Baron Leigh has been created twice as a
hereditary title, once in the
Peerage of England and once in the
Peerage of the United Kingdom. The first creation came in the Peerage of England 1643 when Sir Thomas Leigh, 2nd Baronet, was created Baron Leigh, of
Stoneleigh in the County of Warwick. The Leigh Baronetcy, of Stoneleigh in the County of Warwick, had been created in 1611 for his grandfather and namesake Thomas Leigh. The latter was the second son of
Sir Thomas Leigh (d. 1571),
Lord Mayor of London
The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional pow ...
in 1558, whose third son Sir William Leigh was the grandfather of Francis Leigh, 1st
Earl of Chichester
Earl of Chichester is a title that has been created three times, twice in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The current title was created in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1801 for Thomas Pelham, 2nd ...
. The titles became extinct on the death of the fifth Baron Leigh in 1786.
The barony was revived in 1839 when the poet
Chandos Leigh was created Baron Leigh, of Stoneleigh in the County of Warwick, in the
Peerage of the United Kingdom. He was a descendant of Rowland Leigh, eldest son of the aforementioned Sir Thomas Leigh (d. 1571), himself of a cadet branch of the ancient
Leighs of West Hall,
High Legh
High Legh is a village, civil and ecclesiastical parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is north west of Knutsford, east of Warrington and south west of Manchester City Centre. Th ...
. Both Lord Leigh's son, the second Baron, and grandson, the third Baron, served as
Lord Lieutenant of Warwickshire
This is an incomplete list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Warwickshire. Since 1728, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Warwickshire.
Lord Lieutenants of Warwickshire
*Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick 1569†...
. The third Baron was succeeded by his nephew, the fourth Baron. the title is held by the latter's grandson, the sixth Baron, who succeeded his father in 2003.
Sir Edward Chandos Leigh, second son of the first Baron, was a cricketer and barrister. James Wentworth Leigh, third son of the first Baron, was
Dean
Dean may refer to:
People
* Dean (given name)
* Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin
* Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk
* Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean
Titles
* ...
of
Hereford
Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...
.
cracroftspeerage.co.uk
/ref> Gilbert Leigh
Gilbert Henry Chandos Leigh, DL, JP (1 September 1851 – 15 September 1884) was a British Liberal Party politician.
Background and education
Leigh was the eldest son and heir apparent of William Leigh, 2nd Baron Leigh, and Lady Caroline Am ...
, eldest son and heir of the second Baron, who sat as Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
for Warwickshire South predeceased his father. Theophilus Leigh, who belonged to a junior branch of the family, married Mary Brydges, sister of The 1st Duke of Chandos, and was the father of Thomas Leigh (died 1764): Thomas, in turn, was the father of Cassandra Leigh, mother of Jane Austen
Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...
.
The family seat was Stoneleigh Abbey
Stoneleigh Abbey is an English country house and estate situated south of Coventry. Nearby is the village of Stoneleigh, Warwickshire. The Abbey itself is a Grade I listed building.
History
In 1154 Henry II granted land in the Forest of Arden ...
, near Kenilworth
Kenilworth ( ) is a market town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Warwick (district), Warwick District in Warwickshire, England, south-west of Coventry, north of Warwick and north-west of London. It lies on Finham Brook, a ...
, Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...
. In 1960, a serious fire broke out at Stoneleigh Abbey and caused considerable damage to the fabric of the house. Some time thereafter the 4th Baron Leigh (1908-1979) transferred the ownership of Stoneleigh Abbey to a charitable trust. but members of the Leigh family continued to reside at Stoneleigh Abbey until 1990. The current family seat of the Barons Leigh is the Adlestrop Park Estate, near Moreton-in-Marsh, in the Gloucestershire Cotswolds. This estate was transferred by the 4th Baron Leigh to his eldest son and heir, the subsequent 5th Baron Leigh (1935-2003) in 1960, and remains in the ownership of the present 6th Baron Leigh (b.1960) and his family.
Leigh Baronets, of Stoneleigh (1611)
*Sir Thomas Leigh, 1st Baronet (d. 1626)
*Sir Thomas Leigh, 2nd Baronet (1595–1672) (created Baron Leigh in 1643)
Barons Leigh, First creation (1643)
* Thomas Leigh, 1st Baron Leigh (1595–1672)
*Thomas Leigh, 2nd Baron Leigh (1652–1710)
*Edward Leigh, 3rd Baron Leigh (1684–1738)
*Thomas Leigh, 4th Baron Leigh (1713–1749)
*Edward Leigh, 5th Baron Leigh
Edward Leigh, 5th Baron Leigh (1742–1786) was descended from Thomas Leigh, Lord Mayor of London in 1558, and inherited the Leigh family seat at Stoneleigh Abbey, Stoneleigh, Warwickshire following the death of his father, Thomas Leigh, 4th Bar ...
(1742–1786)
Barons Leigh, Second creation (1839)
* Chandos Leigh, 1st Baron Leigh (1791–1850)
*William Henry Leigh, 2nd Baron Leigh
William Henry Leigh, 2nd Baron Leigh, (17 January 1824 – 21 October 1905) was a British politician.
Life
He was the eldest of three sons born to Chandos Leigh, 1st Baron Leigh and his wife Margarette Willes. He was Lord of the Manor of Hunn ...
(1824–1905)
** Gilbert Henry Chandos Leigh (1851–1884)
*Francis Dudley Leigh, 3rd Baron Leigh
Colonel Francis Dudley Leigh, 3rd Baron Leigh (30 July 1855 – 16 May 1938) was a British peer and Warwickshire landowner. He was Lord of the Manor of Hunningham. An officer in the Warwickshire Yeomanry and honorary colonel of several volunteer ...
(1855–1938)
* Rupert William Dudley Leigh, 4th Baron Leigh (1908–1979)
* John Piers Leigh, 5th Baron Leigh (1935–2003)
* Christopher Dudley Piers Leigh, 6th Baron Leigh (b. 1960)
The heir apparent
An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
is the present holder's son Rupert Dudley Leigh (b. 1994).
See also
* Earl of Chichester (1644 creation)
*Howard Leigh, Baron Leigh of Hurley
Howard Darryl Leigh, Baron Leigh of Hurley (born 3 April 1959 He was 2000–2005 Treasurer of the Conservative Party; He is since 2005 Alt-Treasurer (Senior Treasurer). /sup> He is a member of the Executive Board of the Conservative Friends of Is ...
(LP 2013)
References
Sources
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Leigh
1611 establishments in England
Extinct baronies in the Peerage of England
Baronies in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
Noble titles created in 1643
Noble titles created in 1839