His Grace The Duke of Portland KG PC FRS |
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Prime Minister of the United Kingdom | |
In office 31 March 1807 – 4 October 1809 |
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Monarch | George III |
Preceded by | The Lord Grenville |
Succeeded by | Spencer Perceval |
Prime Minister of Great Britain | |
In office 2 April 1783 – 19 December 1783 |
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Monarch | George III |
Preceded by | The Earl of Shelburne |
Succeeded by | William Pitt the Younger |
Lord President of the Council | |
In office 30 July 1801 – 14 January 1805 |
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Monarch | George III |
Prime Minister |
Henry Addington William Pitt the Younger |
Preceded by | The Earl of Chatham |
Succeeded by | Viscount Sidmouth |
Home Secretary | |
In office 11 July 1794 – 30 July 1801 |
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Monarch | George III |
Prime Minister | William Pitt the Younger |
Preceded by | Henry Dundas |
Succeeded by | Lord Pelham |
Personal details | |
Born |
Nottinghamshire |
14 April 1738
Died | 30 October 1809 Bulstrode Park, Buckinghamshire |
(aged 71)
Political party |
Whig (Foxite) (1761–1794) Tory (1794–1809) |
Spouse(s) | Lady Dorothy Cavendish (m. 1766; d. 1794) |
Children | 6 |
Alma mater | Christ Church, Oxford |
Religion | Anglicanism |
Signature |
William Henry Cavendish Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland, KG, PC, FRS (14 April 1738 – 30 October 1809) was a British Whig and Tory statesman, Chancellor of the University of Oxford, Prime Minister of Great Britain, serving in 1783 and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1807 to 1809. The 24 years between his two terms as Prime Minister is the longest gap between terms of office of any Prime Minister. He was known before 1762 by the courtesy title Marquess of Titchfield. He held a title of every degree of British nobility—Duke, Marquess, Earl, Viscount, and Baron. He is also a great-great-great-grandfather of Queen Elizabeth II through her maternal grandmother.
Lord Titchfield was the eldest son of William Bentinck, 2nd Duke of Portland and Margaret Cavendish-Harley and inherited many lands from his mother and his maternal grandmother. He was educated at Westminster and Christ Church, Oxford.
On 8 November 1766, Portland married Lady Dorothy Cavendish, a daughter of William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire and Charlotte Boyle. They were parents of six children: