The first Rockingham ministry was a British ministry headed by the

Marquess of Rockingham Marquess of Rockingham, in the County of Northampton, was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1746 for Thomas Watson-Wentworth, 1st Earl of Malton. The Watson family descended from Lewis Watson, Member of Parliament f ...

from 1765 to 1766 during the reign of

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

. The government was made up mainly of his followers known as the

Rockingham Whigs The Rockingham Whigs (or Rockinghamites) in 18th century British politics were a faction of the Whigs led by Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, from about 1762 until his death in 1782. The Rockingham Whigs briefly held power fr ...

. The most influential member of the government was the

Duke of Newcastle Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne was a title that was created three times, once in the Peerage of England and twice in the Peerage of Great Britain. The first grant of the title was made in 1665 to William Cavendish, 1st Marquess of Newcastle u ...

, a former Prime Minister, who served as

Lord Privy Seal The Lord Privy Seal (or, more formally, the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal) is the fifth of the Great Officers of State (United Kingdom), Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and abov ...

. It is often referred to as the only government ever to have been made up almost entirely of members of the

Jockey Club The Jockey Club is the largest commercial horse racing organisation in the United Kingdom. It owns 15 of Britain's famous racecourses, including Aintree, Cheltenham, Epsom Downs and both the Rowley Mile and July Course in Newmarket, amo ...

, with Rockingham himself being a prominent patron and follower of the turf. Rockingham was noted for his ignorance of foreign affairs, and his ministry failed to reverse the growing isolation of Britain within Europe . The Rockingham ministry fell in 1766 and was replaced by one headed by William Pitt, later the

Earl of Chatham Earl of Chatham, of Chatham in the County of Kent, was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1766 for William Pitt the Elder on his appointment as Lord Privy Seal, along with the subsidiary title Viscount Pitt, of Burto ...

Cabinet

Changes

*October 1765 – The Duke of Cumberland (also the uncle of

) dies. *May 1766 – The Duke of Grafton resigns from the cabinet. Henry Seymour Conway succeeds him as Northern Secretary, and the

Duke of Richmond Duke of Richmond is a title in the Peerage of England that has been created four times in British history. It has been held by members of the royal Tudor dynasty, Tudor and House of Stuart, Stuart families. The current dukedom of Richmond was ...

succeeds Conway as Southern Secretary.

Ministers not in Cabinet

Lord Chamberlain The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Household of the United Kingdom, supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Sovereign of the United Kingdom while also acting as the main cha ...

– The Duke of Portland

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rockingham 1 British ministries

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

1765 establishments in Great Britain 1766 disestablishments in Great Britain 1760s in Great Britain Ministries of George III of the United Kingdom