Duke of Northumberland is a noble title that has been created three times in English and British history, twice in the
Peerage of England and once in the
Peerage of Great Britain. The current holder of this title is
Ralph Percy, 12th Duke of Northumberland
Ralph George Algernon Percy, 12th Duke of Northumberland, (born 16 November 1956), styled Lord Ralph Percy until 1995, is a British hereditary peer and rural landowner and current head of the House of Percy.
Biography
Ralph Percy was born th ...
.
1551 creation
The title was first created in the Peerage of England in 1551 for
John Dudley, 1st Earl of Warwick
John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland (1504Loades 2008 – 22 August 1553) was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady Jan ...
. He had already been created
Viscount Lisle
The title of Viscount Lisle has been created six times in the Peerage of England. The first creation, on 30 October 1451, was for John Talbot, 1st Baron Lisle. Upon the death of his son Thomas at the Battle of Nibley Green in 1470, the viscoun ...
in 1543 and
Earl of Warwick
Earl of Warwick is one of the most prestigious titles in the peerages of the United Kingdom. The title has been created four times in English history, and the name refers to Warwick Castle and the town of Warwick.
Overview
The first creation ...
in 1547, also in the Peerage of England. In 1553, Dudley advanced the claim of his daughter-in-law,
Lady Jane Grey, to the English throne, but when she was deposed by
Queen Mary I
Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, and as "Bloody Mary" by her Protestant opponents, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain from January 1556 until her death in 1558. Sh ...
, Dudley was convicted of high treason and executed. An illegitimate son of one of his younger sons,
Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester,
Sir Robert Dudley, claimed the dukedom when in exile in Italy. On 9 March 1620 the
Emperor Ferdinand II
Ferdinand II (9 July 1578 – 15 February 1637) was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, Hungary, and Croatia from 1619 until his death in 1637. He was the son of Archduke Charles II of Inner Austria and Maria of Bavaria. His parents were de ...
officially recognised the title, an act which infuriated
James I of England
James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...
.
1683 creation
George FitzRoy, 1st Earl of Northumberland, an illegitimate son of king
Charles II, was created Duke of Northumberland in the Peerage of England in 1683. He had already been created Baron of Pontefract, Viscount Falmouth and Earl of Northumberland in 1674, also in the Peerage of England. However, all the titles became extinct on his death in 1716 as he left no heirs.
Jacobite creation
In 1716
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 ...
, was created Duke of Northumberland, Marquess of Woburn,
Earl of Malmesbury
Earl of Malmesbury is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1800 for the diplomat James Harris, 1st Baron Malmesbury. The son of the grammarian and politician James Harris, he served as Ambassador to Spain, Prussia, Russia ...
and Viscount Winchendon in the
Jacobite Peerage, by the
Old Pretender
James Francis Edward Stuart (10 June 16881 January 1766), nicknamed the Old Pretender by Whigs, was the son of King James II and VII of England, Scotland and Ireland, and his second wife, Mary of Modena. He was Prince of Wales fro ...
. The title had no legal validity in the Kingdom of Great Britain.
1766 creation
![1st Duke of Northumberland cropped](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/1st_Duke_of_Northumberland_cropped.jpg)
The title was created for the third time in 1766 for
Hugh Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland, the former Sir Hugh Smithson, 4th Baronet (1714–1786), who had assumed by Act of Parliament in 1750 for himself and his descendants the surname Percy, due to his having married in 1740 the daughter of
Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset
General Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset (11 November 16847 February 1750), styled Earl of Hertford until 1748, of Petworth House in Sussex, was a British Army officer and Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1708 until 17 ...
(1684–1750), whose mother
Lady Elizabeth Percy
John Clifford, 7th Baron de Clifford (c. 1389 – 13 March 1422), also known as John, Lord Clifford, 7th Lord of the Honor of Skipton, KG, was an English peer. He was killed at the siege of Meaux, France.
Family
John Clifford, born about 138 ...
(1667–1722), was the last of the senior blood line of the ancient
House of Percy
A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air co ...
, being the only surviving child of
Josceline Percy, 11th Earl of Northumberland (1644–1670). In 1749 King George II created Algernon who had inherited the Dukedom of Somerset in 1748 Earl of Northumberland and by courtesy title (for eldest male heir) Baron Warkworth, of
Warkworth Castle
Warkworth Castle is a ruined medieval castle in Warkworth in the English county of Northumberland. The village and castle occupy a loop of the River Coquet, less than a mile from England's north-east coast. When the castle was founded is unc ...
in the County of Northumberland with special remainder to his son-in-law Sir Hugh Smithson, 4th Baronet.
The above steps formed a deliberate move to allow ancient names and titles of the Percys to be revived in the male-heir exhausted senior branch of the Dukedom of Somerset which at that time was about to see its largest removal, to another noble but very cadet branch (a fourth cousin) on Algernon's death. Algernon was also created
Earl of Egremont
Earl of Egremont was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1749, along with the subsidiary title Baron of Cockermouth, in Cumberland, for Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset, with remainder to his nephews Sir Charles Wy ...
at the same time with a different remaindersee this article for further information.
In 1784 the 1st Duke was also granted the substantive title Lord Lovaine, Baron of Alnwick in the County of Northumberland, in the Peerage of Great Britain, with remainder to his second son
Lord Algernon Percy
:'' Algernon Percy, 1st Earl of Beverley was also known as Lord Algernon Percy from 1766-86.''
Colonel Lord Algernon Malcolm Arthur Percy (2 October 1851 – 28 December 1933) was a British career soldier and Conservative politician who sat in t ...
, who succeeded and who was created
Earl of Beverley
Earl of Beverley, in the County of York, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain, held by the Duke of Northumberland since 1865. It was created in 1790 for Algernon Percy, 2nd Baron Lovaine. He was the second son of Hugh Percy, 1st Duke of N ...
in 1790 and thus it too became a courtesy title.
The Duke was succeeded in the dukedom and associated titles by his eldest son,
Hugh, the 2nd Duke, a
lieutenant-general in the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
. The 2nd Duke was in his turn succeeded by his eldest son,
Hugh, the 3rd Duke, who in 1812, five years before he succeeded in the dukedom, had been summoned to the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
through a
writ of acceleration
A writ in acceleration, commonly called a writ of acceleration, is a type of writ of summons that enabled the eldest son and heir apparent of a peer with more than one peerage to attend the British or Irish House of Lords, using one of his father ...
in his father's junior title of Baron Percy. The 3rd Duke later held office as
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 King ...
from 1829 to 1830. He was childless and was succeeded by his younger brother,
Algernon, 1st Baron Prudhoe, the 4th Duke, who in 1814 had been created Baron Prudhoe, of Prudhoe Castle in the County of Northumberland, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The 4th Duke was an
admiral in the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
and notably served as
First Lord of the Admiralty
The First Lord of the Admiralty, or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, was the political head of the English and later British Royal Navy. He was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs, responsible for the di ...
in 1852. He was also childless and on his death in 1865 the barony of Prudhoe became extinct while the barony of Percy (which could be passed on through the female line) was inherited by his great-nephew,
John Stewart-Murray, 7th Duke of Atholl
John James Hugh Henry Stewart-Murray, 7th Duke of Atholl, KT (6 August 1840 – 20 January 1917), styled Marquess of Tullibardine between 1846 and 1864, was a Scottish peer.
Background and education
Atholl was the only child of George Murr ...
. The Admiral was succeeded in the dukedom and remaining titles by his first cousin,
George, the 2nd Earl of Beverley, eldest son of the second son of the 1st Duke. The barony of Lovaine and earldom of Beverley have since been merged in the dukedom as courtesy titles.
The 5th Duke was succeeded by his eldest son,
Algernon, the 6th Duke, who notably served as
Lord Privy Seal between 1879 and 1880 under
Lord Beaconsfield
Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a centr ...
. The 6th Duke's eldest son,
Henry, the 7th Duke, was summoned to the House of lords through a writ of acceleration in his father's junior title of Lord Lovaine in 1887. The 7th Duke's eldest son,
Henry Percy, Earl Percy
Henry Algernon George Percy, Earl Percy (21 January 1871 – 30 December 1909), sometimes styled as Lord Percy or, until 1899, Lord Warkworth, was a British Conservative politician. He held political office under Arthur Balfour as Under-Secreta ...
, predeceased him. He was succeeded by his fourth but eldest surviving son,
Alan, the 8th Duke, whose eldest son,
Henry, the 9th Duke, was killed during the retreat to
Dunkirk during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
. Henry was succeeded by his younger brother,
Hugh, the 10th Duke. In 1957, on the death of his fourth cousin once removed,
James Stewart-Murray, 9th Duke of Atholl
James Thomas Stewart-Murray, 9th Duke of Atholl, 14th Baron Strange, 8th Baron Percy (18 August 1879 – 8 May 1957), styled Lord James Stewart-Murray until 1942, was a Scottish peer and soldier.
Stewart-Murray was the fourth and youngest son of ...
, Hugh succeeded as 9th
Baron Percy
The title Baron Percy has been created several times in the Peerage of England. The first, soon after 1066, a feudal barony rather than a barony by writ, which continued in parallel with the later baronies by writ, until the abolition of feud ...
, the title thus re-merging with the Dukedom. As of 2012 the titles are held by his second son,
Ralph, the 12th Duke, who succeeded on the death of his elder brother in 1995.
Northumberland Estates manages : directly managing of forestry and of farmland, with approximately 100 tenant farmers managing the remaining bulk of the land.
Other members of the Percy family
Several other members of the Percy family have also gained distinction. Charlotte Percy, Duchess of Northumberland
Charlotte Florentia Percy, Duchess of Northumberland (''née'' Lady Charlotte Florentia Clive; 12 September 1787 – 27 July 1866), was governess of the future Queen Victoria.
Family
Born as the younger daughter and third child of the politi ...
, wife of the third Duke, was governess of the future Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...
. Lord Josceline Percy
Lord Josceline William Percy (17 July 1811 – 25 July 1881) was a British Conservative politician.
Background and education
Percy was the second son of George Percy, 5th Duke of Northumberland by his wife Louisa, daughter of the Hon. James Stu ...
, second son of the fifth Duke, was a politician. Lord Henry Percy
General Lord Henry Hugh Manvers Percy, (22 August 1817 – 3 December 1877) was a British Army officer and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwe ...
, third son of the fifth Duke, was a soldier. Lord Algernon Percy
:'' Algernon Percy, 1st Earl of Beverley was also known as Lord Algernon Percy from 1766-86.''
Colonel Lord Algernon Malcolm Arthur Percy (2 October 1851 – 28 December 1933) was a British career soldier and Conservative politician who sat in t ...
, second son of the sixth Duke, was a politician. Lord Eustace Percy, seventh son of the seventh Duke, was a politician who was raised to the peerage as Baron Percy of Newcastle in 1953. Jane Percy, Duchess of Northumberland
Isobel Jane Miller Percy, Duchess of Northumberland (née Richard; born 11 May 1958), is a British aristocrat and businesswoman. She has served as Lord Lieutenant of Northumberland since 2009, and is best known for redeveloping The Alnwick Ga ...
, wife of the twelfth Duke, is Lord-Lieutenant of Northumberland since 2009. See also Earl of Beverley
Earl of Beverley, in the County of York, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain, held by the Duke of Northumberland since 1865. It was created in 1790 for Algernon Percy, 2nd Baron Lovaine. He was the second son of Hugh Percy, 1st Duke of N ...
for younger sons of the first Earl of Beverley.
Family residences
The seat of the Dukes of Northumberland is Alnwick Castle
Alnwick Castle () is a castle and country house in Alnwick in the English county of Northumberland. It is the seat of the 12th Duke of Northumberland, built following the Norman conquest and renovated and remodelled a number of times. It is a G ...
, which is located in Alnwick, Northumberland. The family's London residence is Syon House in Brentford, which replaced, as their London residence, the demolished Northumberland House
Northumberland House (also known as Suffolk House when owned by the Earls of Suffolk) was a large Jacobean townhouse in London, so-called because it was, for most of its history, the London residence of the Percy family, who were the Ear ...
in the Strand
Strand may refer to:
Topography
*The flat area of land bordering a body of water, a:
** Beach
** Shoreline
* Strand swamp, a type of swamp habitat in Florida
Places Africa
* Strand, Western Cape, a seaside town in South Africa
* Strand Street ...
. Warkworth and Prudhoe
Prudhoe ( ) is a town in south Northumberland, England, about west of the city of Newcastle upon Tyne and just south of the River Tyne. Situated on a steep, north-facing hill in the Tyne valley, Prudhoe had a population of 11,675 at the 201 ...
castles were the residences of the Earls of Northumberland
The title of Earl of Northumberland has been created several times in the Peerage of England and of Great Britain, succeeding the title Earl of Northumbria. Its most famous holders are the House of Percy (''alias'' Perci), who were the most po ...
in the Middle Ages, and ownership was retained by the later Dukes. Both are now in the custody of English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
The charity states that i ...
. Albury Park is a former residence which has been converted into apartments, while the surrounding estate is still directly owned by the Duke. The traditional burial place of the Dukes is the Northumberland Vault
Honouring individuals with burials and memorials in Westminster Abbey has a long tradition.
History
Henry III rebuilt Westminster Abbey in honour of the Royal Saint Edward the Confessor, whose relics were placed in a shrine in the sanctuary a ...
in Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...
in London, the Percys thus being the last family to maintain such a privilege. Their family vault is however nearly full, and a new private graveyard has been created in Hulne Park
Hulne Park is the only one remaining of the three parks that once surrounded Alnwick Castle in Northumberland, providing wood and meat for the Percy family, the Dukes of Northumberland. The park is walled, and was landscaped by Capability Bro ...
near Alnwick.
List of titleholders
Dukes of Northumberland; First creation (1551)
Dukes of Northumberland; Second creation (1683)
Earls of Northumberland; Third creation (1749)
Dukes of Northumberland; Third creation (1766)
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 elder son George Percy, Earl Percy (b. 1984)
Family tree
Coat of arms
Ducal pipers
Since at least the mid 18th century, the family has maintained a Northumbrian piper; the earliest known of these was Joseph Turnbull, who was painted in 1756 playing his pipes; the portrait, entitled ''Joseph Turnbull, Piper to the Duchess of Northumberland'' is at Alnwick Castle. At this time, before the Third Creation of the Dukedom, he would actually have been piper to the Countess. A later piper, William Green stated that "Joe Turnbull was the first Piper at Alnwick Castle – that was ever!" A list of the Ducal Pipers is at. The present Ducal Piper is Richard Butler. The piper's main duty is to play at the Shrove Tuesday football match in Alnwick.
Other pipers have been associated less formally with the family – the notorious piper James Allan (1729–1810) was a favourite of the Countess; in the last century Tom Clough
Tom or TOM may refer to:
* Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name)
Characters
* Tom Anderson, a character in '' Beavis and Butt-Head''
* Tom Beck, a character ...
and Richard Mowat
Richard Mowat or Mowatt (1865–1936) was a renowned and award-winning player of the Northumbrian smallpipes.
Biography
A miner, born in Backworth in 1865, Mowat studied the pipes with Thomas Todd, and played in public alongside Old Tom Clough at ...
are known to have played together with the Duke's then piper, James Hall, for the Duke and his guests at Alnwick; one such guest was Edward VII, in 1905.
Named in their honour
* Northumberland Islands
The Northumberland Islands are a scattered island chain off the eastern coast of Queensland, Australia.
Geography and history
The Northumberland Islands are to the south-east of the city of Mackay roughly between the latitudes 21°S and 22 ...
, off Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
, Australia
** Northumberland Islands National Park, a protected area in Queensland
* Percy Isles, off Queensland, Australia
** Percy Isles National Park, a protected area in Queensland
In popular culture
* Sir Henry Percy, popularly known as "Harry Hotspur", is portrayed as a dashing hero by William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
in his historical play ''Henry IV, Part One
''Henry IV, Part 1'' (often written as ''1 Henry IV'') is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written no later than 1597. The play dramatises part of the reign of King Henry IV of England, beginning with the battle at ...
''. Sir Henry was the eldest son and heir apparent of the 1st Earl of Northumberland and would have succeeded his father if not for his untimely death at the Battle of Shrewsbury
The Battle of Shrewsbury was a battle fought on 21 July 1403, waged between an army led by the Lancastrian King Henry IV and a rebel army led by Henry "Harry Hotspur" Percy from Northumberland. The battle, the first in which English archers ...
.
*Lord Percy Percy
This article lists the characters in the four series and three special episodes of the British sitcom ''Blackadder''. ''Blackadder'' was notable for featuring actors playing many repeating characters across different eras of history, with Rowa ...
, played by Tim McInnerny
Tim McInnerny ( ; born 18 September 1956) is an English actor. He is known for his many roles on stage and television, including as Lord Percy Percy and Captain Darling in the 1980s British sitcom ''Blackadder''.
Early life
McInnerny was bor ...
, is a major character in the first two series of the British sitcom '' Blackadder''. In the first series, he is the Duke of Northumberland, while the Lord Percy in the second series is presumably his descendant and is heir to the dukedom. The first series was partly filmed at Alnwick Castle
Alnwick Castle () is a castle and country house in Alnwick in the English county of Northumberland. It is the seat of the 12th Duke of Northumberland, built following the Norman conquest and renovated and remodelled a number of times. It is a G ...
, the residence and seat of the real Dukes of Northumberland.
See also
*Alnwick Castle
Alnwick Castle () is a castle and country house in Alnwick in the English county of Northumberland. It is the seat of the 12th Duke of Northumberland, built following the Norman conquest and renovated and remodelled a number of times. It is a G ...
– the family's main residence
*Alnwick Garden
Alnwick Garden is a complex of formal gardens adjacent to Alnwick Castle in the town of Alnwick, Northumberland, England. The gardens have a long history under the dukes of Northumberland, but fell into disrepair until revived at the turn of the ...
– adjacent to Alnwick Castle
*Northumberland House
Northumberland House (also known as Suffolk House when owned by the Earls of Suffolk) was a large Jacobean townhouse in London, so-called because it was, for most of its history, the London residence of the Percy family, who were the Ear ...
– the family's former residence in central London (demolished in 1874)
*Northumbrian tartan
Border tartan, sometimes known as Borders tartan, Northumbrian tartan, Northumberland tartan, shepherds' plaid, Border drab, or Border check, is a design used in woven fabrics historically associated with the Anglo-Scottish Border, particularly wi ...
* Royal National Lifeboat Institution, in which several dukes played a role in the 19th to 20th centuries
* Syon House – the family's Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
-side residence in west London
References
*
External links
European Heraldry page
Alnwick Castle website
Alnwick Garden website
Northumberland Estates website
Syon House website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Northumberland
*
Dukedoms in the Peerage of Great Britain
History of Northumberland
Extinct dukedoms in the Peerage of Great Britain
Forfeited dukedoms in the Peerage of England
Extinct dukedoms in the Jacobite Peerage
Noble titles created in 1551
Noble titles created in 1683
Noble titles created in 1716
Noble titles created in 1766