Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey

The Right Honourable The Earl Grey KG PC
Portrait by Thomas Phillips, c. 1820
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
In office 22 November 1830 – 9 July 1834
Monarch	William IV
Preceded by	The Duke of Wellington
Succeeded by	The Viscount Melbourne
Leader of the House of Lords
In office 22 November 1830 – 9 July 1834
Preceded by	The Duke of Wellington
Succeeded by	The Viscount Melbourne
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
In office 24 September 1806 – 25 March 1807
Preceded by	Charles James Fox
Succeeded by	George Canning
Leader of the House of Commons
In office 24 September 1806 – 31 March 1807
Preceded by	Charles James Fox
Succeeded by	Spencer Perceval
First Lord of the Admiralty
In office 11 February 1806 – 24 September 1806
Preceded by	The Lord Barham
Succeeded by	Thomas Grenville
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
Hereditary peerage 15 November 1807 – 17 July 1845
Preceded by	The 1st Earl Grey
Succeeded by	The 3rd Earl Grey
Member of Parliament for Northumberland
In office 14 September 1786 – 14 November 1807
Preceded by	Lord Algernon Percy
Succeeded by	Earl Percy
Personal details
Born	(1764-03-13)13 March 1764 Fallodon, Northumberland, England
Died	17 July 1845(1845-07-17) (aged 81) Howick, Northumberland, England
Political party	Whig
Spouse	Mary Ponsonby ​ (m. 1794)​
Children	16, including Henry, Charles, Frederick, and Eliza Courtney (illegitimate)
Parent	Charles Grey, 1st Earl Grey (father)
Relatives	House of Grey (family)
Alma mater	Trinity College, Cambridge
Signature

Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey KG PC (13 March 1764 – 17 July 1845), known as Viscount Howick between 1806 and 1807, was a British Whig politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1830 to 1834. He was a descendant of the House of Grey and the namesake of Earl Grey tea.^[1] Grey was a long-time leader of multiple reform movements. During his time as prime minister, his government brought about two notable reforms. The Reform Act 1832 enacted parliamentary reform, greatly increasing the electorate of the House of Commons.^[2]

The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 led to the abolition of slavery in most of the British Empire via a programme of compensated emancipation. Grey was a strong opponent of the foreign and domestic policies of William Pitt the Younger in the 1790s. In 1807, he resigned as foreign secretary to protest against George III's uncompromising rejection of Catholic emancipation. Grey finally resigned as prime minister in 1834 over disagreements in his cabinet regarding Ireland, and retired from politics. Scholars rank him highly among British prime ministers, believing that he averted much civil strife and enabled Victorian progress.^[2]