Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey (13 March 1764 – 17 July 1845) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 22 November 1830 to 16 July 1834, succeeding the Duke of Wellington and preceding William Lamb.
Biography[]
Charles Grey was born in Fallodon, Northumberland, England on 13 March 1764, the second son of General Charles Grey. In 1786, he was elected to the British Parliament for Northumberland, and he became a prominent leader of the Whigs. Grey supported parliamentary reform and Catholic emancipation; in 1806, he became the leader of the Whigs after the death of Charles James Fox. In 1807, he was elevated to the House of Lords after his father's death, and there were several times during the Napoleonic Wars that he came close to joining the government. In 1826, believing that the Whigs no longer paid attention to his opinions, Charles Grey stepped down as leader, but he became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom when the Whigs returned to power in 1830. During his government, Grey oversaw the passage of the Slavery Abolition Act 1833, as well as the reform of the House of Commons. He was forced to resign due to intraparty conflict over taking church tithes from Irish Protestant churches and giving them to the Catholic churches. He retired from public life, and he died in 1845 at the age of 81.
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