In this episode, we’re looking at Charles, Earl Grey, whose monument in Newcastle is a focal point for the town and popular meeting spot. Grey was a reformer, one of only two British Prime Ministers from the North East of England, and a keen tea drinker.
What You’ll Hear
- 0:52: Who was Earl Grey?
- 2:18: Earl Grey tea
- 2:51: Grey’s Monument
- 3:40: Why Grey is so significant
- 4:08: Who were the Whigs?
Listen to the Episode
So who was Earl Grey? Charles Grey was born in 1764 into a long-established, successful Northumbrian family. His father, the first Earl Grey, was a successful general, who fought in the American War of Independence, the French Revolution and The Seven Years’ War.
His army career earned him the nickname ‘No-Flint Grey’, because his men were ordered to use only their bayonets during night approaches and to remove their musket flints. He was awarded the Most Honourable Order of Bath for his military prowess.
What did Charles do?
The death of Charles’ older brother made him heir to the family estate, and he was educated at Eton and Trinity College, before he stood to represent his county as an MP in 1876, aged only 22.
He advocated for parliamentary reform and Catholic emancipation, and was made both Foreign Secretary and leader of the Whigs in 1806.
However, the following year the Ministry of all the Talents, the coalition government he was part of, dissolved in 1807, and the year after the government fell.
Grey spent 23 years in opposition, sitting in the Lords once he inherited his father’s title. In 1830, he became Prime Minister, spending four years bringing in social changes.
In 1832 his government introduced the Representation of the People Act, which brought about changes in the electoral system, including universal suffrage for men and women. The following year saw the Abolition of Slavery Act.
When the government dissolved in 1834, Grey returned home to Northumberland, although he remained interested in politics and critical of some policies introduced by later governments.
Two Ways he’s Commemorated
Earl Grey is also famous for his wonderful tea, and that’s probably how he’s better-known these days, unfortunately. The bergamot-infused tea was allegedly made especially to offset the natural lime in the water local to his Northumberland home, and today manufactured by Twining’s Tea.
The company also produces a black tea named after his wife, Lady Grey, which adds lemon and orange peel to the original recipe. It’s a lighter flavour, and very refreshing. Convention says you should drink either of the ‘Grey’ teas with a slice of lemon, but I always spoil it with milk.
If you go into Newcastle city centre, you can’t miss Grey’s Monument. It towers over the streets and buildings around it, and it’s so high that you can hardly make out the statue at the top.
You can actually go inside the Monument and up to the top, but it’s only open a few days of the year, in summer, and I’ve yet to get up there.
It stands in the heart of Grainger Town, with the 13-foot statue, sculpted from Portland stone, resting atop a Roman Doric column 134 feet high. The column is made from gritstone, although I don’t know what that is.
Sculptor Edward Hodges Baily, who went on to carve Nelson for his column in Trafalgar Square, was employed by Benjamin Green, who designed the column. The foundation stone was laid in September 1837, with Earl Grey taking up residence the following year.
But why was Grey honoured in such a way as to have both a street named after him and a statue carved in his image?
Well, Grey, whose home was Northumberland, was Prime Minister between 1830 and 1834, and the only PM from the North East.
Unless you count Tony Blair, who was MP for Sedgefield in County Durham, although he was born and educated mostly in Edinburgh. Grey’s work in reform made him particularly revered in the predominantly working-class north.
The Whig Party
And who were the Whigs? The party was formed in 1678 and returned 16 Prime Ministers and established the primacy of Parliament over the crown during the Glorious Revolution in 1688.
They also founded the Bank of England (1694) and the Act of Union between England and Scotland (1707). In the 150 years after that, the only other main party was the Tories.
The Whigs stood for progress, and passed laws to support religious minorities, pro-immigration bills and other laws to make Parliament more representative of the whole country. Early leader Robert Walpole is regarded as the first Prime Minister of Great Britain, and its longest-serving, holding office for 21 years.
Having started out as representing the aristocracy, by the 19th century the Whigs were supported by traders and those in industry, particularly as they pushed for free trade.
The name ‘Whig’ is short for ‘whiggamor’, a west Scotland term for cattle driver. It was used as a derogatory term first against the Covenanters in Charles I’s time, and again during the Exclusion Bill period, applied to those were anti-Roman Catholic.
Howick Hall
It’s worth mentioning that if you have an opportunity to come up to Northumberland, you can have a trip to Charles Grey’s family seat, Howick Hall. It’s open to the public, and features extensive gardens and an arboretum.
It was built by the architect William Newton in 1782, and enlarged in 1809 by the second earl (our Charles Grey), including the construction of a terrace.
The interior of the house was destroyed by fire in 1926, and when it was rebuilt two years later it was drastically changed, actually making it smaller. Although the family moved out after the death of the 5th earl in 1963, the West Wing was turned into a residence by Lord Howick (as the title is now) a decade later.
There is even a tea room in what is known as the East Quadrant, and the Hall’s website explains that at one time it had been a ballroom, but was converted into assorted store rooms and a servants’ area in 1928.
Now restored to the original shape, you can enjoy tea, light lunches and snacks and admire the James Northcote biblical paintings Grey commissioned in 1809, as well as a copy of a portrait of the Earl by Sir Thomas Lawrence done in 1828.
This episode was inspired by a blog about Grey’s Monument, and a post about the history of teapots and tea. Find out more about Howick Hall and Gardens here.
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