George Grenville (1712 - 1770)

Born 14 Oct 1712 in Wotton Underwood, Buckinghamshire, England

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 13 Nov 1770 in Piccadilly, London, England

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Categories: Eton College | Christ Church, Oxford | British Prime Ministers | Members of Parliament, Great Britain | Members of Parliament, Buckingham | Privy Counsellors of Great Britain | Secretaries of State for the Northern Department | Chancellors of the Exchequer of Great Britain | Leaders of the House of Commons | Lords of the Admiralty | Famous People of the 18th Century | This Day In History October 14 | This Day In History November 13 | Notables | Wotton Underwood, Buckinghamshire.

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Biography

George Grenville, British Prime Minister, MP for Buckingham 1741. Lord of the Admiralty 1744, Lord of the Treasury 1747, Treasurer of the Navy & P C 1754, Leader in the House of Commons 1761, Secretary of State for the Northern Department 1762. 1st Lord of the Admiralty 1762, 1st Lord of the Treasury, and Chancellor of the Exchequer^[1]

The Rt. Hon. George Grenville MP, son of Richard Grenville and Hester Temple, was born October 14, 1712 at Wotton Underwood, Buckinghamshire, England. He was baptised in the parish church of Wotton Underwood, November 11, 1712.^[2] George attended Eton followed by Christ Church, Oxford, then entered the Inner Temple, qualifying as a barrister in 1735.^[3]

In May 1749, George married Elizabeth Wyndham, the daughter of Sir William Wyndham, a Tory politician.^[3] Their youngest son, William Wyndham Grenville followed in his father's footsteps to became Prime Minister in 1806.^[3]

Grenville was fortunate enough to be born into a wealthy, politically influenced family, giving him the perfect Prime Minister pedigree. He first entered Parliament as an MP for Buckingham in 1741. He was a British Whig statesman who rose to the position of British Prime Minister. He was in office April 16, 1763 to July 13, 1765. ^[4]

Grenville's term in office was rather turbulent due to King George III's dislike of him. At the expense of the colonies Greville lowered domestic taxes in a bid to gain the favour of the people. The new taxes came under the introduction of The Stamp Act in 1765. There were wide spread protests over the Stamp Act in America which boiled over into the War for Independence.^[5]

English weavers protested about the import of silk, for which the King blamed Grenville and in 1765 the King sacked him. A very rare event in British history.^[6]

Grenville died from a blood disorder, November 13, 1770 at Piccadilly, London.

Sources

1. ↑ Watney, Vernon James. The Wallop Family and Their Ancestry .. Vol. 2, 3. Oxford: Printed by John Johnson, 1928. 343, 380, 844.
2. ↑ England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} Andrew Thompson, "George Grenville (Whig 1763-1765)", History of government, GOV.UK, Crown copyright, 2015, https://history.blog.gov.uk/2015/02/11/george-grenville-whig-1763-1765/, accessed 28 March 2015
4. ↑ "British Prime Ministers: George Grenville." Britannia. January 1, 2007. Accessed August 7, 2014. http://www.britannia.com/gov/primes/prime9.html.
5. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Stamp Act 1765," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Stamp_Act_1765&oldid=613089478 (accessed August 7, 2014).
6. ↑ "George Grenville." NNDB. January 1, 2014. Accessed August 7, 2014. http://www.nndb.com/people/959/000103650/.

• "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/N51X-FJ2 : accessed 07 Aug 2014), George Grenvile, 11 Nov 1712; citing , reference ; FHL microfilm 952864.

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