St. Alban's Tavern group facts for kids

The St. Alban's Tavern group was a group of 78 British politicians called Members of Parliament (MPs). They met at the St. Alban's Tavern starting in January 1784, which is how they got their name. Their main goal was to help two very important politicians, William Pitt the Younger and Charles James Fox, become friends again and work together to form a single government.

Why the Group Formed

The MPs in this group were mostly "independent country gentlemen." This means they didn't strongly belong to any one political party. They wanted to do what they thought was best for the country.

On January 26, 1784, the group decided to support any political party that showed a willingness to unite. At this time, William Pitt's government was not very strong. It didn't have enough support in the House of Commons, which is where laws are made.

Pitt agreed to the group's idea. However, he said that any new government must be formed "with principle and honour." Charles James Fox, on the other hand, spoke through the Duke of Portland. The Duke had been the leader of the government before Pitt. He argued that Pitt had become Prime Minister in a way that wasn't fair. Because of this, the Duke insisted that Pitt should resign first before any new government was created.

In truth, neither Pitt nor Fox really thought the group would succeed. But they both felt they had to listen to the group's ideas. The people who wanted to bring Pitt and Fox together were described as "well-meaning and naive." This is because they might not have known how much Pitt and Fox disliked each other personally.

Because the talks failed, the St. Alban's Tavern group itself split apart. Forty-five members ended up supporting Pitt, and 30 supported Fox.

Who Was in the Group

The names of the group's members were shared in a publication called the Annual Register in 1784. Most of the 78 members were from areas in England, with five coming from Scotland.

The leader of the group was Thomas Grosvenor. He was an MP for Chester. On February 2, 1784, he successfully proposed a motion in the House of Commons. This motion asked for a "firm, efficient, extended and united Administration," meaning a strong, effective, and unified government.

Here are the members of the group: