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John Stuart,
Earl of Bute
1762-3 Tory
Essential facts:
Born: 25 May 1713 (Parliament Square, London)
Died: 10 March 1792 (Grosvenor Square, London)
Nickname: "Jack Boot"
Education: Eton and University of Leiden, the Netherlands
Family: Stuart was the eldest son and the second of 8 children. He was married to Mary Wortley Montagu (Baroness Mount Stuart), and had 5 sons and 6 daughters
Age at appointment: 49 years, 1 day
First entered Parliament: Took seat in House of Lords on 24 January 1738
Maiden Speech: On 19 January 1762. His first recorded speech was on 5 February 1762 on the war with Spain
Total time as PM: 317 days
Quotes:
"A noble duke knows the difficulty to choose proper taxes" during a debate on the cider tax
Biography:
The Earl of Bute succeeded the Duke of Newcastle as Prime Minister because he was favoured by the King. He spent just three years in Parliament before his time as PM, and this was more than 20 years earlier.
In the following twenty years he had befriended the young Prince George, and upon George's accession he was made Secretary of State, and then Prime Minister.
Only 11 months in office, Bute nevertheless ended both the predominance of the Whigs and the Seven Years War. Attacks of a personal nature, however, along with gossip about his private life, drove him to resign in 1763.
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