Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey
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The Right Honourable The Earl Grey KG PC |
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Portrait painting by an unknown artist, after Sir Thomas Lawrence, c. 1828
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| Prime Minister of the United Kingdom | |
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In office 22 November 1830 – 16 July 1834 |
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| Monarch | William IV |
| Preceded by | The Duke of Wellington |
| Succeeded by | The Viscount Melbourne |
| Leader of the House of Lords | |
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In office 22 November 1830 – 9 July 1834 |
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| Preceded by | The Duke of Wellington |
| Succeeded by | The Viscount Melbourne |
| Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs | |
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In office 24 September 1806 – 25 March 1807 |
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| Prime Minister | The Lord Grenville |
| Preceded by | Charles James Fox |
| Succeeded by | George Canning |
| Leader of the House of Commons | |
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In office 24 September 1806 – 31 March 1807 |
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| Prime Minister | The Lord Grenville |
| Preceded by | Charles James Fox |
| Succeeded by | Spencer Perceval |
| First Lord of the Admiralty | |
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In office 11 February 1806 – 24 September 1806 |
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| Prime Minister | The Lord Grenville |
| Preceded by | The Lord Barham |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Grenville |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
13 March 1764 Fallodon, Northumberland, England |
| Died | 17 July 1845 (aged 81) Howick, Northumberland, England |
| Political party | Whig |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Ponsonby (m. 1794) |
| Children | Stillborn Louisa Elizabeth Caroline Georgiana Henry Charles Frederick Mary William George Thomas John Francis Henry William Eliza Courtney (illegitimate) |
| Alma mater | Trinity College, Cambridge |
| Religion | Church of England |
| Signature |  |
Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, KG, PC (13 March 1764 – 17 July 1845), known as Viscount Howick between 1806 and 1807, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 22 November 1830 to 16 July 1834.
A member of the Whig Party, he backed significant reform of the British government and was among the primary architects of the Reform Act 1832. His government also saw the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. In addition to his political achievements, he has come to be associated with Earl Grey tea, named after him.
Descended from a long-established Northumbrian family seated at Howick Hall, Grey was the second but eldest surviving son of General Charles Grey KB (1729–1807) and his wife, Elizabeth (1743/4–1822), daughter of George Grey of Southwick, co. Durham. He had four brothers and two sisters. He was educated at Richmond School, followed by Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge, acquiring a facility in Latin and in English composition and declamation that enabled him to become one of the foremost parliamentary orators of his generation.
Grey was elected to Parliament for the Northumberland constituency on 14 September 1786, aged just 22. He became a part of the Whig circle of Charles James Fox, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, and the Prince of Wales, and soon became one of the major leaders of the Whig party. He was the youngest manager on the committee for prosecuting Warren Hastings. The Whig historian T. B. Macaulay wrote in 1841:
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