Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, , known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British politician who is generally regarded as the de facto first Prime Minister of Great Britain.
Although the exact dates of Walpole's dominance, dubbed the "Robinocracy", are a matter of scholarly debate, the period 1721–1742 is often used. He dominated the Walpole–Townshend ministry, as well as the subsequent Walpole ministry, and holds the record as the longest-serving British prime minister in history. W. A. Speck wrote that Walpole's uninterrupted run of 20 years as Prime Minister "is rightly regarded as one of the major feats of British political history... Explanations are usually offered in terms of his expert handling of the political system after 1720, [and] his unique blending of the surviving powers of the crown with the increasing influence of the Commons".Walpole was a Whig from the gentry class who was first elected to Parliament in 1701 and held many senior positions. He was a country squire and looked to country gentlemen for his political base. Historian Frank O'Gorman says his leadership in Parliament reflected his "reasonable and persuasive oratory, his ability to move both the emotions as well as the minds of men, and, above all, his extraordinary self-confidence". Hoppit says Walpole's policies sought moderation: he worked for peace, lower taxes and growing exports and allowed a little more tolerance for Protestant Dissenters. He mostly avoided controversy and high-intensity disputes as his middle way attracted moderates from both the Whig and Tory camps, but his appointment to Chancellor of the Exchequer after the South Sea Bubble stock-market crisis drew attention to a perceived protection of political allies by Walpole.H. T. Dickinson sums up his historical role by saying that "Walpole was one of the greatest politicians in British history. He played a significant role in sustaining the Whig party, safeguarding the Hanoverian succession, and defending the principles of the Glorious Revolution ....He established a stable political supremacy for the Whig party and taught succeeding ministers how best to establish an effective working relationship between Crown and Parliament". Scholars rank him highly among all British prime ministers. Wikipedia
“The gratitude of place-expectants is a lively sense of future favours.”
Prime Minister
Source: Reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919), stating "Hazlitt, in his Wit and Humour, says, 'This is Walpole’s phrase'". Compare: "La reconnaissance de la plupart des hommes n'est qu'une secrète envie de recevoir de plus grands bienfaits" (translated: "The gratitude of most men is but a secret desire of receiving greater benefits"), François de La Rochefoucauld, Maxim 298.
“All those men have their price.”
Prime Minister
Source: Reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919), stating "'All men have their price' is commonly ascribed to Walpole", and citing Coxe, Memoirs of Walpole, Vol. iv, p. 369: "Flowery oratory he despised. He ascribed to the interested views of themselves or their relatives the declarations of pretended patriots, of whom he said, 'All those men have their price'".
“Anything but history, for history must be false.”
Prime Minister
Source: Walpoliana, No. 141.
Source: Address https://historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/member/walpole-robert-ii-1676-1745 to the electors of Kings Lynn for the general election of 1713 against the Treaty of Utrecht
Source: Letter https://historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/member/walpole-robert-ii-1676-1745 (c. January 1712). On 17 January 1712 the case against Walpole for bribery was heard in the House of Commons and he was voted by a majority of more than 50 to have been guilty of "a high breach of trust and notorious corruption". By further votes he was committed to the Tower of London and expelled from the Commons.
Source: Speech https://historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/member/walpole-robert-ii-1676-1745 in the House of Commons (10 January 1711)
Source: Draft speech https://historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/member/walpole-robert-ii-1676-1745 for the trial of Dr Henry Sacheverell
Source: Speech https://historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/member/walpole-robert-ii-1676-1745 at the trial of Dr Henry Sacheverell (28 February 1710)
