Nelson was a cat who served as Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office during the wartime coalition government under

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...

. A grey cat of undetermined lineage, Churchill first witnessed Nelson chase off a large dog from the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral * Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings *Admiralty, Tr ...

. Impressed by his bravery, Churchill adopted the cat, naming him after the British admiral

Horatio Nelson Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte (29 September 1758 – 21 October 1805) was a British flag officer in the Royal Navy. His inspirational leadership, grasp of strategy, and unconventional tactics brought abo ...

. Upon Churchill becoming

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

in May 1940, Nelson moved into

10 Downing Street 10 Downing Street in London, also known colloquially in the United Kingdom as Number 10, is the official residence and executive office of the first lord of the treasury, usually, by convention, the prime minister of the United Kingdom. Along wi ...

and became Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office. Serving alongside the then-incumbent

Munich Mouser Munich Mouser was a cat who served as Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office. He served under Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain from 1937 to 1940, and also under Winston Churchill in 1943. He therefore served in the role at the same time as Peter, wh ...

. Nelson and Munich Mouser did not take a liking to one another, with Nelson often chasing Munich Mouser out of 10 Downing Street. The rivalry between the pair was later compared with that of

Larry Larry is a masculine given name in English, derived from Lawrence (given name), Lawrence or Laurence. It can be a shortened form of those names. Larry may refer to the following: People Arts and entertainment *Larry D. Alexander, American arti ...

and

Palmerston Palmerston may refer to: People * Christie Palmerston (c. 1851–1897), Australian explorer * Several prominent people have borne the title of Viscount Palmerston ** Henry Temple, 1st Viscount Palmerston (c. 1673–1757), Irish nobleman and ...

. In 1946, under the leadership of Clement Attlee, Nelson was succeeded by Peter II.

References

{{Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office Individual cats in England Individual cats in politics Working cats Chief Mousers to the Cabinet Office

See also

References