United Kingdom general election of 1818
- When
- 1818
- Where
- United Kingdom; Parliament
- Episodes
- 2
The 1818 United Kingdom general election, held between June and July, resulted in the Tory party retaining a majority in the House of Commons. Led by Prime Minister Robert Jenkinson, the Earl of Liverpool, the government maintained control despite gaining fewer seats than the Whigs. The election followed the dissolution of the fifth Parliament, with the new assembly summoned to meet in August 1818.
Episodes
- 1818 General Election
The election was held from 17 June to 18 July 1818, resulting in a Tory majority of around 90 seats.
- Parliament Summoned
The new Parliament was summoned to meet on 4 August 1818 for a maximum seven-year term.
Background and detail
Background. The election occurred after the dissolution of the fifth Parliament on 10 June 1818. The Tory party, led by Prime Minister Robert Jenkinson, had been in power since 1812. The Whig opposition suffered from weak leadership, particularly in the House of Commons, following the retirement of Lord Grenville in 1817. The election was conducted over several weeks, concluding in July.
Outcome. The Tories retained a majority of approximately 90 seats, though the Whigs gained a few seats. The new Parliament was summoned to meet on 4 August 1818. This assembly lasted only about a year and a half before being dissolved due to the death of King George III in January 1820.
Leadership. Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool, served as Prime Minister and Tory leader. Viscount Castlereagh served as the Tory Leader of the House of Commons. The Whig opposition lacked a strong leader after the death of George Ponsonby in 1817, leaving Earl Grey as a potential figure had the Whigs won.
People involved
- Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool · Prime Minister and Tory Leader
- Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh · Tory Leader of the House of Commons
- George Ponsonby · Leader of the Opposition in the House of Commons (until his death in 1817)
- Earl Grey · Likely would have been invited to form a government had the Whigs come to power, though in this era the monarch rather than the governing party decided who would be prime minister
Sources
- 1818 United Kingdom general election Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-09
- Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-07
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.