Cobhamites

They had a general Whig philosophy and were at first supporters of Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole but later became opponents of his administration.

He began to gather a group of supporters around him, often holding their meetings at Cobham's famous estate at Stowe House in Buckinghamshire.

The group was at times associated with Frederick, Prince of Wales a noted opponent of Walpole and his father, the King.

Pitt made a series of attacks on Walpole in Parliament, which slowly helped to erode the Prime Minister's authority.

Walpole was distinctly anti-war and had only reluctantly prosecuted the war - a fact that outraged the pro-war Patriot faction who pushed for his dismissal.

Walpole was finally forced into resignation in the wake of the disastrous Siege of Cartagena and only winning a narrow majority in the 1741 general election.

In 1744 they played a part in the end of Carteret's government, to be replaced one led by Henry Pelham and his brother the Duke of Newcastle.

In October 1761 annoyed at the growing influence of Lord Bute in the cabinet, and frustrated by his colleagues' refusal to launch a pre-emptive attack on Spain, Pitt resigned.

The sons of Pitt and Grenville and many of their supporters were to form a Pittite party in the 1780s which dominated British politics for a generation.