The Secretary of State for the Southern Department was a position in the cabinet of the government of the

Kingdom of Great Britain The Kingdom of Great Britain (officially Great Britain) was a Sovereign state, sovereign country in Western Europe from 1 May 1707 to the end of 31 December 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of ...

up to 1782, when the Southern Department became the Home Office.

History

Before 1782, the responsibilities of the two British Secretaries of State for the Northern and the Southern departments were divided not based on the principles of modern ministerial divisions, but geographically. The Secretary of State for the Southern Department was responsible for

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the seco ...

, the Channel Islands, France, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, the states of Italy, and the Ottoman Empire. He was also responsible for the American colonies until 1768, when the charge was given to the

Secretary of State for the Colonies The secretary of state for the colonies or colonial secretary was the British Cabinet minister in charge of managing the United Kingdom's various colonial dependencies. History The position was first created in 1768 to deal with the increas ...

. The Secretary of State for the Northern Department was responsible for relations with the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Nether ...

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...

, Poland, Russia, and the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...

. Domestic responsibilities in England and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in 202 ...

were shared between the two Secretaries. After the union with

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

in 1707, the two secretaries also took responsibility for

when there was no

Secretary of State for Scotland The secretary of state for Scotland ( gd, Rùnaire Stàite na h-Alba; sco, Secretar o State fir Scotland), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for ...

in office. Until 1706, the practice was generally for the senior official to lead the Southern Department, and the junior the Northern Department, with the Northern Secretary being transferred to the Southern Department when a vacancy arose at the latter. During the reigns of George I and George II, however, the Northern Department began to be seen as the more important, since its responsibilities included the monarchs' ancestral home of

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany a ...

. During the reign of

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 B ...

, the two departments were of approximately equal importance.Cass (1932), p. 4 In 1782, the two Secretaries of State were reformed as the

Secretary of State for the Home Department The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...

and the

Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen a ...

List of Southern Secretaries

Notes

Citations

{{reflist, 2 Defunct ministerial offices in the United Kingdom Lists of English politicians Lists of government ministers of the United Kingdom Great Britain politics-related lists . Kingdom of Great Britain Southern Department 02, Secretary of State Southern Department 02, Secretary of State Southern Department 02, Secretary of State Southern Department 02, Secretary of State Southern Department 02, Secretary of State Southern Department 02, Secretary of State Southern Department 02, Secretary of State 1660 establishments in England 1782 disestablishments in Great Britain 1660 establishments in the British Empire 1782 disestablishments in the British Empire Foreign relations of Great Britain

History

List of Southern Secretaries

See also

Notes

Citations