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A few of these are uncertain so any help/best guesses would be appreciated.
I think the PM who fought the most parliamentary elections was Churchill with a grand total of 21 (by-elections in 1899, 1908 {twice}, 1917, 1924; general elections in 1900, 1906 1910 {twice}, 1918, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1929, 1931, 1935, 1945, 1950, 1951, 1955 and 1955) but there may well be earlier ones who exceed this (the longer 7 year Parliaments until 1911 being balanced out by the Ministers of the Crown Act requiring newly appointed Ministers to seek re-election, though usually an uncontested formality). Timrollpickering 22:02, 2 Jan 2005 (UTC)
The first PM is acknowledged as Robert Walpole and the first women is clearly Margaret Thatcher. However others are trickier.
The first non-Christian and first gay PMs are debated by many because the evidence is unclear.
Not everyone now considers Jews to be ethnic minorities. Others have argued that at times the Scots, Welsh and Irish were. So who is the first here?
First from each party:
The first Labour PM is clearly Ramsay MacDonald (even if Labour tried to airbrush him out of their history for a time).
The first Liberal is clearly Palmerston (even though both he and the second, Russel, were in their second terms in office).
We can clearly say Walpole was a Whig and thus the first by definition.
We can reasonably call Aberdeen a Peelite.
But the first Tory is unclear because of the fluid nature of political parties in the second half of the 18th century - is Bute really a PM from the Tory Party as continuing from that of Bolingbroke and Harley?
Similarly who is the first Conservative PM? In 1834 Wellington was only really a caretaker standing in for a returning Peel. And later Conservatives such as Disraeli did try to airbrush out Peel from party history, looking to either earlier periods like Pitt or claiming that their Conservative party was emerged from the Protectionists opposed to Peel. Timrollpickering 22:02, 2 Jan 2005 (UTC)
Can anyone suggest any others to list on this page? Timrollpickering 22:02, 2 Jan 2005 (UTC)
First PM born outside the UK (Bonar Law?). Gabriel Rozenberg 14:47, 31 Mar 2005 (UTC)
There are a couple of other records which can be found on the official Prime Minister's website at:
David 08:23, 15 September 2005 (UTC)
I'm surprised that no reference has been made to the PMs who have won the most elections. Although this does not of course affect their term in office under present law, it is nevertheless of political significance, and is the record most likely to ever actually be referred to in the real world.
Also, I think it would be interesting to have something about the person who was the oldest to hold the post at the end of the term.
Silverhelm 21:52, 10 May 2006 (UTC).
I've removed the additions made earlier today by William Quill, as the article is broadly about records in the sense of extremes. While detailing which Prime Ministers were either in the Commons or the Lords has a place somewhere, it's not here. The nature of the article is such that any given category should in theory only have one name against it (e.g. there can only ever be one "oldest Prime Minister").
To put it another way, this article is the political equivalent of stating who the world record holder is for the 100m sprint, as opposed to listing all athletes who have ever one the 100m sprint at the Olympics.
Silverhelm 18:20, 15 June 2006 (UTC).
Why is Margaret Thatcher not included anywhere in this article? She is still the first and only female Prime Minister the UK have had. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.93.162.90 ( talk) 21:47, 15 January 2015 (UTC)
Under the miscellaneous section at the end you have details for the tallest PMs. According to a comment in Paul Johnson's "Oxford Book of Political Anecdotes", Henry Campbell-Bannerman and his wife were both "nearly twenty stone". Were any PMs reportedly heavier, it sounds an unusual weight for his own era. Cloptonson ( talk) 06:32, 2 February 2015 (UTC)
I have raised a citation need against statement in the Miscellaneous section that Pitt the Younger was £40,000 in debt in 1800 - not over the figure but the year. His Wikipedia biography states he was £40,000 in debt at time of his death in 1806. Cloptonson ( talk) 19:11, 4 May 2015 (UTC)
Charles James Fox was NEVER PM, so I am deleting the reference to him, although I copy the text here in case someone knows other articles to copy this into:
It also needs making clear why you are mentioning Asquith - is it the number of elections he contested as Prime Minister and (Liberal) Party Leader? Cloptonson ( talk) 05:36, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
I have added a section on Religious minority Prime Ministers. The denominations to which they belonged would be 'minority' in the context of what had become by Walpole's time a primarily Anglican population. As well as other denominations held while in office I have also added those a few of them were known to be either brought up in or (in notable case of Tony Blair) converted to. Investigation is wanted on the Earl of Shelburne who is stated, without citation, in his Wikipedia biography infobox to be by religion "Dissenter" (article linked to "English Dissenters") Cloptonson ( talk) 20:46, 7 December 2015 (UTC)
I notice that Alec Douglas-Home has been added to the list of Prime Ministers who held office without a General Election affecting their time in office. In fact, he contested and lost the 1964 General Election, to Harold Wilson, and only subsequently (1965) did he resign from Conservative Party leadership when Edward Heath succeeded. I will therefore delete him. Cloptonson ( talk) 20:10, 19 August 2016 (UTC)
I notice Theresa May has been added to the list of disabled serving Prime Ministers because of her (known to me) diabetes. I question if that is classed as a disability - though diabetes can be a cause of disability such as blindness and limb amputations. BTW, Winston Churchill, in his book Great Contemporaries mentions Lord Rosebery had diabetes in later life and once took an accidental overdose of insulin when that treatment was in its infancy. Cloptonson ( talk) 18:32, 7 July 2017 (UTC)
Mentioned under the section 'Died in office' is the fact Margaret Thatcher and John Major both survived assassination attempts while in office but I am sure they are not the only ones. Sir Robert Peel was the intended victim in 1843 of a man who instead shot dead his personal secretary (dealt with in Peel's Wikipedia biography). I also recall, in a book Churchill in America, 1895-1961: An Affectionate Portrait (author Robert Pilpel) that on one of his WWII travels Winston Churchill had a gun pulled on him in America by a man who was overpowered but I forgot the exact timing. I have added Robert Peel's case in the meantime. Mention is best confined to those who were targets of witnessed and enacted attempts, rather than hindsightedly rumoured. Cloptonson ( talk) 09:26, 18 August 2017 (UTC)
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The information given on this page seems inconsistent with that on the page of Jenkinson's grandmother, the URL of which is below.
/info/en/?search=Begum_Johnson — Preceding unsigned comment added by 123.193.39.153 ( talk) 06:21, 11 March 2018 (UTC)
I see the addition of Boris to the bachelor's section - can the list of alive former PMs be updated then as well (as well as anything else?) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 95.146.169.248 ( talk) 15:46, 23 July 2019 (UTC)
The section on terms is currently kind of conflated. Given the current likelihood that the Johnson Government is unlikely to last very long, the article will need some revision and it might be useful to make this information just a little more readable...
perhaps if this sub-section /info/en/?search=Records_of_Prime_Ministers_of_the_United_Kingdom#Period_of_service
can be changed from
The Prime Minister with the longest single term was Sir Robert Walpole, lasting 20 years and 315 days from 3 April 1721 until 11 February 1742.[1] This is also longer than the accumulated terms of any other Prime Minister.
The shortest period in office is more confused, depending on the criteria. The shortest ever period was only two days, a record held by Lord Bath, from 10 February to 12 February 1746, who was asked to form a government but was unable to find more than one person who would agree to serve in his cabinet. A satirist of the time wrote: "the minister to the astonishment of all wise men never transacted one rash thing; and, what is more marvellous, left as much money in the Treasury as he found in it." James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave was a prime minister for four days, from 8 June to 12 June 1757. However, since neither of these Earls actually formed an effective government, there are other contenders for the record of shortest term of office among those who actually governed the country.
In November 1834, the Duke of Wellington declined to become Prime Minister in favour of Sir Robert Peel but formed a ’caretaker’ administration for 25 days (17 November 1834 – 9 December 1834) while Peel returned from Europe. However, as a caretaker administration this might not necessarily be considered a term of office in its own right.
Therefore, of those with clear and effective terms, the Prime Minister with the shortest single one was Lord Rockingham, whose second term lasted 96 days from 27 March 1782 until his death on 1 July 1782. However, combined with his first term (13 July 1765 – 30 July 1766) his total time in office was 1 year and 113 days, which exceeds the total periods of several other Prime Ministers. (The Duke of Wellington had also served as Prime Minister between 1828 and 1830.)
Consequently, the Prime Minister with the total shortest period in office was George Canning, whose sole term lasted 119 days from 12 April 1827 until his death on 8 August 1827.
The Prime Minister with the longest period between the start of their first appointment and the end of their final term was the Duke of Portland, whose first term began on 2 April 1783 and whose second and final term ended on 4 October 1809.''
over to
The Prime Minister with the longest single term was Sir Robert Walpole, lasting 20 years and 315 days from 3 April 1721 until 11 February 1742.[1] This is also longer than the accumulated terms of any other Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister with the longest period between the start of their first appointment and the end of their final term was the Duke of Portland, whose first term began on 2 April 1783 and whose second and final term ended on 4 October 1809
The shortest ever period was only two days, a record held by Lord Bath, from 10 February to 12 February 1746, who was asked to form a government but was unable to find more than one person who would agree to serve in his cabinet. A satirist of the time wrote: "the minister to the astonishment of all wise men never transacted one rash thing; and, what is more marvellous, left as much money in the Treasury as he found in it." James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave was a prime minister for four days, from 8 June to 12 June 1757. However, since neither of these Earls actually formed an effective government, there are other contenders for the record of shortest term of office among those who actually governed the country.
In November 1834, the Duke of Wellington declined to become Prime Minister in favour of Sir Robert Peel but formed a ’caretaker’ administration for 25 days (17 November 1834 – 9 December 1834) while Peel returned from Europe. However, as a caretaker administration this might not necessarily be considered a term of office in its own right.
The Prime Minister with the shortest single one was Lord Rockingham, whose second term lasted 96 days from 27 March 1782 until his death on 1 July 1782. However, combined with his first term (13 July 1765 – 30 July 1766) his total time in office was 1 year and 113 days, which exceeds the total periods of several other Prime Ministers. (The Duke of Wellington had also served as Prime Minister between 1828 and 1830.)
The Prime Minister with the total shortest period in office was George Canning, whose sole term lasted 119 days from 12 April 1827 until his death on 8 August 1827.
This would make the subsection more readable and easily updated, if the Johnson Government falls within 60 days.
--
Patbahn (
talk) 16:32, 8 September 2019 (UTC)
Does Gladstone actually belong on this list?...Lord Salisbury had previously succeeded him directly,but when Gladstone finally retired in 1894,his immediate successor was Rosebery,who lost the 1895 election to Salisbury before Gladstone died in 1898.-- 12.144.5.2 ( talk) 05:29, 25 November 2019 (UTC)
There is a move discussion in progress on Talk:List of peerages held by Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom which affects this page. Please participate on that page and not in this talk page section. Thank you. — RMCD bot 15:33, 20 February 2020 (UTC)
Is it correct to refer to Lord Liverpool's status as Anglo-Indian as a 'nationality', when it is properly an ethnic minority distinction? Ethnic Anglo-Indians could be citizens of either the United Kingdom, India, Pakistan or Bangladesh (the latter two modern states formerly part of British India pre-1947).. Cloptonson ( talk) 15:54, 23 December 2020 (UTC)
The result of the move request was: no consensus. Given that the nominator has been blocked indefinitely, further discussion that can produce a move destination seems unlikely. Other editors are welcome to propose an new requested move right after this closure. ( closed by non-admin page mover) ~ Aseleste ( t, e | c, l) 04:42, 13 May 2021 (UTC)
Records of prime ministers of the United Kingdom → ? – Title is possibly ambiguous with regard to historical sources as the term "record", uncertain here. Chelston-temp-1 ( talk) 15:20, 5 May 2021 (UTC)
The table mis-identifies Churchill as a Conservative throughout his parliamentary career. He was of course a Liberal from 1904 to 1924. I don't know how to make tables work. DuncanHill ( talk) 19:51, 28 May 2021 (UTC)
The section 'Most children', which I recall stated Lord Grey was the most prolific Prime Minister (the brood included one known illegitimate child), appears to have been deleted. Has Lord Grey's record been called into question? If the section was removed intentionally it would have been civil to have given notice of intention with an explanation. I have reinstated the section, populated with cited details copied from Lord Grey's wikipedia article. Cloptonson ( talk) 18:54, 2 January 2022 (UTC)
I have seen several Wikipedia references on Prime Minister, General Election pages claiming Liz Truss was Prime Minister for 44 days. These claims are wrong. She is STILL Prime Minister and if the nuclear codes had to be used this weekend it's her call.
She is still acting Prime Minister until a new leader is elected AND King Charles III has formally accepted that person as PM. So about another 7 days need to be added to the 44 tally on many Wikipedia pages.
Looks like Wikipedia editors were too quick.. 81.228.193.66 ( talk) 14:26, 20 October 2022 (UTC)
The article currently states there will be three Prime Ministers since 2019, however, as Boris Johnson appears to be one of the most likely successors of Liz Truss, this may not end up being the case. I tried editing to say “Unless Boris Johnson returns as prime minister”, but editing is disabled.
I did also wonder, at the current rate, if it should say “at least three”.
Related, I did also wonder about a “most changes in prime minister in a year” category. 78.144.19.35 ( talk) 11:55, 22 October 2022 (UTC)
When Liz Truss is replaced, there will be 3 former PMs sitting in the House of Commons (Truss, Johnson, and May), which got me wondering if this is a record? Or a record for a single party, perhaps?
What is the record for the Houses of Parliament as a whole (including former PMs sitting in the Lords)? 78.144.19.35 ( talk) 08:01, 24 October 2022 (UTC)
Timeline | Event | No. of Former Prime Ministers sitting in the Commons | Duration |
---|---|---|---|
10/07/1765 | Grenville leaves office. | 1 | 5 years, 126 days |
13/11/1770 | Grenville dies. | 0 | 11 years, 134 days |
27/03/1782 | North leaves office. | 1 | 8 years, 130 days |
04/08/1790 | North elevated to Peerage. | 0 | 10 years, 222 days |
14/03/1801 | Pitt leaves office. | 1 | 3 years, 57 days |
10/05/1804 | Addington leaves office and Pitt re-enters office. | 1 | 247 days |
12/01/1805 | Addington elevated to Peerage. | 0 | 30 years, 86 days |
08/04/1835 | Peel leaves office. | 1 | 6 years, 144 days |
30/08/1841 | Peel re-enters office. | 0 | 4 years, 303 days |
29/06/1846 | Peel leaves office. | 1 | 4 years, 3 days |
02/07/1850 | Peel dies. | 0 | 1 year, 234 days |
21/02/1852 | Russel leaves office. | 1 | 2 years, 363 days |
19/02/1855 | Palmerston leaves office. | 2 | 4 years, 113 days |
12/06/1859 | Palmerston re-enters office. | 1 | 2 years, 48 days |
30/07/1861 | Russell elevated to peerage. | 0 | 7 years, 124 days |
01/12/1868 | Disraeli leaves office. | 1 | 5 years, 78 days |
17/02/1874 | Gladstone leaves office. | 2 | 3 days |
20/02/1874 | Disraeli re-enters office. | 1 | 6 years, 63 days |
23/04/1880 | Gladstone re-enters office. | 0 | 5 years, 47 days |
09/06/1885 | Gladstone leaves office. | 1 | 237 days |
01/02/1886 | Gladstone re-enters office. | 0 | 169 days |
20/07/1886 | Gladstone leaves office. | 1 | 6 years, 26 days |
15/08/1892 | Gladstone re-enters office. | 0 | 1 year, 199 days |
02/03/1894 | Gladstone leaves office. | 1 | 1 year, 126 days |
06/07/1895 | Gladstone leaves parliament. | 0 | 10 years, 151 days |
04/12/1905 | Balfour leaves office. | 1 | 35 days |
08/01/1906 | Balfour leaves parliament. | 0 | 50 days |
27/02/1906 | Balfour re-enters parliament. | 1 | 2 years, 36 days |
03/04/1908 | Campbell-Bannerman leaves office. | 2 | 19 days |
22/04/1908 | Campbell-Bannerman dies. | 1 | 8 years, 227 days |
05/12/1916 | Asquith leaves office. | 2 | 1 year, 355 days |
25/11/1918 | Asquith leaves parliament. | 1 | 1 year, 79 days |
12/02/1920 | Asquith re-enters parliament. | 2 | 2 years, 82 days |
05/05/1922 | Balfour leaves parliament. | 1 | 167 days |
19/10/1922 | Lloyd-George leaves office. | 2 | 213 days |
20/05/1923 | Bonar Law leaves office. | 3 | 163 days |
30/10/1923 | Bonar Law dies. | 2 | 84 days |
22/01/1924 | Baldwin leaves office. | 3 | 261 days |
09/10/1924 | Asquith leaves parliament. | 2 | 26 days |
04/11/1924 | MacDonald leaves office and Baldwin re-enters office. | 2 | 4 years, 212 days |
04/06/1929 | Baldwin leaves office. | 3 | 1 day |
05/06/1929 | MacDonald re-enters office. | 2 | 6 years, 2 days |
07/06/1935 | MacDonald leaves office, Baldwin re-enters office. | 2 | 160 days |
14/11/1935 | MacDonald leaves parliament. | 1 | 78 days |
31/01/1936 | MacDonald re-enters parliament. | 2 | 1 year, 117 days |
28/05/1937 | Baldwin leaves office. | 3 | 33 days |
30/06/1937 | Baldwin leaves parliament. | 2 | 132 days |
09/11/1937 | MacDonald dies. | 1 | 2 years, 183 days |
10/05/1940 | Chamberlain leaves office. | 2 | 183 days |
09/11/1940 | Chamberlain dies. | 1 | 4 years, 96 days |
13/02/1945 | Lloyd George elevated to the peerage. | 0 | 163 days |
26/07/1945 | Churchill leaves office. | 1 | 6 years, 92 days |
26/10/1951 | Atlee leaves office, Churchill re-enters office. | 1 | 3 years, 161 days |
05/04/1955 | Churchill leaves office. | 2 | 255 days |
16/12/1955 | Atlee leaves parliament. | 1 | 1 year, 24 days |
09/01/1957 | Eden leaves office. | 2 | 1 day |
10/01/1957 | Eden leaves parliament. | 1 | 6 years, 281 days |
18/10/1963 | Macmillan leaves office. | 2 | 343 days |
25/09/1964 | Churchill and Macmillan leave parliament. | 0 | 21 days |
16/10/1964 | Douglas-Home leaves office. | 1 | 5 years, 246 days |
19/06/1970 | Wilson leaves office. | 2 | 3 years, 258 days |
04/03/1974 | Heath leaves office, Wilson re-enters office. | 2 | 200 days |
20/09/1974 | Douglas-Home elevated to the peerage. | 1 | 1 year, 198 days |
05/04/1976 | Wilson leaves office. | 2 | 3 years, 29 days |
04/05/1979 | Callaghan leaves office. | 3 | 4 years, 9 days |
13/05/1983 | Wilson leaves parliament. | 2 | 4 years, 5 days |
18/05/1987 | Callaghan leaves parliament. | 1 | 3 years, 194 days |
28/11/1990 | Thatcher leaves office. | 2 | 1 year, 109 days |
16/03/1992 | Thatcher leaves parliament. | 1 | 5 years, 47 days |
02/05/1997 | Major leaves office. | 2 | 4 years, 12 days |
14/05/2001 | Heath and Major leave parliament. | 0 | 6 years, 44 days |
27/06/2007 | Blair leaves office and parliament. | 0 | 2 years, 318 days |
11/05/2010 | Brown leaves office. | 1 | 4 years, 323 days |
30/03/2015 | Brown leaves parliament. | 0 | 1 year, 105 days |
13/07/2016 | Cameron leaves office. | 1 | 61 days |
12/09/2016 | Cameron leaves parliament. | 0 | 2 years, 315 days |
24/07/2019 | May leaves office. | 1 | 3 years, 44 days |
06/09/2022 | Johnson leaves office. | 2 | 49 days |
25/10/2022 | Truss leaves office. | 3 | 1 year, 214 days |
Thanks for doing the hard work! It seemed you missed a couple of occasions when there were 3 in your summary, but I hopefully spotted them all.
I’ve added a sub-section to Number of living former PMs.
For now I’ve just added a table with the times there were three, as the larger table felt a bit wIeldy (and I couldn’t figure out how to copy and edit it on the app on my phone). Lukens ( talk) 18:21, 25 October 2022 (UTC)
This
edit request has been answered. Set the |answered= or |ans= parameter to no to reactivate your request. |
I have to correct a mistake on the section about Rishi Sunak. 151.57.85.246 ( talk) 18:13, 27 October 2022 (UTC)
He doesn't even include meat in his occasional weekday breakfast, stating in a 2021 podcast, "In terms of breakfast, well, I do some intermittent fasting so most days it's nothing. Otherwise, I'd probably have Greek yogurt and blueberries during the week." "And then I'd have a second breakfast mid-morning which is either a cinnamon bun or a pain au chocolat or a chocolate chip muffin. So I'd have a chocolatey, sugary pastry at some point." [1] I should remain in the article. Speakfor ( talk) 19:16, 27 October 2022 (UTC)
The citations for his vegetarian diet seem pretty weak, especially as one reports that he says he puts bacon on his pancakes.
Would be good to get a better source for this, otherwise it doesn’t feel it merits inclusion that he’s maybe mostly vegetarian.
The one source says he’s known as a vegetarian. By who? On what basis? Lukens ( talk) 22:55, 28 October 2022 (UTC)
Reading this through I was surprised that Margaret Thatcher's three terms of office are not included in the section 'Number of Terms' ?? Danzealloyd ( talk) 11:48, 17 February 2024 (UTC)
Margaret Thatcher's three terms of office is not included in the 'terms of office' section ?! Danzealloyd ( talk) 11:53, 17 February 2024 (UTC)
This article is rated Start-class on Wikipedia's
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On 5 May 2021, it was proposed that this article be moved. The result of the discussion was no consensus. |
A few of these are uncertain so any help/best guesses would be appreciated.
I think the PM who fought the most parliamentary elections was Churchill with a grand total of 21 (by-elections in 1899, 1908 {twice}, 1917, 1924; general elections in 1900, 1906 1910 {twice}, 1918, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1929, 1931, 1935, 1945, 1950, 1951, 1955 and 1955) but there may well be earlier ones who exceed this (the longer 7 year Parliaments until 1911 being balanced out by the Ministers of the Crown Act requiring newly appointed Ministers to seek re-election, though usually an uncontested formality). Timrollpickering 22:02, 2 Jan 2005 (UTC)
The first PM is acknowledged as Robert Walpole and the first women is clearly Margaret Thatcher. However others are trickier.
The first non-Christian and first gay PMs are debated by many because the evidence is unclear.
Not everyone now considers Jews to be ethnic minorities. Others have argued that at times the Scots, Welsh and Irish were. So who is the first here?
First from each party:
The first Labour PM is clearly Ramsay MacDonald (even if Labour tried to airbrush him out of their history for a time).
The first Liberal is clearly Palmerston (even though both he and the second, Russel, were in their second terms in office).
We can clearly say Walpole was a Whig and thus the first by definition.
We can reasonably call Aberdeen a Peelite.
But the first Tory is unclear because of the fluid nature of political parties in the second half of the 18th century - is Bute really a PM from the Tory Party as continuing from that of Bolingbroke and Harley?
Similarly who is the first Conservative PM? In 1834 Wellington was only really a caretaker standing in for a returning Peel. And later Conservatives such as Disraeli did try to airbrush out Peel from party history, looking to either earlier periods like Pitt or claiming that their Conservative party was emerged from the Protectionists opposed to Peel. Timrollpickering 22:02, 2 Jan 2005 (UTC)
Can anyone suggest any others to list on this page? Timrollpickering 22:02, 2 Jan 2005 (UTC)
First PM born outside the UK (Bonar Law?). Gabriel Rozenberg 14:47, 31 Mar 2005 (UTC)
There are a couple of other records which can be found on the official Prime Minister's website at:
David 08:23, 15 September 2005 (UTC)
I'm surprised that no reference has been made to the PMs who have won the most elections. Although this does not of course affect their term in office under present law, it is nevertheless of political significance, and is the record most likely to ever actually be referred to in the real world.
Also, I think it would be interesting to have something about the person who was the oldest to hold the post at the end of the term.
Silverhelm 21:52, 10 May 2006 (UTC).
I've removed the additions made earlier today by William Quill, as the article is broadly about records in the sense of extremes. While detailing which Prime Ministers were either in the Commons or the Lords has a place somewhere, it's not here. The nature of the article is such that any given category should in theory only have one name against it (e.g. there can only ever be one "oldest Prime Minister").
To put it another way, this article is the political equivalent of stating who the world record holder is for the 100m sprint, as opposed to listing all athletes who have ever one the 100m sprint at the Olympics.
Silverhelm 18:20, 15 June 2006 (UTC).
Why is Margaret Thatcher not included anywhere in this article? She is still the first and only female Prime Minister the UK have had. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.93.162.90 ( talk) 21:47, 15 January 2015 (UTC)
Under the miscellaneous section at the end you have details for the tallest PMs. According to a comment in Paul Johnson's "Oxford Book of Political Anecdotes", Henry Campbell-Bannerman and his wife were both "nearly twenty stone". Were any PMs reportedly heavier, it sounds an unusual weight for his own era. Cloptonson ( talk) 06:32, 2 February 2015 (UTC)
I have raised a citation need against statement in the Miscellaneous section that Pitt the Younger was £40,000 in debt in 1800 - not over the figure but the year. His Wikipedia biography states he was £40,000 in debt at time of his death in 1806. Cloptonson ( talk) 19:11, 4 May 2015 (UTC)
Charles James Fox was NEVER PM, so I am deleting the reference to him, although I copy the text here in case someone knows other articles to copy this into:
It also needs making clear why you are mentioning Asquith - is it the number of elections he contested as Prime Minister and (Liberal) Party Leader? Cloptonson ( talk) 05:36, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
I have added a section on Religious minority Prime Ministers. The denominations to which they belonged would be 'minority' in the context of what had become by Walpole's time a primarily Anglican population. As well as other denominations held while in office I have also added those a few of them were known to be either brought up in or (in notable case of Tony Blair) converted to. Investigation is wanted on the Earl of Shelburne who is stated, without citation, in his Wikipedia biography infobox to be by religion "Dissenter" (article linked to "English Dissenters") Cloptonson ( talk) 20:46, 7 December 2015 (UTC)
I notice that Alec Douglas-Home has been added to the list of Prime Ministers who held office without a General Election affecting their time in office. In fact, he contested and lost the 1964 General Election, to Harold Wilson, and only subsequently (1965) did he resign from Conservative Party leadership when Edward Heath succeeded. I will therefore delete him. Cloptonson ( talk) 20:10, 19 August 2016 (UTC)
I notice Theresa May has been added to the list of disabled serving Prime Ministers because of her (known to me) diabetes. I question if that is classed as a disability - though diabetes can be a cause of disability such as blindness and limb amputations. BTW, Winston Churchill, in his book Great Contemporaries mentions Lord Rosebery had diabetes in later life and once took an accidental overdose of insulin when that treatment was in its infancy. Cloptonson ( talk) 18:32, 7 July 2017 (UTC)
Mentioned under the section 'Died in office' is the fact Margaret Thatcher and John Major both survived assassination attempts while in office but I am sure they are not the only ones. Sir Robert Peel was the intended victim in 1843 of a man who instead shot dead his personal secretary (dealt with in Peel's Wikipedia biography). I also recall, in a book Churchill in America, 1895-1961: An Affectionate Portrait (author Robert Pilpel) that on one of his WWII travels Winston Churchill had a gun pulled on him in America by a man who was overpowered but I forgot the exact timing. I have added Robert Peel's case in the meantime. Mention is best confined to those who were targets of witnessed and enacted attempts, rather than hindsightedly rumoured. Cloptonson ( talk) 09:26, 18 August 2017 (UTC)
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The information given on this page seems inconsistent with that on the page of Jenkinson's grandmother, the URL of which is below.
/info/en/?search=Begum_Johnson — Preceding unsigned comment added by 123.193.39.153 ( talk) 06:21, 11 March 2018 (UTC)
I see the addition of Boris to the bachelor's section - can the list of alive former PMs be updated then as well (as well as anything else?) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 95.146.169.248 ( talk) 15:46, 23 July 2019 (UTC)
The section on terms is currently kind of conflated. Given the current likelihood that the Johnson Government is unlikely to last very long, the article will need some revision and it might be useful to make this information just a little more readable...
perhaps if this sub-section /info/en/?search=Records_of_Prime_Ministers_of_the_United_Kingdom#Period_of_service
can be changed from
The Prime Minister with the longest single term was Sir Robert Walpole, lasting 20 years and 315 days from 3 April 1721 until 11 February 1742.[1] This is also longer than the accumulated terms of any other Prime Minister.
The shortest period in office is more confused, depending on the criteria. The shortest ever period was only two days, a record held by Lord Bath, from 10 February to 12 February 1746, who was asked to form a government but was unable to find more than one person who would agree to serve in his cabinet. A satirist of the time wrote: "the minister to the astonishment of all wise men never transacted one rash thing; and, what is more marvellous, left as much money in the Treasury as he found in it." James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave was a prime minister for four days, from 8 June to 12 June 1757. However, since neither of these Earls actually formed an effective government, there are other contenders for the record of shortest term of office among those who actually governed the country.
In November 1834, the Duke of Wellington declined to become Prime Minister in favour of Sir Robert Peel but formed a ’caretaker’ administration for 25 days (17 November 1834 – 9 December 1834) while Peel returned from Europe. However, as a caretaker administration this might not necessarily be considered a term of office in its own right.
Therefore, of those with clear and effective terms, the Prime Minister with the shortest single one was Lord Rockingham, whose second term lasted 96 days from 27 March 1782 until his death on 1 July 1782. However, combined with his first term (13 July 1765 – 30 July 1766) his total time in office was 1 year and 113 days, which exceeds the total periods of several other Prime Ministers. (The Duke of Wellington had also served as Prime Minister between 1828 and 1830.)
Consequently, the Prime Minister with the total shortest period in office was George Canning, whose sole term lasted 119 days from 12 April 1827 until his death on 8 August 1827.
The Prime Minister with the longest period between the start of their first appointment and the end of their final term was the Duke of Portland, whose first term began on 2 April 1783 and whose second and final term ended on 4 October 1809.''
over to
The Prime Minister with the longest single term was Sir Robert Walpole, lasting 20 years and 315 days from 3 April 1721 until 11 February 1742.[1] This is also longer than the accumulated terms of any other Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister with the longest period between the start of their first appointment and the end of their final term was the Duke of Portland, whose first term began on 2 April 1783 and whose second and final term ended on 4 October 1809
The shortest ever period was only two days, a record held by Lord Bath, from 10 February to 12 February 1746, who was asked to form a government but was unable to find more than one person who would agree to serve in his cabinet. A satirist of the time wrote: "the minister to the astonishment of all wise men never transacted one rash thing; and, what is more marvellous, left as much money in the Treasury as he found in it." James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave was a prime minister for four days, from 8 June to 12 June 1757. However, since neither of these Earls actually formed an effective government, there are other contenders for the record of shortest term of office among those who actually governed the country.
In November 1834, the Duke of Wellington declined to become Prime Minister in favour of Sir Robert Peel but formed a ’caretaker’ administration for 25 days (17 November 1834 – 9 December 1834) while Peel returned from Europe. However, as a caretaker administration this might not necessarily be considered a term of office in its own right.
The Prime Minister with the shortest single one was Lord Rockingham, whose second term lasted 96 days from 27 March 1782 until his death on 1 July 1782. However, combined with his first term (13 July 1765 – 30 July 1766) his total time in office was 1 year and 113 days, which exceeds the total periods of several other Prime Ministers. (The Duke of Wellington had also served as Prime Minister between 1828 and 1830.)
The Prime Minister with the total shortest period in office was George Canning, whose sole term lasted 119 days from 12 April 1827 until his death on 8 August 1827.
This would make the subsection more readable and easily updated, if the Johnson Government falls within 60 days.
--
Patbahn (
talk) 16:32, 8 September 2019 (UTC)
Does Gladstone actually belong on this list?...Lord Salisbury had previously succeeded him directly,but when Gladstone finally retired in 1894,his immediate successor was Rosebery,who lost the 1895 election to Salisbury before Gladstone died in 1898.-- 12.144.5.2 ( talk) 05:29, 25 November 2019 (UTC)
There is a move discussion in progress on Talk:List of peerages held by Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom which affects this page. Please participate on that page and not in this talk page section. Thank you. — RMCD bot 15:33, 20 February 2020 (UTC)
Is it correct to refer to Lord Liverpool's status as Anglo-Indian as a 'nationality', when it is properly an ethnic minority distinction? Ethnic Anglo-Indians could be citizens of either the United Kingdom, India, Pakistan or Bangladesh (the latter two modern states formerly part of British India pre-1947).. Cloptonson ( talk) 15:54, 23 December 2020 (UTC)
The result of the move request was: no consensus. Given that the nominator has been blocked indefinitely, further discussion that can produce a move destination seems unlikely. Other editors are welcome to propose an new requested move right after this closure. ( closed by non-admin page mover) ~ Aseleste ( t, e | c, l) 04:42, 13 May 2021 (UTC)
Records of prime ministers of the United Kingdom → ? – Title is possibly ambiguous with regard to historical sources as the term "record", uncertain here. Chelston-temp-1 ( talk) 15:20, 5 May 2021 (UTC)
The table mis-identifies Churchill as a Conservative throughout his parliamentary career. He was of course a Liberal from 1904 to 1924. I don't know how to make tables work. DuncanHill ( talk) 19:51, 28 May 2021 (UTC)
The section 'Most children', which I recall stated Lord Grey was the most prolific Prime Minister (the brood included one known illegitimate child), appears to have been deleted. Has Lord Grey's record been called into question? If the section was removed intentionally it would have been civil to have given notice of intention with an explanation. I have reinstated the section, populated with cited details copied from Lord Grey's wikipedia article. Cloptonson ( talk) 18:54, 2 January 2022 (UTC)
I have seen several Wikipedia references on Prime Minister, General Election pages claiming Liz Truss was Prime Minister for 44 days. These claims are wrong. She is STILL Prime Minister and if the nuclear codes had to be used this weekend it's her call.
She is still acting Prime Minister until a new leader is elected AND King Charles III has formally accepted that person as PM. So about another 7 days need to be added to the 44 tally on many Wikipedia pages.
Looks like Wikipedia editors were too quick.. 81.228.193.66 ( talk) 14:26, 20 October 2022 (UTC)
The article currently states there will be three Prime Ministers since 2019, however, as Boris Johnson appears to be one of the most likely successors of Liz Truss, this may not end up being the case. I tried editing to say “Unless Boris Johnson returns as prime minister”, but editing is disabled.
I did also wonder, at the current rate, if it should say “at least three”.
Related, I did also wonder about a “most changes in prime minister in a year” category. 78.144.19.35 ( talk) 11:55, 22 October 2022 (UTC)
When Liz Truss is replaced, there will be 3 former PMs sitting in the House of Commons (Truss, Johnson, and May), which got me wondering if this is a record? Or a record for a single party, perhaps?
What is the record for the Houses of Parliament as a whole (including former PMs sitting in the Lords)? 78.144.19.35 ( talk) 08:01, 24 October 2022 (UTC)
Timeline | Event | No. of Former Prime Ministers sitting in the Commons | Duration |
---|---|---|---|
10/07/1765 | Grenville leaves office. | 1 | 5 years, 126 days |
13/11/1770 | Grenville dies. | 0 | 11 years, 134 days |
27/03/1782 | North leaves office. | 1 | 8 years, 130 days |
04/08/1790 | North elevated to Peerage. | 0 | 10 years, 222 days |
14/03/1801 | Pitt leaves office. | 1 | 3 years, 57 days |
10/05/1804 | Addington leaves office and Pitt re-enters office. | 1 | 247 days |
12/01/1805 | Addington elevated to Peerage. | 0 | 30 years, 86 days |
08/04/1835 | Peel leaves office. | 1 | 6 years, 144 days |
30/08/1841 | Peel re-enters office. | 0 | 4 years, 303 days |
29/06/1846 | Peel leaves office. | 1 | 4 years, 3 days |
02/07/1850 | Peel dies. | 0 | 1 year, 234 days |
21/02/1852 | Russel leaves office. | 1 | 2 years, 363 days |
19/02/1855 | Palmerston leaves office. | 2 | 4 years, 113 days |
12/06/1859 | Palmerston re-enters office. | 1 | 2 years, 48 days |
30/07/1861 | Russell elevated to peerage. | 0 | 7 years, 124 days |
01/12/1868 | Disraeli leaves office. | 1 | 5 years, 78 days |
17/02/1874 | Gladstone leaves office. | 2 | 3 days |
20/02/1874 | Disraeli re-enters office. | 1 | 6 years, 63 days |
23/04/1880 | Gladstone re-enters office. | 0 | 5 years, 47 days |
09/06/1885 | Gladstone leaves office. | 1 | 237 days |
01/02/1886 | Gladstone re-enters office. | 0 | 169 days |
20/07/1886 | Gladstone leaves office. | 1 | 6 years, 26 days |
15/08/1892 | Gladstone re-enters office. | 0 | 1 year, 199 days |
02/03/1894 | Gladstone leaves office. | 1 | 1 year, 126 days |
06/07/1895 | Gladstone leaves parliament. | 0 | 10 years, 151 days |
04/12/1905 | Balfour leaves office. | 1 | 35 days |
08/01/1906 | Balfour leaves parliament. | 0 | 50 days |
27/02/1906 | Balfour re-enters parliament. | 1 | 2 years, 36 days |
03/04/1908 | Campbell-Bannerman leaves office. | 2 | 19 days |
22/04/1908 | Campbell-Bannerman dies. | 1 | 8 years, 227 days |
05/12/1916 | Asquith leaves office. | 2 | 1 year, 355 days |
25/11/1918 | Asquith leaves parliament. | 1 | 1 year, 79 days |
12/02/1920 | Asquith re-enters parliament. | 2 | 2 years, 82 days |
05/05/1922 | Balfour leaves parliament. | 1 | 167 days |
19/10/1922 | Lloyd-George leaves office. | 2 | 213 days |
20/05/1923 | Bonar Law leaves office. | 3 | 163 days |
30/10/1923 | Bonar Law dies. | 2 | 84 days |
22/01/1924 | Baldwin leaves office. | 3 | 261 days |
09/10/1924 | Asquith leaves parliament. | 2 | 26 days |
04/11/1924 | MacDonald leaves office and Baldwin re-enters office. | 2 | 4 years, 212 days |
04/06/1929 | Baldwin leaves office. | 3 | 1 day |
05/06/1929 | MacDonald re-enters office. | 2 | 6 years, 2 days |
07/06/1935 | MacDonald leaves office, Baldwin re-enters office. | 2 | 160 days |
14/11/1935 | MacDonald leaves parliament. | 1 | 78 days |
31/01/1936 | MacDonald re-enters parliament. | 2 | 1 year, 117 days |
28/05/1937 | Baldwin leaves office. | 3 | 33 days |
30/06/1937 | Baldwin leaves parliament. | 2 | 132 days |
09/11/1937 | MacDonald dies. | 1 | 2 years, 183 days |
10/05/1940 | Chamberlain leaves office. | 2 | 183 days |
09/11/1940 | Chamberlain dies. | 1 | 4 years, 96 days |
13/02/1945 | Lloyd George elevated to the peerage. | 0 | 163 days |
26/07/1945 | Churchill leaves office. | 1 | 6 years, 92 days |
26/10/1951 | Atlee leaves office, Churchill re-enters office. | 1 | 3 years, 161 days |
05/04/1955 | Churchill leaves office. | 2 | 255 days |
16/12/1955 | Atlee leaves parliament. | 1 | 1 year, 24 days |
09/01/1957 | Eden leaves office. | 2 | 1 day |
10/01/1957 | Eden leaves parliament. | 1 | 6 years, 281 days |
18/10/1963 | Macmillan leaves office. | 2 | 343 days |
25/09/1964 | Churchill and Macmillan leave parliament. | 0 | 21 days |
16/10/1964 | Douglas-Home leaves office. | 1 | 5 years, 246 days |
19/06/1970 | Wilson leaves office. | 2 | 3 years, 258 days |
04/03/1974 | Heath leaves office, Wilson re-enters office. | 2 | 200 days |
20/09/1974 | Douglas-Home elevated to the peerage. | 1 | 1 year, 198 days |
05/04/1976 | Wilson leaves office. | 2 | 3 years, 29 days |
04/05/1979 | Callaghan leaves office. | 3 | 4 years, 9 days |
13/05/1983 | Wilson leaves parliament. | 2 | 4 years, 5 days |
18/05/1987 | Callaghan leaves parliament. | 1 | 3 years, 194 days |
28/11/1990 | Thatcher leaves office. | 2 | 1 year, 109 days |
16/03/1992 | Thatcher leaves parliament. | 1 | 5 years, 47 days |
02/05/1997 | Major leaves office. | 2 | 4 years, 12 days |
14/05/2001 | Heath and Major leave parliament. | 0 | 6 years, 44 days |
27/06/2007 | Blair leaves office and parliament. | 0 | 2 years, 318 days |
11/05/2010 | Brown leaves office. | 1 | 4 years, 323 days |
30/03/2015 | Brown leaves parliament. | 0 | 1 year, 105 days |
13/07/2016 | Cameron leaves office. | 1 | 61 days |
12/09/2016 | Cameron leaves parliament. | 0 | 2 years, 315 days |
24/07/2019 | May leaves office. | 1 | 3 years, 44 days |
06/09/2022 | Johnson leaves office. | 2 | 49 days |
25/10/2022 | Truss leaves office. | 3 | 1 year, 214 days |
Thanks for doing the hard work! It seemed you missed a couple of occasions when there were 3 in your summary, but I hopefully spotted them all.
I’ve added a sub-section to Number of living former PMs.
For now I’ve just added a table with the times there were three, as the larger table felt a bit wIeldy (and I couldn’t figure out how to copy and edit it on the app on my phone). Lukens ( talk) 18:21, 25 October 2022 (UTC)
This
edit request has been answered. Set the |answered= or |ans= parameter to no to reactivate your request. |
I have to correct a mistake on the section about Rishi Sunak. 151.57.85.246 ( talk) 18:13, 27 October 2022 (UTC)
He doesn't even include meat in his occasional weekday breakfast, stating in a 2021 podcast, "In terms of breakfast, well, I do some intermittent fasting so most days it's nothing. Otherwise, I'd probably have Greek yogurt and blueberries during the week." "And then I'd have a second breakfast mid-morning which is either a cinnamon bun or a pain au chocolat or a chocolate chip muffin. So I'd have a chocolatey, sugary pastry at some point." [1] I should remain in the article. Speakfor ( talk) 19:16, 27 October 2022 (UTC)
The citations for his vegetarian diet seem pretty weak, especially as one reports that he says he puts bacon on his pancakes.
Would be good to get a better source for this, otherwise it doesn’t feel it merits inclusion that he’s maybe mostly vegetarian.
The one source says he’s known as a vegetarian. By who? On what basis? Lukens ( talk) 22:55, 28 October 2022 (UTC)
Reading this through I was surprised that Margaret Thatcher's three terms of office are not included in the section 'Number of Terms' ?? Danzealloyd ( talk) 11:48, 17 February 2024 (UTC)
Margaret Thatcher's three terms of office is not included in the 'terms of office' section ?! Danzealloyd ( talk) 11:53, 17 February 2024 (UTC)