Quick Facts
- Spencer Compton, Earl of Wilmington: Prime Minister No.2
- Life: 1674 (DoB unknown) – 2 July, 1743
- Administration: 16 February, 1742 – 2 July, 1743
- Age in office: 67/8 – 68/9
- Duration of administration: 1 year + 137 days
- Political faction: Whig
- Predecessor: Sir Robert Walpole
- Successor: Henry Pelham
The Bare Essentials: Earl of Wilmington
- Forgettable: Earl of Wilmington became ‘Prime Minister’ aged 68. There was an expectation he could have taken over from Walpole years earlier, but Walpole was such a powerful political operator that never happened until 1742. Wilmington’s administration lasted 1 year and 137 days, but he was a PM in name only…in the background was the ‘old hand’ John Carteret.
- How he got the job: Appointed First Lord of the Treasury in January 1742, succeeding Walpole as an ageing compromise candidate acceptable to George II — real power lay elsewhere, with John Carteret.
- Carteret Ministry: This period of Government (1742-1743) is often referred to as the Carteret Ministry, because the power behind the administration was held by the 52-year-old John Carteret (later 2nd Earl Granville), secretary of state for the Northern Department. Carteret excelled in foreign affairs and that carried a lot of clout at this point in the century. It would be down to Wilmington’s successor, Henry Pelham, to eventually oust Carteret and fully claim power. It feels like Walpole handed over to Carteret and Wilmington merely papered over the cracks.
- How he left office: Wilmington died while in office (aged around 70) on 2 July 1743 – probably from overwork (he may have been overshadowed, but not through want of effort. He worked himself to a frazzle). He was the first of three Eighteenth century PMs to die in office. He was followed by his successor, Henry Pelham (1754) and then the Marquess of Rockingham (1766). (William Pitt the Younger died in office in 1806, though the bulk of his nearly 19 years as ‘Prime Minister’ was in the Eighteenth century).
- City namesakes: Three US cities are named after Wilmington in Vermont, Delaware and North Carolina.
Sources for information about the Earl of Wilmington
The Prime Ministers, Iain Dale (2020) (Wilmington article by Robin Eagles)
The Impossible Office, Anthony Seldon (2021)
UK Government – Earl of Wilmington
Wikipedia: Earl of Wilmington
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