1747 British general election

The 1747 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 10th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw Henry Pelham's Whig government increase its majority and the Tories continue their decline. By 1747, thirty years of Whig oligarchy and systematic corruption had weakened party ties substantially; despite the fact that Walpole, the main reason for the split that led to the creation of the Patriot Whig faction, had resigned, there were still almost as many Whigs in opposition to the ministry as there were Tories, and the real struggle for power was between various feuding factions of Whig aristocrats rather than between the old parties. The Tories had become an irrelevant group of country gentlemen who had resigned themselves to permanent opposition.

26 June – 4 August 1747 (1747-06-26 – 1747-08-04)
All 558 seats in the House of Commons 280 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   Leader Henry Pelham Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn — Party Whig Tory Opposition / Patriot Whigs Leader's seat Sussex Denbighshire — Seats won 338 117 94 Seat change 52 19 37
Prime Minister before election Henry Pelham Whig Prime Minister after election Henry Pelham Whig