the Prince of Wales with the Government rendered Pelham's position in the Prince's household untenable. After he sided with the Government on the subject of the Prince's allowance, he resigned his post as secretary to the Prince in late summer 1737 and was replaced by George Lyttelton. Newcastle transferred Pelham to stand at Hastings in the 1741 election to relieve him of the election expenses at Newark. Before the election, Pelham wrote to Newcastle asking for relief, noting that he had suffered losses in buying South Sea Company stock for Newcastle, lent the Duke £2,000, and borne his own election expenses for Newark, as a result of which, his estate was mortgaged for £6,000. Newcastle replied expressing his gratitude, and patronage was eventually forthcoming: in 1749, Pelham was granted the post of Deputy Cofferer of the Household, serving under Pelham's nephew, the Earl of Lincoln. A customs post of about £700 p.a., held for him by his nephew John, and a secret service pension of about £500 p.a. helped to repair his fortunes. Pelham still felt anxious about his situation, as both the pension and his office as cofferer were liable to be terminated at a change of Government. After consulting with Newcastle's brother Henry Pelham, he wrote in 1750 asking to convert his secret service pension to one of 21 years chargeable on the Irish revenue. Though this request was refused, Newcastle was successful in mollifying him. Pelham was a reliable government supporter during the tenure of Henry and Newcastle in power, and continued to manage Newcastle's electoral interests in Sussex, particularly in Hastings, Rye, and Seaford. He also acted as an informal whip for Newcastle's personal supporters in the House of Commons. His health began to fail around 1754, when he resigned the office of Deputy Cofferer. A complex issue of patronage had brought Newcastle into conflict with his ally, the Earl of Hardwicke, over the results of the 1754 election at Mitchell. He failed to respond to Newcastle's summons to the first vote on the petition, on 28 February 1755, which Newcastle unexpectedly lost. The affair threatened to destabilize Newcastle's governing coalition, and he wrote to Pelham again on 2 March, accusing him of personal disloyalty and threatening to turn him out of his seat, was that to prove the case. In fact, it seems to have been Pelham's health that prevented his attendance; he had sold