Prime Ministers: Past and Present

Sir Robert Walpole is regarded as the first British prime minister, taking up the responsibilities and duties of the chief political minister for Britain in 1721. However, his official title was 'First Lord of the Treasury' (a title still held by today's PM's); the term 'prime minister' was not officially recognised until 1905.

Since Sir Robert Walpole, there have been a further 50 men (and one woman) who have become Prime Minister, and we have listed them here for you below, along with the dates they took office, and their political party.

Date	Name	Party
1721 - 42	Sir Robert Walpole	Whig
1742 - 43	Spencer Compton, Earl of Wilmington	Whig
1743 - 54	Henry Pelham	Whig
1754 - 56	Thomas Pelham-Holles, Duke of Newcastle	Whig
1756 - 57	William Cavendish, Duke of Devonshire	Whig
1757 - 62	Thomas Pelham-Holles, Duke of Newcastle	Whig
1762 - 63	John Stuart, Earl of Bute	Tory
1763 - 65	George Grenville	Whig
1765 - 66	Charles Watson-Wentworth, Marquess of Rockingham	Whig
1766 - 68	William Pitt 'The Elder', Earl of Chatham	Whig
1768 - 70	Augustus Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Grafton	Whig
1770 - 82	Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford (Lord North)	Tory
1782	Charles Watson-Wentworth, Marquess of Rockingham	Whig
1782 - 83	William Petty, Earl of Shelburne	Whig
1783	William Bentinck, Duke of Portland	Whig
1783 - 1801	William Pitt 'The Younger'	Tory
1801 - 1804	Henry Addington	Tory
1804 - 06	William Pitt 'The Younger'	Tory
1806 - 07	William Wyndam Grenville, Lord Grenville	Whig
1807 - 09	William Bentinck, Duke of Portland	Whig
1809 - 12	Spencer Perceval	Tory
1812 - 27	Robert Banks Jenkinson, Earl of Liverpool	Tory
1827	George Canning	Tory
1827 - 28	Frederick Robinson, Viscount Goderich	Tory
1828 - 30	Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington	Tory
1830 - 34	Charles Grey (Earl Grey)	Whig
1834	William Lamb, Viscount Melbourne	Whig
1834 - 35	Sir Robert Peel	Tory
1835 - 41	William Lamb, Viscount Melbourne	Whig
1841 - 46	Sir Robert Peel	Tory
1846 - 52	John Russell (Earl Russell)	Liberal
1852	The Earl of Derby	Conservative
1852 - 1855	The Earl of Aberdeen	Tory
1855 - 58	Viscount Palmerston	Tory
1858 - 59	The Earl of Derby	Conservative
1859 - 65	Viscount Palmerston	Tory
1866 - 68	The Earl of Derby	Conservative
1868	Benjamin Disraeli	Conservative
1868 - 74	William Ewart Gladstone	Liberal
1874 - 80	Benjamin Disraeli	Conservative
1880 - 85	William Ewart Gladstone	Liberal
1885 - 86	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, Marquess of Salisbury	Conservative
1896	William Ewart Gladstone	Liberal
1886 - 92	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, Marquess of Salisbury	Conservative
1892 - 94	William Ewart Gladstone	Liberal
1894 - 95	Archibald Philip-Primrose Rosebery (The Earl of Rosebery)	Liberal
1895 - 1901	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, Marquess of Salisbury	Conservative
1902 - 05	Arthur James Balfour	Conservative
1905 - 08	Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman	Liberal
1908 - 16	Herbert Henry Asquith	Liberal / Coalition
1916 - 22	David Lloyd George	National Liberal / Coalition
1922 - 23	Andrew Bonar Law	Conservative
1923 - 24	Stanley Baldwin	Conservative
1924	James Ramsey MacDonald	Labour
1924 - 29	Stanley Baldwin	Conservative
1929 - 35	James Ramsey MacDonald	Labour / National Government
1935 - 37	Stanley Baldwin	Conservative / National Government
1937 - 40	Neville Chamberlain	Conservative / National Government
1940 - 45	Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill	Conservative / Coalition
1945 - 51	Clement Richard Attlee	Labour
1951 - 55	Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill	Conservative
1955 - 57	Anthony Eden	Conservative
1957 - 63	Harold Macmillan	Conservative
1963 - 64	Sir Alec Douglas-Home	Conservative
1964 - 70	Harold Wilson	Labour
1970 - 74	Edward Heath	Conservative
1974 - 76	Harold Wilson	Labour
1976 - 79	James Callaghan	Labour
1979 - 90	Margaret Thatcher	Conservative
1990 - 97	John Major	Conservative
1997 - 2007	Tony Blair	Labour
2007-	Gordon Brown	Labour

TOP 10

1. Politics

7. Finances

2. Political Books

4. VAT

5. Government

6. Benefits

3. News

8. Tax

9. Books

10. Pensions