James Stanhope, 1st Earl Stanhope (1673 – 5 February 1721) was a British army officer and Whig politician who effectively served as Chief Minister between 1717 and 1721. He was also the last

Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and the head of HM Treasury, His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, t ...

to sit in the

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. Born in

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as the son of a prominent

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

, Stanhope pursued a military career. Although he also served in

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and

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, he is best remembered for his service in Portugal and Spain during the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...

. He was the first British Governor of Minorca, which he captured from the Spanish in 1708. In 1710 he commanded the British contingent of the Allied Army which occupied

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

, having won a decisive victory at the Battle of Zaragoza. Having then evacuated the Spanish capital, Stanhope's rearguard on the retreat to

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

were overwhelmed and forced to surrender at Brihuega. Paroled, he returned to Britain and pursued a political career as a Whig. A supporter of the

Hanoverian Succession The Act of Settlement ( 12 & 13 Will. 3. c. 2) is an act of the Parliament of England that settled the succession to the English and Irish crowns to only Protestants, which passed in 1701. More specifically, anyone who became a Roman Catho ...

he was rewarded with office by George I in 1714. As Southern Secretary he oversaw the negotiation of an Anglo-French Alliance. Emerging as the dominant figure in government after 1717, following the

Whig Split {{short description, Event in British politics from 1717–20 The Whig Split occurred between 1717 and 1720, when the governing British Whigs (British political party), Whig Party divided into two factions: one in government, led by James Stanhope ...

, he led Britain to success in a new Spanish War and suppressed a Jacobite Rising in 1719. However, the government was overtaken by the collapse of the

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and he died in office. He is occasionally mentioned as an alternative candidate to

Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford (; 26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745), known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British Whigs (British political party), Whig statesman who is generally regarded as the ''de facto'' first Prim ...

as Britain's first

Prime Minister A prime minister 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. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Background and education

Stanhope was born in Paris in 1673, the eldest of the seven children of Alexander Stanhope (1638–1707), and his wife Katherine (died 1718), the daughter and co-heir of Arnold Burghill, of Thinghall Parva, Withington, Herefordshire, by his second wife Grizell, co-heir of John Prise of Ocle Pyrchard, Herefordshire. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

and at

Trinity College, Oxford Trinity College (full name: The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in the University of Oxford, of the foundation of Sir Thomas Pope (Knight)) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in E ...

, where he matriculated in May 1688. Stanhope accompanied his father, then English Ambassador to

, to

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

in 1690, and obtained some knowledge of that country which was very useful to him in later life. A little later he went to Italy where, as afterwards in

, he served as a volunteer against France, and in 1695 he secured a commission in the English army. In 1701 Stanhope entered the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

, but he continued his career as a soldier and was in Spain and

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

during the earlier stages of the

Spanish Campaigns

Cadiz

During the opening stages of the war he was in Ireland on recruiting duty. He desperately sought a chance of combat, and was given permission to accompany the Duke of Ormonde's expedition to Cadiz. The attempt to capture Cadiz failed, but the expedition enjoyed success on the return journey at the Battle of Vigo Bay.

Portugal

In 1703 he served with the Duke of Marlborough's Army in the

Low Countries The Low Countries (; ), historically also known as the Netherlands (), is a coastal lowland region in Northwestern Europe forming the lower Drainage basin, basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and consisting today of the three modern "Bene ...

, having arrived too late to take part in the Siege of Bonn. His regiment was then transferred to

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

. Due to Portugal's entry into the war on the Allied side, a large British continent was sent to assist them. While Stanhope was in Lisbon recovering from an attack of

fever Fever or pyrexia in humans is a symptom of an anti-infection defense mechanism that appears with Human body temperature, body temperature exceeding the normal range caused by an increase in the body's temperature Human body temperature#Fever, s ...

his regiment was part of a Portuguese-commanded garrison which surrendered the town of Portalegre.

Barcelona

In 1705 he served in Spain under Charles Mordaunt, Earl of Peterborough, notably at the Siege of Barcelona and in 1706 he was appointed English minister in Spain, but his duties were still military as well as diplomatic, and in 1708, after some differences with Peterborough, who favoured defensive measures only, he was made commander-in-chief of the British forces in that country.

Minorca

Taking the offensive he captured Port Mahon, Minorca. During the operation his younger brother Philip Stanhope, a naval officer, was killed.

Madrid campaign

After a visit to England in which he took part in the

impeachment Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eur ...

of Henry Sacheverell, he returned to Spain for the campaign of 1710, with Allied victories at Almenar and

Saragossa Zaragoza (), traditionally known in English as Saragossa ( ), is the capital city of the province of Zaragoza and of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the ...

in July and August enabling Archduke Charles to enter Madrid in September. On the back of these triumphs, Stanhope was selected as the Whig candidate for the

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

seat in the 1710 General Election, with his cousin Lt-General Sherington Davenport as proxy in his absence.

Defeat

Unlike many constituencies, Westminster had a relatively large electorate of over 10,000 and its proximity to both Court and Parliament meant the result often influenced others. Almenar was used to promote 'brave, virtuous Stanhope' but his

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

opponent Thomas Crosse easily won the seat aided by the satirist

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...

who published thinly disguised accusations of Stanhope's homosexuality. The Tories won the General election in December by a landslide, by which time Stanhope was a prisoner in Spain but this theme was to form an important part of his future image. Lack of support from the local population meant the Allies entered an almost deserted Madrid and were effectively isolated when Portuguese forces were prevented from crossing into Spain. In November, the Allies left Madrid for

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

in separate detachments, one of 5,000 under Stanhope and the second of 12,000 under the Austrian Starhemberg. Stanhope's division was taken by surprise and forced to surrender by a French army led by Louis Joseph, Duke of Vendôme at Brihuega on 9 December 1710. The next day Vendôme followed this up by defeating Starhemberg at Villaviciosa; these defeats were a devastating setback to Allied ambitions in Spain. Although Allied forces continued to operate out of Catalonia, British commitment to the war was already waning under the new Tory government and Stanhope's replacement as British commander in Spain the Duke of Argyll took no offensive action. Of great significance was the death of Emperor Joseph I in April 1711 which meant Archduke Charles became Emperor Charles VI. This caused Britain to withdraw from the war since a Spanish and Austrian union threatened the European balance of power, and was as unwelcome as a French one. Philip V retained the Spanish throne, although lost many of Spain's traditional territories. Later Stanhope would admit to Queen Anne that he believed that the Spanish campaign was flawed in its general strategy, and even with more troops deployed there would struggle given the general preference of the Spanish population for Philip over Charles. Most of the prisoners taken at Brihuega were quickly exchanged but Stanhope himself remained a prisoner in Spain and only returned to England in August 1712, coming via

where he encountered the Tory politician Henry St. John who was there negotiating a peace treaty with France.

Political career, 1712–1721

Once back in Britain he now abandoned his military career and moved wholly into politics. He soon sat for another seat, Wendover, and became one of the leaders of the Whig opposition in the House of Commons to Robert Harley's Tory administration. In particular he opposed the terms of the

Treaty of Utrecht The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaty, peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vac ...

by which Britain unilaterally made peace with France and abandoned its allies. He was a staunch supporter of the

House of Hanover The House of Hanover ( ) is a European royal house with roots tracing back to the 17th century. Its members, known as Hanoverians, ruled Hanover, Great Britain, Ireland, and the British Empire at various times during the 17th to 20th centurie ...

. Once George I succeeded to the throne following the death of Queen Anne in 1714, he replaced the Tory government with a largely Whig one. Several senior Tories were either imprisoned or fled into exile due to their perceived support of the Jacobite James Stuart.

Secretary of State

In September 1714 he was appointed

Secretary of State for the Southern Department The secretary of state for the Southern Department was a position in the Cabinet (government), cabinet of the government of the Kingdom of Great Britain up to 1782, when the Southern Department (Great Britain), Southern Department became the H ...

. With Walpole he provided the leadership of the House of Commons. In early 1715 the new government's position was secured when it won a decisive election victory. He was mainly responsible for the measures which were instrumental in crushing the

Jacobite rising of 1715 The Jacobite rising of 1715 ( ; or 'the Fifteen') was the attempt by James Francis Edward Stuart, James Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender) to regain the thrones of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland and Kingdom of Scotland ...

. He forwarded the passing of the Septennial Act in 1716 that established that general elections should be held every seven years. In July 1716 he accompanied George I on his return to Hanover. He acted as George I's foreign minister, and only just failed to conclude a treaty of alliance with France in 1716. In 1717 there was a dramatic schism in the Whig Party with Stanhope and

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

forming one grouping while Walpole and Townshend opposed them. Walpole led his supporters into opposition, coinciding with a similar dispute within the royal family between George I and his son George, Prince of Wales. This

divided the dominant Whig movement for three years.

Emergence as First Minister

In 1717, consequent on changes in the ministry, Stanhope was made

First Lord of the Treasury The First Lord of the Treasury is the head of the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury exercising the ancient office of Lord High Treasurer in the United Kingdom. Traditional convention holds that the office of First Lord is held by the Prime Mi ...

, and was the last Chancellor of the Exchequer to sit in the House of Lords. A year later he returned to his former office of secretary for the southern department. On 3 July 1717, he was created Baron Stanhope of Elvaston and Viscount Stanhope of Mahon and, on 14 April 1718, Earl Stanhope. He was in all but name ''Prime Minister'' and is sometimes presented as the first Prime Minister of Great Britain, rather than Sir Robert Walpole who is more usually considered as that figure. Domestically his government suffered a defeat when the Impeachment of Robert Harley, former first minister, ended in his acquittal in July 1717.

War of the Quadruple Alliance

He saw Britain's principal foreign policy goals as containing the threat of Spanish, Austrian or Russian expansionist tendencies. His activity was now shown in the conclusion of the Quadruple Alliance between Britain, France, Austria and the United Provinces in 1718, and in obtaining peace for Sweden, when threatened by Russia and Denmark. He entered delicate negotiations with Spain which wished for the return of

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

, which he was only prepared to do in exchange for

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

and

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. Ultimately the talks broke down, setting the path to the later Thirteenth Siege of Gibraltar. In the ensuing War of the Quadruple Alliance British forces were involved in a campaign to prevent Spanish expansion in Italy. Spain landed troops in Scotland in support of the Jacobites who they hoped to restore to the throne. The expedition was defeated at the

Battle of Glen Shiel The Battle of Glen Shiel took place on 10 June 1719 in the Scottish Highlands, during the Jacobite rising of 1719. A Jacobitism, Jacobite army composed of Highland levies and Spanish Marine Infantry, Spanish marines was defeated by British gover ...

and in retaliation the British dispatched a force that briefly captured Vigo in October 1719. In the wake of these setbacks Spain agreed to the Treaty of The Hague the following year. Domestically, he promoted the Peerage Bill of 1719 to limit the membership of the

a controversial move as it was seen as an attack directed at his former Whig colleagues led by Walpole. His attempts at pushing for greater religious toleration were defeated by Walpole's supporters.

South Sea Bubble

Just after the collapse of the

, for which he was partly responsible but from which he did not profit, the earl was defending his government with customary vigour and panache in House of Lords on 4 February 1721 when he was taken ill with a violent headache. After some apparent recovery the following day, he died of a stroke at eight o'clock that evening. The king was shocked and distraught at the sudden "loss of so able and faithful a minister, of whose service his Majesty had so great need at this critical juncture". On the king's orders Stanhope was given a full military funeral through London on 17 February to

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

, and he was afterwards privately buried at

Chevening Chevening House () is a large country house in the parish of Chevening in Kent, England. Built between 1617 and 1630 to a design reputedly by Inigo Jones and greatly extended after 1717, it is a Grade I listed building. The surrounding gardens, ...

. He was succeeded by his eldest son Philip (1714–1786), a distinguished mathematician and a fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

Reputation

Basil Williams said Stanhope, "had no special bent for domestic politics.... His impetuosity and want of experience indeed led him into mistakes sometimes in dealing with internal questions." However, Williams goes on to argue that: :On the other hand, in foreign politics his comprehensive grasp of European conditions and of England's essential interests, his tact and self-control in dealings with foreign allies or opponents, and the blunt honesty of his diplomacy gave him an ascendancy rarely equaled by any of our foreign ministers. This ascendancy was the more remarkable since it had peace alone as its object and its result. The long epoch of comparative security in external relations which enabled Walpole quietly to consolidate the country's internal prosperity on a sound basis was mainly due to Stanhope's achievement in foreign policy.Basil Williams, ''The Whig Supremacy: 17141760'' (2nd ed. 1962) p 169.

Family

On 24 February 1713, Stanhope married Lucy Pitt (1692–1723), a younger daughter of Thomas Pitt, the first governor of

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

, and aunt to

William Pitt the Elder William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham (15 November 170811 May 1778) was a British Whig statesman who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1766 to 1768. Historians call him "Chatham" or "Pitt the Elder" to distinguish him from his son ...

. Although Stanhope found little time for domesticity, it was a happy union, and the couple had seven children, including two sets of twins: * Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl Stanhope (1714–1786) *Lady Lucy Stanhope (15 August 171415 May 1785) *Lt-Col Hon. George Stanhope (28 December 171724 January 1754) *Lady Gertrude Stanhope (born 1718), died young *Lady Jane Stanhope (born 30 October 1719) *Hon. James Stanhope (19 August 172121 April 1730) *Lady Catherine Stanhope (born 19 August 1721), died young His sister Mary, one of Queen Anne's six Maids of Honour, 1702–1707, married Charles, 1st Viscount Fane in 1707.