Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Mortimer
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The Right Honourable The Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer KG |
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| Lord High Treasurer | |
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In office 30 May 1711 – 30 July 1714 |
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| Monarch | Anne |
| Preceded by | Commission of the Treasury |
| Succeeded by | The Duke of Shrewsbury |
| Chancellor of the Exchequer | |
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In office 11 August 1710 – 4 June 1711 |
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| Monarch | Anne |
| Preceded by | John Smith |
| Succeeded by | Robert Benson |
| Secretary of State for the Northern Department | |
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In office 18 May 1704 – 13 February 1708 |
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| Monarch | Anne |
| Preceded by | Sir Charles Hedges |
| Succeeded by | Henry Boyle |
| Speaker of the House of Commons | |
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In office February 1701 – 25 October 1705 |
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| Monarch |
William III Anne |
| Preceded by | Sir Thomas Littleton |
| Succeeded by | John Smith |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
5 December 1661 Covent Garden, Middlesex Kingdom of England |
| Died | 21 May 1724 (aged 62) Westminster, Middlesex Kingdom of Great Britain |
| Resting place | Brampton Bryan, Herefordshire |
| Political party | Country |
| Spouse(s) | Elizabeth Foley Sarah Middleton |
| Parents |
Sir Edward Harley Abigail Stephens |
Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer, KG (5 December 1661 – 21 May 1724) was a British politician and statesman of the late Stuart and early Georgian periods. He began his career as a Whig, before defecting to a new Tory Ministry. He was raised to the peerage as an earl in 1711. Between 1711 and 1714 he served as Lord High Treasurer, effectively Queen Anne's chief minister. He has been called a Prime Minister, though it is generally accepted that the position was first held by Sir Robert Walpole in 1721.
Harley's government agreed to the Treaty of Utrecht with France in 1713, bringing an end to twelve years of British involvement in the War of the Spanish Succession. In 1714 he fell from favour following the accession of the first monarch of the House of Hanover, George I and was for a time imprisoned in the Tower of London by his political enemies.
He was also a noted literary figure and served as a patron of both the October Club and the Scriblerus Club. Harley Street is sometimes said to be named after him, although it was his son Edward Harley who actually developed the area.
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