William Pitt

Born in 1759, William Pitt the Younger was the son of the Earl of Chatham and entered Parliament while still a young man. He rose with remarkable speed and became prime minister in 1783, making him the youngest person ever to hold the office in Britain.

Pitt built a reputation for sharp financial thinking and determined leadership. During his years in power, he worked on national finance and administration, faced the impact of the French Revolution, and led Britain through the long struggle against Revolutionary and Napoleonic France.

He also played a major part in the politics of Ireland around the time of the Act of Union of 1800. Pitt died in 1806, worn down after years of public service, but he remains one of the defining political figures of late 18th- and early 19th-century Britain.