Earl of Banbury was a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1626 for William Knollys. He had already been created Baron Knollys in 1603 and Viscount Wallingford in 1616, both in the Peerage of England. However, the paternity of his sons was challenged, leading to hundreds of years of dispute. In May 1804,

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

intended to confer the titles of Earl of Banbury, Viscount Wallingford and Baron Reading on the outgoing Prime Minister Henry Addington. However, Addington refused the honour and chose to remain in the Commons until 1805, when he joined Pitt's government as Lord President of the Council with the lesser title of Viscount Sidmouth.

Peerage without right of summons

The first Earl of Banbury had two sons, Edward and Nicholas; however neither was mentioned in his will, prompting credible questions raised as to their paternity. In 1641, the law courts decided that Edward acceded to the Earldom. When Edward was killed in battle in June 1645, his brother Nicholas inherited the title. In the Convention Parliament of 1660, some objection was taken to the earl sitting in the House of Lords, and in 1661 he was not summoned to parliament; he had not succeeded in obtaining his writ of summons when he died on 14 March 1674. Nicholas's son Charles, the 4th earl, had not been summoned to parliament when in 1692 he killed Captain Philip Lawson in a duel. The House of Lords declared that he was not a peer and therefore not

entitled An entitlement is a provision made in accordance with a legal framework of a society. Typically, entitlements are based on concepts of principle ("rights") which are themselves based in concepts of social equality or enfranchisement. In psycholog ...

to have his case heard by them, but the

Court of King's Bench The King's Bench (), or, during the reign of a female monarch, the Queen's Bench ('), refers to several contemporary and historical courts in some Commonwealth jurisdictions. * Court of King's Bench (England), a historic court court of common ...

released him from his imprisonment on the ground that he was the Earl of Banbury rather than a commoner. Nevertheless, the House of Lords refused to move from its position, and Knollys had not received a writ of summons when he died in April 1740. His son Sir Charles Knollys, vicar of Burford, Oxfordshire, and his grandsons, Sir William Knollys and Sir Thomas Woods Knollys, were successively titular Earls of Banbury, but they took no steps to prove their title. Sir Thomas Woods Knollys' son General William Knollys, the titular eighth earl, laid claim to the title. He was forced to discontinue the use of the title in 1813, after the House of Lords passed a resolution rejecting his claim.

Earls of Banbury

William Knollys, 1st Earl of Banbury William Knollys, 1st Earl of Banbury, KG, PC (1544 – 25 May 1632) was an English nobleman at the court of Queen Elizabeth I and King James I. Biography He was the son of Sir Francis Knollys, of Greys Court in Oxfordshire, and of Readin ...

(1547–1632) *Edward Knollys, 2nd Earl of Banbury (1627–1645) * Nicholas Knowles, 3rd Earl of Banbury (1631–1674) *Charles Knowles, 4th Earl of Banbury (1662–1740) *Charles Knollys, ''titular'' 5th Earl of Banbury (1703–1771) *William Knollys, ''titular'' 6th Earl of Banbury (1726–1776) *Thomas Woods Knollys, ''titular'' 7th Earl of Banbury (1727–1793) *William Knollys, ''titular'' 8th Earl of Banbury (1763-1834)

Line of succession

(1547–1632)'' ** Coronet of a British Earl

''Edward Knollys, 2nd Earl of Banbury (1627–1645)'' ** Coronet of a British Earl

'' Nicholas Knowles, 3rd Earl of Banbury (1631–1674)'' *** Coronet of a British Earl

''Charles Knowles, 4th Earl of Banbury (1662–1740)'' ****''

Sir Charles Knowles, 1st Baronet Sir Charles Knowles, 1st Baronet (c. 1704 – 9 December 1777) was a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy, seeing service during the War of Jenkins' Ear, the wider War of the Austrian Succession, and the Seven Years' War. He also ...

(c.1704–1777)'' ***** Knowles Baronets **** Coronet of a British Earl

''Charles Knollys, ''titular'' 5th Earl of Banbury (1703–1771)'' ***** Coronet of a British Earl

''William Knollys, ''titular'' 6th Earl of Banbury (1726–1776)'' ***** Coronet of a British Earl

''William Knollys, ''titular'' 7th Earl of Banbury (1727–1793)'' ****** Coronet of a British Earl

''William Knollys, ''titular'' 8th Earl of Banbury (1763-1834)'' *******'' Sir William Knollys (1797–1883)'' ********''William Knollys (1833–1904)'' ******** Coronet of a British Viscount

'' Francis Knollys, 1st Viscount Knollys (1837–1924)'' ********* Coronet of a British Viscount

'' Edward Knollys, 2nd Viscount Knollys (1895–1966)'' ********** Coronet of a British Viscount

David Knollys, 3rd Viscount Knollys (b. 1931) *********** (1) Hon. Patrick Knollys (b. 1962) ************ (2) Alexander Knollys (b. 2000) *********** (3) Hon. Christopher Knollys (b. 1964) ************ (4) Edmund Knollys (b. 2000) *********** (5) Hon. Michael Knollys (b. 1968)

External links

Banbury Peerage Case (1811)

A treatise on the law of adulterine bastardy, with a report of the Banbury case, and of all other cases bearing upon the subject
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Nicholas Harris Nicolas Sir (Nicholas) Harris Nicolas (10 March 1799 – 3 August 1848) was an English antiquary. Life The fourth son of Commander John Harris Nicolas R.N. (1758–1844) and Margaret née Blake, he was born at Dartmouth. He was the brother of Rear Ad ...

- 1836

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Banbury Extinct earldoms in the Peerage of England

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particula ...

1626 establishments in England Noble titles created in 1626