Earl of Birkenhead

Last updated

F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead. 1stEarlOfBirkenhead.jpg
F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead.

Earl of Birkenhead was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1922 for the noted lawyer and Conservative politician F. E. Smith, 1st Viscount Birkenhead. He was Solicitor-General in 1915, Attorney-General from 1915 to 1919, and Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain from 1919 to 1922. Smith had already been created a Baronet in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom in 1918, Baron Birkenhead, of Birkenhead in the County of Chester, in 1919, Viscount Birkenhead, of Birkenhead in the County of Chester, in 1921, and was made Viscount Furneaux, of Charlton in the County of Northampton, at the same time as he was given the earldom. The three peerages, along with the earldom, were in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Viscount Furneaux was used as the courtesy title by the heir apparent to the earldom; the title was derived from the maiden name of Lord Birkenhead's wife.

Contents

He was succeeded by his only son, the second Earl. He was also a Conservative politician and held minor office under Neville Chamberlain and Winston Churchill. However, Lord Birkenhead is best remembered as a biographer. He was succeeded by his only son, the third Earl. Like his father, he was a biographer. He never married and the titles became extinct on his early death in 1985. The second Earl's daughter, Lady Juliet Townsend, was Lord Lieutenant of Northamptonshire.

Birkenhead was a member of the committee for the 1924 Olympic Games, and more than 50 years after his death he was portrayed by actor Nigel Davenport in the 1981 film Chariots of Fire . [1]

Earls of Birkenhead (1922–1985)

Arms

Coat of arms of Earl of Birkenhead
Coronet of a British Earl.svg
Birkenhead Escutcheon.png
Crest
A cubit arm couped fessways vested Gules cuffed Argent the hand Proper grasping a sword erect also Argent pommel and hilt Or.
Escutcheon
Ermine on a pale Gules between four cross crosslets of the second a like cross Or.
Supporters
Dexter a griffin Or wings per fess Or and Sable, sinister a lion Azure charged on the shoulder with a crozier Or.
Motto
Faber Meæ Fortunæ [2]

Notes

  1. Lord Birkenhead (Character) from Chariots of Fire (1981), IMDb.
  2. Burke's Peerage. 1959.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl of Albemarle</span> Title in the Peerage of England

Earl of Albemarle is a title created several times from Norman times onwards. The word Albemarle is derived from the Latinised form of the French county of Aumale in Normandy, other forms being Aubemarle and Aumerle. It is described in the patent of nobility granted in 1697 by William III to Arnold Joost van Keppel as "a town and territory in the Dukedom of Normandy."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marquess of Londonderry</span> Title in the Peerage of Ireland

Marquess of Londonderry, of the County of Londonderry, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl of Jersey</span> Title in the Peerage of England

Earl of the Island of Jersey, usually shortened to Earl of Jersey, is a title in the Peerage of England. It is held by a branch of the Villiers family, which since 1819 has been the Child Villiers family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl of Glasgow</span> Scottish peerage title

Earl of Glasgow is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1703 for David Boyle, Lord Boyle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl of Halifax</span> Earldom in the Peerage of Great Britain

Earl of Halifax is a title that has been created four times in British history—once in the Peerage of England, twice in the Peerage of Great Britain, and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The name of the peerage refers to Halifax, West Yorkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl Peel</span> Earldom in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Earl Peel is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The Peel family descends from Robert Peel, eldest son of a wealthy cotton merchant. The family lands, known as Drayton Manor, in the County of Stafford would become more commonly known in modern-day as an amusement park. The family seat is Elmire House, near Ripon, North Yorkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl of Gosford</span> Title in the peerage of Ireland

Earl of Gosford is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1806 for Arthur Acheson, 2nd Viscount Gosford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl of Bessborough</span> Title in the peerage of Ireland

Earl of Bessborough is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1739 for Brabazon Ponsonby, 2nd Viscount Duncannon, who had previously represented Newtownards and County Kildare in the Irish House of Commons. In 1749, he was given the additional title of Baron Ponsonby of Sysonby, in the County of Leicester, in the Peerage of Great Britain, which entitled him to a seat in the British House of Lords. The titles Viscount Duncannon, of the fort of Duncannon in the County of Wexford, and Baron Bessborough, of Bessborough, Piltown, in the County of Kilkenny, had been created in the Peerage of Ireland in 1723 and 1721 respectively for Lord Bessborough's father William Ponsonby, who had earlier represented County Kilkenny in the Irish House of Commons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl Cathcart</span> Earldom in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Earl Cathcart is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl Beatty</span> Earldom in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Earl Beatty is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1919 for the prominent naval commander Admiral of the Fleet Sir David Beatty. He was created Baron Beatty, of the North Sea and of Brooksby in the County of Leicester, and Viscount Borodale, of Wexford in the County of Wexford, at the same time, also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The latter title is used as a courtesy title for the Earl's eldest son and heir apparent. Lord Beatty was succeeded by his eldest son, the second Earl. He represented Peckham in the House of Commons as a Conservative from 1931 to 1936 and briefly served as Under-Secretary of State for Air in Winston Churchill's 1945 caretaker government. As of 2014 the titles are held by his eldest son, the third Earl, who succeeded in 1972.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl of Durham</span> Title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Earl of Durham is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1833 for the Whig politician and colonial official John Lambton, 1st Baron Durham. Known as "Radical Jack", he played a leading role in the passing of the Great Reform Act of 1832. As Governor General of British North America, he was the author of the famous Report on the Affairs of British North America, known in Canada as the Durham Report. He had already been created Baron Durham, of the City of Durham and of Lambton Castle in the County Palatine of Durham, in 1828. He was created Viscount Lambton at the same time that he was raised to the earldom. These titles are also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl Cowley</span> Earldom in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Earl Cowley is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1857 for the diplomat Henry Wellesley, 2nd Baron Cowley. He was Ambassador to France from 1852 to 1867. He was made Viscount Dangan, of Dangan in the County of Meath, at the same time as he was given the earldom. This title is also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Lord Cowley was the eldest son of Henry Wellesley, 1st Baron Cowley, who like his son served as Ambassador to France. In 1828 he was created Baron Cowley, of Wellesley in the County of Somerset, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. A member of the prominent Wellesley family, Cowley was the fifth and youngest son of Garret Wellesley, 1st Earl of Mornington, and the younger brother of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, and Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl Cairns</span> Earldom in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Earl Cairns is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1878 for the prominent lawyer and Conservative politician Hugh Cairns, 1st Baron Cairns. He was Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain in 1868 and from 1874 to 1880. Cairns had already been created Baron Cairns, of Garmoyle in the County of Antrim, in 1867, and was made Viscount Garmoyle, in the County of Antrim, at the same time he was given the earldom. These titles are also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl of Cranbrook</span> Title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Earl of Cranbrook is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1892 for Gathorne Gathorne-Hardy, Viscount Cranbrook. The title is named after Cranbrook in the county of Kent. The Gathorne-Hardy family seat is Great Glemham House, near Saxmundham, Suffolk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baron Feversham</span> Barony in the Peerage of Great Britain

Baron Feversham is a title that has been created twice, once in the Peerage of Great Britain and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The first creation, in the Peerage of Great Britain, came in 1747 when Anthony Duncombe, who had earlier represented Salisbury and Downton in the House of Commons, was made Lord Feversham, Baron of Downton, in the County of Wilts. He had previously inherited half of the enormous fortune of his uncle Sir Charles Duncombe. However, Lord Feversham had no sons and the barony became extinct on his death in 1763. The peerage was revived in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1826 in favour of his kinsman Charles Duncombe, who was created Baron Feversham, of Duncombe Park in the County of York. He was a former Member of Parliament for Shaftesbury, Aldborough, Heytesbury and Newport. Duncombe was the grandson of Thomas Duncombe, son of John Brown by his wife Ursula Duncombe, aunt of the first Baron of the 1747 creation. Ursula had inherited the other half of her brother Sir Charles Duncombe's fortune. Lord Feversham son, the second Baron, sat as a Conservative Member of Parliament for Yorkshire and the North Riding of Yorkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead</span> British politician

Frederick Edwin Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead, was a British Conservative politician and barrister who attained high office in the early 20th century, in particular as Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain. He was a skilled orator, noted for his staunch opposition to Irish nationalism, his wit, pugnacious views, and hard living and drinking. He is perhaps best remembered today as Winston Churchill's greatest personal and political friend until Birkenhead's death aged 58 from pneumonia caused by cirrhosis of the liver.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frederick Smith, 2nd Earl of Birkenhead</span> British biographer and Member of the House of Lords (1907–1975)

Frederick Winston Furneaux Smith, 2nd Earl of Birkenhead was a British biographer and Member of the House of Lords. He is best known for writing a biography of Rudyard Kipling that was suppressed by the Kipling family for many years, and which he never lived to see in print.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl of Ellesmere</span> Title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Earl of Ellesmere, of Ellesmere in the County of Shropshire, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1846 for the Conservative politician Lord Francis Egerton. He was granted the subsidiary title of Viscount Brackley, of Brackley in the County of Northampton, at the same time, also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Born Lord Francis Leveson-Gower, he was the third son of George Leveson-Gower, 1st Duke of Sutherland and Elizabeth Gordon, 19th Countess of Sutherland. In 1803 his father had inherited the substantial estates of his maternal uncle Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater. On his father's death in 1833, Lord Francis succeeded to the Egerton estates according to the will of the late Duke of Bridgewater, and assumed by Royal licence the surname of Egerton in lieu of Leveson-Gower. The Brackley and Ellesmere titles created for him in 1846 were revivals of titles held by the Dukes of Bridgewater. In 1963 his great-great-grandson, the fifth Earl, succeeded his kinsman as 6th Duke of Sutherland. The earldom of Ellesmere and viscountcy of Brackley are now subsidiary titles of the dukedom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl Brassey</span> Former title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Earl Brassey was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1911 for the Liberal politician and former Governor of Victoria, Australia, Thomas Brassey, 1st Baron Brassey, eldest son of the railway magnate Thomas Brassey (1805-1870). He had already been created Baron Brassey, of Bulkeley in the County Palatine of Chester, in 1886, and was made Viscount Hythe, of Hythe in the County of Kent, at the same time as he was granted the earldom. These titles were also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The titles became extinct upon the death of his son, the second Earl, in 1919.

Frederick William Robin Smith, 3rd Earl of Birkenhead was a British writer, historian and hereditary peer. He wrote under the pseudonym Robin Furneaux.

References