William Pitt the Younger
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‘Confirmation of the People’s Rights’: commemorating the ‘Glorious Revolution’ of 1688
For many, the beginning of November means the advent of longer nights as the year winds down to Christmas. Some may still enjoy attending firework displays marking the failure of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot. In November 1788, though, serious efforts…
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‘The sect of Alarmists’: The Third Party and the reluctant leadership of William Windham, 1793-4
In this latest post, the Georgian Lords welcomes a guest article by James Orchin, PhD student at Queen’s University, Belfast, re-examining William Windham’s ‘Third Party’, known as ‘The Alarmists’. The group was mostly made up of former Foxite Whigs, who…
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‘of all others most desirable’: Pitt the Younger and elections for Cambridge
From the onset of his lengthy political career, William Pitt the Younger had his eyes fixed on representing his alma mater, the University of Cambridge. Writing to his mother in July 1779, he observed that the University seat was ‘of…
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The Last of the Jacobites: Henry Benedict
Henry Benedict, Cardinal York (1725-1807), born 300 years ago this March, was the last member of the royal family to take an active role in a papal Conclave, when he participated in the election of Pope Pius VII at Venice…
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A Meddlesome Mother? Queen Charlotte and the Regency Crisis
In October 1788, George III fell ill with an unknown ‘malady’ which rendered him unable to fulfil his duties as sovereign: the beginning of the king’s famous ‘madness’. In the latest post for the Georgian Lords, we welcome Dr Natalee…
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The Mince Pie Administration or Plum Pudding Billy
Every December mince pies fly off the shelf, but our love for them never seems to last past Christmas. In 1783, William Pitt’s government was disparagingly nicknamed after this ‘phenomenon’. Dr Robin Eagles, editor of our House of Lords 1715-1790…
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Party in Eighteenth-Century Politics
Ahead of next Tuesday’s Virtual IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar, we hear from Dr Max Skjönsberg, of the University of Liverpool. On 2 March 2021, between 5.15 p.m. and 6.30 p.m., Max will be responding to your questions about his…
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Asleep on the job? Prime Minister Lord North 250 years on
Accompanying the publication of a new collection covering 300 years of British Prime Ministers, the book’s editor compiled a list assessing the 55 premiers in order of their significance. Frederick, Lord North, who became Prime Minister in 1770 and is…
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‘The Story of Parliament’: Pitt and Fox
Last year the History published ‘The Story of Parliament: Celebrating 750 years of parliament in Britain’ to mark the anniversary of Simon de Montfort’s parliament in 1265. The book is a brief introduction to the full 750 years of parliamentary…
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‘The Story of Parliament’: The office of Prime Minister in the 18th Century
Earlier this year the History published ‘The Story of Parliament: Celebrating 750 years of parliament in Britain’ to mark the anniversary of Simon de Montfort’s parliament in 1265. The book is a brief introduction to the full 750 years of…