Ministry of the Chits

The Ministry of the Chits^[1] was the government of the Kingdom of England from November 1679 to 1688. The administration was led by three young ministers, collectively known as the chits:^[2] Laurence Hyde (Earl of Rochester, 1682), Sidney Godolphin (Lord Godolphin, 1684) and the Earl of Sunderland.

Rochester, brother-in-law of King Charles II's brother James, Duke of York, served as First Lord of the Treasury until "kicked upstairs" (term coined by Lord Halifax^[3]) as Lord President of the Council in September 1684. On the Duke of York's succession as King James II in February 1685, Rochester returned as Lord High Treasurer. He was troubled by the King's Catholicism, disputed religious matters with the King. James II dismissed Rochester on 4 January 1687 with his brother the Earl of Clarendon, replacing both with Catholic appointees, Lord Belasyse and Lord Arundell.

Sunderland, who served variously as Northern Secretary and Southern Secretary, and additionally as Lord President of the Council from 1685, remained in post until his dismissal by James II in October 1688, when he fled to Rotterdam.

Godolphin, First Lord of the Treasury 1684–85, was retained at the Treasury by William III, returning as First Lord in the Carmarthen Ministry of 1690.

The Chits

The moniker "the chits" stems from a satirical verse on the three ministers, attributed to John Dryden by Johnson's Dictionary:^[4]

But Sunderland, Godolphin, Lory,
These will appear such chits in story,
'Twill turn all politics to jests,
To be repeated like John Dory,
While fiddlers sing at feasts.^[1]

1. ^ Russell, Lord John (1820). "The Life of William Lord Russell, Vol. 1, p.182". Google Books. Retrieved 6 May 2016.

The Ministry

November 1679 to September 1684

OFFICE	NAME	TERM
First Lord of the Treasury	The Earl of Rochester	1679–1684
Treasury Commissioner Northern Secretary	Sidney Godolphin	1679–1684 1684
Northern Secretary Southern Secretary Northern Secretary	The Earl of Sunderland	1679–1680 1680–1681 1683–1684
Lord Chancellor Lord Keeper	The 1st Earl of Nottingham	1679–1682
	The Lord Guilford	1682–1684
Lord President of the Council	The Earl of Radnor	1679–1684
Lord Privy Seal	The Earl of Anglesey	1679–1682
	The Marquess of Halifax	1682–1684
Lord Steward	The Duke of Ormonde	1679–1684
Lord Chamberlain	The Earl of Arlington	1679–1681
	The Earl of Mulgrave	1681–1684
Southern Secretary	Henry Coventry	1679–1680
	The Earl of Sunderland	1680–1681
	Sir Leoline Jenkins	1681–1684
Northern Secretary	The Earl of Sunderland	1679–1680
	Sir Leoline Jenkins	1680–1681
	The Earl of Conway	1681–1683
	The Earl of Sunderland	1683–1684
	Sidney Godolphin	1684
Chancellor of the Exchequer	Sir John Ernle	1679–1684
First Lord of the Admiralty	Sir Henry Capell	1679–1681
	The 2nd Earl of Nottingham	1681–1684

• Lord Nottingham was Lord Chancellor until 1682, when Lord Guilford assumed the same position; however, the latter had not yet acceded to the peerage, and was therefore forced to assume the position of Lord Keeper. For all intents and purposes, these positions are identical, and have been formatted as such.
• Additionally, there were two Earls of Nottingham: the elder Nottingham served as Lord Chancellor, and his successor to the earldom served as First Lord of the Admiralty.

September 1684 to February 1685

OFFICE	NAME	TERM
First Lord of the Treasury	The Lord Godolphin	1684–1685
Southern Secretary	The Earl of Sunderland	1684–1685
Lord President of the Council	The Earl of Rochester	1684–1685
Lord Keeper	The Lord Guilford	1684–1685
Lord Privy Seal	The Marquess of Halifax	1684–1685
Lord Steward	The Duke of Ormonde	1684–1685
Lord Chamberlain	The Earl of Mulgrave	1684–1685
Northern Secretary	The Earl of Middleton	1684–1685
Chancellor of the Exchequer	Sir John Ernle	1684–1685

February 1685 to October 1688

OFFICE	NAME	TERM
Lord High Treasurer	The Earl of Rochester	1685–1687
Chamberlain to the Queen Treasury Commissioner	The Lord Godolphin	1685–1687 1687–1689
Lord President of the Council Southern Secretary	The Earl of Sunderland	1685–1688
First Lord of the Treasury	The Lord Belasyse	1687–1689
Lord Chancellor	The Lord Jeffreys	1685–1689
Lord Privy Seal	The Earl of Clarendon	1685–1687
	The Lord Arundell of Wardour	1687–1688
Lord Steward	The Duke of Ormonde	1685–1688
Lord Chamberlain	The Earl of Mulgrave	1685–1689
Northern Secretary	The Earl of Middleton	1685–1688
Chancellor of the Exchequer	Sir John Ernle	1685–1688

References

1. Treasure, Geoffrey; Dawson, Ian. "Who's Who in British History, Vol.1, A-H: Hyde, Laurence, Earl of Rochester". Google Books. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
2.  Ward, Adolphus William (1891). "Hyde, Laurence". In Lee, Sidney. Dictionary of National Biography. 28. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
3. Macaulay, Thomas Babington (1889). The History of England from the Accession of James the Second. 1. London: Longmans. p. 136.
4. Johnson, Samuel (1773). "A Dictionnary of the English Language (4th ed.)". Google Books. Retrieved 6 May 2016.