British Prime Ministers Trivia

1. Sir Robert Walpole is regarded as the first modern Prime Minister, but which town in Norfolk did he represent in the House of Commons as MP?

From Quiz UK Prime Minsters and their Constituencies I

Answer: King's Lynn

Robert Walpole began his political career when he was elected as a Whig in the general election of January 1701 to represent Castle Rising, before in the subsequent 1702 election moving to the neighbouring seat of King's Lynn, which at the time elected two MPs. Upon his election, Walpole served as a member of the opposition, rapidly rising in the ranks of the Whigs. The accession of George I in 1714 saw the Whigs return to power thanks to the patronage of the new king, with Walpole becoming a key figure in the new government. In 1721, Walpole was appointed as First Lord of the Treasury and Chancellor of the Exchequer, becoming what was termed as the "prime minister", although no such position existed officially. Walpole served as the head of the government until 1742, the longest tenure of any Prime Minister, and was MP for King's Lynn, aside from a brief period between 1712 and 1713, for forty years. Following the fall of his government, Walpole stepped down as an MP, and was granted a seat in the House of Lords as the Earl of Orford.

From Quiz In At Number Ten

Answer: Ramsay McDonald

The first leader of the Labour Party was Scottish trades unionist Kier Hardie, and in the election of 1900, the party won two of a possible 670 seats. By 1924, the party's popularity was enough for them to win 191 seats, which equated to 30.1% of the vote and was enough for Ramsay McDonald to form a minority government.

From Quiz Family Politics

Answer: Newcastle upon Tyne

The Duke of Newcastle had two terms of office as Prime Minister, from 1754 to 1756 and 1757 to 1762. He was a member of the Whig party and leader of the House of Lords during the majority of his younger brother's tenure as Prime Minister. The Whig Party controlled the government for most of the early to mid-18th century, having gained power due to their support for King George I during the Jacobite rising of 1715. Pelham-Holles was given the title Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1715 at the age of 22. This revived a title previously held by his uncle, John Holles, whose surname he had added to his own in 1711 when he inherited his uncle's estate. He was also Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne, a town in Staffordshire. (His dukedoms are spelled slightly differently from the places they represent. The Staffordshire town is actually known as Newcastle-under-Lyme, while Newcastle upon Tyne is usually spelt without the hyphens).

From Quiz Parliamentary, My Dear Watson

Answer: Clement Attlee

Attlee was the first man to hold the title of Deputy Prime Minister, which he held during the coalition government formed during World War II. His support enabled Churchill to continue Britain's war efforts, when others were urging that peace negotiations were the better option. Attlee became Prime Minister following a landslide victory after the end of the war, and remained in office until 1951. The other men named were all members of Attlee's first cabinet, with Dalton being Chancellor of the Exchequer while Cripps was President of the Board of Trade. Bevan was Minister of Health and was largely responsible for the introduction of Britain's National Health Service.

From Quiz David Cameron: British PM

Answer: 11 May 2010

Following the general election, then Prime Minister Gordon Brown resigned, due to a loss in the general election and the near collapse of his administration, and Queen Elizabeth II invited the victorious Conservative leader to become Prime Minister of Great Britain.

From Quiz British Prime Ministers 1910 - 2010

Answer: 1997

Blair was elected on a landslide in 1997, with over 400 seats, becoming the first Labour PM since James Callaghan (1976-1979). This followed a period of 18 years Conservative rule, which had changed the face of Britain beyond recognition. Blair resigned in 2007, handing over to Gordon Brown. The rest is history as they say.

From Quiz British Prime Ministers, Part One

Answer: Sir Robert Walpole

Robert Walpole served a record 20 years and 314 days as PM. He was the first person to live at, and work from, 10 Downing Street. Whilst Walpole was in office, Cassanova was born in Italy and Handel composed "The Messiah".

From Quiz Gordon Brown MP

Answer: Govan, Glasgow

Brown was born in Glasgow, although the media sometimes say Giffnock, Renfrewshire, which is where his grandparents lived.

From Quiz Gordon Brown's First Cabinet

Answer: Alistair Darling

Alastair Darling became the new Chancellor on the 28th June after much speculation that he would indeed get the much sought-after promotion. The expectation that he would become Chancellor was so great that some bookmakers stopped taking bets on the appointment of the former Transport Secretary and Minister for Trade and Development to the Treasury.

From Quiz The Prime Ministers of United Kingdom

Answer: Stanley Baldwin

He also signed the Treaty of Locarno that was signed on December 1st, 1925.

From Quiz The Life of Robert Walpole

Answer: 26 August 1676

He was born at Houghton Hall, Norfolk, the third of seventeen children of Robert Walpole and Mary Walpole (nee Burwell).

From Quiz William Pitt the Younger

Answer: Earl of Chatham

Pitt the Elder served as Prime Minister from 1766 to 1768. However, his most notable achievments were perhaps before and after this period - before becoming Prime Minister he oversaw British military success in the Seven Years' War (1756-1763) and after leaving office he desperately urged British politicians to take the arguments of American colonists more seriously in the build-up to the War of Independence. Newcastle, Rockingham and Grafton were all mid-18th century prime ministers. (Note. 'Chatham' is pronounced as if were written 'Chat-ham').

From Quiz Edward Heath, British Prime Minister: 1970-74

Answer: Broadstairs

These are all seaside towns in the county of Kent (in the South-East of England), but it was in Broadstairs that Edward Heath grew up.

From Quiz British Prime Ministers

Answer: 10 Downing Street

10 Downing Street has been the home of British Prime Ministers since 1732 when King George II gave the house to the first Prime Minister.

From Quiz British Prime Ministers

Answer: William Pitt

Pitt was only 24 when King George III invited him to form a government in December of 1783. He had made quite a splash two years earlier with his first speech in the House of Commons, a speech Prime Minister Lord North described as the "best speech" he had ever heard. Pitt also made a name for himself by speaking out against the war against the American colonies, calling it an "unjust war".

From Quiz David Lloyd George

Answer: William George

William George died when Lloyd George was only a year old. David's uncle, Richard Lloyd, then took over the role of father. David grew to admire his uncle so much he changed his name from David George to David Lloyd George.

From Quiz Good Old Mr Wilson

Answer: James

Mr Wilson was born James Harold Wilson in Huddersfield, but like so many other people, he chose to go by his second given name.

From Quiz Odd Facts About British Prime Ministers

Answer: Sir Alec Douglas-Home

As the then Lord Dunglass he played for Middlesex (1924-25), and toured South America with the MCC (1926-27). He became Prime Minister when Harold MacMillian retired.

From Quiz 20th Century British Prime Ministers

Answer: John Major&Major

Major was Conservative Prime Minister from 1990-1997. He came from a common background - his dad worked for a circus. He was often criticized by other Party members for preferring burgers and cola to the more traditional caviar and champagne normally associated with a Prime Minister. He was criticized by the public mainly for not being a strong enough leader, especially compared to his predecessor, Mrs Thatcher.

From Quiz British Prime Ministers 1721-2001

Answer: Walpole

Sir Robert Walpole held the new office longer than any other Prime Minister and established it as the key office in British politics.

From Quiz British Leaders

Answer: Sir Robert Walpole

Walpole became P.M. in 1721 and held office for over twenty years.

From Quiz UK Prime Minsters and their Constituencies I

Answer: Earl of Bute

John Stuart was born in May 1713 as the eldest son of the 2nd Earl of Bute, and succeeded his father as the 3rd Earl at the age of ten. Because his title was part of the Peerage of Scotland, he had no automatic right to a seat in the House of Lords, who instead elected sixteen representative peers from Scotland. He was first elected in 1737 and served until 1741. In 1751, the Earl was appointed as the tutor to the thirteen-year old Prince of Wales, over whom he had a significant influence. The accession of the Prince of Wales as George III in 1760 was believed to indicate a rise to political power for the Earl of Bute but, the traditional election held following the accession of a new monarch saw the existing government under the Duke of Newcastle returned comfortably. So, with the connivance of the king, Bute engineered the resignations of both the Duke of Newcastle and William Pitt, the powerful Secretary of State for the Southern Department and, following his re-election as a Scottish Representative Peer, was appointed Prime Minister in May 1762, remaining in office for eleven months. After his resignation, he retained his seat in the House of Lords until 1780.

From Quiz In At Number Ten

Answer: Bonar Law

Law served as PM for just 210 days between October 1922 and May 1923, although there have been several cases of a short time in office. William Lamb served for just 122 days in 1834, following the resignation of Charles Grey and following Lamb, the Duke of Wellington served as caretaker prime minister for just 25 days while Sir Robert Peel returned from Europe. Conservative, Peel himself held office for just 120 days before losing to Viscount Melbourne's Whig Party in the general election, although his Conservatives did win the 1841 election and he was PM for almost the next five years.

From Quiz Victoria's Ministers

Answer: Sir Robert Peel

Peel's first ministry from 1834 to 1835 occurred during the reign of King William IV, but his second term in office, from 1841 to 1846, meant that he also qualified as a 'Victorian' Prime Minister. This five-year stint saw several achievements including factory reforms (reducing hours worked by women and children and improving safety standards) and re-introducing Income Tax in response to an economic recession. However, it was dominated by the controversy surrounding Peel's response (or lack of response) to the beginnings of the Irish Potato Famine and the repeal of the Corn Laws, which protected the price of British grown grains (not just corn). In the end the Corn Laws became Peel's political downfall - he lost control of his party and the opposition Whig party swiftly regained control of parliament. As Home Secretary in 1829, Peel was responsible for creating the Metropolitan Police Force in London, which led to a significant reduction in crime in the city. Britain's police constables are still called 'Bobbies' in reference to Robert Peel. The incorrect options are the other three men who served as Home Secretary during the 1820s - none of them went on to become Prime Minister.

From Quiz British Prime Ministers

Answer: Harold Wilson

Harold Wilson replaced Alec Douglas-Home as PM when Labour won the 1964 General Election but then lost in 1970 to Edward Heath's Conservatives. Wilson again won in 1974 to replace Heath and was succeeded 21 months later when James Callaghan took over leadership of the Labour Party. His wife during both terms in office was Mary Wilson - born Gladys Mary Baldwin in Norfolk in January 1916, two months before her future husband. They had two children, Robin and Giles. During Wilson's terms, 'Private Eye' magazine published a bi-weekly spoof column called "Mrs Wilson's Diary". Widowed when Harold Wilson died in 1995 after 55 years of marriage, she was still living in Westminster, just a short walk from Downing Street, in her late 90s. Of the alternatives, Stanley Baldwin's wife was Lucy Baldwin (born Lucy Ridsdale), Callaghan's was Audrey (born Audrey Moulton), and Lloyd George's was Margaret (born Margaret Owen).

From Quiz Parliamentary, My Dear Watson

Answer: Richard

Richard Austen Butler was universally known as 'Rab', due to his initials. He was Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1951 until 1955, Foreign Secretary between 1963 and 1964 and Home Secretary from 1957 until 1962. Despite holding so many senior government posts, Butler never became Prime Minister. Butler was the owner of Gatcombe Park, which he sold to Queen Elizabeth II in 1976 as a home for the recently married Princess Anne.

From Quiz David Cameron: British PM

Answer: Liberal Democrats

David Cameron did not, of course, form a coalition with the Conservative party - after all, he is Conservative himself. He did, however, form a coalition with the Liberal Democrats when it became evident that his party had not won a full majority in the Commons.

From Quiz British Prime Ministers 1910 - 2010

Answer: Send troops to Vietnam

Despite significant pressure from President Johnson, Wilson refused to send troops to Vietnam. This had the effect of cooling our 'special relationship' with the USA for a while and caused some problems when requesting financial support from them to assist with our economic difficulties. Wilson did devalue the pound, abolish capital punishment and held a referendum to validate our membership of the EEC.

From Quiz Prime Ministerial Constituencies

Answer: James Callaghan

James Callaghan was the prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1976 through 1979. During this time he led the country through what is now infamously known as the "winter of discontent" which was a prolonged period of strikes over Callaghan's policy of pay restraint.The four British great offices of state are: Prime Minister, Chancellor, Foreign Secretary, Home Secretary.

From Quiz British Prime Ministers, Part Two

Answer: Viscount Palmerston

Palmerston was 71 years old when he first became PM, and almost 76 when he started his second term. His position as a member of parliament did nothing to stop his 'liaisons' with women, which earned him the nickname 'Lord Cupid'. He died in office and his last words are quoted as 'Die, my dear Doctor, that is the last thing I shall do'.

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