Spencer Perceval was elected as MP for the Borough of Northampton on 30 May 1796 and was a strong supporter of William Pitt and the Tory group in the House of Commons. Perceval got on well with King George III and was offered the position of Prime Minister in 1809.

He was Prime Minister until 1812, when he became the only British Prime Minister to be assassinated. A failed businessman called John Bellingham blamed Perceval for his financial difficulties and shot him dead as he entered the House of Commons. Bellingham was later hung for his crime.