Baron St John of Bletso

Arms of St John: Argent, on a chief gules two mullets or

Oliver St John,
1st Baron St John of Bletso,
by Arnold Bronckorst, 1578

Baron St John of Bletso, in the County of Bedford, is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1582 for Oliver St John.

For a period, the title Baron St John was subsumed within the title Earl of Bolingbroke which was granted to the fourth Baron. The Earldom died out with the third Earl, but the Barony continued via another branch which had since become the baronet line. The eldest son of the 1st Earl was advanced to the barony by Writ of acceleration under King Charles I to become the 5th Baron. However he died in the civil war without becoming Earl, This resulted in the existence of an additional baron in the sequence but this was not taken into account by the family when the barony was continued.

Hence there is a discrepancy between the complete numbered series used by Burke and Debrett, and the numbering series in use by the family, particularly in the 18th and 19th century. Hence the numbers on family graves of this time are one less than the numbers used in the principal peerage registers that form the basis for this article.

History

According to Horace Round (1901) ^[1] the St John family of Bletso are descended from the St Johns of Fonmon Castle in Glamorgan, Wales. Again according to Round, ^[1] this was possibly a cadet branch of St John of Basing, Hampshire, and Halnaker, Sussex, which family descended in the male line from the Norman Hugh de Port (d.1091) lord of the manor of Port-en-Bessin in Normandy who took part in the Norman Conquest of England in 1066, and was subsequently granted 53 manors in Hampshire. ^[2] However according to Brownhill (1931) the male ancestry of St John of Bletso cannot be traced further back than Alexander de St John (fl.1340) of Instow in Devon. ^[3]

Oliver St John, the 1st Baron was the great-great-grandson of Sir John St John (died c. 1482), eldest son of Sir John Oliver St John of Bletso (died 1437), the husband of Margaret, great-great-granddaughter of Roger de Beauchamp (died 1380), who was summoned to Parliament as Baron Beauchamp of Bletso from 1363 to 1379. Since then that title had not been assumed although Oliver St John was considered to be the line of heir. He was succeeded by his son, the second Baron. He was one of the peers who sat during the trial of Mary, Queen of Scots. He died without male heirs and the claim to the barony of Beauchamp of Bletsoe passed to his daughter Anne, the wife of William Howard, Lord Howard Effingham, eldest son and heir of Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham.

He was succeeded in the barony of St John of Bletsoe by his younger brother, the third Baron. The latter's son, the fourth Baron, was created Earl of Bolingbroke in 1624. His eldest son and heir apparent, Oliver St John, was in 1641 summoned to the House of Lords through a writ of acceleration in his father's junior title of Baron St John of Bletsoe. However, he predeceased his father (killed at the Battle of Edgehill in 1642) but due to the writ of acceleration issued he is known as the fifth Baron St John of Bletsoe. The Earl was succeeded by his grandson, the second Earl. He was the son of Sir Paulet St John, younger son of the first Earl. He died childless and was succeeded by his younger brother, the third Earl, who represented Bedford in the House of Commons. He never married and on his death in 1711 the earldom became extinct.

The barony was inherited by his second cousin once removed, Sir Paulet St Andrew St John, 5th Baronet, who became the eighth Baron. He was the great-great-grandson of the Hon. Sir Rowland St John, fourth son of the third Baron (see below for more information on the baronetcy). His cousin's son, the fourteenth Baron, sat as a Member of Parliament for Bedfordshire. His grandson, the seventeenth Baron, served as Lord Lieutenant of Bedfordshire from 1905 to 1912. As of 2010 ^[update] the titles are held by the latter's great-grandson, the twenty-second Baron, who succeeded his father in 1978. He is one of the ninety elected hereditary peers that remain in the House of Lords after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999, and sits as a cross-bencher.

The St John Baronetcy, of Woodford in the County of Northampton, was created in the Baronetage of England in 1660 for Oliver St John. He was the son of the Hon. Sir Rowland St John, fourth son of the third Baron St John of Bletsoe. His son, the second Baronet, represented Northamptonshire in the House of Commons. The latter's grandson, the fifth Baronet, succeeded as eighth Baron St John of Bletsoe in 1711 (see above for later history of the titles).

Oliver St John (died c. 1497), younger brother of the aforementioned Sir John St John (died c. 1482), was the ancestor of the Viscounts Grandison and the Viscounts Bolingbroke and St John.

Barons St John of Bletso (1559)

Oliver St John,
1st Earl of Bolingbroke.

• Oliver St John, 1st Baron St John of Bletso (died 1582)
• John St John, 2nd Baron St John of Bletso (died 1596)
• Oliver St John, 3rd Baron St John of Bletso (c. 1540–1618)
• Oliver St John, 4th Baron St John of Bletso (died 1646) (created Earl of Bolingbroke in 1624)

Earls of Bolingbroke (1624)

• Oliver St John, 1st Earl of Bolingbroke, 4th Baron St John of Bletso (c. 1580–1646)
  • Oliver St John, 5th Baron St John of Bletso (1603–1642) (by writ of acceleration)
• Oliver St John, 2nd Earl of Bolingbroke, 6th Baron St John of Bletso (before 1634–1688)
• Paulet St John, 3rd Earl of Bolingbroke, 7th Baron St John of Bletso (1634–1711)

Barons St John of Bletso (1559; reverted)

Note: some sources do not count the 5th baron above as of this creation, as Debrett's and the Complete Peerage do. He was summoned to Parliament in his father's lifetime in the lesser title, but did not survive to inherit from him. In such sources the barons are numbered one less.

• Paulet St Andrew St John, 8th Baron St John of Bletso, 5th Baronet St John of Woodford (d. 1714)
• William St John, 9th Baron St John of Bletso, 6th Baronet St John of Woodson (d. 1720)
• Rowland St John, 10th Baron St John of Bletso, 7th Baronet St John of Woodson (d. 1722)
• John St John, 11th Baron St John of Bletso, 8th Baronet St John of Woodson (d. 1757)
• John St John, 12th Baron St John of Bletso, 9th Baronet St John of Woodson (1725–1767)
• Henry Beauchamp St John, 13th Baron St John of Bletso, 10th Baronet St John of Woodson (1758–1805)
• St Andrew St John, 14th Baron St John of Bletso, 11th Baronet St John of Woodson (1759–1817)
• St Andrew Beauchamp St John, 15th Baron St John of Bletso, 12th Baronet St John of Woodson (1811–1874)
• St Andrew St John, 16th Baron St John of Bletso, 13th Baronet St John of Woodson (1840–1887)
• Beauchamp Mowbray St John, 17th Baron St John of Bletso, 14th Baronet St John of Woodson (1844–1912)
• Henry Beauchamp Oliver St John, 18th Baron St John of Bletso, 15th Baronet St John of Woodson (1876–1920)
• Moubray St Andrew Thornton St John, 19th Baron St John of Bletso, 16th Baronet St John of Woodson (1877–1934)
• John Mowbray Russell St John, 20th Baron St John of Bletso, 17th Baronet St John of Woodson (1917–1976)
• Andrew Beauchamp St John, 21st Baron St John of Bletso, 18th Baronet St John of Woodson (1918–1978)
• Anthony Tudor St John, 22nd Baron St John of Bletso, 19th Baronet St John of Woodson (b. 1957)

The heir apparent is the present holder's son, Oliver Beauchamp St John (b. 1995).

St John Baronets, of Woodford (1660)

• Sir Oliver St John, 1st Baronet (c. 1624–1662) (son of Rowland St John, fourth son of 3rd Baron above)
• Sir St Andrew St John, 2nd Baronet (1658–1709)
• Sir Oliver St John, 3rd Baronet (c. 1683–c. 1710)
• Sir St Andrew St John, 4th Baronet (c. 1685–1711; brother)
• Sir Paulet St Andrew St John, 5th Baronet (1711–1714) (posthumous son; succeeded at birth as Baronet and as Baron St John of Bletso)

see above for further holders

Family tree

v t e Earls of Bolingbroke and Earls of Jersey with subsidiary and courtesy titles

Oliver St John d.  1437 Margaret Beauchamp c. 1410–before 1482 John Beaufort 1404–1444 1st Duke of Somerset John St John d. c. 1482 Oliver St John d. c. 1497 Margaret Beaufort 1443–1509 Countess of Richmond and Derby John St John c. 1450–after 1502 John St John 1473–1512 King Henry VII 1457–1509 John St John d. c. 1562 John St John 1473–1512 Baron St John of Bletso, 1559 Oliver St John c. 1522–1582 1st Baron St John of Bletso Nicholas St John d. 1589 Viscount Grandison of Limerick, 1620 Baron Tregoz of Highworth, 1626 John St John d. 1596 2nd Baron St John of Bletso Oliver St John c. 1540–1618 3rd Baron St John of Bletso John St. John c. 1552–1594 Oliver St. John c. 1560–1630 1st Viscount Grandison and Baron Tregoz of Highworth Barony of Tregoz extinct, 1630 Earl of Bolingbroke, 1624 St John Baronet, of Lydiard Tregoze, 1611 Oliver St John c. 1580–1646 1st Earl of Bolingbroke, 4th Baron St John of Bletso Rowland St John 1588–1645 John St John 1585–1648 1st Baronet St John of Lydiard Tregoze Barbara St John Edward Villiers c. 1585–1626 St John Baronets, of Woodford, 1660 Oliver St John 1603–1642 5th Baron St John of Bletso Paulet St John d. 1638 Oliver St John c. 1624–1662 1st Baronet St John of Woodford Oliver St John 1612/1613 – November 1641 or 1642 Walter St John 1622–1708 3rd Baronet St John of Lydiard Tregoze William Villiers 1614–1643 2nd Viscount Grandison John Villiers c. 1616–1659 3rd Viscount Grandison George Villiers 1618–1699 4th Viscount Grandison Edward Villiers 1620–1689 Viscount St John and Baron St John of Battersea, 1716 Viscount Villiers, 1691 Earl of Jersey, 1697 Oliver St John before 1634–1688 2nd Earl of Bolingbroke, 6th Baron St John of Bletso Paulet St John 1634–1711 3rd Earl of Bolingbroke, 7th Baron St John of Bletso St Andrew St John c. 1650–1709 2nd Baronet St John of Woodford John St John 1638–1657 2nd Baronet St John of Lydiard Tregoze Henry St John baptized 1652–1742 1st Viscount St John and Baron St John of Battersea, 4th Baronet St John of Lydiard Tregoze Barbara Palmer 1640–1709 Duchess of Cleveland, Countess of Castlemaine, Baroness Nonsuch King Charles II 1630–1685 Edward FitzGerald-Villiers c. 1654–1693 Edward Villiers c. 1656–1711 1st Earl of Jersey and Viscount Villiers Earldom of Bolingbroke extinct, 1711 Viscount Bolingbroke and Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze, 1712 Earl Grandison, 1721 Oliver St John c. 1683–1710 3rd Baronet St John of Woodford St Andrew St John c. 1685–1711 4th Baronet St John of Woodford William St John d. 1720 9th Baron St John of Bletso, 6th Baronet St John of Woodson Rowland St John d. 1722 10th Baron St John of Bletso, 7th Baronet St John of Woodson John St John d. 1757 11th Baron St John of Bletso, 8th Baronet St John of Woodson Henry St John 1678–1751 1st Viscount Bolingbroke and Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze John Villiers c. 1684–1766 1st Earl Grandison, 5th Viscount Grandison William Villiers c. 1682–1721 2nd Earl of Jersey and Viscount Villiers Earldom Grandison extinct, 1766 Paulet St Andrew St John 1711–1714 8th Baron St John of Bletso, 5th Baronet St John of Woodford John St Andrew St John 1725–1767 12th Baron St John of Bletso, 9th Baronet St John of Woodson John St John 1702–1748 2nd Viscount St John and Baron St John of Battersea William Villiers d. 1769 3rd Earl of Jersey and Viscount Villiers, 6th Viscount Grandison Frederick St John 1732–1787 3rd Viscount St John, 2nd Viscount Bolingbroke, Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze, and Baron St John of Battersea, 5th Baronet of Lydiard Tregoze George Bussy Villiers 1735–1805 4th Earl of Jersey and Viscount Villiers, 7th Viscount Grandison Henry Beauchamp St John 1758–1805 13th Baron St John of Bletso, 10th Baronet St John of Woodson St Andrew St John 1759–1817 14th Baron St John of Bletso, 11th Baronet St John of Woodson George Richard St John 1761–1824 4th Viscount St John, 3rd Viscount Bolingbroke, Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze, and Baron St John of Battersea, 5th Baronet of Lydiard Tregoze Ferdinand St. John 1804–1865 George Child Villiers 1773–1859 5th Earl of Jersey and Viscount Villiers, 8th Viscount Grandison St Andrew Beauchamp St John 1811–1874 15th Baron St John of Bletso, 12th Baronet St John of Woodson Henry St John 1786–1851 5th Viscount St John, 4th Viscount Bolingbroke, Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze, and Baron St John of Battersea, 6th Baronet of Lydiard Tregoze Canon Maurice William Ferdinand St. John 1827–1914 George Augustus Frederick Child Villiers 1808–1859 6th Earl of Jersey and Viscount Villiers, 9th Viscount Grandison St Andrew St John 1840–1887 16th Baron St John of Bletso, 13th Baronet St John of Woodson Beauchamp Moubray St John 1844–1912 17th Baron St John of Bletso, 14th Baronet St John of Woodson Henry Mildmay St John 1820–1899 6th Viscount St John, 5th Viscount Bolingbroke, Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze, and Baron St John of Battersea, 7th Baronet of Lydiard Tregoze Henry Percy St John (1854–1921) Victor Albert George Child Villiers 1845–1915 7th Earl of Jersey and Viscount Villiers, 10th Viscount Grandison Henry Beauchamp Oliver St John 1876–1920 18th Baron St John of Bletso, 15th Baronet St John of Woodson Moubray St Andrew Thornton St John 1877–1934 19th Baron St John of Bletso, 16th Baronet St John of Woodson Rowland Tudor St John Vernon Henry St John 1896–1974 7th Viscount St John, 6th Viscount Bolingbroke, Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze, and Baron St John of Battersea, 8th Baronet of Lydiard Tregoze Geoffrey Robert St. John 1889–1972 George Henry Robert Child Villiers 1873–1923 8th Earl of Jersey and Viscount Villiers, 11th Viscount Grandison John Moubray Russell St John 1917–1976 20th Baron St John of Bletso, 17th Baronet St John of Woodson Andrew Beauchamp St John 1918–1978 21st Baron St John of Bletso, 18th Baronet St John of Woodson Kenneth Oliver Musgrave St John 1927–2010 8th Viscount St John, 7th Viscount Bolingbroke, Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze, and Baron St John of Battersea, 9th Baronet of Lydiard Tregoze George Francis Child-Villiers 1910–1998 9th Earl of Jersey and Viscount Villiers, 12th Viscount Grandison Anthony Tudor St John b. 1957 22nd Baron St John of Bletso, 19th Baronet St John of Woodson Henry FitzRoy St John 1957–2011 9th Viscount St John, 8th Viscount Bolingbroke, Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze, and 8th Baron St John of Battersea, 10th Baronet of Lydiard Tregoze George Henry Child Villiers 1948–1998 styled Viscount Villiers Nicholas Alexander Mowbray St John b. 1974 10th Viscount St John, 9th Viscount Bolingbroke, Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze, and Baron St John of Battersea, 12th Baronet of Lydiard Tregoze George Francis William Child Villiers b. 1976 10th Earl of Jersey and Viscount Villiers, 13th Viscount Grandison Oliver Beauchamp St John b. 1995 George Henry William Child Villiers b. 2015 styled Viscount Villiers

See also

• Baron Beauchamp of Bletsoe
• Viscount Grandison
• Viscount Bolingbroke and St John

Notes

1. Quoted in Cokayne, Complete Peerage, 2nd. ed., Vol. XI, p. 333 note (g), continuing on 334.
2. Cokayne, Complete Peerage, 2nd. ed., Vol. XI, pp. 316-18.
3. John Brownbill, "St. John of Bletsoe", Genealogists' Magazine, vol. v, 1929-31, pp. 355-9, quoted in Cokayne, Complete Peerage, 2nd. ed., Vol. XI, p. 333 note (g), continuing on 334.

References

• Cokayne, George Edward, Geoffrey H. White, ed. (1949). The Complete Peerage, or a history of the House of Lords and all its members from the earliest times Vol. 11 (2nd ed.). London: The St. Catherine Press.
• Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, ^{[ page needed ]}