that he wanted to rule through "measures, not men": he wanted his policies to be more important than his ministers. In this, he had the same ideas as the King, who wanted to choose the best policies and form a government from the best people without regard to parties. Burke commented that Chatham "made an administration so chequered and speckled ... such a tessellated pavement without cement ... that it was, indeed, a very curious show; but utterly unsafe to touch and unsure to stand on". It was an unstable ministry for a variety of reasons: Pitt became victim of his own success and tried to 'manage' the King, who saw his ministers as his servants and refused to be 'managed' his peerage destroyed his image as 'the Great Commoner' he became arrogant, verging on megalomania he was autocratic in Cabinet and over-rode Grafton , who ceased to take any interest in affairs his ability was waning.

Chatham had a mental breakdown in 1767 followed by a long illness during which he refused to see anyone he was unable to control the Commons from the Lords All this led to further instability. His caretaker was the Duke of Grafton, who also sat in the Lords, with Charles Townshend as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Commons. Many other Cabinet posts were held by men who had served in Rockingham's ministry. Chatham's weaknesses, together with the activities of Grafton and Townshend, caused the collapse of Chatham's ministry. Chatham's ministry mis-handled issues concerning America and John Wilkes America Townshend unilaterally reverted to Grenville's policy for America. He revived the financial demands on the colonies with the 1767 American Import Duties Act, often known as the Townshend Duties. During the Stamp Act crisis, the colonists had differentiated between internal and external taxation and Townshend made use of this in his policy. Townshend's taxes were 'external' and had the same aim as the Sugar Act: they were intended specifically to raise a revenue from America.

He put small duties on lead, paint, glass, paper and tea, goods that were essential to the colonists. All had to be imported from Britain in British ships, and by taxing at source, evasion was impossible. The levying of these duties led to: more cries of 'no taxation with representation' riots and another non-importation agreement. Wilkes Wilkes returned to England in 1768 hoping that his misdeeds in 1763-4 would have been forgotten. By 1768 he had many debts in France. Grafton totally mishandled the affair and it dragged the government down. 1768 was a general election year and Wilkes wanted to take part and become an MP again. There was much discontent among MPs and much discontent nationally. Consequently the electorate was ripe for a reformer: the country had had weak governments and almost continual ministerial instability since 1760. The electorate was looking for MPs who would strengthen and stabilise government Britain had suffered from a period of economic hardship because of the American non-importation agreements MPs were disillusioned with the constant changes of ministry 1768 was a year of bad harvests, food shortages and high prices.

There was severe unemployment and a bad winter. the Spitalfields silk weavers had rioted before the election seamen had gone on strike in London, Tyneside, Hull. There was widespread distress in the country but particularly in London. Wilkes stood as MP for a London borough and lost because it was controlled by a magnate, so he moved on to the Middlesex County Election. Middlesex was extremely democratic (given 18th century situation) because most of London's artisans, 40/- freeholders, small landowners and craftsmen lived there. These men were very strong supporters of 'Wilkes the Liberator'. Wilkes won easily on a reform platform and seems to have been intent on provoking the government into action. George III and Grafton had two choices: let Wilkes take his seat (and therefore admit defeat) arrest Wilkes for debts, pornography, duelling on the old outlawry charge. Wilkes pre-empted the government and forced the Warden of the King's Bench prison to gaol him for the poem "Essay on Woman". He said that he wanted to stand trial to: establish his right to stand as MP establish his good character He also wanted to present parliament with a fait accompli.

The Court found Wilkes guilty of debts and outlawry, ordered him to pay a ï¿½1,000 fine and sentenced him to twenty-two months imprisonment. In Wilkes' case, the judicature supported Crown and parliament. A mob gathered on St. George's Fields, outside the prison, because the people thought that Wilkes had been arrested by the unpopular government. Troops were called out to control rioters but were beaten and stoned. Shots were fired and six rioters were killed. The event became known as the "Massacre of St. George's Field". Wilkes became became a hero and a 'martyr to the cause' and a defender of liberties because he attacked the government. The affair was shown in cartoons as Bute attacking liberties of Englishman because the Earl of Bute was a Scot and Scottish soldiers were called out to quell the riots. The Magistrate who had given orders for troops to fire on the mob was tried for murder. This had repercussions during the Gordon Riots in 1780 when the magistrates unwilling to give orders to shoot. With Wilkes in prison, the Middlesex election was declared null and void and another election was ordered.

Henry Lawes Luttrell was the government candidate but the electorate nominated Wilkes as a candidate. There were four elections between 1768 and 1769, all won by Wilkes. On the first three occasions, the government declared the election to be null and void because Wilkes was not entitled to stand for election. On the fourth occasion in 1769, Luttrell was declared to be elected. The results were: HL Luttrell 296 votes, Wilkes 1,043 votes. Since Britain has a "first past the post" system of election, it is clear that Luttrell should not have been declared the winner. There were a number of results from the Middlesex election affair. The 'perfect' British Constitution looked ridiculous. It appeared to be exposed as weak, corrupt and subject to influence. This was fuel for the Whigs who believed George III was attempting to set up his own government of 'King's Friends' by manipulating elections. In fact, the Middlesex election fiasco was a one-off case, and Wilkes had been imprisoned by an independent judiciary. Legally, he was not permitted to stand for election.

It sparked off the 1769 Petitioning Movement, led by Yorkshire and the Rockinghams, demanding the dissolution of parliament and a general election. By end of 1769, eighteen counties and thirteen cities had petitioned for dissolution. All were ignored by Grafton. It led to setting up of the first organised radical reform club, the Society for the Supporters of the Bill of Rights, founded by a Unitarian clergyman, John Horne-Tooke, centred around the Wilkes affair and based on Wilkes himself. The Duke of Grafton was First Lord of the Treasury during Chatham's ministry and Charles Townshend was Chancellor of the Exchequer. The budget was overturned by a successful Rockinghamite motion to reduce the land tax to 3/- in the ï¿½. Chatham, who had not expected his ministry to have so many troubles, collapsed and spent the next eighteen months out of touch with politics and possibly out of touch with reality. It was Charles Townshend who introduced the American Import Duties Act in 1767 in an effort to raise money from the colonies to pay for their defence even though this was against Chatham's policy.

However, with the "great man" incommunicado, the ministers did much as they pleased. Eventually Chatham resigned in October 1768, leaving the Duke of Grafton to form a ministry in his own right. Chatham resigned as PM, in the middle of the Wilkes fiasco. He was still ill, but Grafton and Townshend-who had died in August 1767- had wrecked his ministry. Chatham denounced everything that had been done by his ministry in his absence. He said that the colonial policy "was impracticable" and that the handling of the Wilkes affair was "highly incompetent". Over the next ten years, Chatham appeared from time to time in parliament to support or attack the government, depending on its policies. He tried desperately to avert open conflict with the American colonies but each time he failed to get his own way he retired to the country, ill. On 7 April 1778 he attended the House of Lords for a debate on the situation in the colonies with the intention of opposing the Duke of Richmond's motion to give the colonies their independence. He spoke against Richmond, who responded.

When Chatham rose again to reply, he opened his mouth, clutched his chest and collapsed on the Duke of Portland . Chatham was carried from the House of Lords and taken to Hayes where he died on 11 May 1778. He was 69 years old. Recommended Reading Ayling, S. The Elder Pitt. London, 1976. Black, J. Pitt the Elder. Cambridge, 1992. Tunstall, B. William Pitt, Earl of Chatham. London, 1938.

Question: What was the first name of the English Prime Ministers known as Pitt the Elder and Pitt the Younger?
Answer: William