Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, KG, PC (13 May 1730 – 1 July 1782), styled The Hon. Charles Watson-Wentworth before 1733, Viscount Higham between 1733 and 1746, Earl of Malton between 1746 and 1750 and The Earl Malton in 1750, was a British Whig statesman, most notable for his two terms as Whig 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.

Early life

A descendant of the 1st Earl of Strafford, Lord Rockingham 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. In 1746, he rode from Wentworth to Carlisle to join the Duke of Cumberland in pursuit of the "Young Pretender." Four years later, he was created Earl Malton in the Peerage of Ireland, then acceded to his father's marquessate shortly thereafter.

Political career

He took his seat in the House of Lords the following year, and in 1751 was made a lord of the bedchamber to George II. He was made a knight of the Order of the Garter in 1761. In 1762, King George III appointed his friend and mentor, Lord Bute, to the position of Prime Minister. Several months later, in December of that year. An attempted parliamentary revolt by supporters of the former prime minister, the Thomas Pelham-Holles, Duke of Newcastle, including Rockingham, led to their dismissal from all posts in government, the so-called "Massacre of the Pelhamite Innocents." Over the next several years, Rockingham gradually became the leader of those of Newcastle's supporters who were unwilling to reconcile themselves to the premierships of Bute and his successor, George Grenville. Rockingham and his party, which included many of the heads of the great Whig families, saw themselves as the heirs of the Whig tradition which had overthrown James II and established the Hanoverian dynasty.

The king's dislike of Grenville, as well as his general lack of parliamentary support, led to his dismissal in 1765, and, following negotiations conducted through the medium of the king's uncle, the Duke of Cumberland, Lord Rockingham was appointed Prime Minister. Rockingham appointed his allies Henry Seymour Conway and the Duke of Grafton as secretaries of state. Also at this time, Edmund Burke, the Irish statesman and philosopher, became his private secretary and would remain a life-long friend, political ally and advisor until Rockingham's premature death in 1782. During his term of office, he repealed the Stamp Act, reducing the tax burden on the colonies. However, internal dissent within the cabinet led to his resignation and the appointment of 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 American independence. In 1782 he was appointed Prime Minister for a second time (with Charles James Fox and 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. Additionally, the city of Rockingham, North Carolina, which is not in Rockingham County but is rather the seat of Richmond County, was named in his honour.

Rockingham's First Government, July 1765 – July 1766

• The Marquess of Rockingham — First Lord of the Treasury and Leader of the House of Lords
• The Earl of Northington — Lord Chancellor
• The Earl of Winchilsea — Lord President of the Council
• The Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne — Lord Privy Seal
• William Dowdeswell — Chancellor of the Exchequer
• 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
• Marquess of Granby — Master-General of the Ordnance
• The Earl of Egmont — First Lord of the Admiralty
• 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 Duke of Richmond succeeds Conway as Southern Secretary.

Rockingham's Second Government, March – July 1782

• The Marquess of Rockingham — First Lord of the Treasury, Leader of the House of Lords
• The Lord Thurlow — Lord Chancellor
• The Lord Camden — Lord President of the Council
• The Duke of Grafton — Lord Privy Seal
• The Earl of Shelburne — Secretary of State for the Home Department
• Charles James Fox — Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Leader of the House of Commons
• The Viscount Keppel — First Lord of the Admiralty
• Henry Seymour Conway — Commander in Chief of the Forces
• The Duke of Richmond — Master-General of the Ordnance
• Lord John Cavendish — Chancellor of the Exchequer
• The Lord Ashburton — Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster

Titles from birth to death

• The Hon. Charles Watson-Wentworth (1730-1733)
• Viscount Higham (1733-1746)
• Earl of Malton (1746-1750)
• The Rt. Hon. The Earl Malton (1750-1750)
• The Most Hon. The Marquess of Rockingham (1750-1761)
• The Most Hon. The Marquess of Rockingham, KG (1761-1765)
• The Most Hon. The Marquess of Rockingham, KG, PC (1765-1782)

External links

• More about Charles Wentworth, Marquess of Rockingham

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