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President of the Board of Trade

The Board of Trade and Plantations was created in Britain on May 15, 1696 in order to promote British trade and improve "our plantations in America and elsewhere. There were 15 (and later 16) members of the Board - 7 (later 8) Great officers of state, and 8 unofficial members, who did the majority of the work. The senior unofficial member of the board was the President of the Board of Trade. The board was abolished on July 11, 1782, but reestablished on March 5, 1784, and more strongly focused on commercial functions than the previous board of trade. At first the President of the Board of Trade only occasionally sat in the cabinet, but from the early 19th century it was usually a cabinet level position.

Since 1970 President of the Board of Trade has been a secondary title of the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1970-1974 and 1983-date) or Secretary of State for Trade (1974-83), though Michael Heseltine preferred to be known by the older title during his time in office in the mid-1990s. The office is currently held by Patricia Hewitt.

Table of contents
1 Presidents of the First Board of Trade, 1696-1782
2 Presidents of the Board of Trade, 1784-Present

Presidents of the First Board of Trade, 1696-1782

Presidents of the Board of Trade, 1784-Present

Secretary of State for Trade & Industry and President of the Board of Trade (1970-1974)

Secretary of State for Trade and President of the Board of Trade (1974-1983)

Secretary of State for Trade & Industry and President of the Board of Trade (1983-)