Earl of Godolphin was 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 ...

. It was created in 1706 for Sidney Godolphin, 1st Baron Godolphin, the

Lord High Treasurer The post of Lord High Treasurer or Lord Treasurer was an English government position and has been a British government position since the Acts of Union of 1707. A holder of the post would be the third-highest-ranked Great Officer of State in ...

. At the same time, he was created Viscount Rialton. In 1684 he had already been created Baron Godolphin, of Rialton, also in the

. He was a leading politician of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, a

Knight of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George ...

and Governor of Scilly. Upon his death in 1712, his titles passed to his only child,

Francis Francis may refer to: People *Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State and Bishop of Rome *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Francis (surname) Places * Rural M ...

. This 2nd Earl of Godolphin married Henrietta, 2nd Duchess of Marlborough. Their only son,

William Godolphin, Marquess of Blandford William Godolphin, Marquess of Blandford ( 1699 – 24 August 1731) was an English nobleman and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1720 and 1731 . Godolphin was the eldest son of Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin and his ...

, was childless and predeceased both his parents. In 1735 the 2nd Earl was created Baron Godolphin, of Helston, 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, in default of male issue of his own, to the male issue of his deceased uncle

Henry Godolphin Henry Godolphin (1648–1733) was a Provost of Eton College and Dean of St. Paul's Cathedral in London, a position in which he clashed with Sir Christopher Wren in the period when the new cathedral had reached the finishing touches. Life He wa ...

Dean of St Paul's The dean of St Paul's is a member of, and chair of the Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral in London in the Church of England. The dean of St Paul's is also ''ex officio'' dean of the Order of the British Empire. The current dean is Andrew Tremlett, ...

. When the 2nd Earl died in 1766, the Godolphin earldom, the Rialton viscounty, and the Godolphin barony of 1684 became extinct; but the Godolphin barony of 1735 devolved upon his cousin

Francis Godolphin, 2nd Baron Godolphin Francis Godolphin, 2nd Baron Godolphin (2 November 1706 – 25 May 1785) was a British politician and peer. Life and career He was the eldest surviving son of Henry Godolphin, provost of Eton and Dean of St Paul's, and was educated at Eton Colle ...

. The ancestral seat of the Godolphin family was Godolphin House near

Helston Helston ( kw, Hellys) is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated at the northern end of the Lizard Peninsula approximately east of Penzance and south-west of Falmouth.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map shee ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

. The family took a close interest in mining and a number of mines were founded on their land. At

Wheal Vor Wheal may refer to: * Wheals, a type of skin lesion * Brad Wheal (born 1996), British cricketer * Donald James Wheal (1931–2008), British British television writer, novelist and non-fiction writer * David John Wheal, Australian businessman * " ...

they experimented with several new inventions (for instance, the

Newcomen engine The atmospheric engine was invented by Thomas Newcomen in 1712, and is often referred to as the Newcomen fire engine (see below) or simply as a Newcomen engine. The engine was operated by condensing steam drawn into the cylinder, thereby creati ...

in 1715) to improve the working of their mines.

Earls of Godolphin (1706)

Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin, (15 June 1645 – 15 September 1712) was a leading British politician of the late 17th and the early 18th centuries. He was a Privy Councillor and Secretary of State for the Northern Department b ...

(1645–1712) *

Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin, (3 September 1678 – 17 January 1766), styled Viscount Rialton from 1706 to 1712, was an English courtier and politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons between 1695 and 1712, wh ...

(1678–1766) **

(c. 1700–1731)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Godolphin Extinct earldoms in the Peerage of England Noble titles created in 1706 Cornish nobility

Earls of Godolphin (1706)

See also

References