Earl of Verulam is a title 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 in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great B ...

. It was created in 1815 for James Grimston, 4th Viscount Grimston. He was made Viscount Grimston (in the peerage of the United Kingdom) at the same time. Verulam had previously represented

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

(Roman

Verulamium Verulamium was a town in Roman Britain. It was sited southwest of the modern city of St Albans in Hertfordshire, England. The major ancient Roman route Watling Street passed through the city, but was realigned in medieval times to bring trad ...

) in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, 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 ...

. In 1808 he had also succeeded his maternal cousin as tenth Lord Forrester (in the

Peerage of Scotland The Peerage of Scotland (; ) is one of the five divisions of peerages in the United Kingdom and for those peers created by the King of Scots before 1707. Following that year's Treaty of Union 1707, Treaty of Union, the Kingdom of Scots and the ...

). He was succeeded by his son, the second Earl. Grimston was a

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

politician and held minor office in the first two governments of the

Earl of Derby Earl of Derby ( ) is a title in the Peerage of England. The title was first adopted by Robert de Ferrers, 1st Earl of Derby, under a creation of 1139. It continued with the Ferrers family until the 6th Earl forfeited his property toward the en ...

. His son, the third Earl, represented St Albans in Parliament as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

. His grandson, the sixth Earl (who succeeded his elder brother) was nominated to the traditionally

safe seat A safe seat is an electoral district which is regarded as fully secure, for either a certain political party, or the incumbent representative personally or a combination of both. With such seats, there is very little chance of a seat changing h ...

for the party. the titles are held by his son, the seventh Earl, who succeeded in 1973. The titles of Viscount Grimston and Baron Dunboyne had been created in 1719 in the

Peerage of Ireland The peerage of Ireland consists of those Peerage, titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lordship of Ireland, Lord or Monarchy of Ireland, King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great B ...

for William Grimston, Member of Parliament for St Albans. Born William Luckyn, he was the great-nephew of Sir Samuel Grimston, 3rd Baronet, of Bradfield (a title which became extinct upon his death in 1700), whose surname he assumed on succeeding to his estates. In 1737 he also succeeded his elder brother as fifth Baronet of Little Waltham (see below). He was succeeded by his son, the second Viscount. He also represented St Albans in the House of Commons. His son, the third Viscount, was Member of Parliament for St Albans and

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

. In 1790 he was created Baron Verulam, of

Gorhambury Old Gorhambury House located near St Albans, Hertfordshire, England, is a ruined Elizabethan mansion, a leading and early example of the Elizabethan prodigy house. History The old house It was built in 1563–68 by Nicholas Bacon (courtier), S ...

in the

County of Hertford Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

, 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 repla ...

. He was succeeded by his son, the aforementioned fourth Viscount, who was created Earl of Verulam in 1815. The Luckyn Baronetcy, of Little Waltham in the

County of Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, was created in the

Baronetage of England Baronets are hereditary titles awarded by the Crown. The current baronetage of the United Kingdom has replaced the earlier, existing baronetages of England, Nova Scotia, Ireland and Great Britain. To be recognised as a baronet, it is necessary ...

in 1629 for William Luckyn. The second Baronet represented

Harwich Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-o ...

in Parliament. The fourth Baronet was succeeded by his younger brother, the aforementioned William Grimston, 1st Viscount Grimston. Lord Verulam thus holds titles in England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom. Another member of the Grimston family was

Robert Grimston, 1st Baron Grimston of Westbury Robert Villiers Grimston, 1st Baron Grimston of Westbury, 1st Baronet (8 June 1897 – 8 December 1979) was a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician. Life and history Grimston was the eldest son of the Rev. and Hon. Robert Gr ...

. He was the son of Reverend Canon the Hon. Robert Grimston, third son of the second Earl of Verulam. The family seat is

Gorhambury House Gorhambury House is a Palladian architecture, Palladian-style house near St Albans, Hertfordshire, England. It was built between 1777 and 1784 to replace Old Gorhambury House, which was left to fall into ruin. It was designed by Sir Robert Tayl ...

, near

St Michael Michael, also called Saint Michael the Archangel, Archangel Michael and Saint Michael the Taxiarch is an archangel and the warrior of God in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The earliest surviving mentions of his name are in third- and second- ...

Luckyn, later Grimston baronets, of Little Waltham (1629)

*Sir William Luckyn, 1st Baronet (1594–1660) * Sir Capell Luckyn, 2nd Baronet (1622–1680) *Sir William Luckyn, 3rd Baronet (died c. 1708) *Sir Harbottle Luckyn, 4th Baronet (1683–1737) * Sir William Grimston, 5th Baronet (c. 1684–1756) (had already been created Viscount Grimston in 1719, see below)

Viscounts Grimston (1719)

William Grimston, 1st Viscount Grimston William Grimston, 1st Viscount Grimston (31 December 1684 – 15 October 1756) was an English peer and politician who sat in the House of Commons of Great Britain between 1710 and 1734. Grimston was born as William Luckyn, the younger son of Sir ...

(c. 1684–1756) *

James Grimston, 2nd Viscount Grimston James Grimston, 2nd Viscount Grimston (9 October 1711 – 15 December 1773) was a British peer and Member of Parliament. Grimston was the eldest surviving son of William Grimston, 1st Viscount Grimston, and Jean Cooke. He was elected to the Bri ...

(1711–1773) * James Bucknall Grimston, 3rd Viscount Grimston (1747–1808) * James Walter Grimston, 4th Viscount Grimston (1775–1845) (created Earl of Verulam in 1815, see below)

Earls of Verulam (1815)

* James Walter Grimston, 1st Earl of Verulam (1775–1845) * James Walter Grimston, 2nd Earl of Verulam (1809–1895) * James Walter Grimston, 3rd Earl of Verulam (1852–1924) * James Walter Grimston, 4th Earl of Verulam (1880–1949) * James Brabazon Grimston, 5th Earl of Verulam (1910–1960) * John Grimston, 6th Earl of Verulam (1912–1973) * John Duncan Grimston, 7th Earl of Verulam (b. 1951) The

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

is the present holder's son James Walter Grimston, Viscount Grimston (b. 1978)
The heir apparent's heir apparent is his son, the Hon. John Innes Archie Grimston (b. 2010).

References

Sources

*Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990. *

External links