Chatham, William Pitt, 1st earl of: Early Life

A member of a family whose wealth had been made in India, he entered Parliament in 1735. With his older brother he became a member of a group known as “Cobham's cubs” (after their leader Lord Cobham) or the “boy patriots,” who opposed the ministry of Sir Robert Walpole, particularly its foreign policy, and supported Frederick Louis, prince of Wales, in his quarrel with King George II. After the fall (1742) of Walpole, Pitt was the leading critic of Lord Carteret (later earl of Granville) in his conduct of the War of the Austrian Succession.

Sections in this article:

• Introduction
• Years in Government
• Early Life
• Bibliography

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

See more Encyclopedia articles on: British and Irish History: Biographies