Canningite government, 1827–1828

The Canningites, led by George Canning and then the Viscount Goderich as First Lord of the Treasury, governed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 1827 until 1828.

George Canning led the Government from April 1827. He was succeeded by Lord Goderich upon his death in August.
Portrait of Lord Goderich by Thomas Lawrence c.1824. Goderich led the Government following the death of his predecessor in 1827. His government was replaced in 1828.

Formation

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On 9 April 1827 the Tory Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Lord Liverpool, suffered a cerebral haemorrhage. He had been prime minister nearly fifteen years, ever since the assassination of his predecessor Spencer Perceval in May 1812. The man chosen to succeed him was the Foreign Secretary and Leader of the House of Commons, George Canning. Canning was very much on the moderate wing of the Tory Party, and many of the more hard-line members of Liverpool's government, including the Home Secretary, Sir Robert Peel, and national hero the Duke of Wellington (Master-General of the Ordnance), refused to serve under him. Canning's government was therefore recruited from the moderate wing of the Tory Party, known as the Canningites, with the support of several members of the Whig Party.

Fate

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Canning, who was in poor health at the time of his appointment, died in office on 8 August 1827, and the Leader of the House of Lords F. J. Robinson, 1st Viscount Goderich, 1st Earl of Ripon succeeded him as prime minister. However, Goderich's government never even met in a session of Parliament, and was replaced by a High Tory government under the Duke of Wellington on 22 January 1828.

Cabinets

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George Canning's Cabinet, April 1827 – August 1827

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Changes

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The Viscount Goderich's Cabinet, September 1827 – January 1828

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Full list of ministers

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This is a list of the members of the government. Members of the Cabinet are indicated by bold typeface.

Office Name Date
First Lord of the Treasury George Canning 10 April 1827 –
 8 August 1827
The Viscount Goderich 31 August 1827 –
 21 January 1828
Chancellor of the Exchequer George Canning 20 April 1827
John Charles Herries 3 September 1827
Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury Joseph Planta 19 April 1827
Financial Secretary to the Treasury John Charles Herries Continued in office
Thomas Frankland Lewis 4 September 1827
Junior Lords of the Treasury The Earl of Mount Charles 30 April 1827 –
 26 January 1828
Lord Francis Leveson-Gower 30 April 1827 –
 8 September 1827
Lord Eliot 30 April 1827 –
 26 January 1828
Edmund Alexander Macnaghten 30 April 1827 –
 26 January 1828
Maurice FitzGerald 31 July 1827 –
 26 January 1828
Lord President of the Council The Earl of Harrowby Continued in office
The Duke of Portland 17 August 1827
Lord Chancellor The Lord Lyndhurst 2 May 1827
Home Secretary William Sturges Bourne 20 April 1827
The Marquess of Lansdowne 16 July 1827
Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department Spencer Perceval 30 April 1827
Thomas Spring Rice 16 July 1827
Foreign Secretary The Viscount Dudley and Ward[a] 30 April 1827
Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs The Lord Howard de Walden Continued in office
The Marquess of Clanricarde Continued in office
until 17 August 1827
Secretary of State for War and the Colonies The Viscount Goderich 30 April 1827
William Huskisson 3 September 1827
Under-Secretary of State for War and the Colonies Robert Wilmot Horton Continued in office
President of the Board of Trade William Huskisson Continued in office
Charles Grant 3 September 1827
Vice-President of the Board of Trade Charles Grant Continued in office
President of the Board of Control Charles Williams-Wynn Continued in office
Secretary to the Board of Control Thomas Courtenay Continued in office
Lord High Admiral The Duke of Clarence 17 April 1827
First Secretary to the Admiralty John Wilson Croker Continued in office
Lord Privy Seal The Duke of Portland 30 April 1827
The Earl of Carlisle 16 July 1827
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster The Lord Bexley Continued in office
Master-General of the Ordnance The Marquess of Anglesey 30 April 1827
Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance Sir William Henry Clinton Continued in office
Treasurer of the Ordnance William Holmes Continued in office
Surveyor-General of the Ordnance Sir Edward Owen 14 May 1827
Clerk of the Ordnance Sir George Clerk 4 May 1827
Clerk of the Deliveries of the Ordnance Hon. Edmund Phipps Continued in office
Storekeeper of the Ordnance Mark Singleton Continued in office
Treasurer of the Navy William Huskisson Continued in office
Charles Grant 10 September 1827
Secretary at War Viscount Palmerston Continued in office
Master of the Mint George Tierney 29 May 1827
Paymaster of the Forces Hon. William Vesey-FitzGerald Continued in office
First Commissioner of Woods and Forests The Earl of Carlisle 30 May 1827
William Sturges Bourne 23 July 1827
Ministers without Portfolio The Marquess of Lansdowne[b] May 1827
The Duke of Portland[c] May 1827
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland The Marquess Wellesley Continued in office
Chief Secretary for Ireland Hon. William Lamb 29 April 1827
Attorney General Sir James Scarlett 27 April 1827
Solicitor General Nicolas Conyngham Tindal Continued in office
Judge Advocate General Hon. James Abercromby 12 May 1827
Lord Advocate Sir William Rae Continued in office
Solicitor General for Scotland John Hope Continued in office
Attorney General for Ireland Henry Joy 18 June 1827
Solicitor General for Ireland John Doherty 18 June 1827
Lord Steward of the Household The Marquess Conyngham Continued in office
Lord Chamberlain of the Household The Duke of Devonshire 5 May 1827
Vice-Chamberlain of the Household Sir Samuel Hulse 5 May 1827
Master of the Horse The Duke of Leeds 4 May 1827
Treasurer of the Household Sir William Henry Fremantle Continued in office
Comptroller of the Household Lord George Beresford Continued in office
Captain of the Gentlemen Pensioners The Viscount Hereford 1827
Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard The Earl of Macclesfield Continued in office
Master of the Buckhounds The Lord Maryborough Continued in office
Notes
  1. ^ Created Earl of Dudley on 5 October 1827.
  2. ^ Appointed Home Secretary July 1827.
  3. ^ Appointed Lord President August 1827.

References

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  • Chris Cook and John Stevenson, British Historical Facts 1760–1830
  • Joseph Haydn and Horace Ockerby, The Book of Dignities
Preceded by Government of the United Kingdom
1827–1828
Succeeded by