House of Anson | |
---|---|
Country | United Kingdom |
Founded | 1770 |
Founder | George Anson |
Current head | The 6th Earl of Lichfield |
Titles | |
Estate(s) | Shugborough Hall Birch Hall |
The Anson family is a British aristocratic family. Over time, several members of the Anson family were made knights, baronets and peers. Hereditary titles held by the Anson family include the earldom of Lichfield (since 1831) and the Anson baronetcy (also since 1831). Over time, several members of the family have risen to prominence, including Admiral of the Fleet George Anson, 1st Baron Anson, PC, FRS (1697–1762) and the society photographer Patrick Anson, 5th Earl of Lichfield (1939–2005).
The Anson family is descended from George Anson (1731-1789), a Member of Parliament for Lichfield from 1770 to 1789. Born George Adams, he was the son of Sambrooke Adams and his wife Janette Anson, sister of the famous naval commander Admiral Lord Anson. In 1773, on the death of his uncle Thomas Anson, a brother of Admiral Lord Anson, he succeeded to the substantial estates accumulated by his uncles, including Shugborough Hall in Staffordshire. The same year George Adams assumed by Royal Licence the surname of Anson in lieu of Adams. In 1831, two of his sons would be elevated to hereditary titles: his eldest son, Thomas, would be made a viscount, while the latter's brother, William, would be made a baronet (see Anson Baronets).
George Anson's aforementioned eldest son was Thomas Anson, 1st Viscount Anson (1767–1818), who represented Lichfield in the House of Commons as a Whig from 1789 to 1806 until he was raised to the peerage on 17 February 1806 as Baron Soberton, of Soberton in the County of Southampton, and Viscount Anson, of Shugborough and Orgreave in the County of Stafford, both in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. He was succeeded by his eldest son Thomas (1795–1854), who became the 2nd Viscount. He was a landowner and Whig politician who served as Master of the Buckhounds from 1830 to 1834 and as Postmaster General from 1835 to 1841. In 1831 the 2nd Viscount Anson was created Earl of Lichfield , of Lichfield in the County of Stafford, in William IV's coronation honours. This was the third creation of the title of Earl of Lichfield, but the first in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.
The titles associated with the earldom of Lichfield continued to descend from father to son until the death of the 4th Earl in 1960. He was succeeded by his grandson, the 5th Earl, the only son of Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas William Arnold Anson, Viscount Anson (1913–1958), eldest son of the 4th Earl. Known professionally as Patrick Lichfield, he was a successful photographer. As of 2010 [update] the titles are held by the 6th Earl, only son of the 5th Earl and Lady Leonora Grosvenor, daughter of the 5th Duke of Westminster. He succeeded as the 6th Earl of Lichfield upon his father's death on 11 November 2005. The 6th Earl married in December 2009 Lady Henrietta Conyngham, daughter of Henry Conyngham, 8th Marquess Conyngham. [1] [2] They have one son, Thomas Ossian Patrick Wolfe Anson, Viscount Anson (b. 20 May 2011). [3]
The family seat of the Anson baronets is Birch Hall in the County of Lancaster. The family seat of the Anson earls of Lichfield is Shugborough Hall, Staffordshire, which is about 15 miles from the city of Lichfield.
Many family members are buried a short distance from Shugborough Hall: Admiral Lord Anson, the 1st Earl of Lichfield and others are buried at St Michael and All Angels Church in Colwich. The 2nd, 3rd and 4th Earl and other Ansons after 1854 were buried in the churchyard of St Stephen's Church in Great Haywood [4] until the 5th Earl decided to return to the Anson vault at Colwich. He was buried there in 2005. [5]
The heir apparent is the present holder's son, Thomas Ossian Patrick Wolfe Anson, Viscount Anson (b. 2011). [6]
The heir apparent is the present holder's brother Hugo William Anson (born 1962)
Several other members of the Anson family have also gained distinction. These include:
Shugborough Hall is a stately home near Great Haywood, Staffordshire, England.
Thomas Patrick John Anson, 5th Earl of Lichfield, was an English photographer from the Anson family. He inherited the Earldom of Lichfield in 1960 from his paternal grandfather. In his professional practice he was known as Patrick Lichfield.
Earl of Lichfield is a title that has been created three times, twice in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom (1831). The third creation is extant and is held by a member of the Anson family.
Earl of Carlisle is a title that has been created three times in the Peerage of England.
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Marquess of Linlithgow, in the County of Linlithgow or West Lothian, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 23 October 1902 for John Hope, 7th Earl of Hopetoun. The current holder of the title is Adrian Hope.
Earl of Wilton, of Wilton Castle in the County of Herefordshire, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1801 for Thomas Egerton, 1st Baron Grey de Wilton, along with the subsidiary title of Viscount Grey de Wilton, also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Both titles were created with remainder to the second and all younger sons successively of his daughter Eleanor, wife of Robert Grosvenor, 1st Marquess of Westminster.
Earl of Strafford is a title that has been created three times in English and British history.
Baron Vernon, of Kinderton in the County of Chester, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1762 for the former Member of Parliament George Venables-Vernon. He had previously represented Lichfield and Derby in the House of Commons. Born George Vernon, he was the son of Henry Vernon, of Sudbury in Derbyshire, and Anne Pigott, daughter and heiress of Thomas Pigott by his wife Mary Venables, sister and heiress of Sir Peter Venables, Baron of Kinderton in Cheshire. In 1728, he assumed by Royal Licence the additional surname of Venables upon inheriting the Venables estate in Cheshire from his childless cousin Anne, widow of the 2nd Earl of Abingdon.
The Master of the Buckhounds was an officer in the Master of the Horse's department of the British Royal Household. The holder was also His/Her Majesty's Representative at Ascot. The role was to oversee a hunting pack; a buckhound is smaller than a staghound and used for coursing the smaller breeds of deer, especially fallow deer. The position was abolished by the Civil List Act 1901.
Francis Almeric Spencer, 1st Baron Churchill DCL FRS was a British peer and Whig politician from the Spencer family.
Thomas Anson, 1st Viscount Anson was a British politician and peer from the Anson family.
Charles William Wentworth Fitzwilliam, 5th Earl Fitzwilliam in the peerage of Ireland, and 3rd Earl Fitzwilliam in the peerage of Great Britain, was a British nobleman and politician. He was president three times of the Royal Statistical Society in 1838–1840, 1847–1849, and 1853–1855; and president of the British Association for the Advancement of Science in its inaugural year (1831–2).
The Anson baronetcy, of Birch Hall in the County Palatine of Lancaster, is a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom held by a branch of the Anson family.
Thomas William Anson, 1st Earl of Lichfield PC, known as Viscount Anson from 1818–31, was a British Whig politician from the Anson family. He served under Lord Grey and Lord Melbourne as Master of the Buckhounds between 1830 and 1834 and under Melbourne Postmaster General between 1835 and 1841.
Thomas George Anson, 2nd Earl of Lichfield, known as Viscount Anson from 1831 to 1854, was a British politician from the Anson family.
George Anson, known as George Adams until 1773, was a Staffordshire landowner from the Anson family and a British Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1761 and 1769.
Villiers is an aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. Over time, various members of the Villiers family were made knights, baronets, and peers. Peerages held by the Villiers family include the dukedoms of Buckingham (1623–1687) and Cleveland (1670–1709), as well as the earldoms of Anglesey (1623–1661), Jersey, and Clarendon. Perhaps the most prominent members of the family were those who received the two dukedoms: George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham (1592–1628) rose to fame and influence as favourite of King James I of England, while Barbara Villiers, Duchess of Cleveland (1640–1709) became a mistress of King Charles II of England, by whom she had five children.
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