William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham Zealand William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, (15 November 1708 – 11 May 1778) was a British statesman of the Whig group who led the government of Great Britain twice in the middle of the 18th century. Historians call him Pitt of Chatham, or William Pitt the Elder, to distinguish him from his son, William Pitt the Younger, who also was a prime minister. Pitt was also known as The Great Commoner, because of his long-standing refusal to accept a title until 1766. Pitt was a member of the British cabinet and its informal
Chatham ministry of the remaining were comfortable with. In the fall of 1768, the Bedfords persuaded Grafton that it would be necessary to remove Shelburne from the ministry. This threatened dismissal roused Chatham, who in October 1768 resigned his post alongside Shelburne. Although Chatham's close friend Camden remained in the government, it was clear that the ministry was now dominated by the Bedfords, and the Duke of Grafton formally took over as Prime Minister – leading the Grafton ministry for slightly over a year until January 1770. Chatham ministry The Chatham ministry was a British government led by William Pitt, 1st Earl