Robert Peel
1788 – 1850 · aged 62
Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1788–1850)
- Born
- 5 Feb 1788 · Ramsbottom
- Died
- 2 Jul 1850 · Westminster
Life timeline
Their life from birth to death. On the timeline, world events of the time are shown faintly.
- 5 Feb 1788BornBorn in Ramsbottom
- 1809 – 1812RoleMember of the 4th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1812 – 1817RoleMember of the 5th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1817 – 1818RoleMember of the 5th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1818 – 1820RoleMember of the 6th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1820 – 1826RoleMember of the 7th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1822 – 1827RoleHome Secretary
- 1826 – 1829RoleMember of the 8th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1827 – 1828RoleLeader of the Opposition
- 1828 – 1830RoleHome Secretary
- 1828 – 1830RoleLeader of the House of Commons
- 1829 – 1830RoleMember of the 8th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1830 – 1831RoleMember of the 9th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1830 – 1834RoleLeader of the Opposition
- 1831 – 1832RoleMember of the 10th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1832 – 1834RoleMember of the 11th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1834 – 1835RoleLeader of the House of Commons
- 1834 – 1835RolePrime Minister of the United Kingdom
- 1834 – 1835RoleChancellor of the Exchequer
- 1835 – 1837RoleMember of the 12th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1835 – 1841RoleLeader of the Opposition
- 1837 – 1841RoleMember of the 13th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1841 – 1847RoleMember of the 14th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 1841 – 1846RoleLeader of the House of Commons
- 1841 – 1846RolePrime Minister of the United Kingdom
- 1847 – 1850RoleMember of the 15th Parliament of the United Kingdom
- 2 Jul 1850DiedDied in Westminster
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Meanwhile in the world
Major world events during their lifetime (1788 – 1850).
- 1789 – 1799French Revolution
- 1812 – 1815War of 1812
- 1814 – 1815Congress of Vienna
Biography
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850), was a British Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835, 1841–1846), Chancellor of the Exchequer (1834–1835), and Home Secretary (1822–1827, 1828–1830). He is regarded as the father of modern British policing, owing to his founding of the Metropolitan Police while he was Home Secretary. Peel was one of the founders of the modern Conservative Party.
The son of a wealthy textile manufacturer and politician, Peel was the first prime minister from an industrial business background. He earned a double first in classics and mathematics from Christ Church, Oxford. He entered the House of Commons in 1809 and became a rising star in the Tory Party. Peel entered the Cabinet as Home Secretary (1822–1827), in which post he reformed and liberalised the criminal law and created the modern police force, leading to a new type of officer known in tribute to him as "bobbies" and "peelers". After a brief period out of office he returned as Home Secretary under his political mentor the Duke of Wellington (1828–1830), also serving as Leader of the House of Commons. Initially a supporter of continued legal discrimination against Catholics, Peel reversed his stance and supported the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 and the 1828 repeal of the Test Act, writing, "though emancipation was a great danger, civil strife was a greater danger".
Text from the Wikipedia article Robert Peel, CC BY-SA 4.0
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