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Prime Minister Earl John Stuart

Male 1713 - 1792  (78 years)    Has more than 100 ancestors and more than 100 descendants in this family tree.

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  • Name John Stuart 
    Prefix Prime Minister Earl 
    Birth 25 May 1713  Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Male 
    Prominent People 1760 
    Death Mar 1792 
    Siblings 7 Siblings 
    Person ID I116507  Geneagraphie
    Links To This person is also John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute at Wikipedia 
    Last Modified 27 Jan 2008 

    Father Earl James Stuart   d. 28 Jan 1723 
    Mother Anne Campbell   d. 20 Oct 1736 
    Marriage Feb 1711 
    Family ID F53850  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family Mary Wortley Montagu   d. 6 Nov 1794 
    Marriage 1736 
    Children 
     1. Mary Crichton-Stuart,   b. Abt 1741   d. 5 Apr 1824 (Age 83 years)
    +2. Earl John Stuart,   b. 30 Jun 1744, Mount Stuart Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 16 Nov 1814, Genève, Confoederatio Helvetica Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 70 years)
    +3. James Archibald Stuart-Wortley,   b. 19 Sep 1747, Wortley, Yorks, England Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 1 Mar 1818 (Age 70 years)
     4. Charles Stuart   d. Yes, date unknown
     5. Jane Stuart   d. 28 Feb 1828
     6. Anne Stuart   d. Yes, date unknown
    +7. Caroline Stuart,   b. May 1750   d. 20 Jan 1813 (Age 62 years)
    +8. Archbishop William Crichton-Stuart,   b. Mar 1755   d. 6 Mar 1822 (Age 67 years)
    Family ID F46966  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
    Last Modified 29 Aug 2000 

  • Event Map Click to hide
    Link to Google MapsBirth - 25 May 1713 - Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland Link to Google Earth
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    Pin Legend  : Address       : Location       : City/Town       : County/Shire       : State/Province       : Country       : Not Set

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  • Notes 
    • 3rd Earl of Bute, eldest son and 2nd child
      Prime minister 1762-63
      Bute became prime minister two years after George III accession to the throne in 1760. Bute had been his tutor and friend prior to becoming king and as such had encouraged him to exercise his royal powers when he did so. The King was advised by Bute and wanted him as prime minister, but William Pitt was a better wartime leader and the Seven Years' War was on at the time. When Pitt resigned in 1761, followed by Newcastle in 1762, Bute found himself prime minister but a very unpopular one.
      The public did not want a Scot as prime minister and while Bute is credited with ending British involvement in the Seven Years' War, the peace he negotiated fell far short of terms Pitt and the public expected. The Treaty was passed in Parliament only by votes openly bought by Henry Fox acting on Bute's behalf. Once passed, Bute proceeded to systematically eliminate from government all Newcastle supporters and those who failed to back him in Parliament. Devonshire resigned as Lord Chamberlain followed by others.
      Bute was attacked in the Press and in Parliament. He resigned his ministry in April, 1763. His influence on the king ended shortly thereafter.
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      Not all Scottish Peers were entitled to a seat in the House of Lords so they elected sixteen of their number to represent them. Bute was elected as one of the Scottish Peers in April 1736, May 1761, April 1768 and November 1774. Between 1741 and 1761 he did not sit in the House of Lords. Bute was the first Scottish born British Prime Minister and the first Tory to be PM after the Glorious Revolution. Along with a number of other
      prominent politicians of the day, such as the Earl of Sandwich and John Wilkes, Bute was a member of Sir Francis Dashwood's "Hell Fire Club".
      Bute was educated at Eton and the University of Leiden in the Netherlands, where he was awarded a Degree in civil and public law. He did not undertake the Grand Tour as most of his contemporaries did. Bute was tall, slim and was deemed to be very handsome. He was renowned for his "fine pair of legs", of which he was very vain. He was passionately interested in botany and studied the subject extensively, along with making studies of agriculture and architecture. Prior to his marriage, he was not wealthy and his father-in-law (who was a miser) unsuccessfully attempted to prevent the marriage. Bute acquired all his wife's wealth upon his marriage, in accordance with the law at that time.
      In 1747 Bute was introduced to Frederick, Prince of Wales whilst attending Egham races. Bute was asked to make up a foursome at cards; this saw the start of a friendship with the Prince of Wales that laid the foundations of Bute's future personal and political career. In 1751 the Prince of Wales died and the dowager Princess Augusta began to rely heavily on the advice of Bute, to the point where rumours abounded that the two were more than just "friends".
      In 1754, Bute bought a house on Kew Green in London and built an extension to accommodate his botanical library. The house had a private gate into the grounds of Kew Palace where he helped Princess Augusta to create Kew Gardens. The following year, Bute was appointed "finishing tutor" to Prince George, the future George III. In 1756, Bute was appointed Groom of the Stole in Prince George's household. On the accession of George III in 1760, Bute became a Privy Counsellor and the following year he was made Secretary of State for the Northern Department . In May 1762 he became Prime Minister and in December of that year began the "Massacre of the Pelhamite Innocents" in which the Dukes of Newcastle and Grafton and the Marquis of Rockingham were dismissed from their Lord Lieutenancies. In April 1763, Bute resigned as PM, on the grounds that he had always said he would stay in office until peace was achieved. He was relieved to give up public office because he had not had the support of his colleagues, he was extremely unpopular with the public and was greatly disliked in parliament.
      Bute bought the Luton Hoo estate in Bedfordshire in 1763 and went to live there towards the end of that year although he continued to sit in the House of Lords. However, ill health caused him to travel in Europe between 1768 and 1771. In 1773 he bought land near Christchurch in Hampshire and built Highcliffe House, overlooking the sea. In 1780, he retired from parliament because of his age - he was 67. In November 1790 he slipped and fell about 30 feet down the cliffs at Highcliffe whilst collecting plants. This fall is thought to have contributed to his death.



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