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All of the above-listed prime ministers were older than their immediate successors. The Duke of Portland and Lord Aberdeen are the only ones among this list whose immediate successors also died in office.
This is a graphical lifespan timeline of the prime ministers of the United Kingdom and they are listed in order of office. The following chart shows prime ministers by their age (living prime ministers in green), with the years of their premiership in blue.
Historians generally consider Robert Walpole, who led the government of the Kingdom of Great Britain for over twenty years from 1721, [5] to be the first prime minister. Walpole is also the longest-serving British prime minister by this definition. [6]
- First Prime Minister
- Longest-Serving Prime Minister
- Shortest-Serving Prime Minister
- Longest-Living Prime Minister
- Most Terms Served as Prime Minister
- Oldest Prime Minister
- Youngest Prime Minister
- Earliest Retirement For A Prime Minister
- First Female Prime Minister
- British Prime Minister Born The Furthest from 10 Downing Street
While we can date the inauguration of His Majesty's Government back to 1707 and the birth of the British legal system back to the signing of the Magna Carta in 1215, it’s difficult to pinpoint when we first introduced a singular leader of the British government. It was likely a mixture of leadership positions that evolved over time. Although we can...
Sir Robert Walpoleresigned from office after 20 years and 315 days. His successor, William Pitt the Younger, served an impressive 18 years and 343 days over two terms and died while in office.
The shortest-serving prime ministerin British history is Liz Truss who was selected as Conservative Party Leader in September 2022. Truss stepped down just 44 days into her term, following a disastrous mini-budget that caused turmoil in the financial markets. The second shortest-serving Prime Minister is George Canning, who died suddenly from pneum...
The longest-living prime minister was James Callaghan, who died the day before his 93rd birthday. Despite only remaining in office for three years, Callaghan was also the only prime minister to hold all four great state offices, including Chancellor of the Exchequer, Home Secretary, and Foreign Secretary.
The prime minister to have served the most terms is William Ewart Gladstone, who served four times between 1868 and 1894 for a total of 12 years.
Gladstone’s final elected term started after he won the general election in 1892. He was 81 years and seven months old at the time. This also made him the oldest prime minister to win a general election. The UK’s oldest prime minister to be appointed for the first time in their life was Lord Palmerston, who was 70 years of age in 1855. Depending on...
The youngest prime minister was William Pitt the Younger, who was just 24 years old at the time of his appointment.
The youngest prime minister to retire from his position was Augustus Henry Fitzroy, who was just 34 years old - a stark difference from Gladstone, who was 84 at the time of his retirement. This also meant that Fitzroy holds the title of the prime minister who lived the longest following their exit from office, as he lived for a further 41 years.
The first female prime minister was Margaret Thatcher, who was elected into office in 1969 and re-elected after a landslide victory just four years later. She also holds the record for the longest-serving prime minister of the 20th century.
The prime minister born the furthest away from 10 Downing Street is Boris Johnson, born close to 3,500 kilometers away in New York City. Andrew Bonar Law, born in New Brunswick, Canada, comes in second, having been born 2,100 kilometers away.
The voters elect Members of Parliament (MPs), and the MPs choose the prime minister. The system grew in stages as the Commons grew in power and the monarch's authority dwindled. The present Prime Minister Keir Starmer since 5 July 2024.
All of the above-listed prime ministers were older than their immediate successors. The Duke of Portland and Lord Aberdeen are the only ones among this list whose immediate successors also died in office.
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The office of prime minister developed in Britain in the 18th century, when King George I ceased attending meetings of his ministers and it was left to powerful premiers to act as government chief executive. Sir Robert Walpole is generally considered to have been Britain’s first prime minister.
