William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
“Yes, I know it was, and that was mine, and that was the reason why I was against Reform.”
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikipedia
- #quote
Figure timeline
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, was a British Whig statesman who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, first in 1834 and again from 1835 to 1841. He also held senior cabinet roles including Home Secretary (1830–1834) and Chief Secretary for Ireland (1827–1828), and led the House of Lords and the Opposition during key transitions in the early Victorian era.
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
politics · Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834; 1835–1841) · politician · also William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, Lord Melbourne, William Lamb, Viscount Melbourne, Melbourne
Born 15 March 1779 · Died 24 November 1848 · Q312567
29 published statements · 0 followers
See & hear
Photos & media
8 photos
Media from Wikimedia Commons, hotlinked at the source under its own licence — see each file for author and terms.
Live now
In the news
Pulling headlines from trusted outlets — this usually takes a few seconds
Checking the wires…
Feed scan
These are live links, not archived citations — they only join the timeline once a collect run verifies and archives them.
Live pulse
Recent highlights
Most recent outstanding titles, awards, and quotes
- Quote
- Quote
2026· 2 entries
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
The Guardian: Afternoon Update: Labor and Coalition strike gambling deal; fallout continues from Sydney Swans Melbourne incident; and restaurant of the year
- #news
- #headline
1848· 3 entries
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Died 1848-11-24.
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #death
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
“[T]he possession of great power necessarily implies great responsibility.”
- #wikiquote
- #saying
- #undated
- #lang:en
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
“there ought to be a law for the rich and another for the poor”
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikipedia
- #quote
1841· 2 entries
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Awarded Fellow of the Royal Society (1841).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #award
- #achievement
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: Leader of the Opposition (1841–1842).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
1835· 2 entries
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: Leader of the House of Lords (1835–1841).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1835–1841).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
1834· 2 entries
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: Leader of the House of Lords (1834–1834).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1834).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
1833· 1 entry
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
A "great folly" and said that if he had had his own way (as opposed to what many Whigs wanted), he would "have done nothing at all
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikipedia
- #event
1830· 1 entry
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: Home Secretary (1830–1834).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
1828· 1 entry
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
And his becoming the 2nd Viscount Melbourne, of Kilmore in the County of Cavan, he moved to the House of Lords
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikipedia
- #event
1827· 3 entries
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: member of the 8th Parliament of the United Kingdom (1827–1827).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: Chief Secretary for Ireland (1827–1828).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: member of the 8th Parliament of the United Kingdom (1827–1828).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
1825· 1 entry
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Her death in 1828 affected him considerably
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikipedia
- #event
1820· 1 entry
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: member of the 7th Parliament of the United Kingdom (1820–1826).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
1819· 1 entry
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: member of the 6th Parliament of the United Kingdom (1819–1820).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
1818· 1 entry
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: member of the 6th Parliament of the United Kingdom (1818–1819).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
1816· 2 entries
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: member of the 5th Parliament of the United Kingdom (1816–1818).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Lamb was returned for Peterborough by the Whig grandee Lord Fitzwilliam
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikipedia
- #event
1807· 1 entry
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: member of the 4th Parliament of the United Kingdom (1807–1812).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
1806· 3 entries
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Moved to the seat of Haddington Burghs, and for the 1807 election he successfully stood for Portarlington (a seat he held until 1812)
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikipedia
- #event
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: member of the 2nd Parliament of the United Kingdom (1806–1806).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Career landmark: member of the 3rd Parliament of the United Kingdom (1806–1807).
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #milestone
1805· 1 entry
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
(and as captain of the Midland Troop, Hertfordshire Yeomanry, when he resigned his commission in the Volunteer Infantry) and married Lady Caroline Ponsonby, an Anglo-Irish aristocrat
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikipedia
- #event
1779· 1 entry
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne
Born 1779-03-15.
Text from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- #wikidata
- #birth