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Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham
*** Shopping-Tip: Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham
{{Infobox PM | name=The Marquess of Rockingham
|image=Charles-Wentworth.jpg
|country=Great Britain
|term=
13 July 1765 –
30 July 176627 March 1782 –
1 July 1782
|before=
George GrenvilleFrederick North, Lord North Lord North
|after=
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham The Earl of ChathamWilliam Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne The Earl of Shelburne
|date_birth=
13 May 1730
|place_birth=
South Yorkshire
|date_death=
1 July 1782
|place_death=
Wimbledon, London
|party=
Whig
}}
The Most Honourable '''Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham,'''
Order_of_the_Garter KG Privy Council of the United Kingdom PC (
May 13,
1730 –
July 1,
1782) was a
Kingdom of Great Britain British Whig statesman, most notable for his two terms as
Whig Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Prime Minister of Great Britain. He served in only two high offices during his lifetime (Prime Minister and
Leader of the House of Lords), but was nonetheless very influential during his one and a half years of service.
A descendant of
Thomas Wentworth, Charles was brought up at the family home of
Wentworth Woodhouse near
Rotherham in
South Yorkshire. He was educated at the
Westminster School and at
St John's College, Cambridge St John's College,
University of Cambridge Cambridge. In
1746, he rode from
Wentworth to
Carlisle to join the
Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland Duke of Cumberland in pursuit of the "
Charles Edward Stuart Young Pretender." Four years later, he was created '''Earl of Malton''' in the
Peerage of Ireland, then acceded to his father's marquessate shortly thereafter.
He took his seat in the
House of Lords the following year, and was given the
Order of the Garter Garter in
1761. In
1762, King
George III of Great Britain George III appointed his friend and mentor,
John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute Lord Bute, to the position of Prime Minister; however, he was forced to resign due to growing opposition. He was replaced by
George Grenville, who again did not attract enough support; following Grenville's resignation in
1765, Lord Rockingham was appointed Prime Minister.
Rockingham appointed his allies
Henry Seymour Conway and the
Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton Duke of Grafton as
Secretary of State secretaries of state. During his term of office, he repealed the
Stamp Act 1765 Stamp Act, reducing the tax burden on the colonies. However, internal dissent within the cabinet led to his resignation and the appointment of
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham Lord Chatham as Prime Minister (the Duke of Grafton was appointed
First Lord of the Treasury, one of the few cases in which those two offices were separate).
Rockingham spent the next sixteen years in opposition. He was a keen supporter of constitutional rights for colonists, and backed the claim for
Thirteen Colonies American independence. In
1782 he was appointed Prime Minister for a second time (with
Charles James Fox and
William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne Lord Shelburne as secretaries of state) and, upon taking office, acknowledged the independence of the
United States, initiating an end to British involvement in the
Revolutionary War. However, this term was short-lived, for Lord Rockingham died 14 weeks later.
Rockingham County, New Hampshire,
Rockingham County, North Carolina, and
Rockingham County, Virginia in the
United States are named in his honour.
Rockingham's First Government, July 1765 – July 1766
Image:Charles-Watson-Wentworth-arms.PNG thumb|right|150px|Arms of Charles Watson-Wentworth
* Lord Rockingham —
First Lord of the Treasury and
Leader of the House of Lords
*
Robert Henley, 1st Earl of Northington The Earl of Northington —
Lord Chancellor
*
Daniel Finch, 8th Earl of Winchilsea The Earl of Winchilsea —
Lord President of the Council
*
Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle The Duke of Newcastle —
Lord Privy Seal
*
William Dowdeswell —
Chancellor of the Exchequer
*
Augustus Henry Fitzroy, 3rd Duke of Grafton The Duke of Grafton —
Secretary of State for the Northern Department
*
Henry Seymour Conway —
Secretary of State for the Southern Department and
Leader of the House of Commons
*
John Manners, Marquess of Granby Marquess of Granby —
Master-General of the Ordnance
*
John Perceval, 2nd Earl of Egmont The Earl of Egmont —
First Lord of the Admiralty
*
Prince William, Duke of Cumberland HRH The Duke of Cumberland —
Minister without Portfolio
'''Changes'''
*October 1765 - The Duke of Cumberland dies.
*May 1766 - The Duke of Grafton resigns from the cabinet. Henry Seymour Conway succeeds him as Northern Secretary, and the
Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond Duke of Richmond succeeds Conway as Southern Secretary.
Rockingham's Second Government, March – July 1782
* Lord Rockingham —
First Lord of the Treasury,
Leader of the House of Lords
*
Edward Thurlow, 1st Baron Thurlow Lord Thurlow —
Lord Chancellor
*
Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden Lord Camden —
Lord President of the Council
*
Augustus Henry Fitzroy, 3rd Duke of Grafton The Duke of Grafton —
Lord Privy Seal
*
William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne Lord Shelburne —
Secretary of State for the Home Department
*
Charles James Fox —
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and
Leader of the House of Commons
*
Augustus Keppel, 1st Viscount Keppel Lord Keppel —
First Lord of the Admiralty
*
Henry Seymour Conway —
Commander in Chief of the Forces
*
Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond and Lennox The Duke of Richmond —
Master-General of the Ordnance
*
Lord John Cavendish —
Chancellor of the Exchequer
*
John Dunning, 1st Baron Ashburton Lord Ashburton —
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
{{start box}}
{{succession box | title=
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Prime Minister | before=
George Grenville .html">William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham
The Earl of Chatham | years=1765–1766}}
{{succession box | title=
Leader of the House of Lords .html">Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton
The Duke of Grafton | years=1765–1766}}
{{succession box two to one | title1=
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Prime Minister | title2=
Leader of the House of Lords .html">Frederick North, Lord North
Lord North | before2=Unknown | after=
William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne The Earl of Shelburne | years1=1782 | years2=1782}}
{{end box}}
{{start box}}
{{succession box | title=
Marquess of Rockingham .html">Thomas Watson-Wentworth, 1st Marquess of Rockingham
Thomas Watson-Wentworth | after=Extinct | years= }}
{{end box}}
{{UKPrimeMinisters}}
Category:1730 births Rockingham, Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of
Category:1782 deaths Rockingham, Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of
Category:Alumni of St. John's College, Cambridge Rockingham, Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of
Category:Knights of the Garter Rockingham, Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of
Category:Marquesses in the Peerage of Great Britain Rockingham, Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of
Category:Old Westminsters Rockingham, Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of
Category:Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom Rockingham, Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of
Category:Members of the Privy Council Rockingham, Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of
de:Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2. Marquess of Rockingham
ja:ãƒãƒƒã‚ンガム侯ãƒ?ャールズ・ワトソン・ウェントワース
zh:查尔斯·沃森-文特沃斯
*** Shopping-Tip: Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham
