Baron Walpole of Walpole in the

County of 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 Nort ...

, 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 ...

. Since 1797 holders also hold the title of Baron Walpole of Wolterton. Past holders have also held the titles Baron Walpole of Houghton in the County of Norfolk, Viscount Walpole and

Earl of Orford Earl of Orford is a title that has been created three times. The first creation came in the Peerage of England in 1697 when the naval commander Admiral of the Fleet Edward Russell was made Earl of Orford, in the County of Suffolk. He was cr ...

(second creation) (1745 to 1797), and Earl of Orford (third creation) (1806 to 1931). One holder held the title of

Baron Clinton Baron Clinton is a title in the Peerage of England. Created in 1298 for Sir John de Clinton, it is the seventh-oldest barony in England. Creation and early history The title was granted in 1298 to Sir John de Clinton, a knight who had served ...

from 1781 to 1791.

History

Grants

The title of Baron Walpole of Walpole in the County of Norfolk, was created in the

in 1723 for

Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, (26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745; known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole) was a British statesman and Whig politician who, as First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Leader ...

, in honour of and during the lifetime of his father

Sir Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, (26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745; known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole) was a British statesman and Whig politician who, as First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Leader ...

the ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'' first

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

, with special remainder, failing male issue, to his brothers Edward Walpole and Horace Walpole, in default of this then to the heirs male of his father, and in default of this then to the heirs male of his grandfather Sir Thomas Walpole. On Sir Robert Walpole's retirement from the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

in 1742, he received the titles, Baron Walpole of Houghton in the County of Norfolk, Viscount Walpole and Earl of Orford, with the standard remainder. The title of Baron Walpole of Wolterton in the County of Norfolk, was created in the Peerage of Great Britain in 1756 for Horatio Walpole envoy to Paris and later The Hague and younger brother of Sir Robert Walpole.

Early holders

When Robert, 1st Earl of Orford, effectively Britain's first Prime Minister, died in 1745 he was succeeded by his eldest son. Robert, 2nd Earl of Orford had married in 1724 a Devonshire heiress Margaret Rolle (1709–1781). She by survival, in 1751, became one of the co-heirs to the ancient Barony of Clinton in

abeyance Abeyance (from the Old French ''abeance'' meaning "gaping") is a state of expectancy in respect of property, titles or office, when the right to them is not vested in any one person, but awaits the appearance or determination of the true owner. ...

. In 1760 that abeyance was terminated in her favour, and she became the 15th Baroness Clinton. The 2nd Earl of Orford was succeeded by his eldest son, the 3rd Earl. He notably served as

Lord Lieutenant of Norfolk This is an incomplete list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Norfolk. Since 1689, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Norfolk. * William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton, 1549 – *Thomas Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Su ...

from 1757 to 1797. In 1781 he also succeeded his mother as 16th Baron Clinton. Lord Orford never married and on his death the Barony of Clinton became dormant (see the

for later history of this peerage), while the other titles were inherited by his uncle, the 4th Earl, at birth known as

Horace Walpole Horatio Walpole (), 4th Earl of Orford (24 September 1717 – 2 March 1797), better known as Horace Walpole, was an English writer, art historian, man of letters, antiquarian, and Whigs (British political party), Whig politician. He had Strawb ...

, who was a politician and early expounder of the

Neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

in architecture and the

Gothic novel Gothic fiction, sometimes called Gothic horror in the 20th century, is a loose literary aesthetic of fear and haunting. The name is a reference to Gothic architecture of the European Middle Ages, which was characteristic of the settings of ea ...

. He never married either and so on his death in 1797 three of his titles of different ranks became extinct while he was succeeded as Baron Walpole of Walpole according to the special remainder by his cousin Horatio Walpole (known as the younger), who had already inherited his own father's title, Baron Walpole of Wolterton.

Horatio Walpole the Younger

As said, Horatio Walpole (the Younger) succeeded his father as Baron Walpole of Wolterton in 1757 and eventually as Baron Walpole of Walpole in 1797. He had earlier represented

King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located north of London, north-east of Peterborough, no ...

in Parliament. In favour with those in power, in 1806 the Earldom of Orford was recreated for him.

Later holders

Horatio the younger's son sat as

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas, Lancashire, River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the nor ...

and

before coming into his earldom. His grandson, the 4th Earl, briefly represented

in the

. The Baronies of Walpole of Walpole, and Walpole of Wolterton were inherited by the late 5th Earl's distant Walpole cousin. He was a male-line descendant of Hon.

Thomas Walpole Thomas Walpole (6 October 1727 – March 1803), styled from 1756 The Hon. Thomas Walpole, was a British MP and banker in Paris. Life Thomas Walpole was born into a political family. The second son of the 1st Baron Walpole and his wife Telisha, ...

, second son of the 1st Baron Walpole, of Wolterton. the two remaining peerages are held by the 9th/7th Baron's grandson, the 11th/9th Baron Walpole. The 10/8th baron was one of the ninety

hereditary peer The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of September 2022, there are 807 hereditary peers: 29 dukes (including five royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 190 earls, 111 viscounts, and 443 barons (disregarding subsid ...

s who remained in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

after the passing of the House of Lords Act of 1999, and sat as a cross-bencher, until his retirement on 13 June 2017. The family seat is

Mannington Hall Mannington Hall is a moated medieval country house in the civil parish of Itteringham near the village of the same name and is in the English county of Norfolk within the United Kingdom. The first manor house built on this site was constructed in ...

, near

Itteringham Itteringham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk, some northwest of the market town of Aylsham. It covers an area of and had a population of 136 in 60 households at the 2001 census, the population reducing to 125 at ...

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 ...

Barons Walpole of Walpole (1723)

, 1st Baron Walpole of Walpole (1701–1751) (succeeded as 2nd Earl of Orford in 1745)

Earls of Orford, Viscounts Walpole, Barons Walpole of Houghton (1742)

Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, (26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745; known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole) was a British statesman and Whig politician who, as First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Leader ...

, 1st Viscount Walpole, 1st Baron Walpole of Houghton (1676–1745) *

Robert Walpole, 2nd Earl of Orford Robert Walpole, 2nd Earl of Orford, KB (1701 – 31 March 1751), was a British peer and politician, styled Lord Walpole from 1723 to 1745. Origins He was the eldest son of Sir Robert Walpole (1676–1745), the King's First Minister, now re ...

, 2nd Viscount Walpole, 2nd Baron Walpole of Houghton, 1st Baron Walpole of Walpole (1701–1751) *

George Walpole, 3rd Earl of Orford George Walpole, 3rd Earl of Orford (2 April 1730 – 5 December 1791) was a British administrator, politician, and peer. Life Lord Orford was the only child of the 2nd Earl of Orford and his wife Margaret Rolle, Baroness Clinton in her own rig ...

, 3rd Viscount Walpole, 3rd Baron Walpole of Houghton, 2nd Baron Walpole of Walpole (1730–1791) *

Horace Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford Horatio Walpole (), 4th Earl of Orford (24 September 1717 – 2 March 1797), better known as Horace Walpole, was an English writer, art historian, man of letters, antiquarian, and Whig politician. He had Strawberry Hill House built in Twicke ...

, 4th Viscount Walpole, 4th Baron Walpole of Houghton, 3rd Baron Walpole of Walpole (1717–1797)

Barons Walpole of Wolterton (1756)

Horatio Walpole, 1st Baron Walpole Horatio Walpole, 1st Baron Walpole "of Wolterton", (8 December 16785 February 1757), English diplomatist, was a younger son of Col. Robert Walpole (1650–1700) of Houghton Hall in Norfolk, and was a younger brother of Robert Walpole, 1st Ear ...

of Wolterton (1678–1757) * Horatio Walpole, 2nd Baron Walpole of Wolterton (1723–1809) (succeeded as 4th Baron Walpole of Walpole in 1797 and created Earl of Orford in 1806)

Earls of Orford (1806), Barons Walpole of Walpole and Barons Walpole of Wolterton

Horatio Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford Horatio Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford (12 June 1723 – 24 February 1809)L. G. Pine, The New Extinct Peerage 1884-1971: Containing Extinct, Abeyant, Dormant and Suspended Peerages With Genealogies and Arms (London, U.K.: Heraldry Today, 1972), page ...

, 4th Baron Walpole of Walpole, 2nd Baron Walpole of Wolterton (1723–1809) *

Horatio Walpole, 2nd Earl of Orford Horatio Walpole, 2nd Earl of Orford (13 ''or'' 24 June 1752 – 15 June 1822), styled The Honourable Horatio Walpole between 1757 and 1806 and Lord Walpole between 1806 and 1809, was a British peer and politician. Background Orford was the son ...

, 5th Baron Walpole of Walpole, 3rd Baron Walpole of Wolterton (1752–1822) *

Horatio Walpole, 3rd Earl of Orford Horatio Walpole, 3rd Earl of Orford, (14 June 1783 – 29 December 1858), styled Lord Walpole between 1809 and 1822, was a British peer and politician. Background He was the eldest son of Horatio Walpole, 2nd Earl of Orford by his wife Sophia C ...

, 6th Baron Walpole of Walpole, 4th Baron Walpole of Wolterton (1783–1858) * Horatio William Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford, 7th Baron Walpole of Walpole, 5th Baron Walpole of Wolterton (1813–1894) *

Robert Horace Walpole, 5th Earl of Orford Robert Horace Walpole, 5th Earl of Orford (10 July 1854 – 27 September 1931) was a British peer, Foreign Office diplomat, soldier, and Royal Navy officer. Background The son of Commander Hon. Frederick Walpole (1822–1876), R.N., M.P. ...

, 8th Baron Walpole of Walpole, 6th Baron Walpole of Wolterton (1854–1931)

Barons Walpole of Walpole and Barons Walpole of Wolterton following reversion

* Robert Henry Montgomerie Walpole, 9th Baron Walpole of Walpole, 7th Baron Walpole of Wolterton (1913–1989) * Robert Horatio Walpole, 10th Baron Walpole of Walpole, 8th Baron Walpole of Wolterton (1938–2021) * Jonathan Robert Hugh Walpole, 11th Baron Walpole of Walpole, 9th Baron Walpole of Wolterton (b. 1967) The

heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question. ...

is the present holder's brother, the Hon. Benedict Thomas Orford Walpole (b. 1969)
The heir presumptive's heir apparent is his elder son, Thomas Walpole (b. 2003)

Notes and references

Notes References

References

* Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, * ''Burkes Peerage and Baronetage'' (1939) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Walpole Baronies in the Peerage of Great Britain Extinct baronies in the Peerage of Great Britain Noble titles created in 1723 Noble titles created in 1742 Noble titles created in 1756 Robert Walpole

Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

Peerages created with special remainders