Earl of Ulster

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Earl of Ulster is a hereditary British title of nobility that has been awarded eight times, six times in the Peerage of Ireland and then twice in the Peerage of the United Kingdom . The title is named after the traditional Irish province of Ulster .

Awards and history of the title

For the first time the title was on May 29, 1205 from King John Ohneland in the Peerage of Ireland to Hugh de Lacy , who had driven his rival John de Courcy from Ulster. Since Hugh left no legitimate descendants, the title expired on his death around 1242.

In the second award of the title in 1264 in the Peerage of Ireland by King Henry III. newly created for Walter de Burgh . The title came to members of the York line of the House of Plantagenet due to the lack of male descendants in the female line . When the 9th Earl of Ulster was crowned King of England as Edward IV in 1461 , the earl title became extinct by merging with the crown.

Since then it has been awarded exclusively to members of the royal family. The third award was on May 10, 1659 in the Peerage of Ireland by King Charles I to his third son James Stuart, Duke of York . He had already been raised to Duke of York in 1644 in the Peerage of England and also became Duke of Albany in 1660 in the Peerage of Scotland . The titles became extinct when it was merged with the crown when it was crowned as Jacob II in 1685.

The fourth, fifth and sixth award of the Earl title in the Peerage of Ireland took place together with the titles Duke of York and Albany, namely on July 5, 1716 from King George I to his youngest brother Ernst August , on April 1, 1760 from King George III to his brother Edward August and on November 29, 1784 by King George III. to his second son Friedrich August , and went out with their childless death in 1716, 1760 and 1784.

In the seventh bestowal, the title was created on May 24, 1866 in the Peerage of the United Kingdom by Queen Victoria for her second son Alfred , together with the titles Duke of Edinburgh and Earl of Kent . Since he did not leave a male heir either, the titles expired upon his death in 1900.

Most recently the title was awarded in the eighth bestowal on March 31, 1928 in the Peerage of the United Kingdom by King George V to his third son Henry , along with the titles Duke of Gloucester and Baron Culloden . The earl title is still a subordinate title of the respective Duke of Gloucester and is apparently used as a courtesy title of his marriage .

List of the Earls of Ulster

Earls of Ulster, first bestowal (1205)

Earls of Ulster, second bestowal (1264)

Earls of Ulster, third bestowal (1659)

Earls of Ulster, fourth bestowal (1716)

Earls of Ulster, fifth bestowal (1760)

Earls of Ulster, sixth bestowal (1784)

Earls of Ulster, seventh award (1866)

Earls of Ulster, eighth award (1928)

Heir apparent is the son of the current owner, Alexander Windsor, Earl of Ulster (* 1974).

Literature and web links