Wellington caretaker ministry

King William IV had dismissed the Whig government of Lord Melbourne on 14 November 1834 and asked the Duke of Wellington to form a government but he declined, instead recommending Sir Robert Peel. Peel was in Sardinia at the time, so the Duke of Wellington took control of the government in a caretaker capacity^[1] until Peel returned and was able to form his government on 10 December.

List of ministers

During the caretaker government there was no Cabinet.^[2]

Ministers^[3]
Office	Name	Date
Prime Minister Leader of the House of Lords Secretary of State	The Duke of Wellington	17 November 1834 – 9 December 1834
Lord Chancellor	The Lord Lyndhurst	21 November 1834
Chancellor of the Exchequer (interim)	The Lord Denman	15 November 1834
Lords Commissioners of the Treasury	The Duke of Wellington	21 November 1834
	The Earl of Rosslyn
	The Lord Ellenborough
	Lord Maryborough
	Sir John Beckett
	Joseph Planta

Notes

Wellington was the only Secretary of State.^[4]
As no separate Chancellor of the Exchequer had been appointed, Denman held the post pro tempore by virtue of being Lord Chief Justice.
Most offices were in commission.

References

^ A Cabinet Council by John Doyle, depicting Wellington sitting alone at the Cabinet table (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
^ Venning, T. (2005). Compendium of British Office Holders. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, p.106.
^ Cook, C; Keith, B. (1975). British Historical Facts 1830–1900. London and Basingstoke: Macmillan, p.4.
^ "No. 19211". The London Gazette. 18 November 1834. p. 2047.

Preceded by First Melbourne ministry	Government of the United Kingdom 1834	Succeeded by First Peel ministry

[1] A Cabinet Council by John Doyle, depicting Wellington sitting alone at the Cabinet table (Metropolitan Museum of Art)

[2] Venning, T. (2005). Compendium of British Office Holders. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, p.106.

[3] Cook, C; Keith, B. (1975). British Historical Facts 1830–1900. London and Basingstoke: Macmillan, p.4.

[4] "No. 19211". The London Gazette. 18 November 1834. p. 2047.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

v t e British governments
Great Britain (1707–1801)	Godolphin–Marlborough Harley Townshend Stanhope–Sunderland I Stanhope–Sunderland II Walpole–Townshend Walpole Carteret Broad Bottom I and II Short-lived Newcastle I Pitt–Devonshire 1757 Caretaker Pitt–Newcastle (Newcastle II) Bute Grenville Rockingham I Chatham Grafton North Rockingham II Shelburne Fox–North (Portland I) Pitt I
UK (GB and Ire) (1801–1922)	Addington Pitt II All the Talents Portland II Perceval Liverpool Canning Goderich Wellington–Peel Grey Melbourne I Wellington Caretaker Peel I Melbourne II Peel II Russell I Who? Who? (Derby–Disraeli I) Aberdeen Palmerston I Derby–Disraeli II Palmerston II Russell II Derby–Disraeli III (Disraeli I) Gladstone I Disraeli II Gladstone II Salisbury I Gladstone III Salisbury II Gladstone IV Rosebery Salisbury III and IV Balfour Campbell-Bannerman Asquith I–III Asquith Coalition Lloyd George I and II
UK (GB and NI) (1922–present)	Law Baldwin I MacDonald I Baldwin II MacDonald II National Government I National Government II National Government III National Government IV Chamberlain War Churchill War Churchill Caretaker Attlee I and II Churchill III Eden Macmillan I and II Douglas-Home Wilson I and II Heath Wilson III and IV Callaghan Thatcher I Thatcher II Thatcher III Major I Major II Blair I Blair II Blair III Brown Cameron–Clegg (Cameron I) Cameron II May I May II Johnson I Johnson II Truss Sunak Starmer
Current ministry