Lord Grey, 1764-1845

This is the only authoritative modern biography of Charles, second Earl Grey. Grey was a leading figure in the Whig party from the 1780s to the 1830s, and is best known as the Prime Minister who passed the Great Reform Act of 1832. As Prime Minister from 1830 to 1834, Grey saw it as his mission and duty to restore public confidence in the traditional institutions of British government, rather than to promote the cause of radical reform, which he in fact detested. The biography shows that Grey was responsible for guiding the country through a period of threatened revolution and maintaining the continuity of its political institutions.

Based on an extensive range of historical sources, some hitherto unpublished, this study re-evaluates Grey's career and achievements in the light of modern scholarship, and provides a unique insight into his complex and troubled personality. It will be indispensable to anyone interested in the history of this period, and in the development of modern politics.