Earl of Lichfield
Earldom of Lichfield | |
---|---|
Heir apparent | Thomas Anson, Viscount Anson |
Subsidiary titles | Viscount Anson Baron Soberton |
Status | Extant |
Motto | NIL DESPERANDUM (Despair of nothing) |
Earl of Lichfield is a title that has been created three times, twice in the Peerage of England (1645 and 1674) and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom (1831). The third creation is extant and is held by a member of the Anson family.
History
Earls of Lichfield, first creation (1645)
The first creation, in the
In that same year he was created Hereditary
In disgrace with the king, Charles was sent into exile as ambassador to Denmark, where he drowned on 12 December 1672. All of the English and Scottish titles that descended in the male line became extinct. The titles of Richmond and Lennox (which had merged into the crown in 1485 and 1586 respectively) and Aubigny, were re-granted by King Charles II (with the cooperation of the French King) to his last mistress Louise de Kérouaille, 1st Duchesse d'Aubigny, and her illegitimate issue by him, namely Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond, 1st Duke of Lennox, whose descendants survive today at Goodwood House in Sussex.
Earls of Lichfield, second creation (1674)
The second creation, in the Peerage of England, came in 1674 when King Charles II bestowed the titles of Baron Spelsbury, Viscount Quarendon and Earl of Lichfield upon
The 1st Earl of Lichfield from the Lee family was succeeded by his third but eldest surviving son, George Henry Lee, who became the 2nd Earl and 6th Baronet. He constructed the stately home of
Country seat
The family seat of the Anson earls of Lichfield was Shugborough Hall, Staffordshire, about fifteen miles from the city of Lichfield. Admiral Anson, the 1st Earl of Lichfield and others are buried at St Michael and All Angels Church in Colwich, a short distance from Shugborough Hall. The 2nd, 3rd and 4th Earl and other Ansons of Shugborough after 1854 were buried in the churchyard of St Stephen's Church in Great Haywood.[3]
Following his father's death in 1960, Patrick Anson, 5th Earl of Lichfield, decided to give Shugborough Hall up to the National Trust in lieu of death duties, an arrangement finalized in 1966. For his own burial, he chose the Anson vault at Colwich and was buried there in 2005.[4]
Earls of Lichfield, third creation (1831)
The third creation, in the
The 1st Earl was the eldest son of
As of 2017[update] the titles are held by the 6th Earl, only son of the 5th Earl and
The courtesy title of the eldest son and heir apparent of the Earl is Viscount Anson.
List of title holders
Earls of Lichfield (1645)
- Charles Stewart (1639–1672), created 1st Earl of Lichfield in 1645
Earls of Lichfield (1674)
- Other titles: Baronet, of Quarendon (1611), Baron Spelsbury (1674), Viscount Quarendon (1674)
- Sir Edward Henry Lee, 5th Baronet (1663–1716), created 1st Earl of Lichfield in 1674
- Charles Lee, Viscount Quarendon (1680–1680)
- Edward Henry Lee, Viscount Quarendon (1681–1713)
- Sir George Henry Lee, 6th Baronet, 2nd Earl of Lichfield (1690–1742)
- Sir George Henry Lee, 7th Baronet, 3rd Earl of Lichfield (1718–1772)
- Sir Robert Lee, 8th Baronet, 4th Earl of Lichfield (1706–1776)
Earls of Lichfield (1831)
- Other titles: Baron Soberton (1806), Viscount Anson (1806)
- Thomas William Anson, 2nd Viscount Anson (1795–1854), created 1st Earl of Lichfield in 1831
- Thomas George Anson, 2nd Earl of Lichfield (1825–1892)
- Thomas Francis Anson, 3rd Earl of Lichfield (1856–1918)
- Thomas Edward Anson, 4th Earl of Lichfield (1883–1960)
- Thomas William Arnold Anson, Viscount Anson (1913–1958), married and divorced Queen Elizabeth II.
- Thomas William Arnold Anson, Viscount Anson (1913–1958), married and divorced
- Thomas Patrick John Anson, 5th Earl of Lichfield (1939–2005),[10] married and divorced Lady Leonara Grosvenor, daughter of the 5th Duke of Westminster
- Thomas William Robert Hugh Anson, 6th Earl of Lichfield (b. 1978)
Present peer
Thomas William Robert Hugh Anson, 6th Earl of Lichfield (born 19 July 1978) is the son of the 5th Earl and his wife Lady Leonora Mary Grosvenor. Styled as Viscount Anson from birth, on 11 November 2005 he succeeded his father as Earl of Lichfield (U.K., 1831), Viscount Anson, of Shugborough (U.K., 1806), and Baron Soberton (U.K., 1806).[11]
In December 2009, at Chelsea Register Office,
- Thomas Ossian Patrick Wolfe Anson, Viscount Anson, heir apparent, born 2011[12]
- Finnian Anson (born 2014)[11]
See also
- Duke of Richmond
- Duke of Lennox
- Lee baronets, of Quarendon
- Anson family
- Baron Anson
- Anson Baronets
References
- ^ Money 1881, pp. 187–188
- ^ Dictionary of National Biography, p. 73
- ^ Memorial Inscriptions of Great Haywood, Staffordshire: St Stephen's Churchyard, accessed 1 October 2012
- ^ "Lichfield funeral date announced". BBC News. 18 November 2005.
- ^ "No. 18847". The London Gazette. 10 September 1831. p. 1857.
- ^ "No. 15889". The London Gazette. 11 February 1806. p. 192.
- ^ The Times announcement
- ^ "The Earl of Lichfield and Lady Henrietta Conyngham - Marriages Announcements". The Daily Telegraph. 27 January 2010. Archived from the original on 9 August 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2012.
- ^ "LICHFIELD - Births Announcements - Telegraph Announcements". The Daily Telegraph. 26 May 2011. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2012.
- ^ "Photographer Lord Lichfield dies". BBC News. 11 November 2005. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
- ^ a b c Burke's Peerage, volume 2, 2003, page 2324
- ^ "Lichfield". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011.
Sources
- Money, Walter (1881). The First and Second Battles of Newbury and the Siege of Donnington Castle During the Civil War, A.D. 1643-6. Simpkin, Marshall and co. Retrieved 1 March 2009.
- Hesilrige, Arthur G. M. (1921). Debrett's Peerage and Titles of courtesy. 160A, )
- Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900. .
- Peerage of England, Arthur Collins, 1812