Viscount Rochford
Viscount Rochford was a hereditary British title of nobility awarded twice in the Peerage of England .
Awards
The title was awarded on June 18, 1525 by King Henry VIII to Sir Thomas Boleyn , the father of his lover and future wife Anne Boleyn . The title is named after his country home in Rochford , Essex . On December 8, 1529 Thomas was also in the Peerage of England for Earl of Wiltshire and in the Peerage of Ireland to the Earl of Ormonde raised. His son, George Boleyn , was appointed to the House of Lords on January 5, 1533 by Writ of Acceleration and thereby inherited his father's title as 2nd Viscount Rochford prematurely. George Boleyn, like Anne Boleyn, eventually fell out of favor with the king and was executed in 1536. The Viscount title reverted to his father, on whose death on March 13, 1539 the title expired.
In the second bestowal, the title was recreated on July 6, 1621 for Henry Carey, 4th Baron Hunsdon . In 1617 he had inherited the title of Baron Hunsdon, which was conferred on his grandfather in 1559 , and on March 8, 1628 was also elevated to Earl of Dover . The Earldom and the Viscountcy ceased to exist when his son, the 2nd Earl, died on May 26, 1677.
List of Viscounts Rochford
Viscounts Rochford (1525)
- Thomas Boleyn, 1st Earl of Wiltshire , 1st Viscount Rochford (1477-1539)
- George Boleyn, 2nd Viscount Rochford (1504–1536)
Viscounts Rochford (1621)
- Henry Carey, 1st Earl of Dover , 1st Viscount Rochford († 1666)
- John Carey, 2nd Earl of Dover , 2nd Viscount Rochford (1608–1677)
See also
Literature and web links
- Charles Kidd: Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage. Debrett's Ltd, London 2014, ISBN 0-9929348-2-6 .
- Leigh Rayment's Peerage Page