Earl Spencer is a title 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 ...
that was created on 1 November 1765, along with the title Viscount Althorp, of
Althorp
Althorp (popularly pronounced ) is a Grade I listed stately home and estate in the civil parish of Althorp, in West Northamptonshire, England of about . By road it is about northwest of the county town of Northampton and about northwest of c ...
in the
County of Northampton
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is k ...
, for
John Spencer, 1st Viscount Spencer.
He was a member of the prominent
Spencer family
The Spencer family is an aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. From the 16th century, its members have held numerous titles including the dukedom of Marlborough, the earldoms of Sunderland and Spencer, and the Churchill barony. Two prom ...
and a great-grandson of the
1st Duke of Marlborough. Previously, he had been created Viscount Spencer, of Althorp in the County of Northampton, and Baron Spencer of Althorp, of Althorp in the County of Northampton, on 3 April 1761.
The future
6th Earl Spencer was created Viscount Althorp, of
Great Brington
Great Brington is a village in Northamptonshire, England, in the civil parish of Brington, which at the 2011 Census had a population of about 200. St Mary the Virgin's church is the parish church.
The villages name means 'Farm/settlement con ...
in the County of Northampton, on 19 December 1905 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 ...
.
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...
, was the youngest of three daughters of the
8th Earl Spencer. 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 ...
and
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, (Henry Charles Albert David; born 15 September 1984) is a member of the British royal family. He is the younger son of Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. He is fifth in the line of succ ...
are grandsons of the 8th Earl Spencer.
Land holdings
The family seat is
Althorp
Althorp (popularly pronounced ) is a Grade I listed stately home and estate in the civil parish of Althorp, in West Northamptonshire, England of about . By road it is about northwest of the county town of Northampton and about northwest of c ...
in
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
.
Their estate includes significant land holdings in other parts of the country, including the village of
North Creake
North Creake is a village and civil parish in the north west of the English county of Norfolk.
It covers an area of and had a population of 414 in 184 households at the 2001 census, reducing to 386 at the 2011 Census.
For the purposes of local ...
in
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
. The family also holds
Spencer House Spencer House may refer to:
* Spencer House, Westminster, Greater London, England
United States
* Spencer House (Hartford, Connecticut), listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in Hartford County
* Spencer House in Columbus, Ge ...
in St James's,
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
.
Coat of arms
The
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...
of the family is as follows: Quarterly
argent
In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...
and
gules
In heraldry, gules () is the tincture with the colour red. It is one of the class of five dark tinctures called "colours", the others being azure (blue), sable (black), vert (green) and purpure (purple).
In engraving, it is sometimes depict ...
, in the second and third quarters a fret
or, over all on a
bend sable
The sable (''Martes zibellina'') is a species of marten, a small omnivorous mammal primarily inhabiting the forest environments of Russia, from the Ural Mountains throughout Siberia, and northern Mongolia. Its habitat also borders eastern Kaza ...
, three escallops of the first. The
crest
Crest or CREST may refer to:
Buildings
*The Crest (Huntington, New York), a historic house in Suffolk County, New York
*"The Crest", an alternate name for 63 Wall Street, in Manhattan, New York
*Crest Castle (Château Du Crest), Jussy, Switzerla ...
, emerging from the coronet, is a griffin's head argent, gorged with a bar gemelle gules between two wings expanded of the second. The
supporters are:
Dexter, a
griffin
The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late Latin, Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail ...
per fess
ermine and erminois, gorged with a collar sable, the edges flory-counter-flory, and chained of the last, on the collar, three escallops argent;
sinister
Sinister commonly refers to:
* Evil
* Ominous
Sinister may also refer to:
Left side
* Sinister, Latin for the direction " left"
* Sinister, in heraldry, is the bearer's true left side (viewers' right side) of an escutcheon or coat of arms; see ...
, a
wyvern
A wyvern ( , sometimes spelled wivern) is a legendary winged dragon that has two legs.
The wyvern in its various forms is important in heraldry, frequently appearing as a mascot of schools and athletic teams (chiefly in the United States, Un ...
erect on his tail ermine, collared and chained as the griffin. The
motto
A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...
is ''Dieu defend le droit'' (
French: God protect the right).
Earls Spencer (1765)
![Johnspencer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/Johnspencer.jpg)
*
John Spencer, 1st Earl Spencer
John Spencer, 1st Earl Spencer () was a British peer and politician.
Early life
Spencer was born on 19 December 1734 at Althorp, his family's home in Northamptonshire. He was the only son of the Hon. John Spencer and his wife, the former ...
(1734–1783)
*
George John Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer
George John Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer, (1 September 1758 – 10 November 1834), styled Viscount Althorp from 1765 to 1783, was a British Whig politician. He served as Home Secretary from 1806 to 1807 in the Ministry of All the Talents. He was ...
(1758–1834)
*
John Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl Spencer
John Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl Spencer, (30 May 1782 – 1 October 1845), styled Viscount Althorp from 1783 to 1834, was a British statesman. He was Chancellor of the Exchequer under Lord Grey and Lord Melbourne from 1830 to 1834. Due to his ...
(1782–1845)
*
Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer
Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer, KG, CB, PC (14 April 1798 – 27 December 1857), styled The Honourable Frederick Spencer until 1845, was a British naval commander, courtier, and Whig politician. He initially served in the Royal Navy and ...
(1798–1857)
*
John Poyntz Spencer, 5th Earl Spencer
John Poyntz Spencer, 5th Earl Spencer, KG, KP, PC (27 October 1835 – 13 August 1910), known as Viscount Althorp from 1845 to 1857 (and also known as the "Red Earl" because of his distinctive long red beard), was a British Liberal Party polit ...
(1835–1910)
*
Charles Robert Spencer, 6th Earl Spencer (1857–1922)
*
Albert Edward John Spencer, 7th Earl Spencer
Albert Edward John Spencer, 7th Earl Spencer, (23 May 1892 – 9 June 1975), styled The Honourable Albert Spencer until 1910 and Viscount Althorp from 1910 to 1922, and known less formally as Jack Spencer, was a British peer. He was the pate ...
(1892–1975)
*
Edward John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer
Edward John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer, (24 January 192429 March 1992), styled Viscount Althorp until June 1975, was a British nobleman, military officer, and courtier. He was the father of Diana, Princess of Wales, and the maternal grandfather ...
(1924–1992)
*
Charles Edward Maurice Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer (b. 1964)
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 son
Louis Frederick John Spencer, Viscount Althorp (b. 1994).
Family tree
This is a continuation of the Spencer/Spencer-Churchill family tree for the Althorp branch of the Spencers found in the
Spencer family
The Spencer family is an aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. From the 16th century, its members have held numerous titles including the dukedom of Marlborough, the earldoms of Sunderland and Spencer, and the Churchill barony. Two prom ...
article.
Line of succession
* ''
John Spencer, 1st Earl Spencer
John Spencer, 1st Earl Spencer () was a British peer and politician.
Early life
Spencer was born on 19 December 1734 at Althorp, his family's home in Northamptonshire. He was the only son of the Hon. John Spencer and his wife, the former ...
(1734–1783)''
** ''
George Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer (1758–1834)''
*** ''
John Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl Spencer
John Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl Spencer, (30 May 1782 – 1 October 1845), styled Viscount Althorp from 1783 to 1834, was a British statesman. He was Chancellor of the Exchequer under Lord Grey and Lord Melbourne from 1830 to 1834. Due to his ...
(1782–1845)''
*** ''
Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer
Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer, KG, CB, PC (14 April 1798 – 27 December 1857), styled The Honourable Frederick Spencer until 1845, was a British naval commander, courtier, and Whig politician. He initially served in the Royal Navy and ...
(1798–1857)''
**** ''
John Spencer, 5th Earl Spencer
John Poyntz Spencer, 5th Earl Spencer, KG, KP, PC (27 October 1835 – 13 August 1910), known as Viscount Althorp from 1845 to 1857 (and also known as the "Red Earl" because of his distinctive long red beard), was a British Liberal Party poli ...
(1835–1910)''
**** ''
Charles Spencer, 6th Earl Spencer (1857–1922)''
***** ''
Albert Spencer, 7th Earl Spencer
Albert Edward John Spencer, 7th Earl Spencer, (23 May 1892 – 9 June 1975), styled The Honourable Albert Spencer until 1910 and Viscount Althorp from 1910 to 1922, and known less formally as Jack Spencer, was a British peer. He was the pate ...
(1892–1975)''
****** ''
John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer
Edward John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer, (24 January 192429 March 1992), styled Viscount Althorp until June 1975, was a British nobleman, military officer, and courtier. He was the father of Diana, Princess of Wales, and the maternal grandfather ...
(1924–1992)''
*******
Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer
Charles Edward Maurice Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, (born 20 May 1964), styled Viscount Althorp between 1975 and 1992, is a British peer, author, journalist, and broadcaster. He is the younger brother of Diana, Princess of Wales, and is the mate ...
(b. 1964)
******** (1)
Louis Spencer, Viscount Althorp
Louis Frederick John Spencer, Viscount Althorp (born 14 March 1994), is a British aristocrat and eldest son and heir of Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer. He is the nephew of Diana, Princess of Wales, the first wife of King Charles III.
Early ...
(b. 1994)
******** (2) The Hon. Edmund Spencer (b. 2003)
Arms
See also
*
Spencer family
The Spencer family is an aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. From the 16th century, its members have held numerous titles including the dukedom of Marlborough, the earldoms of Sunderland and Spencer, and the Churchill barony. Two prom ...
*
Spencer Gulf
*
Spencer (clothing)
The spencer, dating from the 1790s, was originally a woolen outer tail-coat with the tails omitted. It was worn as a short waist-length, double-breasted, man's jacket. It was originally named after George Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer (1758–1834), ...
References
Further reading
*
Battiscombe, Georgina (1984) ''The Spencers of Althorp''. London: Constable.
*
Spencer, Charles (1999) ''Althorp: the story of an English house''. London: Viking.
*Spencer, Charles (2000) ''The Spencers: a personal history of an English family''. New York: St. Martin's Press
External links
Althorp – official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spencer
Earldoms in the Peerage of Great Britain
Noble titles created in 1765