The First Newcastle Ministry was a British government that existed from 1754 until 1756, headed by the Duke of Newcastle. After the death of the previous Prime Minister, his brother Henry Pelham, Newcastle had formed a fresh administration. It lasted until 1756, when it collapsed following the fall of Minorca and the fierce criticism that Newcastle had come under for his handling of the war that was engulfing Europe. Newcastle later returned to head a second government in 1757 in alliance with William Pitt.