Eden ministry
Following the resignation of Winston Churchill in April 1955, Anthony Eden, then-Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary, took over as Leader of the Conservative Party, and thus became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Upon assuming office, Eden asked Queen Elizabeth II to dissolve parliament and called a general election for May 1955. After winning the general election with a majority of 60 seats in the House of Commons, Eden governed until his resignation on 10 January 1957.
History
Formation
In April 1955, Sir Anthony Eden succeeded Winston Churchill as Leader of the Conservative Party and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and finally reached the post he had coveted for so long. The original composition of Eden's cabinet was remarkable for the fact that ten out of the original eighteen members were Old Etonians: Eden, Salisbury, Crookshank, Macmillan, Home, Stuart, Thorneycroft, Heathcoat Amory, Sandys and Peake were all educated at Eton College.He initially retained Rab Butler, with whom he did not get along, as Chancellor of the Exchequer. At the first cabinet reshuffle in December 1955, Eden demoted him to Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Commons. Eden was succeeded as Foreign Secretary by future Prime Minister Harold Macmillan, who, however, only held this post until December of the same year, when he replaced Butler as Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Selwyn Lloyd gained his first cabinet post when he succeeded Macmillan as Minister of Defence in April 1955, and again replaced Macmillan as Foreign Secretary in December of that year. Another future Prime Minister, the Earl of Home, entered the cabinet as Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations in 1955. Gwilym Lloyd George, younger son of former Liberal leader David Lloyd George, remained as Home Secretary.
Fate
Eden's decision to take military action over the Suez Crisis of 1956 caused major embarrassment for Britain and their French allies. Eden, then already in declining health, resigned as Prime Minister and Leader of the Conservative Party in January 1957. Harold Macmillan was chosen over Rab Butler to succeed as party leader and Prime Minister.Cabinet
Changes
20 December 1955 reshuffle
- Rab Butler succeeded Harry Crookshank as Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Commons.
- Harold Macmillan succeeded Butler as Chancellor of the Exchequer.
- Selwyn Lloyd succeeded Macmillan as Foreign Secretary.
- Sir Walter Monckton succeeded Lloyd as Minister of Defence.
- Iain Macleod succeeded Monckton as Minister of Labour and National Service.
- Lord Selkirk succeeds Lord Woolton as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.
- The Minister of Public Works, Patrick Buchan-Hepburn, entered the cabinet
- Osbert Peake retired and his successor as Minister of Pensions and National Insurance was not in the cabinet.
19 October 1956
- In October 1956, Sir Walter Monckton became Paymaster-General, a post which had been vacant since Lord Selkirk's promotion to Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.
- Antony Henry Head succeeded Monckton as Minister of Defence.
List of Ministers
| Office | Name | Dates |
| Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury | Sir Anthony Eden | 6 April 19559 January 1957 |
| Lord Chancellor | The Viscount Kilmuir | April 1955 |
| Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Lords | The Marquess of Salisbury | April 1955 |
| Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Commons | Harry Crookshank | April 1955 |
| Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Commons | R. A. Butler | 20 December 1955 |
| Chancellor of the Exchequer | R. A. Butler | April 1955 |
| Chancellor of the Exchequer | Harold Macmillan | 20 December 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury | Patrick Buchan-Hepburn | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury | Edward Heath | 30 December 1955 |
| Financial Secretary to the Treasury | Henry Brooke | April 1955 |
| Economic Secretary to the Treasury | Sir Edward Boyle | 7 April 1955 |
| Economic Secretary to the Treasury | Derek Walker-Smith | 11 November 1956 |
| Lords of the Treasury | Edward Heath | April 195520 December 1955 |
| Lords of the Treasury | Hendrie Oakshott | April 195513 June 1955 |
| Lords of the Treasury | Martin Redmayne | April 19559 January 1957 |
| Lords of the Treasury | Richard Thompson | April 19558 April 1956 |
| Lords of the Treasury | Gerard Wills | April 19559 January 1957 |
| Lords of the Treasury | Hon. Peter Legh | 13 June 19559 January 1957 |
| Lords of the Treasury | Edward Wakefield | 24 January 19569 January 1957 |
| Lords of the Treasury | Harwood Harrison | 8 April 19569 January 1957 |
| Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs | Harold Macmillan | 7 April 1955 |
| Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs | Selwyn Lloyd | 20 December 1955 |
| Minister of State for Foreign Affairs | Marquess of Reading | April 19559 January 1957 |
| Minister of State for Foreign Affairs | Anthony Nutting | April 19553 November 1956 |
| Minister of State for Foreign Affairs | Allan Noble | 9 November 19569 January 1957 |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs | Robin Turton | April 195520 December 1955 |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs | Douglas Dodds-Parker | 20 December 19559 January 1957 |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs | Lord John Hope | April 19559 November 1956 |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs | Hon. David Ormsby-Gore | 9 November 19569 January 1957 |
| Secretary of State for the Home Department and Welsh Affairs | Hon. Gwilym Lloyd-George | April 1955 |
| Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department | Sir Hugh Lucas-Tooth | April 195520 December 1955 |
| Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department | The Lord Mancroft | April 19559 January 1957 |
| First Lord of the Admiralty | James Thomas | April 19551 |
| First Lord of the Admiralty | The Viscount Hailsham | 2 September 1956 |
| Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty | Allan Noble | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty | Hon. George Ward | 20 December 1955 |
| Civil Lord of the Admiralty | Simon Wingfield Digby | April 1955 |
| Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries | Derick Heathcoat-Amory | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries | Richard Nugent | April 19559 January 1957 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries | The Earl St Aldwyn | April 19559 January 1957 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries | Harmar Nicholls | 7 April 19559 January 1957 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries | William Deedes | 20 December 19559 January 1957 |
| Secretary of State for Air | The Lord de L'Isle and Dudley | April 1955 |
| Secretary of State for Air | Nigel Birch | 20 December 1955 |
| Under-Secretary of State for Air | Hon. George Ward | April 1955 |
| Under-Secretary of State for Air | Christopher Soames | 20 December 1955 |
| Secretary of State for the Colonies | Alan Lennox-Boyd | April 1955 |
| Minister of State for the Colonies | Henry Hopkinson | April 1955 |
| Minister of State for the Colonies | John Hare | 20 December 1955 |
| Minister of State for the Colonies | John Maclay | 18 October 1956 |
| Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies | The Lord Lloyd | April 1955 |
| Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations | The Earl of Home | 7 April 1955 |
| Under-Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations | Douglas Dodds-Parker | April 1955 |
| Under-Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations | Allan Noble | 20 December 1955 |
| Under-Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations | Lord John Hope | 9 November 1956 |
| Minister of Defence | Selwyn Lloyd | 7 April 1955 |
| Minister of Defence | Sir Walter Monckton | 20 December 1955 |
| Minister of Defence | Anthony Head | 18 October 1956 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Defence | The Lord Carrington | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Defence | The Earl of Gosford | 26 May 1956 |
| Minister of Education | Sir David Eccles | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Education | Dennis Vosper | April 1955 |
| Minister of Food | Derick Heathcoat-Amory | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Food | Charles Hill | April 1955 |
| Minister of Fuel and Power | Geoffrey Lloyd | April 1955 |
| Minister of Fuel and Power | Aubrey Jones | 20 December 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Fuel and Power | Hon. Lancelot Joynson-Hicks | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Fuel and Power | David Lockhart-Mure Renton | 20 December 1955 |
| Minister of Health | Iain Macleod | April 1955 |
| Minister of Health | Robin Turton | 20 December 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health | Patricia Hornsby-Smith | April 1955 |
| Minister of Housing and Local Government | Duncan Sandys | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Local Government | William Deedes | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Local Government | Enoch Powell | 20 December 1955 |
| Minister of Labour and National Service | Sir Walter Monckton | April 1955 |
| Minister of Labour and National Service | Iain Macleod | 20 December 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Labour | Harold Watkinson | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Labour | Robert Carr | 20 December 1955 |
| Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster | The Lord Woolton | April 1955 |
| Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster | The Earl of Selkirk | 20 December 1955 |
| Minister without Portfolio | The Earl of Munster | April 19558 January 1957 |
| Paymaster General | Earl of Selkirk | April 1955 |
| Paymaster General | Vacant | 20 December 1955 |
| Paymaster General | Sir Walter Monckton | 18 October 1956 |
| Minister of Pensions | Osbert Peake | April 1955 |
| Minister of Pensions | John Boyd-Carpenter | 20 December 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Pensions | John George Smyth | April 195520 December 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Pensions | Ernest Marples | April 195520 December 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Pensions | Edith Pitt | 20 December 19559 January 1957 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Pensions | Hon. Richard Wood | 20 December 19559 January 1957 |
| Postmaster-General | Charles Hill | 7 April 1955 |
| Assistant Postmaster-General | David Gammans | April 1955 |
| Assistant Postmaster-General | Cuthbert Alport | 20 December 1955 |
| Secretary of State for Scotland | Hon. James Stuart | April 1955 |
| Minister of State for Scotland | Tom Galbraith | 7 April 1955 |
| Under-Secretary of State for Scotland | William McNair Snadden | April 19553 June 1955 |
| Under-Secretary of State for Scotland | James Henderson Stewart | April 19559 January 1957 |
| Under-Secretary of State for Scotland | Jack Nixon Browne | 7 April 19559 January 1957 |
| Under-Secretary of State for Scotland | Niall Macpherson | 13 June 19559 January 1957 |
| Minister of Supply | Reginald Maudling | 7 April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Supply | Frederick Erroll | 7 April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Supply | Ian Harvey | 11 November 1956 |
| President of the Board of Trade | Peter Thorneycroft | April 1955 |
| Minister of State for Trade | Derick Heathcoat-Amory | April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade | Donald Kaberry | 7 April 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade | Derek Walker-Smith | 19 October 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade | Frederick Erroll | 11 November 1956 |
| Minister of Transport | John Boyd-Carpenter | April 1955 |
| Minister of Transport | Harold Watkinson | 20 December 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport | John Profumo | April 19559 January 1957 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport | High Molson | April 19559 January 1957 |
| Secretary of State for War | Anthony Head | April 1955 |
| Secretary of State for War | Hon. John Hare | 18 October 1956 |
| Under-Secretary of State and Financial Secretary for War | Fitzroy Maclean | April 1955 |
| Minister of Works | Nigel Birch | April 1955 |
| Minister of Works | Patrick Buchan-Hepburn | 20 December 1955 |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Works | Reginald Bevins | April 1955 |
| Attorney General | Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller | April 1955 |
| Solicitor General | Sir Harry Hylton-Foster | April 1955 |
| Lord Advocate | William Rankine Milligan | April 1955 |
| Solicitor General for Scotland | William Grant | April 1955 |
| Treasurer of the Household | Cedric Drewe | April 1955 |
| Treasurer of the Household | Tam Galbraith | 13 June 1955 |
| Comptroller of the Household | Tam Galbraith | April 1955 |
| Comptroller of the Household | Hendrie Oakshott | 13 June 1955 |
| Vice-Chamberlain of the Household | Henry Studholme | April 1955 |
| Vice-Chamberlain of the Household | Richard Thompson | 8 April 1956 |
| Captain of the Gentlemen-at-Arms | The Earl Fortescue | April 1955 |
| Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard | The Earl of Onslow | April 1955 |
| Lords in Waiting | The Lord Hawke | April 19559 January 1957 |
| Lords in Waiting | The Lord Fairfax of Cameron | April 19559 January 1957 |
| Lords in Waiting | The Lord Chesham | April 19559 January 1957 |
;Notes