Second Disraeli ministry explained

Cabinet Name:	Beaconsfield ministry
Incumbent:	1874–1880
Government Head Title:	Prime Minister
Government Head:	Lord Beaconsfield
State Head Title:	Monarch
State Head:	Victoria
Total Number:	108 appointments
Political Party:	Conservative Party
Legislature Status:	Majority
Legislature Term:	21st UK Parliament
Election:	1874 general election
Last Election:	1880 general election
Opposition Party:	Liberal Party
Previous:	First Gladstone ministry
Successor:	Second Gladstone ministry

Benjamin Disraeli was appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for a second time by Queen Victoria after William Ewart Gladstone's government was defeated in the 1874 general election. Disraeli's foreign policy was seen as immoral by Gladstone, and following the latter's Midlothian campaign, the government was heavily defeated in the 1880 general election, whereupon Gladstone formed his second government. The ailing Disraeli, by now created Earl of Beaconsfield, died in April 1881.

Cabinet

February 1874 – April 1880

Office	Name	Term
First Lord of the Treasury	Benjamin Disraeli†	February 1874 – April 1880
Lord Chancellor	The Lord Cairns§	February 1874 – April 1880
Lord President of the Council	The Duke of Richmond	February 1874 – April 1880
Lord Privy Seal	The Earl of Malmesbury	February 1874 – August 1876
	The Earl of Beaconsfield	August 1876 – April 1878
	The Duke of Northumberland	April 1878 – April 1880
Home Secretary	Richard A. Cross	February 1874 – April 1880
Foreign Secretary	The Earl of Derby	February 1874 – April 1878
Foreign Secretary	The Marquess of Salisbury	April 1878 – April 1880
Secretary of State for the Colonies	The Earl of Carnarvon	February 1874 – February 1878
Secretary of State for the Colonies	Sir Michael Hicks-Beach, Bt	February 1878 – April 1880
Secretary of State for War	Gathorne Hardy‡	February 1874 – April 1878
Secretary of State for War	Sir Frederick Stanley	April 1878 – April 1880
Secretary of State for India	The Marquess of Salisbury	February 1874 – April 1878
Secretary of State for India	The Viscount Cranbrook	April 1878 – April 1880
Chancellor of the Exchequer	Sir Stafford Northcote, Bt	February 1874 – April 1880
First Lord of the Admiralty	George Ward Hunt	February 1874 – August 1877
First Lord of the Admiralty	William Henry Smith	August 1877 – April 1880
President of the Board of Trade	Viscount Sandon	April 1878 – April 1880
Postmaster General	Lord John Manners	February 1874 – April 1880
Chief Secretary for Ireland	Sir Michael Hicks-Beach, Bt	August 1877 – February 1878
Chief Secretary for Ireland	incumbent not in the cabinet
Leader of the House of Commons	Benjamin Disraeli	February 1874 – August 1876
Leader of the House of Commons	Sir Stafford Northcote, Bt	August 1876 – April 1880
Leader of the House of Lords	The Duke of Richmond	February 1874 – August 1876
Leader of the House of Lords	The Earl of Beaconsfield	August 1876 – April 1880

† The Earl of Beaconsfield from August 1876.
§ The Earl Cairns from September 1878.
‡ The Viscount Cranbrook from May 1878.

Notes

The Earl of Beaconsfield served as both First Lord of the Treasury and Lord Privy Seal from August 1876 to April 1878.

Changes

August 1876: Beaconsfield succeeds the Earl of Malmesbury as Lord Privy Seal while remaining First Lord of the Treasury.
August 1877: George Ward Hunt dies and is succeeded as First Lord of the Admiralty by William Henry Smith. Sir Michael Hicks-Beach, the Chief Secretary for Ireland, enters the cabinet.
February 1878: Sir Michael Hicks-Beach succeeds the Earl of Carnarvon as Colonial Secretary. Hicks-Beach's successor as Chief Secretary for Ireland is not in the cabinet.
April 1878: The Duke of Northumberland succeeds Beaconsfield as Lord Privy Seal; the latter remains First Lord of the Treasury. The Marquess of Salisbury succeeds the Earl of Derby as Foreign Secretary. The Viscount Cranbrook succeeds Salisbury at the India Office. Sir Frederick Stanley succeeds Cranbrook at the War Office.

List of ministers

Cabinet members are listed in bold face.

Office	Name	Date
scope=row	Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury	Benjamin Disraeli	20 February 187421 April 1880
scope=row	Chancellor of the Exchequer	Sir Stafford Northcote, Bt	21 February 1874
scope=row	Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury	William Hart Dyke	21 February 1874
scope=row rowspan=3	Financial Secretary to the Treasury	W. H. Smith	21 February 1874
Frederick Stanley	14 August 1877
Sir Henry Selwin-Ibbetson, Bt	2 April 1878
scope=row rowspan=4	Junior Lords of the Treasury	Viscount Mahon	4 March 187416 February 1876
Rowland Winn	4 March 187421 April 1880
Sir James Dalrymple-Horne-Elphinstone, Bt	4 March 187421 April 1880
Viscount Crichton	16 February 187621 April 1880
scope=row	Lord Chancellor	The Lord Cairns	21 February 1874
scope=row	Lord President of the Council	The Duke of Richmond	21 February 1874
scope=row rowspan=3	Lord Privy Seal	The Earl of Malmesbury	21 February 1874
Benjamin Disraeli	12 August 1876
The Duke of Northumberland	4 February 1878
scope=row	Secretary of State for the Home Department	R. A. Cross	21 February 1874
scope=row rowspan=2	Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department	Sir Henry Selwin-Ibbetson, Bt	25 February 1874
Sir Matthew White Ridley, Bt	6 April 1878
scope=row rowspan=2	Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs	The Earl of Derby	21 February 1874
The Marquess of Salisbury	2 April 1878
scope=row	Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs	Robert Bourke	23 February 1874
scope=row rowspan=2	Secretary of State for War	Gathorne Hardy	21 February 1874
Frederick Stanley	2 April 1878
scope=row rowspan=3	Under-Secretary of State for War	The Earl of Pembroke	2 March 1874
The Earl Cadogan	24 May 1875
Viscount Bury	4 March 1878
scope=row rowspan=2	Financial Secretary to the War Office	Frederick Stanley	26 February 1874
Robert Loyd-Lindsay	13 August 1877
scope=row	Surveyor-General of the Ordnance	Lord Eustace Cecil	26 February 1874
scope=row rowspan=2	Secretary of State for the Colonies	The Earl of Carnarvon	21 February 1874
Sir Michael Hicks-Beach, Bt	4 February 1878
scope=row rowspan=2	Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies	James Lowther	25 February 1874
The Earl Cadogan	2 March 1878
scope=row rowspan=2	Secretary of State for India	The Marquess of Salisbury	21 February 1874
The Viscount Cranbrook	2 April 1878
scope=row rowspan=2	Under-Secretary of State for India	Lord George Hamilton	22 February 1874
Edward Stanhope	6 April 1878
scope=row rowspan=2	First Lord of the Admiralty	George Ward Hunt	21 February 1874
W. H. Smith	14 August 1877
scope=row	Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty	Algernon Egerton	21 February 1874
scope=row	Civil Lord of the Admiralty	Sir Massey Lopes, Bt	4 March 1874
scope=row rowspan=2	Chief Secretary for Ireland	Sir Michael Hicks-Beach, Bt	27 February 1874
James Lowther	15 February 1878
scope=row rowspan=2	Lord Lieutenant of Ireland	The Duke of Abercorn	2 March 1874
The Duke of Marlborough	11 December 1876
scope=row	Postmaster-General	Lord John Manners	21 February 1874
scope=row rowspan=2	President of the Board of Trade	Sir Charles Adderley	21 February 1874
Viscount Sandon	4 April 1878
scope=row rowspan=3	Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade	George Cavendish-Bentinck	2 March 1874
Edward Stanhope	18 November 1875
John Gilbert Talbot	4 April 1878
scope=row rowspan=2	Vice-President of the Committee on Education	Viscount Sandon	2 March 1874
Lord George Hamilton	4 April 1878
scope=row	Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster	Thomas Edward Taylor	2 March 1874
scope=row	President of the Local Government Board	George Sclater-Booth	21 February 1874
scope=row rowspan=2	Parliamentary Secretary to the Local Government Board	Clare Sewell Read	21 February 1874
Thomas Salt	January 1876
scope=row rowspan=2	Paymaster General	Stephen Cave	20 April 1874
David Plunket	24 March 1880
scope=row rowspan=2	First Commissioner of Works	Lord Henry Lennox	21 March 1874
Gerard Noel	14 August 1876
scope=row rowspan=3	Attorney General	Sir John Burgess Karslake	27 February 1874
Sir Richard Baggallay	20 April 1874
Sir John Holker	25 November 1875
scope=row rowspan=3	Solicitor General	Sir Richard Baggallay	27 February 1874
Sir John Holker	20 April 1874
Sir Hardinge Giffard	25 November 1875
scope=row rowspan=2	Judge Advocate General	Stephen Cave	7 March 1874
George Cavendish-Bentinck	24 November 1875
scope=row rowspan=2	Lord Advocate	Edward Gordon	26 February 1874
William Watson	21 July 1874
scope=row rowspan=3	Solicitor General for Scotland	John Millar	4 March 1874
William Watson	21 July 1874
John Macdonald	5 December 1876
scope=row rowspan=4	Attorney General for Ireland	John Thomas Ball	12 March 1874
Henry Ormsby	21 January 1875
George Augustus Chichester May	27 November 1875
Edward Gibson	15 February 1877
scope=row rowspan=4	Solicitor General for Ireland	Henry Ormsby	12 March 1874
David Plunkett	29 January 1875
Gerald Fitzgibbon	3 March 1877
Hugh Holmes	14 December 1878
scope=row	Lord Steward of the Household	The Earl Beauchamp	21 February 1874
scope=row rowspan=2	Lord Chamberlain of the Household	The Marquess of Hertford	21 February 1874
The Earl of Mount Edgcumbe	7 May 1879
scope=row	Vice-Chamberlain of the Household	The Viscount Barrington	2 March 1874
scope=row	Master of the Horse	The Earl of Bradford	7 March 1874
scope=row rowspan=2	Treasurer of the Household	Earl Percy	2 March 1874
Lord Henry Thynne	14 December 1875
scope=row rowspan=2	Comptroller of the Household	Lord Henry Somerset	2 March 1874
Earl of Yarmouth	4 February 1879
scope=row rowspan=3	Captain of the Gentlemen-at-Arms	The Marquess of Exeter	2 March 1874
The Earl of Shrewsbury	4 February 1875
The Earl of Coventry	28 May 1877
scope=row	Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard	The Lord Skelmersdale	2 March 1874
scope=row	Master of the Buckhounds	The Earl of Hardwicke	2 March 1874
scope=row	Mistress of the Robes	The Duchess of Wellington	2 March 1874
scope=row rowspan=10	Lords in Waiting	The Earl of Dunmore	2 March 187421 April 1880
The Earl of Roden	2 March 18746 January 1880
The Viscount Hawarden	2 March 187421 April 1880
The Lord Bagot	2 March 187421 April 1880
The Lord de Ros	2 March 187421 April 1880
The Lord Elphinstone	2 March 187421 April 1880
The Lord Walsingham	2 March 187429 May 1875
The Earl of Jersey	29 May 18754 July 1877
The Lord Henniker	4 July 187721 April 1880
The Earl of Onslow	17 February 188021 April 1880
scope=row	Extra Lord in Waiting	The Lord Sackville	1 October 18761 October 1888

Notes

References

C. Cook and B. Keith, British Historical Facts 1830–1900