Earl of Southampton
Earl of Southampton was a hereditary British title of nobility awarded three times in the Peerage of England .
Awards and history of the title
The title was first bestowed on October 18, 1537 by King Henry VIII, his confidante and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Sir William Fitzwilliam . Since he left no children, the title expired on his death on October 15, 1542.
In the second award, the title was re-created on February 16, 1547 for Lord Chancellor Thomas Wriothesley, 1st Baron Wriothesley , to whom the recently deceased King Henry VIII had already given the subordinate title of Baron Wriothesley on January 1, 1544 . His grandson, the third Earl , were his titles for plotting against Queen 1601 I. Elisabeth disallowed. After Elisabeth's death he was pardoned in 1603 and received the title back. His son, the 4th Earl of Southampton, inherited the title of 2nd Earl of Chichester from his father-in-law Francis Leigh, 1st Earl of Chichester , due to a special inheritance regulation in 1653 . Since the 4th Earl of Southampton left no sons, all three titles became extinct when he died on May 16, 1667.
The third award of the title was created on August 3, 1670 by King Charles II for his mistress Barbara Palmer (née Villiers ). Together with the Earldom she was awarded the major title Duchess of Cleveland and the minor title Baroness Nonsuch . All three titles were bestowed on her with the special addition that they could also be passed on to their illegitimate son Charles FitzRoy . When he inherited her on her death in 1709, he had already been raised on September 10, 1675 to Duke of Southampton , Earl of Chichester and Baron Newbury . The titles expired on the death of his son, the 3rd Duke of Cleveland, on May 18, 1774.
List of the Earls of Southampton
Earls of Southampton, first bestowal (1537)
- William Fitzwilliam, 1st Earl of Southampton (around 1490–1542)
Earls of Southampton, second bestowal (1547)
- Thomas Wriothesley, 1st Earl of Southampton (1505–1550)
- Henry Wriothesley, 2nd Earl of Southampton (1545–1581)
- Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton (1573-1624) (title forfeited 1601; title restored 1603)
- Thomas Wriothesley, 4th Earl of Southampton , 2nd Earl of Chichester (1607–1667)
Earls of Southampton, third bestowal (1670)
- Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland , 1st Countess of Southampton (1640–1709)
- Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Cleveland , 1st Duke of Southampton, 2nd Earl of Southampton (1662-1730)
- William FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Cleveland , 2nd Duke of Southampton, 3rd Earl of Southampton (1698–1774)
See also
- Baron Southampton (1780)
Web links
- Leigh Rayment's Peerage Page
- Southampton, Earl of (E, 1547-1667) at Cracroft's Peerage
- Cleveland, Duke of (E, 1670-1774) at Cracroft's Peerage