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The Marquess of Downshire | |
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First Lord of Trade | |
In office 9 September 1763 – 20 July 1765 | |
Monarch | George III |
Prime Minister | George Grenville |
Preceded by | The Earl of Shelburne |
Succeeded by | The Earl of Dartmouth |
In office 16 August – December 1766 | |
Monarch | George III |
Prime Minister | The Earl of Chatham |
Preceded by | The Earl of Dartmouth |
Succeeded by | The Viscount Clare |
In office 20 January 1768 – 31 August 1772 | |
Monarch | George III |
Prime Minister | The Earl of Chatham The Duke of Grafton Lord North |
Preceded by | The Viscount Clare |
Succeeded by | The Earl of Dartmouth |
Secretary of State for the Colonies | |
In office 27 February 1768 – 27 August 1772 | |
Monarch | George III |
Prime Minister | The Earl of Chatham The Duke of Grafton Lord North |
Preceded by | New office |
Succeeded by | The Earl of Dartmouth |
Secretary of State for the Southern Department | |
In office 24 November 1779 – 27 March 1782 | |
Monarch | George III |
Prime Minister | Lord North |
Preceded by | The Viscount Weymouth |
Succeeded by | Office abolished |
Personal details | |
Born | Fairford, Gloucestershire | 30 May 1718
Died | 7 October 1793 | (aged 75)
Nationality | British |
Spouse(s) | (1) Lady Margaretta FitzGerald (d. 1766) (2) Mary Stawell (1726–1780) |
Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire, PC (30 May 1718 – 7 October 1793), known as the 2nd Viscount Hillsborough from 1742 to 1751 and as the 1st Earl of Hillsborough from 1751 to 1789, was a British politician of the Georgian era.
Best known in North America as the Earl of Hillsborough, he served as Secretary of State for the Colonies from 1768 to 1772, a critical period leading toward the American War of Independence.