Earl of March is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of England. The title derived from the "

marches In medieval Europe, a march or mark was, in broad terms, any kind of borderland, as opposed to a national "heartland". More specifically, a march was a border between realms or a neutral buffer zone under joint control of two states in which diff ...

" or borderlands between

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 b ...

and either

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

( Welsh Marches) or

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

(

Scottish Marches Scottish Marches was the term used for the Anglo-Scottish border during the late medieval and early modern eras, characterised by violence and cross-border raids. The Scottish Marches era came to an end during the first decade of the 17th century ...

), and it was held by several great feudal families which owned lands in those districts. Later, however, the title came to be granted as an honorary dignity, and ceased to carry any associated power in the marches. The Scottish earldom is extant in its own right, and it is held by James Charteris, 13th Earl of Wemyss and 9th Earl of March. The English earldom is today the main non-ducal subsidiary title of the Duke of Richmond. The current duke's eldest son, named Charles like his father, enjoys it as a courtesy title.

Earls of March in the Peerage of Scotland

The Earls of March on the Scottish border were descended from

Gospatric, Earl of Northumbria Gospatric or Cospatric (from the Cumbric "Servant of aint Patrick"), (died after 1073), was Earl of Northumbria, or of Bernicia, and later lord of sizable estates around Dunbar. His male-line descendants held the Earldom of Dunbar, later known ...

, but being soon afterwards deprived of this position he fled to Scotland, where Máel Coluim III, King of Scotland, welcomed him and granted him

Dunbar Dunbar () is a town on the North Sea coast in East Lothian in the south-east of Scotland, approximately east of Edinburgh and from the English border north of Berwick-upon-Tweed. Dunbar is a former royal burgh, and gave its name to an ecc ...

and the adjoining lands. His successors controlled the Marches, but Earl of March was only assumed as an alternative title to that of

Earl of Dunbar The title Earl of Dunbar, also called Earl of Lothian or Earl of March, was the head of a comital lordship in south-eastern Scotland between the early 12th century and the early 15th century. The first man to use the title of Earl in this earldom ...

by Patrick de Dunbar, 8th Earl of March. The last of his successors was

George de Dunbar, 11th Earl of March George de Dunbar, 11th Earl of Dunbar & March 13th Lord of Annandale and Lord of the Isle of Man, (c. 1370after 1457) was the last of his family to hold these titles. Early life He was aged about fifty when he succeeded his father, George Dunbar ...

and Dunbar, whose honours and lands were forfeited to the Crown. He retired to England and died in obscurity. Following his forfeiture, the next creation of the Earldom of March was for Alexander Stuart, Duke of Albany. At the death of his successor John, the dukedom and earldom became extinct. The next creation was for Robert Stuart, but at his death, the earldom again became extinct. The most recent Scottish creation of the Earldom of March was in 1697 for Lord William Douglas, second son of the

William Douglas, 1st Duke of Queensberry William Douglas, 1st Duke of Queensberry PC (163728 March 1695), also 3rd Earl of Queensberry and 1st Marquess of Queensberry, was a Scottish politician.G. E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and L ...

. He was also created Lord Douglas of Neidpath, Lyne and Munard, and Viscount of Peebles, with remainder to heirs male of his body, failing which to his other heirs male and of

tailzie In Scots law, tailzie () is a feudal concept of the inheritance of immovable property according to an arbitrary course that has been laid out, such as in a document known as a "deed of tailzie". It was codified by the Entail Act 1685. Tailzie i ...

. He was succeeded by his son, also William, who married Anne Douglas-Hamilton, 2nd Countess of Ruglen. They were both succeeded by their son, another William, who became 3rd Earl of March and 3rd Earl of Ruglen. In 1768 the third earl was created Baron Douglas of Amesbury, and in 1778 he succeeded his first cousin twice removed, Charles Douglas, 3rd Duke of Queensberry, as fourth Duke of Queensberry. The duke died childless in 1810, however, and his titles were inherited by several different individuals. The earldom of Ruglen and barony of Douglas of Amesbury became extinct. The dukedom of Queensberry was inherited by his second cousin once removed,

Henry Scott, 3rd Duke of Buccleuch Henry Scott, 3rd Duke of Buccleuch and 5th Duke of Queensberry KG FRSE (2 September 174611 January 1812) was a Scottish nobleman and long-time friend of Sir Walter Scott. He is the paternal 3rd great-grandfather of Princess Alice, Duchess of G ...

(see the

Duke of Buccleuch Duke of Buccleuch (pronounced ), formerly also spelt Duke of Buccleugh, is a title in the Peerage of Scotland created twice on 20 April 1663, first for James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth and second suo jure for his wife Anne Scott, 4th Cou ...

for later history of this title). The marquessate and earldom of Queensberry passed to his kinsman Sir Charles Douglas, 5th Baronet (see the

Marquess of Queensberry Marquess of Queensberry is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. The title has been held since its creation in 1682 by a member of the Douglas family. The Marquesses also held the title of Duke of Queensberry from 1684 to 1810, when it was in ...

for later history of these titles). The earldom of March and its two subsidiary titles were inherited by his second cousin once removed Francis Wemyss-Charteris, later the eighth Earl of Wemyss.

Scottish Earls of March, first Creation

See

, for which "Earl of the March" is used as an alternate title

Scottish Earls of March, second Creation (1455)

* Alexander Stewart, 1st Duke of Albany (c. 1455–1485) *

John Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany John Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany (8 July 14822 July 1536) was the regent of the Kingdom of Scotland and the count of Auvergne and Lauraguais in France. Early life John was a son of Alexander Stewart, Duke of Albany, son of King James II of S ...

(1481–1536)

Scottish Earls of March, third Creation (1581)

With subsidiary title ''Lord (of) Dunbar'' (1581) *

Robert Stuart, 1st Earl of March Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Lennox then 1st Earl of March (c. 152229 March 1586) was a Scottish nobleman of the family of Stewart of Darnley. Titles He was the second son of John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Lennox by his wife Elizabeth, daughter ...

(died 1586)

Scottish Earls of March, fourth Creation (1697)

* William Douglas, 1st Earl of March (1673-1705), second son of

* William Douglas, 2nd Earl of March (d. 1731) *

William Douglas, 4th Duke of Queensberry William Douglas, 4th Duke of Queensberry, (16 December 172423 December 1810) was a Scottish noble landowner. He was popularly known as Old Q and was reputed as a high-stakes gambler. In 1799 he was estimated the eighth-wealthiest man (or small ...

and 3rd Earl of March (1724-1810) * Francis Douglas, 8th Earl of Wemyss and 4th Earl of March (1772-1853) See

Earl of Wemyss and March Earl of Wemyss ( ) is a title in the Peerage of Scotland created in 1633. The Scottish Wemyss family had possessed the lands of Wemyss in Fife since the 12th century. Since 1823 the earldom has been held with the Earldom of March, created in ...

for later holders of the title.

Earls of March in the Peerage of England

The Earls of March on the Welsh Marches were descended from Roger Mortimer, as there had been no single office in this region since the

Earl of Mercia Earl of Mercia was a title in the late Anglo-Saxon, Anglo-Danish, and early Anglo-Norman period in England. During this period the earldom covered the lands of the old Kingdom of Mercia in the English Midlands. First governed by ealdormen under t ...

. He forfeited his title, which was in the Peerage of England, for treason in 1330, but his descendant Roger managed to have it restored eighteen years later. With the death of the fifth Earl, however, there remained no more Mortimers who were heirs to the first Earl, and the title passed to Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York. Duke Richard passed the title on to his son Edward, who would later become King Edward IV, causing the earldom of March to merge into the Crown. In the Peerage of England, the next creation of the earldom came when Edward Plantagenet, Duke of Cornwall was made Earl of March in 1479. In 1483, he succeeded as King Edward V, and the earldom merged in the crown. Later that year, however, his uncle Richard of Gloucester acceded to the throne as Richard III. The fate of the young Edward and his brother, Richard has never been confirmed. The next English creation was in favour of Esme Stewart, the third Duke of Lennox. His successors bore the earldom, until the death of the sixth Duke, when both the earldom and the dukedom became extinct. The last English creation was in favour of Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond and Lennox. His successors have borne the English earldom of March since then.

English Earls of March, first Creation (1328)

Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March Roger Mortimer, 3rd Baron Mortimer of Wigmore, 1st Earl of March (25 April 1287 – 29 November 1330), was an English nobleman and powerful Marcher Lord who gained many estates in the Welsh Marches and Ireland following his advantageous marria ...

(1287–1330) (forfeit 1330) *

Roger Mortimer, 2nd Earl of March Sir Roger de Mortimer, 2nd Earl of March, 4th Baron Mortimer of Wigmore, KG (11 November 132826 February 1360) was an English nobleman and military commander during the Hundred Years' War. He was the son of Sir Edmund Mortimer (d. 1331) an ...

(1328–1360) (restored 1348 (barony), 1354 (earldom)) *

Edmund Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March Edmund de Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March and ''jure uxoris'' Earl of Ulster (1 February 135227 December 1381) was the son of Roger Mortimer, 2nd Earl of March, by his wife Philippa, daughter of William Montagu, 1st Earl of Salisbury and Catherine G ...

(1351–1381) *

Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March Roger de Mortimer, 4th Earl of March, 6th Earl of Ulster (11 April 137420 July 1398) was an English nobleman. He was considered the heir presumptive to King Richard II, his mother's first cousin. Roger Mortimer's father, the 3rd Earl of Marc ...

(1374–1398) *

Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March, 7th Earl of Ulster (6 November 139118 January 1425), was an English nobleman and a potential claimant to the throne of England. A great-great-grandson of King Edward III of England, he was heir presumptive to ...

(1391–1425) * Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, 6th Earl of March (1411–1460) * Edward Plantagenet, 4th Duke of York, 7th Earl of March (1442–1483) (became King in 1461)

English Earls of March, second Creation (1479)

* Edward, Duke of Cornwall (1470–1483?) (proclaimed King in 1483)

English Earls of March, third Creation (1619)

Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox (157930 July 1624), KG, 7th Seigneur d'Aubigny, lord of the Manor of Cobham, Kent, was a Scottish nobleman and through their paternal lines was a second cousin of King James VI of Scotland and I of England. H ...

(1579–1624) *

James Stewart, 1st Duke of Richmond James Stewart, 1st Duke of Richmond, 4th Duke of Lennox KG (6 April 1612 – 30 March 1655), lord of the Manor of Cobham, Kent, was a Scottish nobleman. A third cousin of King Charles I, he was a Privy Councillor and a key member of the Royalis ...

(1612–1655) * Esmé Stewart, 2nd Duke of Richmond (1649–1660) * Charles Stewart, 3rd Duke of Richmond (1639–1672)

English Earls of March, fourth Creation (1675)

*The title is now held by the Duke of Richmond, and is used as a courtesy title by his heir apparent, currently Charles Henry Gordon-Lennox (born 1994), Earl of March and Kinrara.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:March Earldoms in the Peerage of Scotland Extinct earldoms in the Peerage of Scotland Earldoms in the Peerage of England British and Irish peerages which merged in the Crown Peerages created with special remainders Noble titles created in 1328 Noble titles created in 1455 Noble titles created in 1479 Noble titles created in 1581 Noble titles created in 1619 Noble titles created in 1675 Noble titles created in 1697