Robert Harley

Robert Harley, the 1st Earl of Oxford, was a British statesman who led the Tory ministry from 1710 to 1714. He was born on December 5, 1661, in London, England, and died on May 21, 1724, in London. Robert Harley was married twice and had 4 children from his first marriage to Elizabeth Foley. They were named Edward, Robert, Elizabeth, and Abigail. Despite the fact that Harley was a Whig by birth as well as by education, he changed his political course over time and led both the Tory and Anglican party. Harley grew up in a Puritan-Parliamentarian family. His father, Sir Edward Harley, known as a prominent Presbyterian, was an active supporter of the parliamentary side during the Civil War. Robert Harley was sceptical towards the pretensions of all governments, so he joined parliament in the year 1689. In the course of his political involvement in parliament Harley and Paul Foley became the leaders of a coalition of Whigs and moderate Tories, political groups who were against the government of King William III. Often Harley provoked the king with demands such as a smaller army than king William's preferred, or a reduced royal budget. From 1701 to 1705 Harley was speaker of the House of Commons and he also served as secretary of state from 1704 to 1708. During this time Harley (together with John Churchill, First Duke of Marlborough and Sidney Godolphin) played an important role within the reign of Queen Anne, as he headed the war of the Spanish Succession against the French.

Sources

• Bennett, Gareth Vaughan. "Robert Harley, the Godolphin ministry, and the bishoprics crisis of 1707." The English Historical Review 82.325 (1967): 726–746. in JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/561098.pdf.
• Morrill, John S. "Robert Harley, 1st earl of Oxford." Encyclopædia Britannica, published Jul 1998, updated Dec 2022, accessed 3 January 2023. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Robert-Harley-1st-earl-of-Oxford.
• W. A. Speck, "Harley, Robert, first earl of Oxford and Mortimer (1661–1724)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, published Sep 2004, updated Oct 2007, accessed 3 January 2023.https://www.oxforddnb.com/display/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-12344#odnb-9780198614128-e-12344-div1-d41985e1050.