The title of Earl of Athlone has been created three times.

History

It was created first in the Peerage of Ireland in 1692 by King William III for

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

Baron van Reede, Lord of Ginkel, a Dutch nobleman, to honour him for his successful battles in Ireland including the Siege of Athlone. The title also had the

subsidiary title A subsidiary title is a title of authority or title of honour that is held by a royal or noble person but which is not regularly used to identify that person, due to the concurrent holding of a greater title. United Kingdom An example in the Unit ...

of Baron Aughrim. These titles became extinct in 1844 upon the death of the 9th

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...

. The Earls also bore the

Dutch nobility The Dutch nobility is a small elite social class constisting of individuals or families recognized as noble, and with or without a title of nobility in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The existence of nobility was established in the Constitution ...

title Baron van Reede (hereditary in male line; still extant in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

). The second creation was in the

Peerage of the United Kingdom The Peerage of the United Kingdom is one of the five Peerages in the United Kingdom. It comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Acts of Union 1800, Acts of Union in 1801, when it replaced the ...

, as a subsidiary title of the Dukedom of Clarence and Avondale, and was conferred in 1890 upon

Prince Albert Victor of Wales Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale (Albert Victor Christian Edward; 8 January 1864 – 14 January 1892) was the eldest child of the Prince and Princess of Wales (later King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra) and grandson of the re ...

, the eldest son of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

. When he died in 1892, the title became extinct. The third creation was in 1917, also in the

, for the former

Prince Alexander of Teck Major General Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone (Alexander Augustus Frederick William Alfred George; born Prince Alexander of Teck; 14 April 1874 – 16 January 1957), was a British Army commander and major-general who served as Governor- ...

, younger brother of Queen Mary and great uncle of

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

, along with the subsidiary title of Viscount Trematon. The earldom was given after the

Titles Deprivation Act 1917 The Titles Deprivation Act 1917 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which authorised enemies of the United Kingdom during the First World War to be deprived of their British peerages and royal titles. Background The British royal famil ...

, when members of the British Royal Family were forced to renounce their German royal titles. Alexander had two sons who predeceased him, and the titles became extinct after his death.

Earls of Athlone, First Creation (1692)

* Godard van Reede, 1st Earl of Athlone (1630–1703) *

Frederick Christiaan van Reede, 2nd Earl of Athlone Frederick Christiaan van Reede, 2nd Earl of Athlone, baron of Ginkel and Agrim, lord of Amerongen (Utrecht, 20 October 1668 - Sluis, 15 August 1719), was a Dutch general and diplomat in the service of the Dutch Republic during the Nine Years' War ...

(1668–1719) *

Godard Adriaan van Reede, 3rd Earl of Athlone Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran� ...

(1716–1736) *

Fredrik Willem van Reede, 4th Earl of Athlone Fredrik is a masculine Germanic given name derived from the German name ''Friedrich'' or Friederich, from the Old High German ''fridu'' meaning "peace" and ''rîhhi'' meaning "ruler" or "power". It is the common form of Frederick in Norway, Finland ...

(1717–1747) *

Fredrik Christiaan Reinhart van Reede, 5th Earl of Athlone Fredrik is a masculine Germanic given name derived from the German name ''Friedrich'' or Friederich, from the Old High German ''fridu'' meaning "peace" and ''rîhhi'' meaning "ruler" or "power". It is the common form of Frederick in Norway, Finland ...

(1743–1808) * Frederik Willem van Reede, 6th Earl of Athlone (1766–1810) * Reynoud Diederik Jacob van Reede, 7th Earl of Athlone (1773–1823) * George Godard Henry van Reede, 8th Earl of Athlone (1820–1843) * Willem Gustaaf Frederik van Reede, 9th Earl of Athlone (1780–1844)

Earls of Athlone, Second Creation (1890)

* Prince Albert Victor Christian Edward, 1st Duke of Clarence and Avondale, 1st Earl of Athlone (1864–1892)

Earls of Athlone, Third Creation (1917)

* Alexander Augustus Frederick William Alfred George Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone (1874–1957)

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Athlone Extinct earldoms in the Peerage of Ireland Extinct earldoms in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Noble titles created in 1692 Noble titles created in 1890 Noble titles created in 1917 1692 establishments in Ireland