Earl of Wilton, of

Wilton Castle Wilton Castle is a 12th-century Norman castle located in south-eastern Herefordshire, England on the River Wye adjacent to the town of Ross-on-Wye. The castle is named after the manor associated with it. This castle in Herefordshire, st ...

in the

County of Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a Counties of England, county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-e ...

, is a title 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 ...

. It was created in 1801 for Thomas Egerton, 1st Baron Grey de Wilton, along with the subsidiary title of Viscount Grey de Wilton, also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Both titles were created with remainder to the second and all younger sons successively of his daughter Eleanor, wife of

Robert Grosvenor, 1st Marquess of Westminster Robert Grosvenor, 1st Marquess of Westminster, (22 March 1767 – 17 February 1845) was the son of the 1st Earl Grosvenor, whom he succeeded in 1802 as 2nd Earl Grosvenor. He was created Marquess of Westminster in 1831. He wa ...

History

The 1st Earl of Wilton was a member of the

Egerton family The Egerton family (pronunciation: "''edge-er-ton''") is a British aristocratic family. Over time, several members of the Egerton family were made Dukes, Earls, knights, baronets and peers. Hereditary titles held by the Egerton family include t ...

and the eldest son of Sir Thomas Grey Egerton, 6th Baronet of Egerton and Oulton. He had earlier resided at

Heaton Hall Heaton Park is a public park in Manchester, England, covering an area of over . The park includes the grounds of a Grade I listed, neoclassical 18th century country house, Heaton Hall. The hall, remodelled by James Wyatt in 1772, is now only ...

near

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

and represented

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

in Parliament. He was a descendant of Sir Roland Egerton, 1st Baronet, who had married Bridget Grey, sister and co-heir of

Thomas Grey, 15th Baron Grey de Wilton Thomas Grey, 15th Baron Grey de Wilton (died 1614) was an English aristocrat, soldier and conspirator. He was convicted of involvement in the Bye Plot against James I of England. Early life The son of Arthur Grey, 14th Baron Grey of Wilton, by ...

, who was attainted in 1603 and forfeited his title. In 1756, Thomas Egerton succeeded his father as 7th Baronet and in 1784 was created Baron Grey de Wilton, of

in the County Hereford, 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 ...

, with remainder to the heirs male of his body. When the 1st Earl of Wilton died in 1814, the Grey de Wilton barony became extinct as he had no male heirs, while the Grey Egerton baronetcy passed to his kinsman John Grey Egerton, who became the 8th Baronet. The titles of ''Earl of Wilton'' and ''Viscount Grey de Wilton'' passed, according to the special remainder, to the 1st Earl's grandson Thomas Grosvenor, who adopted the surname of Egerton and became the 2nd Earl. He was the second son of Lady Eleanor Egerton (and her husband, the 1st Marquess of Westminster), the younger brother of Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Marquess of Westminster, and the elder brother of Lord Robert Grosvenor, who was created

Baron Ebury Baron Ebury, of Ebury Manor in the County of Middlesex, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom that dates from 1857. In 1999, it became a subsidiary title of the earldom of Wilton after the 6th Baron Ebury inherited the earldom fro ...

in 1857. The 2nd Earl notably served as

Lord Steward of the Household The Lord Steward or Lord Steward of the Household is an official of the Royal Household in England. He is always a peer. Until 1924, he was always a member of the Government. Until 1782, the office was one of considerable political importance ...

in 1835, in the Tory administration of

Sir Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet, (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850) was a British Conservative statesman who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835 and 1841–1846) simultaneously serving as Chancellor of the Exchequer ...

. His eldest son, who became the 3rd Earl of Wilton, had represented Weymouth and Bath in Parliament as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

. In 1875, seven years before the 3rd Earl had succeeded his father, he was raised to the peerage as Baron Grey de Radcliffe, in the County Palatine of Lancaster. However, the 3rd Earl was childless, and on his death in 1885, this barony became extinct. He was succeeded in his other titles by his younger brother, who became the 4th Earl of Wilton. On the death in 1999 of his great-grandson, the 7th Earl of Wilton, the line of the 2nd Earl failed. He was succeeded according to the

special remainder In property law of the United Kingdom and the United States and other common law countries, a remainder is a future interest given to a person (who is referred to as the transferee or remainderman) that is capable of becoming possessory upon the ...

by his kinsman Francis Egerton Grosvenor, 6th Baron Ebury (a great-great-grandson of

Robert Grosvenor, 1st Baron Ebury Robert Grosvenor, 1st Baron Ebury PC (24 April 1801 – 18 November 1893), styled Lord Robert Grosvenor from 1831 to 1857, was a British courtier and Whig politician. He served as Comptroller of the Household between 1830 and 1834 and as Treas ...

), who became the 8th Earl of Wilton.

Earls of Wilton (1801)

Thomas Egerton, 1st Earl of Wilton Thomas Grey Egerton, 1st Earl of Wilton (14 August 1749 – 23 September 1814), known as Sir Thomas Grey Egerton, Bt from 1766 to 1784, was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1772 to 1784 when he was raised to the peerage ...

(1749–1814) *

Thomas Egerton, 2nd Earl of Wilton Thomas Egerton, 2nd Earl of Wilton, GCH, PC (30 December 1799 – 7 March 1882), known as Thomas Grosvenor until 1814, was a British nobleman and Tory politician. He served as Lord Steward of the Household in 1835 in Sir Robert Peel's f ...

(1799–1882) * Arthur Edward Holland Grey Egerton, 3rd Earl of Wilton (1833–1885) * Seymour John Grey Egerton, 4th Earl of Wilton (1839–1898) *Arthur George Egerton, 5th Earl of Wilton (1863–1915) *Seymour Edward Frederick Egerton, 6th Earl of Wilton (1896–1927) *Seymour William Arthur John Egerton, 7th Earl of Wilton (1921–1999), succeeded to the earldom at the age of 6. Having no children, he was succeeded by his kinsman, Francis Egerton Grosvenor. * Francis Egerton Grosvenor, 8th Earl of Wilton (b. 1934), son of

Robert Egerton Grosvenor, 5th Baron Ebury Robert Egerton Grosvenor, 5th Baron Ebury, DSO (8 February 1914 – 5 May 1957), was a British peer, military officer and racing driver. Early life and education Lord Ebury was the elder son of Francis Egerton Grosvenor, 4th Baron Ebury and his ...

. 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 only son, Julian Francis Martin Grosvenor, Viscount Grey de Wilton (b. 1959).

Family tree

Line of succession

(1749–1814)'' **''Lady Eleanor Egerton (1770–1846)'' *** Coronet of a British Marquess

'' Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Marquess of Westminster (1795–1869) **** Coronet of a British Duke

Hugh Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster Hugh Lupus Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster, (13 October 1825 – 22 December 1899), styled Viscount Belgrave between 1831 and 1845, Earl Grosvenor between 1845 and 1869, and known as The Marquess of Westminster between 1869 and 1874, was an ...

(1825–1899)'' ***** Dukes of Westminster *** Coronet of a British Earl

(1799–1882)'' ****''Thomas Egerton, Viscount Grey de Wilton (1825–1830)'' ****''Arthur Egerton, Viscount Grey de Wilton (1831)'' **** Coronet of a British Earl

'' Arthur Egerton, 3rd Earl of Wilton (1833–1885)'' **** Coronet of a British Earl

Seymour Egerton, 4th Earl of Wilton Seymour John Grey "Sim" Egerton, 4th Earl of Wilton (20 January 1839 – 3 January 1898) was a peer of the United Kingdom from the Egerton family. He was the owner and namesake of the Lord Wilton violin. A musician, he was an associate of Arthu ...

(1839–1898)'' ***** Coronet of a British Earl

Arthur Egerton, 5th Earl of Wilton Arthur is a common male given name of Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. Another theory, more wi ...

(1863–1915)'' ****** Coronet of a British Earl

'' Seymour Egerton, 6th Earl of Wilton (1896–1927)'' ******* Coronet of a British Earl

'' Seymour Egerton, 7th Earl of Wilton (1921–1999)'' ******'' Lord George Egerton (1898–1947)'' *** Coronet of a British Baron

(1801–1883)'' **** Coronet of a British Baron

'' Robert Wellesley Grosvenor, 2nd Baron Ebury (1834 - 1918)'' ***** Coronet of a British Baron

''Robert Victor Grosvenor, 3rd Baron Ebury (1868 - 1921)'' ***** Coronet of a British Baron

''Francis Egerton Grosvenor, 4th Baron Ebury (1883 - 1932)'' ****** Coronet of a British Baron

(1914 - 1957)'' ******* Coronet of a British Earl

''The Right Honourable'' Francis Egerton Grosvenor, 8th Earl of Wilton (born 1934) ******** (1) Julian Francis Martin Grosvenor, ''Viscount Grey de Wilton'' (b. 1959) ******* ''The Hon. William Wellesley Grosvenor (1942 - 2002)'' ******** (2) Alexander Egerton Grosvenor (b. 1968) ******* (3) ''The Hon.'' Richard Alexander Grosvenor (b. 1946) ******** (4) Bendor Robert Gerard Grosvenor (b. 1977) ****** ''The Hon. Hugh Richard Grosvenor (1919 - 2002)'' ******* (5) William Peter Wellesley Grosvenor (b. 1959)

References

Debrett's Baronetage of England

External links