Who is now the Prime Minister of England (UK)? List of Prime Ministers of England (UK)

As is known, in the form of government, the United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy. However, the constitution as such does not exist in this country, and many subtleties of state management are determined by centuries-old traditions. And although today the head of the UK is a monarch, the country is actually led by the prime minister. Of course, the queen has almost absolute power, but other people rule the state. About where the prime minister of England lives, what he is responsible for and what powers he has, and also a little about the most prominent politicians who held this post, - later in this article.

The post of prime minister

By tradition, the Prime Minister is elected by the monarch. This is usually a person who enjoys the highest support of the House of Commons. In most cases, he becomes the leader of the majority party. The term of office of the first minister is closely related to the period of work of the House of Commons, with the support of which he was elected. The Prime Minister has great power, oversees the work of the government, in short, he is the chief representative and adviser to the monarch.

It is interesting that the house in Downing Street, 10 in the British capital - London, was originally a personal gift of King Robert Walpole - the first prime minister of England. However, he refused such a presentation. We agreed that the premises will become the residence of the first ministers of the country, and since then most of the politicians who hold this post live at this address.

Prime Ministers of England, whose list is quite large, since this post since its introduction in 1721 was occupied by 53 people, consisted of different parties and carried out various policies. Each of them had a different degree of influence and in his own way was remembered by people. Below is a brief summary of the most important figures who have left the greatest traces in history.

Robert Walpole (1676-1745)

Robert Walpole began his political career as a member of the House of Commons, then he was 25 years old. Under King George III, in 1721, he was appointed chief minister and part-time administrator of the state treasury. Since then, in Britain, it has become customary to appoint a person to this responsible post who was at the head of the Cabinet.

Robert Walpole, the first Prime Minister of England, held this post longer than any of his successors - he was in charge of the government for 21 years.

William Pitt the Younger (1759-1806)

He served as first minister twice: from 1783 to 1801 and from 1804 to 1806. William Pitt the Younger is England's youngest prime minister, as he was only 24 when he was appointed this position for the first time. However, the extreme nervous tension that he had to experience while at the helm of the state, significantly spoiled his health, why the figure died relatively young.

The years of William Pete the Younger's rule for the United Kingdom were difficult, because at that time the country lost control of its colonies in North America, which had a negative impact on the economy. In addition, it was necessary to somehow react to the French revolution and develop a strategy for war with Napoleon. Pitt not only initiated the creation of three anti-Napoleonic coalitions, but also contributed to the preservation of Ireland as part of England.

Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881)

He held a post in 1868 and in 1874-1880. This politician, who in his youth published several novels that attracted a lot of public attention, showed himself as a politician who, equally with the tasks of the state level, was interested in the problems of ordinary people. Disraeli achieved the adoption of a law according to which men who worked in the cities were able to take part in elections. He also worked to improve the health of urban settlements and living conditions of workers.

In foreign policy Benjamin Disraeli also achieved considerable success: with him, Queen Victoria was given the title of Empress of India, and Britain gained control over the Suez Canal. The former prime minister of England was a good speaker, a very witty person, and his sense of humor was told that he did not leave him even in the last moments of his life.

Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

Winston Churchill, whose ancestor is the legendary John Churchill, the first Duke of Marlborough, became known throughout the world for his wise management of Britain during the Second World War. However, the history of his life is full of bright episodes. As a child, the future politician was a wayward child, which subsequently prevented him from getting a full-fledged education. Thus, he decided to do military work.

In 1899, the future prime minister of England resigned and took up politics, and a year later was elected to parliament. Initially, Churchill adhered to conservative views, but in 1904 he moved to the liberal party, but not forever - in 1924 he again returned to the ranks of the Conservatives. In 1939, the then first Minister of Britain Neville Chamberlain appointed Churchill the head of the Admiralty, but the following year, King George VI invited him to take over the leadership of the government.

During the war, Winston Churchill had a tough stance towards Hitlerite Germany, while many other politicians allowed for agreements with the aggressor. He made a significant contribution to the victory of Great Britain in the Second World War and left the post of the first minister after its termination, and then was elected for a second term in 1951-1955.

Margaret Thatcher (1925-2013)

Margaret Thatcher, who was born in the family of the owner of two grocers, a chemist by training, began to be interested in politics from a student's bench. After working for two years in her specialty, she took up politics in 1948, and before she had the honor of heading the British government, she happened to visit both the Minister of Education and Science and the leader of the Conservative Party.

Since 1979, the new Prime Minister of England - a woman with a strong-willed character, which later for her harsh criticism of the Soviet Union was nicknamed "Iron Lady". However, these qualities helped her to hold on as the first minister of the government for 11 years. Sometimes she had to carry out not very popular reforms, which nevertheless gave good results.

Under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, the conservative party won more than one victory, and the "Iron Lady" herself was elected to the post of prime minister three times, thereby breaking the record for the duration of the office of Count Liverpool, who led the English government from 1812 to 1827.

David Cameron (born 1966)

Today, the first Minister of the United Kingdom is David Cameron, who has held this post since 2010. Since 2005 he is the head of the Conservative Party. After graduating from Oxford University, where he studied economics, politics and philosophy, Cameron received a red diploma. His political activities began in 1988 with work in the research department of the Conservative Party of Great Britain. Cameron for a while was an adviser to the Minister of Finance, worked in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and even was a board member of a major media company. In 1997, he participated in the elections, but was elected only in 2001.

Prime Minister of England David Cameron adheres to the position according to which the integration of the country with the European Union should not be expanded, and during the war in Georgia in 2008 he proposed to introduce visa restrictions against Russia and temporarily exclude it from the Group of Eight.

Conclusion

Despite all the specificity of British laws, many of which exist exclusively in the form of traditions and are often conditional, the principles of electing and removing the head of government and other nuances, the system of government in the country works quite effectively and it can even be called democratic. And the Prime Minister of England (Great Britain) in this structure is the second person after the monarch.