Spouse of the prime minister of the United Kingdom
| Spouse of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Style | Mrs. Cameron |
| Residence | 10 Downing Street |
| Inaugural holder | Lady Walpole |
| Formation | April 4, 1721 |
| Website | 10 Downing Street |
The Spouse of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is the title of the wife or husband of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. To date it has been held by 44 women and one man who have been married to British Prime Ministers whilst in office. The United Kingdom has also had four bachelor and several widower Prime Ministers, the last bachelor being Edward Heath, and the last widower being Ramsay MacDonald.
The position is similar to a political "First Lady", and is often referred to by the press as 'First Lady of the United Kingdom' or "First Gentlemen" when Margaret Thatcher was prime Minister, however as the Prime Minister is not the Head of State this is not a recognised title as HM Elizabeth II takes precedence over all including the Prime Minister, their spouse and Government. In some monarchies the wife of the Prime Minister is referred to as the "Second Lady" however this is not recognised in the United Kingdom.
Current
The current holder is Samantha Cameron, wife of David Cameron and is also the youngest prime ministerial spouse to enter Downing Street since Clarissa,Lady Eden took the position when Sir Anthony Eden took office in 1955 . There are currently five living spouses of former Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom:
- Dame Norma Major, wife of Sir John Major
- Cherie Blair, QC, wife of Tony Blair
- Sarah Brown, wife of Gordon Brown
Role and Duties
The role of the Prime Ministerial Consort is not an official office and as such they are not given a salary or official duties, some spouses, such as Norma Major have chosen to remain very much in the background. However over time the position has evolved and others such as Cherie Blair have gained public attention through their own independent careers and achievements. The role also includes playing hostess at 10 Downing Street during state visits and ceremonial functions. Samantha Cameron hosted a street party at Downing Street to celebrate the Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton. The Prime Ministers consort has gained more media attention over time especially concerning fashion and when attending functions such as national conference and at summit meetings.
List of spouses of the British Prime Minister
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| Prime Minister | Dates | Spouse | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sir Robert Walpole later The Earl of Orford |
4 April 1721 – 20 August 1737 | Lady Walpole (née Catherine Shorter) |
Walpole's first wife, she died in 1737. |
| 20 August 1737 – c.3 March 1738 | None | Following Catherine's death, Walpole was a widower until he remarried. | |
| c.3 March – 4 June 1738 | Lady Walpole (née Maria Skerret) |
The second wife of Sir Robert Walpole, she died in childbirth in 1738. | |
| 4 June 1738 – 11 February 1742 | None | Sir Robert Walpole remained a widower after his second wife's death. | |
| The Earl of Wilmington (Sir Spencer Compton) |
16 February 1742 – 2 July 1743 | None | Lord Wilmington never married. |
| Henry Pelham | 27 August 1743 – 6 March 1754 | Lady Catherine Pelham (née Manners) |
|
| The Duke of Newcastle (Sir Thomas Pelham-Holles) |
16 March 1754 – 16 November 1756 | The Duchess of Newcastle (née Lady Henrietta Godolphin) |
|
| The Duke of Devonshire (Sir William Cavendish) |
16 November 1756 – 25 June 1757 | None | The Duke of Devonshire's wife, the Marchioness of Hartington (née Lady Charlotte Boyle), died in 1754, before he came to office. |
| The Duke of Newcastle (Sir Thomas Pelham-Holles) |
2 July 1757 – 26 May 1762 | The Duchess of Newcastle (née Lady Henrietta Godolphin) |
|
| The Earl of Bute (Sir John Stuart) |
26 May 1762 – 16 April 1763 | The Countess of Bute (née Mary Wortley-Montagu) |
|
| George Grenville | 16 April 1763 – 13 July 1765 | Elizabeth Grenville (née Wyndham) |
|
| The Marquess of Rockingham (Sir Charles Watson-Wentworth) |
13 July 1765 – 30 July 1766 | The Marchioness of Rockingham (née Mary Bright) | |
| The Earl of Chatham (William Pitt) |
30 July 1766 – 14 October 1768 | The Countess of Chatham (née Lady Hester Grenville) |
|
| The Duke of Grafton (Sir Augustus FitzRoy) |
14 October 1768 – 28 January 1770 | The Duchess of Grafton (née Elizabeth Wrottesley) |
Elizabeth was Grafton's second Duchess |
| Lord North (Sir Frederick North; later Earl of Guilford) |
28 January 1770 – 22 March 1782 | Lady North (née Anne Speke; later Countess of Guilford) |
|
| The Marquess of Rockingham (Sir Charles Watson-Wentworth) |
27 March – 1 July 1782 | The Marchioness of Rockingham (née Mary Bright) |
|
| The Earl of Shelburne (Sir William Petty; later Marquess of Lansdowne) |
4 July 1782 – 2 April 1783 | The Countess of Shelburne (née Lady Louisa FitzPatrick; later Marchioness of Lansdowne) |
Louisa was Shelburne's second Countess |
| The Duke of Portland (William Cavendish-Bentinck) |
2 April – 19 December 1783 | The Duchess of Portland (née Lady Dorothy Cavendish) |
|
| William Pitt the Younger | 19 December 1783 – 14 March 1801 | None | Pitt the Younger never married. |
| Henry Addington (later Viscount Sidmouth) |
17 March 1801 – 10 May 1804 | Ursula Addington (née Hammond; later Viscountess Sidmouth) |
|
| William Pitt the Younger | 10 May 1804 – 23 January 1806 | None | Pitt the Younger never married. |
| The Lord Grenville | 11 February 1806 – 31 March 1807 | Anne, The Lady Grenville | |
| The Duke of Portland | 31 March 1807 – 4 October 1809 | Dorothy, The Duchess of Portland | |
| Spencer Perceval | 4 October 1809 – 11 May 1812 | Jane Perceval | |
| The Earl of Liverpool | 8 June 1812 – 9 April 1827 | Louisa, The Countess of Liverpool | |
| George Canning | 10 April – 8 August 1827 | Joan Canning | |
| The Viscount Goderich | 31 August 1827 – 21 January 1828 | Sarah, The Viscountess Goderich | |
| The Duke of Wellington | 22 January 1828 – 16 November 1830 | Catherine, The Duchess of Wellington | |
| The Earl Grey | 22 November 1830 – 9 July 1834 | Mary, The Countess Grey | |
| The Viscount Melbourne | 16 July – 14 November 1834 | None | Lord Melbourne's wife, Lady Caroline Lamb, died in 1828. |
| The Duke of Wellington | 14 November – 10 December 1834 | None | Wellington's wife, Catherine, Duchess of Wellington, died in 1831. |
| Sir Robert Peel, Bt. | 10 December 1834 – 8 April 1835 | Julia, Lady Peel | |
| The Viscount Melbourne | 18 April 1835 – 30 August 1841 | None | Lord Melbourne's wife, Lady Caroline Lamb, died in 1828. |
| Sir Robert Peel, Bt. | 30 August 1841 – 29 June 1846 | Julia, Lady Peel | |
| Lord John Russell | 30 June 1846 – 21 February 1852 | Lady John Russell | |
| The Earl of Derby | 23 February – 17 December 1852 | Emma, The Countess of Derby | |
| The Earl of Aberdeen | 19 December 1852 – 30 January 1855 | Harriet, The Countess of Aberdeen | |
| The Viscount Palmerston | 6 February 1855 – 19 February 1858 | Emily, The Viscountess Palmerston | |
| The Earl of Derby | 20 February 1858 – 11 June 1859 | Emma, The Countess of Derby | |
| The Viscount Palmerston | 12 June 1859 – 16 October 1865 | Emily, The Viscountess Palmerston | |
| The Earl Russell | 29 October 1865 – 26 June 1866 | Frances, The Countess Russell | |
| The Earl of Derby | 28 June 1866 – 25 February 1868 | Emma, The Countess of Derby | |
| Benjamin Disraeli (later The Earl of Beaconsfield) |
27 February – 1 December 1868 | Mary Disraeli (later The Viscountess Beaconsfield) | |
| William Ewart Gladstone | 3 December 1868 – 17 February 1874 | Catherine Gladstone | |
| The Earl of Beaconsfield | 20 February 1874 – 21 April 1880 | None | Disraeli's wife, Mary, died in 1872. |
| William Ewart Gladstone | 23 April 1880 – 9 June 1885 | Catherine Gladstone | |
| The Marquess of Salisbury | 23 June 1885 – 28 January 1886 | Georgina, The Marchioness of Salisbury | |
| William Ewart Gladstone | 1 February – 20 July 1886 | Catherine Gladstone | |
| The Marquess of Salisbury | 25 July 1886 – 11 August 1892 | Georgina, The Marchioness of Salisbury | |
| William Ewart Gladstone | 15 August 1892 – 2 March 1894 | Catherine Gladstone | |
| The Earl of Rosebery | 5 March 1894 – 22 June 1895 | None | Lord Rosebery's wife, Hannah Primrose, Countess of Rosebery, died in 1890. |
| The Marquess of Salisbury | 25 June 1895 – 20 November 1899 | Georgina, The Marchioness of Salisbury | Lady Salisbury died in 1899. |
| 20 November 1899 – 11 July 1902 | None | ||
| Arthur Balfour | 11 July 1902 – 5 December 1905 | None | Arthur Balfour never married. |
| Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman | 5 December 1905 – 30 August 1906 | Charlotte, Lady Campbell-Bannerman | Lady Campbell-Bannerman died in 1906. |
| 30 August 1906 – 3 April 1908 | None | ||
| H. H. Asquith | 5 April 1908 – 5 December 1916 | Margot Asquith | |
| David Lloyd George | 6 December 1916 – 19 October 1922 | Margaret Lloyd George | Margaret Lloyd George was made a Dame of the Order of the British Empire in 1920. |
| Andrew Bonar Law | 23 October 1922 – 20 May 1923 | None | Andrew Bonar Law's wife, Annie, died in 1909. |
| Stanley Baldwin | 23 May 1923 – 16 January 1924 | Lucy Baldwin | |
| Ramsay MacDonald | 22 January – 4 November 1924 | None | MacDonald's wife, Margaret, died in 1911. Their daughter, Ishbel, acted as hostess. |
| Stanley Baldwin | 4 November 1924 – 5 June 1929 | Lucy Baldwin | |
| Ramsay MacDonald | 5 June 1929 – 7 June 1935 | None | MacDonald's wife, Margaret, died in 1911. Their daughter, Ishbel, acted as hostess. |
| Stanley Baldwin | 7 June 1935 – 28 May 1937 | Lucy Baldwin | |
| Neville Chamberlain | 28 May 1937 – 10 May 1940 | Anne Chamberlain | |
| Winston Churchill | 10 May 1940 – 27 July 1945 | Clementine Churchill | |
| Clement Attlee | 27 July 1945 – 26 October 1951 | Violet Attlee | |
| Winston Churchill | 26 October 1951 – 7 April 1955 | Clementine Churchill | She was made a Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE) in 1946. When Winston Churchill was knighted in 1953, Clementine also became Lady Churchill. She became a life peeress in her own right in 1965, as Baroness Spencer-Churchill. |
| Sir Anthony Eden | 7 April 1955 – 9 January 1957 | Clarissa, Lady Eden | |
| Harold Macmillan | 11 January 1957 – 19 October 1963 | The Lady Dorothy Macmillan | |
| Sir Alec Douglas-Home | 20 October 1963 – 16 October 1964 | Elizabeth, Lady Douglas-Home | For the first three days of his premiership, Alec Douglas-Home was the 14th Earl of Home until he renounced his peerages. During this time, Elizabeth was The Countess of Home. |
| Harold Wilson | 16 October 1964 – 19 June 1970 | Mary Wilson | |
| Edward Heath | 19 June 1970 – 4 March 1974 | None | Edward Heath never married. |
| Harold Wilson | 4 March 1974 – 5 April 1976 | Mary Wilson | |
| James Callaghan | 5 April 1976 – 4 May 1979 | Audrey Callaghan | |
| Margaret Thatcher | 4 May 1979 – 28 November 1990 | Denis Thatcher | First (to date only) male spouse, as Thatcher was the first (to date only) female Prime Minister |
| John Major | 28 November 1990 – 2 May 1997 | Norma Major | |
| Tony Blair | 2 May 1997 – 27 June 2007 | Cherie Blair | |
| Gordon Brown | 27 June 2007 – 11 May 2010 | Sarah Brown | |
| David Cameron | 11 May 2010 – Current | Samantha Cameron |