Who? Who? ministry

Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby led the "Who? Who?" ministry, a short-lived British Conservative government which was in power for a matter of months in 1852. Lord Derby was Prime Minister and Benjamin Disraeli served as Chancellor of the Exchequer. It marked the first time the protectionist wing of the Conservative Party had taken office since the Corn Laws schism of 1846. It is also called the First Derby–Disraeli ministry.[1]

Lord Derby

Early in 1852 Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, by then very deaf, gave Derby's first government its nickname by shouting "Who? Who?" as the list of inexperienced Cabinet Ministers was read out in the House of Lords.[2][3]

History
Former Prime Minister Wellington (pictured in 1844) gave the ministry its name in shouting "Who? Who?" as each new cabinet member was announced in the House of Lords. He died two months before the ministry collapsed.
See also: 1852 vote of no confidence in the government of Lord Derby

After the fall of Lord John Russell's Whig government in early 1852, the Conservative leader Lord Derby formed a government. The Conservatives had been weakened by the defection of the Peelites, and many of the new Cabinet ministers were men of little experience. The government became known as the "Who? Who?" Ministry after Wellington's comments, due to the lack of prominence of its ministers. The government was in a significant minority, and lasted less than a year, collapsing in December. The Whigs and Peelites then formed a coalition government under the Peelite leader Lord Aberdeen.

Though the government had little impact, it attracted derision through its plethora of new political names, which demonstrated the relative inexperience of the party. Only four members of the Cabinet (Derby himself, St Leonards, Lonsdale, and Herries) were existing Privy Councillors and many others were complete political unknowns.

Cabinet

February 1852 – December 1852
OfficeNameTerm
First Lord of the Treasury
Leader of the House of Lords		The Earl of DerbyFebruary–December 1852
Lord ChancellorThe Lord St LeonardsFebruary–December 1852
Lord President of the CouncilThe Earl of LonsdaleFebruary–December 1852
Lord Privy SealThe Marquess of SalisburyFebruary–December 1852
Home SecretarySpencer H. WalpoleFebruary–December 1852
Foreign SecretaryThe Earl of MalmesburyFebruary–December 1852
Secretary of State for War and the ColoniesSir John Pakington, BtFebruary–December 1852
First Lord of the AdmiraltyThe Duke of NorthumberlandFebruary–December 1852
President of the Board of ControlJ.C. HerriesFebruary–December 1852
Chancellor of the Exchequer
Leader of the House of Commons		Benjamin DisraeliFebruary–December 1852
President of the Board of TradeJ.W. HenleyFebruary–December 1852
First Commissioner of WorksLord John MannersFebruary–December 1852
Postmaster-GeneralThe Earl of HardwickeFebruary–December 1852

List of ministers

Cabinet members are listed in bold face.

OfficeNameDateNotes
Prime Minister,
First Lord of the Treasury
and Leader of the House of Lords		The Earl of Derby23 February 1852 – 17 December 1852 
Chancellor of the Exchequer
and Leader of the House of Commons		Benjamin Disraeli27 February 1852 
Parliamentary Secretary to the TreasuryWilliam Forbes Mackenzie2 March 1852 
Financial Secretary to the TreasuryGeorge Alexander Hamilton2 March 1852 
Junior Lords of the TreasuryMarquess of Chandos28 February 1852 – 17 December 1852 
Lord Henry Lennox28 February 1852 – 17 December 1852
Thomas Bateson28 February 1852 – 17 December 1852
Lord ChancellorThe Lord St Leonards27 February 1852 
Lord President of the CouncilThe Earl of Lonsdale27 February 1852 
Lord Privy SealThe Marquess of Salisbury27 February 1852 
Secretary of State for the Home DepartmentSpencer Horatio Walpole27 February 1852 
Under-Secretary of State for the Home DepartmentSir William Joliffe, Bt27 February 1852 
Secretary of State for Foreign AffairsThe Earl of Malmesbury27 February 1852 
Under-Secretary of State for Foreign AffairsLord Stanley18 May 1852 
Secretary of State for War and the ColoniesSir John Pakington, Bt17 February 1852 
Under-Secretary of State for War and the ColoniesThe Earl of Desart2 March 1852 
First Lord of the AdmiraltyThe Duke of Northumberland28 February 1852 
First Secretary of the AdmiraltyAugustus Stafford3 March 1852 
Civil Lord of the AdmiraltyArthur Duncombe28 February 1852 
President of the Board of ControlJ. C. Herries28 February 1852 
Joint Secretaries to the Board of ControlHenry Baillie1 March 1852 – 17 December 1852 
Charles Bruce1 March 1852 – 17 December 1852
Postmaster-GeneralThe Earl of Hardwicke1 March 1852 
President of the Board of TradeJ. W. Henley17 February 1852 
Vice-President of the Board of TradeThe Lord Colchester27 February 1852 
First Commissioner of WorksLord John Manners4 March 1852 
Chief Secretary for IrelandLord Naas1 March 1852 
Lord Lieutenant of IrelandThe Earl of Eglinton1 March 1852 
Chancellor of the Duchy of LancasterRobert Adam Christopher1 March 1852 
Master-General of the OrdnanceThe Viscount Hardinge1 March 1852 
Lord Fitzroy Somerset30 September 1852created Lord Raglan 20 October 1852
Surveyor-General of the OrdnanceSir George Berkeley18 June 1852 
Clerk of the OrdnanceFrancis Plunkett Dunne5 March 1852 
Storekeeper of the OrdnanceSir Thomas Hastings25 July 1845continued in office
Paymaster GeneralThe Lord Colchester28 February 1852 
President of the Poor Law BoardSir John Trollope, Bt1 March 1852 
Parliamentary Secretary to the Poor Law BoardFrederick Knight3 March 1852 
Secretary at WarWilliam Beresford28 February 1852 
Attorney GeneralSir Frederic Thesiger27 February 1852 
Solicitor GeneralSir Fitzroy Kelly27 February 1852 
Judge Advocate GeneralGeorge Bankes28 February 1852 
Lord AdvocateAdam Anderson28 February 1852 
John Inglis19 May 1852
Solicitor General for ScotlandJohn Inglis28 February 1852 
Charles Neaves24 May 1852
Attorney General for IrelandJoseph NapierFebruary 1852 
Solicitor General for IrelandJames WhitesideFebruary 1852 
Lord Steward of the HouseholdThe Duke of Montrose27 February 1852 
Lord Chamberlain of the HouseholdThe Marquess of Exeter27 February 1852 
Vice-Chamberlain of the HouseholdViscount Newport5 March 1852 
Master of the HorseThe Earl of Jersey1 March 1852 
Treasurer of the HouseholdLord Claud Hamilton27 February 1852 
Comptroller of the HouseholdGeorge Weld-Forester27 February 1852 
Captain of the Gentlemen-at-ArmsThe Earl of Sandwich27 February 1852 
Captain of the Yeomen of the GuardThe Lord de Ros27 February 1852 
Master of the BuckhoundsThe Earl of Rosslyn28 February 1852 
Chief Equerry and Clerk MarshalThe Lord Colville of Culross28 February 1852 
Mistress of the RobesThe Duchess of Atholl16 March 1852 
Lords in WaitingThe Earl of Morton2 March 1852 – 17 December 1852 
The Earl of Verulam2 March 1852 – 17 December 1852
The Viscount Hawarden2 March 1852 – 17 December 1852
The Viscount Galway2 March 1852 – 17 December 1852
The Lord Crofton2 March 1852 – 17 December 1852
The Lord Polwarth2 March 1852 – 17 December 1852
The Earl Talbot2 March 1852 – 17 December 1852

References
  1. Tout, T. F. (1910). An advanced history of Great Britain from the earliest times to the death of Edward VII. New York: Longmans, Green. pp. 740-741. OL 13991885M.
  2. Bloy, Marjorie (2011). "Biography-Edward George Geoffrey Smith Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby (1799–1869)". A Web of English History. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 6 April 2011.
  3. "A Web of English History". Retrieved 4 June 2011.

Bibliography
  • C. Cook and B. Keith, British Historical Facts 1830–1900
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