Baron Wharton is a title in the
Peerage of England
The Peerage of England comprises all peerages created in the Kingdom of England before the Act of Union in 1707. In that year, the Peerages of England and Scotland were replaced by one Peerage of Great Britain. There are five peerages in t ...
, originally granted by
letters patent
Letters patent ( la, litterae patentes) ( always in the plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, titl ...
to the heirs male of the
1st Baron, which was forfeited in 1729 when the last male-line heir was declared an outlaw. The Barony was erroneously revived in 1916 by
writ of summons
A writ of summons is a formal document issued by the monarch that enables someone to sit in a Parliament under the United Kingdom's Westminster system. At the beginning of each new Parliament, each person who has established their right to attend ...
, thanks to an 1844 decision in the House of Lords based on absence of documentation. As such, the current Barony of Wharton could more accurately be listed as a new Barony, created in 1916, with the precedence of the older (and extinct) Barony.
The barony of 1544
The title Baron Wharton was created in 1544 by
letters patent
Letters patent ( la, litterae patentes) ( always in the plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, titl ...
for
Sir Thomas Wharton, who had previously served as a
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
Cumberland
Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...
, in recognition of his victory at the
Battle of Solway Moss
The Battle of Solway Moss took place on Solway Moss near the River Esk on the English side of the Anglo-Scottish border in November 1542 between English and Scottish forces.
The Scottish King James V had refused to break from the Catholic Chu ...
. Because of its creation by letters patent, the Barony could only be passed down to male heirs.
The
5th Baron (1648–1715) had a long and distinguished political career, serving at various times as a Member of Parliament,
Lord Lieutenant
A lord-lieutenant ( ) is the British monarch's personal representative in each lieutenancy area of the United Kingdom. Historically, each lieutenant was responsible for organising the county's militia. In 1871, the lieutenant's responsibility ...
of Oxford and
Buckingham
Buckingham ( ) is a market town in north Buckinghamshire, England, close to the borders of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, which had a population of 12,890 at the 2011 Census. The town lies approximately west of Central Milton Keynes, sou ...
,
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the Kingdo ...
and
Lord Privy Seal
The Lord Privy Seal (or, more formally, the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal) is the fifth of the Great Officers of State (United Kingdom), Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and abov ...
. He was created Earl of Wharton, in the
County of Westmorland
Westmorland (, formerly also spelt ''Westmoreland'';R. Wilkinson The British Isles, Sheet The British IslesVision of Britain/ref> is a historic county in North West England spanning the southern Lake District and the northern Dales. It had an ...
, and Viscount Winchendon, of
Winchendon in the
County of Buckingham, in 1706, in the Peerage of England, and in 1715 was further created Marquess of Wharton, in the County of Westmorland, and Marquess of Malmesbury, in the
County of Wilts, in the
Peerage of Great Britain
The Peerage of Great Britain comprises all extant peerages created in the Kingdom of Great Britain between the Acts of Union 1707 and the Acts of Union 1800. It replaced the Peerage of England and the Peerage of Scotland, but was itself r ...
. Later that year, he was also created Marquess of Catherlough, Earl of Rathfarnham, in the
County of Dublin
"Action to match our speech"
, image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg
, map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...
, and Baron Trim, in the
County of Meath
County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is bordered by County Dublin, Dublin to ...
, in the
Peerage of Ireland
The Peerage of Ireland consists of those titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is one of the five divisi ...
. (The Marquessate of Catherlough referred to the town now spelled
Carlow
Carlow ( ; ) is the county town of County Carlow, in the south-east of Ireland, from Dublin. At the 2016 census, it had a combined urban and rural population of 24,272.
The River Barrow flows through the town and forms the historic bounda ...
.)
His son, the
2nd Marquess (1698–1731), was created Duke of Wharton, in the County of Westmorland, in the Peerage of Great Britain, in 1718, but all the titles were forfeit in 1729 when the Duke of Wharton was declared an outlaw. In any event, since on the Duke's death there were no male heirs of the 1st Baron remaining, all the titles would have become extinct at that point.
The Barony revived, or new Barony created
In 1844, however, the Barony was claimed by Colonel
Charles Kemeys-Tynte, and, since the document creating the peerage had been lost, the
Committee for Privileges
The Committee for Privileges and Conduct was a select committee of the House of Lords in the Parliament of the United Kingdom which considered issues relating to the privileges of the House of Lords and its members, as well as having oversight fo ...
of the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...
ruled erroneously that the Barony was created by
writ
In common law, a writ (Anglo-Saxon ''gewrit'', Latin ''breve'') is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court. Warrants, prerogative writs, subpoenas, a ...
and could therefore be passed down through the female line. As a consequence of their resolution, it was determined that at the death of the Duke of Wharton, the Barony had fallen into
abeyance between the Duke's sisters, Lady
Jane Holt and Lady Lucy Morice. It was further determined that, at Lady Lucy's death in 1739, Lady Jane (by now Lady Jane Coke) remained the sole heir, and had been therefore entitled to the Barony. Finally, it was determined that at her death the Barony again fell into abeyance, where it remained in the nineteenth century. The Committee for Privileges, however, also ruled that it did not have the authority to terminate the abeyance because of the existence of a judgement of outlawry against the Duke of Wharton. Thus the matter remained unresolved for 72 years.
On 15 February 1916, the abeyance was terminated by a
writ of summons
A writ of summons is a formal document issued by the monarch that enables someone to sit in a Parliament under the United Kingdom's Westminster system. At the beginning of each new Parliament, each person who has established their right to attend ...
from
King George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936.
Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...
to
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
in favour of
Charles Theodore Halswell Kemeys-Tynte, who became the 8th Baron.
(He should be more properly listed as the 1st Baron Wharton, of the new barony.) At his death, the title was inherited successively by his son and thereafter by his daughter, Elisabeth, who became the 10th Baroness. At her death in 1974, the Barony again fell into abeyance, between her two daughters. It was once again revived in 1990, when the abeyance was terminated in favour of Myrtle Robertson. At her death, the Barony was inherited by her son Myles.
Barons Wharton (1544)
*
Sir Thomas Wharton, 1st Baron Wharton (c. 1495–1568)
*
Thomas Wharton, 2nd Baron Wharton
Thomas Wharton, 2nd Baron Wharton (1520–1572), of Wharton and Nateby, Westmoreland, Beaulieu alias New Hall, Essex and Westminster, Middlesex, was an English peer.
Family
Wharton was the eldest son of Thomas Wharton, 1st Baron Wharton, by hi ...
(1520–1572)
*
Philip Wharton, 3rd Baron Wharton (1555–1625)
*
Philip Wharton, 4th Baron Wharton
Philip Wharton, 4th Baron Wharton (18 April 1613 – 4 February 1696) was an English soldier, politician and diplomat. He was a Parliamentarian during the English Civil War.
Wharton was the son of Sir Thomas Wharton of Aske Hall and his wife ...
(1613–1696)
*
Thomas Wharton, 5th Baron Wharton
Thomas Wharton, 1st Marquess of Wharton PC (August 1648 – 12 April 1715) was an English nobleman and politician. A man of great charm and political ability, he was also notorious for his debauched lifestyle.
Background
He was the son o ...
(1648–1715) (created Earl of Wharton in 1706 and Marquess of Wharton in 1715)
Marquesses of Wharton (1715)
*
Thomas Wharton, 1st Marquess of Wharton
Thomas Wharton, 1st Marquess of Wharton PC (August 1648 – 12 April 1715) was an English nobleman and politician. A man of great charm and political ability, he was also notorious for his debauched lifestyle.
Background
He was the son o ...
(1648–1715)
*
Philip Wharton, 2nd Marquess of Wharton (1698–1731) (abeyant 1731) (created Duke of Wharton in 1718)
Dukes of Wharton (1718)
*
Philip Wharton, 1st Duke of Wharton
Philip Wharton, 1st Duke of Wharton (21 December 1698 – 31 May 1731) was a powerful Jacobite politician, was one of the few people in English history, and the first since the 15th century, to have been raised to a dukedom whilst still a mino ...
(1698–1731) (forfeit 1729 (forfeiture retroactively reversed 1825), all except Barony extinct on his death, Barony abeyant on his death)
Barons Wharton (1544; continued)
*
Jane Wharton, 7th Baroness Wharton
Lady Jane Wharton (1706–1761), considered ''de jure'' 7th Baroness Wharton, was the daughter of Thomas Wharton, 1st Marquess of Wharton by his second wife Lucy Loftus, and sister of Philip Wharton, 1st Duke of Wharton.
Lady Jane married first ...
(1706–1761) (became sole heir 1739; abeyant on her death)
*
Charles Theodore Halswell Kemeys-Tynte, 8th Baron Wharton (1876–1934) (abeyance terminated 1916)
*
Charles John Halswell Kemeys-Tynte, 9th Baron Wharton (1908–1969)
*
Elisabeth Dorothy Kemeys-Tynte, 10th Baroness Wharton (1906–1974) (abeyant on her death)
*
Myrtle Olive Felix Robertson, 11th Baroness Wharton (1934–2000) (abeyance terminated 1990)
*Myles Christopher David Robertson, 12th Baron Wharton (b. 1964)
The
heir presumptive
An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question.
...
is the present holder's only child, the Hon. Meghan Ziky Mary Robertson (b. 2006).
Early Whartons
The Wharton
baronetcy
A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...
dates from 6 October 1292 when
King Edward I
Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal ...
granted to Gilbert de Querton "the Manor of Querton with its appurtenances." ("Querton" was the earlier
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
spelling of "Wharton") There de Querton built
Lammerside for himself and his wife, Emma de Hastings. (The remains of the building still stand and today resemble a
pele tower
Peel towers (also spelt pele) are small fortified keeps or tower houses, built along the English and Scottish borders in the Scottish Marches and North of England, mainly between the mid-14th century and about 1600. They were free-standing ...
). Emma was the daughter of Nicholas de Hastings of the family which were the ancestors of the present
Earls of Huntingdon
Earl of Huntingdon is a title which has been created several times in the Peerage of England. The medieval title (1065 creation) was associated with the ruling house of Scotland ( David of Scotland).
The seventh and most recent creation dates ...
and of
Pembroke.
The descendants of Sir Gilbert were:
*Sir Henry de Querton (c.1281–aft.1343)
*Sir Hugh de Querton (c.1308–bef.1389)
*Sir William de Wherton (c.1327–bef.1417)
*Sir John de Wharton (c.1360–1434)
*Sir Thomas de Wherton (c.1388–c.1440)
*Sir Henry Wharton (c.1437–?)
*Sir Thomas Wharton II (1460 or 1465–1531)
*
Sir Thomas Wharton, 1st Baron Wharton (c. 1495–1568)
References
*''Genealogical Research in England – The Origin of the Hastings'' — G. Andrews Moriarty, A.M., LL.B., F.S.A
*''The Wharton Sleeve'' — Nathan Earl Wharton, 1949
Footnotes
External links
Wharton Hall
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wharton
1544 establishments in England
Baronies in the Peerage of England
Baronies by writ
Baronies created by error
Noble titles created in 1544
Noble titles created in 1916