Robert Walpole

1st Earl of Orford (1676-1745) was the first Prime Minister in England from 1721 to 1742.

Childhood and early years

Robert Walpole was born in North Norfolk as the the third son of nineteen children. His father was supporting the Whigs in William III's parliament. Due to the early death of his father and his older brothers, Robert Walpole inherited the family estate. He was educated at Eton and at King's College, Cambridge, but his main interest were politics. In 1700 he married Catherine Shorter. Both shared a flamboyant taste and way of life.

Political career

His political career started in 1701, when he entered parliament. He soon became the leader of the Norfolk members. Through his brother-in-law and friend Lord Townshend, he came into Whig society. In 1705 he became a member of Prince Georges's naval council and the Secretary of War in 1708, followed by the position of the Treasurer of the Navy in 1710.

The victory of the Tories in 1712 lead to the temporary downfall of Walpole. He was accused of corruption and therefore sent to prison for a short time. Walpole's position in Whig society got only stronger and he profited from that after the end of the Tory government. He was announced first Paymaster in 1714 and First Lord of Treasury and Chancellor of the Exchequer only one year later in 1715. This gave him the opportunity to expand his private fortune as he never made a distinction between private and public money. But Walpole's financial sense also lead to good developments such as the redemption of the national debt and the consolidation of rates of interest. After Townshend's run of misfortunes, Walpole joined the opposition together with his friend.

Walpole was First Lord of the Treasury and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1721 to 1742. And he was very apt at controlling the Members of Parliament. He is also said to be the first Prime Minister (the term 'Prime Minister' was asserted later). This office came into being due to the Crown's retreat from constitutional initiatives and the fact that both George I and George II were not overly interested in English politics. His tenure was crucial. Walpole was driven by the pursuit of power, he was not committed to any consistent political programme. He valued stability in politics. For this reason, he manipulated the patronage of the Crown, bribed, did jobbery and got rid of rivals. He was attacked for this by writers such as John Gay, Alexander Pope, Henry Fielding and Jonathan Swift. But, more fair-minded writers such as Edmund Burke exonerated him.

He fell from power in 1742 after a long struggle to remain in power since the outbreak of the war against Spain in 1739.

Literature

• Maurer, Michael. Kleine Geschichte Englands. Stuttgart: Reclam, 2007.
• Treasure, Geoffrey. Who's who in history. Volume IV: England 1714-1789. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1969.
• http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/635013/Robert-Walpole-1st-Earl-of-Orford