The titles of Earl of Hertford and Marquess of Hertford have been created several times in the
peerages of
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
and
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 ...
.
The third Earldom of Hertford was created in 1559 for
Edward Seymour, who was simultaneously created Baron Beauchamp of Hache. His grandson
William Seymour was subsequently created Marquess of Hertford and restored to the title of Duke of Somerset; the Marquessate became extinct in 1675 and the other three titles in 1750.
The present Marquessate was created in 1793. Lord Hertford holds the subsidiary titles of Earl of Yarmouth (Peerage of Great Britain, 1793), Earl of Hertford (Peerage of Great Britain, 1750), Viscount Beauchamp (Peerage of Great Britain, 1750), Baron Conway, of Ragley in the County of Warwick (Peerage of England, 1703), and Baron Conway of Killultagh, of Killultagh in the County of Antrim (
Peerage of Ireland, 1712). Lord Hertford's heir uses the style ''Earl of Yarmouth''.
The Marquesses of Hertford are members of the
Seymour family headed by the
Duke of Somerset. Francis Seymour (1679–1732) was the fourth son of
Sir Edward Seymour of Berry Pomeroy, 4th Baronet, a descendant of
Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset (Sir Edward's grandson
Sir Edward Seymour, 6th Baronet, of Berry Pomeroy succeeded as 8th Duke of Somerset in 1750). Upon the death of his elder brother, Francis succeeded to the estates of his relative
Edward Conway, 1st Earl of Conway
Edward Conway, 1st Earl of Conway (c. 1623 – 11 August 1683) PC, FRS, of Ragley Hall, Alcester, in Warwickshire, was an English peer and politician who served as Secretary of State for the Northern Department between 1681 and 1683.
Origins ...
. In 1703 he was created Baron Conway in the
Peerage of England and assumed the additional surname of Conway. In 1712 he was created Baron Conway of Killultagh in the
Peerage of Ireland. In 1750 his son Francis Seymour-Conway, 2nd Baron Conway, was created Viscount Beauchamp and Earl of Hertford. These were revivals of titles previously held by the
Dukes of Somerset, which had become extinct the same year on the death of Seymour-Conway's kinsman
Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset. In 1793 he was further
honoured when he was made Earl of Yarmouth and Marquess of Hertford.
The latter title had also previously been held by the
Dukes of Somerset, but had become extinct in 1675 (see below).
The family seat is
Ragley Hall, near
Alcester,
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...
.
Earls of Hertford, First creation (1138)
*
Richard Fitz Gilbert de Clare
Richard fitz Gilbert de Clare (died 15 April 1136) 3rd feudal baron of Clare in Suffolk, was an Anglo-Norman nobleman. A marcher lord in Wales, he was also the founder of Tonbridge Priory in Kent.
Life
Richard was the eldest son of Gilbert Fitz ...
(d. 1136), traditionally but erroneously called Earl of Hertford
*
Gilbert de Clare, 1st Earl of Hertford (d. 1153)
*
Roger de Clare, 2nd Earl of Hertford
Roger de Clare, 2nd Earl of Hertford, 5th Lord of Clare, 5th Lord of Tonbridge, 5th Lord of Cardigan (1116–1173) was a powerful Anglo-Norman noble in 12th-century England. He succeeded to the Earldom of Hertford and Honor of Clare, Tonbridge an ...
(d. 1173)
*
Richard de Clare, 3rd Earl of Hertford (d. 1217)
*
Gilbert de Clare, 4th Earl of Hertford (d. 1230) became Earl of Gloucester in 1218
*''For further Earls, see
Earl of Gloucester.''
Earls of Hertford, Second creation (1537)
*
Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, 1st Earl of Hertford (1500–1552), forfeit 1552
Earls of Hertford, Third creation (1559)
*
Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford (1539–1621)
*
William Seymour, 2nd Earl of Hertford (1587–1660) (became Marquess of Hertford in 1641)
Marquesses of Hertford, First creation (1641)
*
William Seymour, 2nd Duke of Somerset
William Seymour, 2nd Duke of Somerset, (158824 October 1660) was an English nobleman and Royalist commander in the English Civil War.
Origins
Seymour was the son of Edward Seymour, Lord Beauchamp (who predeceased his own father) by his wife ...
, 1st Marquess of Hertford, 2nd Earl of Hertford (1587–1660) (restored to the Dukedom of Somerset in 1660)
*
William Seymour, 3rd Duke of Somerset, 2nd Marquess of Hertford, 3rd Earl of Hertford (1651–1671)
*
John Seymour, 4th Duke of Somerset, 3rd Marquess of Hertford, 4th Earl of Hertford (died 1675) (Marquessate extinct 1675)
Earls of Hertford, Third creation (1559; Reverted)
*
Francis Seymour, 5th Duke of Somerset, 5th Earl of Hertford (1658–1678)
*
Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset, 6th Earl of Hertford (1662–1748)
*
Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset, 7th Earl of Hertford (1684–1750) (Earldom extinct on his death in 1750)
Barons Conway, Second creation (1703)
*
Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Baron Conway (1679–1732)
*
Francis Seymour-Conway, 2nd Baron Conway, (1718–1794) (created Earl of Hertford in 1750 and Marquess of Hertford in 1793)
Earls of Hertford, Fourth creation (1750)
*
Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Earl of Hertford, 1st Viscount Beauchamp, 2nd Baron Conway (1718–1794) (created Marquess of Hertford and Earl of Yarmouth in 1793)
Marquesses of Hertford, Second creation (1793)
*
Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford
Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford, KG, PC, PC (Ire) (5 July 1718 – 14 June 1794) of Ragley Hall, Arrow, in Warwickshire, was a British courtier and politician who, briefly, was Viceroy of Ireland where he had substantial es ...
(1718–1794)
*
Francis Ingram-Seymour-Conway, 2nd Marquess of Hertford
Francis Ingram-Seymour-Conway, 2nd Marquess of Hertford, KG, PC, PC (Ire) (12 February 1743 – 17 June 1822), styled The Honourable Francis Seymour-Conway until 1750, Viscount Beauchamp between 1750 and 1793, and Earl of Yarmouth between 17 ...
(1743–1822)
*
Francis Charles Seymour-Conway, 3rd Marquess of Hertford
Francis Charles Seymour-Conway, 3rd Marquess of Hertford, (11 March 1777 – 1 March 1842), styled Viscount Beauchamp between 1793 and 1794 and Earl of Yarmouth between 1794 and 1822, of Ragley Hall in Warwickshire and of Sudbourne Hall in Su ...
(1777–1842)
*
Richard Seymour-Conway, 4th Marquess of Hertford (1800–1870)
*
Francis Hugh George Seymour, 5th Marquess of Hertford
Francis George Hugh Seymour, 5th Marquess of Hertford (11 February 1812 – 25 January 1884), known as Francis Seymour until 1870, was a British army officer, courtier and Conservative politician. He served as Lord Chamberlain of the House ...
(1812–1884)
*
Hugh de Grey Seymour, 6th Marquess of Hertford (1843–1912)
*
George Francis Alexander Seymour, 7th Marquess of Hertford (1871–1940)
*
Hugh Edward Conway Seymour, 8th Marquess of Hertford (1930–1997)
*
Henry Jocelyn Seymour, 9th Marquess of Hertford (b. 1958)
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 eldest son, William Francis Seymour, Earl of Yarmouth (b. 1993)
The heir apparent's heir apparent is his eldest son, Clement Andrew Seymour, Viscount Beauchamp (b. 2019)
See also
*
Duke of Somerset
*
Baron Alcester
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 knigh ...
*
Seymour family
*
Earl of Conway
References
Further reading
*
* on Leigh Rayment's Peerage Page. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hertford
Marquessates in the Peerage of Great Britain
!
1703 establishments in England
1793 establishments in Great Britain
Noble titles created in 1641
Noble titles created in 1793
Extinct marquessates in the Peerage of England
Marquesses of Hertford