There are 59 individuals who have become the prime minister of the United Kingdom in 80 separate terms since 1721. In this article, we will look at the complete list of Prime Ministers of Britain since 1721 till 2026. For the convenience of the reader, the terms are divided into three sections.
Kingdom of Great Britain (1721 to 1800)
Robert Walpole is the first person conventionally recognised as Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Great Britain.
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Sl.no
|
Name
|
Party
|
Term
|
|
1
|
Robert Walpole
|
Whig
|
1721-1742
|
|
2
|
Spencer Compton, Earl of Wilmington
|
Whig
|
1742-1743
|
|
3
|
Henry Pelham
|
Whig
|
1743-1754
|
|
4
|
Duke of Newcastle (1st term)
|
Whig
|
1754-1756
|
|
5
|
Duke of Devonshire
|
Whig
|
1756-1757
|
|
6
|
Duke of Newcastle (2nd term)
|
Whig
|
1757-1762
|
|
7
|
Earl of Bute
|
Tory
|
1762-1763
|
|
8
|
George Grenville
|
Whig
|
1763-1765
|
|
9
|
Marquess of Rockingham (1st term)
|
Whig
|
1765-1766
|
|
10
|
William Pitt the Elder, Earl of Chatham
|
Whig
|
1766-1768
|
|
11
|
Duke of Grafton
|
Whig
|
1768-1770
|
|
12
|
Lord North
|
Tory
|
1770-1782
|
|
13
|
Marquess of Rockingham (2nd term)
|
Whig
|
1782
|
|
14
|
Earl of Shelburne
|
Whig
|
1782-1783
|
|
15
|
Duke of Portland (1st term)
|
Whig
|
1783
|
|
16
|
William Pitt the Younger (1st term)
|
Tory
|
1783-1801
|
Note: The Marquess of Rockingham died in office during his second term in July 1782.
Did You Know: Spencer Perceval is the only UK Prime Minister to be assassinated; he was shot in the House of Commons lobby in 1812.
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801 to 1921)
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was created on 1 January 1801. William Pitt the Younger was the first Prime Minister of this new state.
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Sl.no
|
Name
|
Party
|
Term
|
|
17
|
Henry Addington
|
Tory
|
1801-1804
|
|
18
|
William Pitt the Younger (2nd term)
|
Tory
|
1804-1806
|
|
19
|
Lord Grenville
|
Whig
|
1806-1807
|
|
20
|
Duke of Portland (2nd term)
|
Tory
|
1807-1809
|
|
21
|
Spencer Perceval
|
Tory
|
1809-1812
|
|
22
|
Earl of Liverpool
|
Tory
|
1812-1827
|
|
23
|
George Canning
|
Tory
|
1827
|
|
24
|
Viscount Goderich
|
Tory
|
1827-1828
|
|
25
|
Duke of Wellington
|
Tory
|
1828-1830
|
|
26
|
Earl Grey
|
Whig
|
1830-1834
|
|
27
|
Viscount Melbourne (1st term)
|
Whig
|
1834
|
|
28
|
Sir Robert Peel (1st term)
|
Conservative
|
1834-1835
|
|
29
|
Viscount Melbourne (2nd term)
|
Whig
|
1835-1841
|
|
30
|
Sir Robert Peel (2nd term)
|
Conservative
|
1841-1846
|
|
31
|
Lord John Russell (1st term)
|
Whig
|
1846-1852
|
|
32
|
Earl of Derby (1st term)
|
Conservative
|
1852
|
|
33
|
Earl of Aberdeen
|
Peelite
|
1852-1855
|
|
34
|
Viscount Palmerston (1st term)
|
Liberal
|
1855-1858
|
|
35
|
Earl of Derby (2nd term)
|
Conservative
|
1858-1859
|
|
36
|
Viscount Palmerston (2nd term)
|
Liberal
|
1859-1865
|
|
37
|
Earl Russell (2nd term)
|
Liberal
|
1865-1866
|
|
38
|
Earl of Derby (3rd term)
|
Conservative
|
1866-1868
|
|
39
|
Benjamin Disraeli (1st term)
|
Conservative
|
1868
|
|
40
|
W.E. Gladstone (1st term)
|
Liberal
|
1868-1874
|
|
41
|
Benjamin Disraeli (2nd term)
|
Conservative
|
1874-1880
|
|
42
|
W.E. Gladstone (2nd term)
|
Liberal
|
1880-1885
|
|
43
|
Marquess of Salisbury (1st term)
|
Conservative
|
1885-1886
|
|
44
|
W.E. Gladstone (3rd term)
|
Liberal
|
1886
|
|
45
|
Marquess of Salisbury (2nd term)
|
Conservative
|
1886-1892
|
|
46
|
W.E. Gladstone (4th term)
|
Liberal
|
1892-1894
|
|
47
|
Earl of Rosebery
|
Liberal
|
1894-1895
|
|
48
|
Marquess of Salisbury (3rd term)
|
Conservative
|
1895-1902
|
|
49
|
Arthur Balfour
|
Conservative
|
1902-1905
|
|
50
|
Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman
|
Liberal
|
1905-1908
|
|
51
|
H.H. Asquith
|
Liberal
|
1908-1916
|
|
52
|
David Lloyd George
|
Liberal
|
1916-1922
|
Trivia Time: Benjamin Disraeli was the first PM to officially use the title "Prime Minister" in an official document, signing the Treaty of Berlin in 1878.
Did You Know: W.E. Gladstone served as UK Prime Minister four times (1868-74, 1880-85, 1886, and 1892-94)
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland or UK (1922 to 2026)
In 1922, 26 Irish Counties left the alliance to form the Irish Free State, the country was renamed. Andrew Bonar Law became the first PM of the modern United Kingdom.
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Sl.no
|
Name
|
Party
|
Term
|
|
53
|
Andrew Bonar Law
|
Conservative
|
1922-1923
|
|
54
|
Stanley Baldwin (1st term)
|
Conservative
|
1923-1924
|
|
55
|
Ramsay MacDonald (1st term)
|
Labour
|
1924
|
|
56
|
Stanley Baldwin (2nd term)
|
Conservative
|
1924-1929
|
|
57
|
Ramsay MacDonald (2nd term)
|
Labour / Nat. Labour
|
1929-1935
|
|
58
|
Stanley Baldwin (3rd term)
|
Conservative
|
1935-1937
|
|
59
|
Neville Chamberlain
|
Conservative
|
1937-1940
|
|
60
|
Winston Churchill (1st term)
|
Conservative / Coalition
|
1940-1945
|
|
61
|
Clement Attlee
|
Labour
|
1945-1951
|
|
62
|
Winston Churchill (2nd term)
|
Conservative
|
1951-1955
|
|
63
|
Anthony Eden
|
Conservative
|
1955-1957
|
|
64
|
Harold Macmillan
|
Conservative
|
1957-1963
|
|
65
|
Alec Douglas-Home
|
Conservative
|
1963-1964
|
|
66
|
Harold Wilson (1st term)
|
Labour
|
1964-1970
|
|
67
|
Edward Heath
|
Conservative
|
1970-1974
|
|
68
|
Harold Wilson (2nd term)
|
Labour
|
1974-1976
|
|
69
|
James Callaghan
|
Labour
|
1976-1979
|
|
70
|
Margaret Thatcher
|
Conservative
|
1979-1990
|
|
71
|
John Major
|
Conservative
|
1990-1997
|
|
72
|
Tony Blair
|
Labour
|
1997-2007
|
|
73
|
Gordon Brown
|
Labour
|
2007-2010
|
|
74
|
David Cameron
|
Conservative
|
2010-2016
|
|
75
|
Theresa May
|
Conservative
|
2016-2019
|
|
76
|
Boris Johnson
|
Conservative
|
2019-2022
|
|
77
|
Liz Truss
|
Conservative
|
Sep-Oct 2022
|
|
78
|
Rishi Sunak
|
Conservative
|
2022-2024
|
|
79
|
Keir Starmer
|
Labour
|
2024-2026 June
|
|
80
|
Andy Burnham
|
Labour
|
20th July 2026
|
Trivia Time: Margaret Thatcher is the first female PM of the United Kingdom, she was elected in 1979, and served a period of 11 years till 1990.
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