PEERAGE
Last updated 27/10/2012
     Date Rank Order Name Born Died  Age
      WADDINGTON
 
4 Dec 1990 B[L] 1 David Charles Waddington            2 Aug 1929
Created Baron Waddington for life 4 Dec 1990
MP for Nelson and Colne 1968-1974,
and Clitheroe 1979-1983 and Ribble 
Valley 1983-1990. Minister of State,Home
Office 1983-1987. Parliamentary Secretary
to the Treasury 1987-1989. Home Secretary
1989-1990. Lord Privy Seal 1990-1992
Governor of Bermuda 1992-1997  PC 1987
WADE
28 Dec 1964 B[L] 1 Donald William Wade 16 Jun 1904 6 Nov 1988 84
to     Created Baron Wade for life 28 Dec 1964
6 Nov 1988 MP for Huddersfield West 1950-1964
Peerage extinct on his death
WADE OF CHORLTON
16 May 1990 B[L] 1 William Oulton Wade 24 Dec 1932
Created Baron Wade of Chorlton for life
16 May 1990
WAKE
1 Oct 1295 B 1 John Wake 10 Apr 1300
Summoned to Parliament as Lord
Wake 1 Oct 1295
10 Apr 1300 2 Thomas Wake c 1298 31 May 1349
31 May 1349 3 Margaret Plantagenet 29 Sep 1349
29 Sep 1349 4 John Plantagenet,Earl of Kent 7 Apr 1330 22 Dec 1352 22
22 Dec 1352 5 Joan de Holand 1331 8 Jul 1385 54
8 Jul 1385 6 Thomas de Holand,Earl of Kent 1350 25 Apr 1397 46
25 Apr 1397 7 Thomas de Holand,Earl of Kent 1374 6 Jan 1400 25
6 Jan 1400 8 Edmund de Holand,Earl of Kent 8 Jan 1384 18 Sep 1408 24
to     On his death the peerage fell into
18 Sep 1408 abeyance
WAKEFIELD
28 Jun 1934 V 1 Sir Charles Cheers Wakefield,1st baronet 12 Dec 1859 15 Jan 1941 81
to     Created Baron Wakefield 20 Jan 1930
15 Jan 1941 and Viscount Wakefield 28 Jun 1934
Peerages extinct on his death
WAKEFIELD OF KENDAL
15 Nov 1963 B 1 William Wavell Wakefield 10 Mar 1898 12 Aug 1983 85
to     Created Baron Wakefield of Kendal
12 Aug 1983 15 Nov 1963
MP for Swindon 1935-1945 and 
St.Marylebone 1945-1963.
Peerage extinct on his death
WAKEHAM
24 Apr 1992 B[L] 1 John Wakeham 22 Jun 1932
Created Baron Wakeham for life 24 Apr 1992
MP for Maldon 1974-1983 and Colchester
South and Maldon 1983-1992. Minister of
State,Treasury 1982-1983. Parliamentary
Secretary to the Treasury 1983-1987. 
Lord Privy Seal 1987-1988 and 1992-1994
Lord President of the Council 1988-1989
Secretary of State for Energy 1989-1992
PC 1983
WAKEHURST
29 Jun 1934 B 1 Gerald Walter Erskine Loder 23 Oct 1861 30 Apr 1936 74
Created Baron Wakehurst 29 Jun 1934
MP for Brighton 1889-1905
30 Apr 1936 2 John de Vere Loder 5 Feb 1895 30 Oct 1970 75
MP for Leicester East 1924-1929 and 
Lewes 1931-1936. Governor of New South
Wales 1937-1946 and Northern Ireland
1952-1964. KG 1962
30 Oct 1970 3 John Christopher Loder 23 Sep 1925
WALBERTON
9 Jan 1956 V 1 Frederick James Marquis,1st Viscount Woolton 24 Aug 1883 14 Dec 1964 81
Created Viscount Walberton and Earl of
Woolton 9 Jan 1956
See "Woolton"
WALDEGRAVE
20 Jan 1686 B 1 Sir Henry Waldegrave,4th baronet 1661 24 Jan 1689 37
Created Baron Waldegrave 
20 Jan 1686
Lord Lieutenant Somerset 1687-1689
24 Jan 1689 2 James Waldegrave 1684 11 Apr 1741 56
13 Sep 1729 E 1 Created Viscount Chewton and Earl
Waldegrave 13 Sep 1729
PC 1735  KG 1738
For information on his daughter, Henrietta, see 
the note at the foot of this page
11 Apr 1741 2 James Waldegrave 4 Mar 1715 28 Apr 1763 48
PC 1752  KG 1757
28 Apr 1763 3 John Waldegrave 28 Apr 1718 22 Oct 1784 66
MP for Orford 1747-1754 and Newcastle
1754-1763. Lord Lieutenant Essex 1781-1784
22 Oct 1784 4 George Waldegrave 23 Nov 1751 22 Oct 1789 37
MP for Newcastle 1774-1780  PC 1782
22 Oct 1789 5 George Waldegrave 13 Jul 1784 29 Jun 1794 9
For further information on the death of this peer,
see the note at the foot of this page
29 Jun 1794 6 John James Waldegrave 31 Jul 1785 31 Jul 1835 50
31 Jul 1835 7 George Edward Waldegrave 8 Feb 1816 28 Sep 1846 30
For further information on this peer, see the
note at the foot of this page
28 Sep 1846 8 William Waldegrave 27 Oct 1788 24 Oct 1859 70
MP for Bedford 1815-1818
24 Oct 1859 9 William Frederick Waldegrave 2 Mar 1851 12 Aug 1930 79
PC 1897
12 Aug 1930 10 William Edward Seymour Waldegrave 2 Oct 1882 30 Jan 1933 50
30 Jan 1933 11 Henry Noel Waldegrave 14 Oct 1854 30 Dec 1936 82
30 Dec 1936 12 Geoffrey Noel Waldegrave 21 Nov 1905 23 May 1995 89
KG 1971
23 May 1995 13 James Sherbrooke Waldegrave 8 Dec 1940
WALDEGRAVE OF NORTH HILL
28 Jul 1999 B[L] 1 William Arthur Waldegrave 15 Aug 1946
Created Baron Waldegrave of North
Hill for life 28 Jul 1999
MP for Bristol West 1979-1997. Secretary of  
State for Health 1990-1992. Chancellor of the
Duchy of Lancaster 1992-1994. Minister for
Agriculture,Fisheries & Food 1994-1995. Chief
Secretary to the Treasury 1995-1997.  PC 1990
WALDEN
17 Dec 1694 V[S] 1 John Hay,Earl of Tweeddale 1626 11 Aug 1697 71
Created Lord Hay of Yester,Viscount
of Walden,Earl of Gifford and 
Marquess of Tweeddale 17 Dec 1694
See "Tweeddale"
WALERAN
23 Dec 1905 B 1 Sir William Hood Walrond,2nd baronet 26 Feb 1849 17 May 1925 76
Created Baron Waleran 23 Dec 1905
MP for Devonshire East 1880-1885 and
Tiverton 1885-1906. Chancellor of the
Duchy of Lancaster 1902-1905.  PC 1899
17 May 1925 2 William George Hood Walrond 30 Mar 1905 4 Apr 1966 61
to     Peerage extinct on his death
4 Apr 1966
WALEYS
15 May 1321 B 1 Richard de Waleys after 1331
Summoned to Parliament as Lord
Waleys 15 May 1321
after 1331 2 Stephen de Waleys 1347
to     On his death the peerage fell into
1347 abeyance
c 1360 3 Elizabeth Neville c 1400
to     She became entitled to the peerage c 1360
c 1400 but on her death the peerage became
either extinct or dormant
WALKDEN
9 Jul 1945 B 1 Alexander George Walkden 11 May 1873 25 Apr 1951 77
to     Created Baron Walkden 9 Jul 1945
25 Apr 1951 MP for Bristol South 1929-1931 and 
1935-1945
Peerage extinct on his death
WALKER OF ALDRINGHAM
19 Dec 2006 B[L] 1 Michael John Dawson Walker 7 Jul 1944
Created Baron Walker of Aldringham for life
19 Dec 2006
Chief of the Defence Staff 2003-2006
WALKER OF DONCASTER
26 Sep 1997 B[L] 1 Sir Harold Walker 12 Jul 1927 11 Nov 2003 76
to     Created Baron Walker of Doncaster for life
11 Nov 2003 26 Sep 1997
MP for Doncaster 1964-1983 and 
Doncaster Central 1983-1997 Minister of
State,Employment 1976-1979.  PC 1979
Peerage extinct on his death
WALKER OF GESTINGTHORPE
1 Oct 2002 B[L] 1 Sir Robert Walker 17 Mar 1938
Created Baron Walker of Gestingthorpe
for life 1 Oct 2002
Lord Justice of Appeal 1997-2002. Lord of
Appeal in Ordinary 2002-2009. Justice of the     
Supreme Court 2009-      PC 1997
WALKER OF WORCESTER
8 Jul 1992 B[L] 1 Peter Edward Walker 25 Mar 1932 23 Jun 2010 78
to     Created Baron Walker of Worcester for life
23 Jun 2010 8 Jul 1992
MP for Worcester 1961-1992. Minister of
Housing and Local Government 1970.
Secretary of State for Environment 1970-
1972. Secretary of State for Trade and
Industry 1972-1974. Minister of Agriculture
Fisheries and Food 1979-1983. Secretary of
State for Energy 1983-1987. Secretary of
State for Wales 1987-1990.  PC 1970
Peerage extinct on his death
WALL
5 Feb 1976 B[L] 1 John Edward Wall 15 Feb 1913 29 Dec 1980 67
to     Created Baron Wall for life 5 Feb 1976
29 Dec 1980 Peerage extinct on his death
WALL OF NEW BARNET
10 Jun 2004 B[L] 1 Margaret Mary Wall 14 Nov 1941
Created Baroness Wall of New Barnet
for life 10 Jun 2004
WALLACE
2 Feb 1828 B 1 Thomas Wallace c 1768 23 Feb 1844  
to     Created Baron Wallace 2 Feb 1828
23 Feb 1844 MP for Grampound 1790-1796, Penryn
1796-1802, Hindon 1802-1806, Shaftesbury
1807-1812, Weymouth 1812-1813,
Cockermouth 1813-1818 and Weymouth
1818-1828. President of the Board of
Control 1807-1816. Vice President of the
Board of Trade 1818-1823.  PC 1801
Peerage extinct on his death
WALLACE OF CAMPSIE
28 Jun 1974 B[L] 1 George Wallace 13 Feb 1915 23 Dec 1997 82
to     Created Baron Wallace of Campsie for life
23 Dec 1997 28 Jun 1974
Peerage extinct on his death
WALLACE OF COSLANY
17 Jan 1975 B[L] 1 George Douglas Wallace 18 Apr 1906 11 Nov 2003 97
to     Created Baron Wallace of Coslany for life
11 Nov 2003 17 Jan 1975
MP for Chislehurst 1945-1950 and Norwich
North 1964-1974
Peerage extinct on his death
WALLACE OF SALTAIRE
19 Dec 1995 B[L] 1 William John Lawrence Wallace 12 Mar 1941
Created Baron Wallace of Saltaire for life
19 Dec 1995
PC 2012
WALLACE OF TANKERNESS
17 Oct 2007 B[L] 1 James Robert Wallace 25 Aug 1954
Created Baron Wallace of Tankerness for life
17 Oct 2007
MP for Orkney and Shetland 1983-2001. PC 2000
WALLINGFORD
18 Aug 1626 V 1 William Knollys c 1547 25 May 1632
to     Created Baron Knollys 13 May 1603,
25 May 1632 Viscount Wallingford 7 Nov 1616 and
Earl of Banbury 18 Aug 1626
On his death the peerage was considered
to be extinct,although there were
legitimate heirs
WALLOP
11 Jun 1720 B 1 John Wallop 15 Apr 1690 22 Nov 1762 72
Created Baron Wallop and Viscount
Lymington 11 Jun 1720,and Earl of 
Portsmouth 11 Apr 1743
See "Portsmouth"
WALLSCOURT
31 Jul 1800 B[I] 1 Joseph Henry Blake 5 Oct 1765 28 Mar 1803 37
to     Created Baron Wallscourt 31 Jul 1800
28 Mar 1803 On his death the peerage was suspended
until 1806
1806 2 Joseph Henry Blake 23 Jul 1795 11 Oct 1816 21
11 Oct 1816 3 Joseph Henry Blake 2 Jun 1797 28 May 1849 51
28 May 1849 4 Erroll Augustus Blake 22 Aug 1841 22 Jul 1918 76
22 Jul 1918 5 Charles William Joseph Henry Blake 12 Jan 1875 27 May 1920 45
to     Peerage extinct on his death
27 May 1920 For further information on this peerage and the 
5th Baron in particular,see the note at the foot
of this page
WALMSLEY
15 May 2000 B[L] 1 Joan Margaret Walmsley 12 Apr 1943
Created Baroness Walmsley for life
15 May 2000
WALPOLE
6 Feb 1742 V 1 Robert Walpole 26 Aug 1676 18 Mar 1745 68
Created Baron Houghton,Viscount
Walpole and Earl of Orford 6 Feb 1742
His son had been previously created Baron
Walpole in 1723 - see below
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1 Jun 1723 B 1 Robert Walpole 1701 31 Mar 1751 49
Created Baron Walpole 1 Jun 1723
He succeeded to the Earldom of Orford and
the Viscountcy of Walpole (qv) in 1745
31 Mar 1751 2 George Walpole,Earl of Orford 2 Apr 1730 5 Dec 1791 61
5 Dec 1791 3 Horatio Walpole,Earl of Orford 5 Oct 1717 2 Mar 1797 79
On his death the creations of 1742 became
    extinct but the Barony of 1723 passed to 
Horatio Walpole (see below under 4th baron)
4 Jun 1756 B 1 Horatio Walpole 8 Dec 1678 5 Feb 1757 78
Created Baron Walpole 4 Jun 1756
MP for Lostwithiel 1710, Castle Rising
1713-1715, Bere Alston 1715-1717, East
Looe 1718-1722, Yarmouth 1722-1734 and
Norwich 1734-1756. Chief Secretary Ireland
1720. PC [I] 1720  PC 1730
5 Jan 1757 2 Horatio Walpole,Earl of Orford 12 Jun 1723 24 Feb 1809 85
2 Mar 1797 4 MP for Kings Lynn 1747-1757
He succeeded to the Barony of 1723 in 1797
24 Feb 1809 5 Horatio Walpole,Earl of Orford 13 Jun 1752 15 Jun 1822 70
3  
15 Jun 1822 6 Horatio Walpole,Earl of Orford 14 Jun 1783 29 Dec 1858 75
4  
29 Dec 1858 7 Horatio Walpole,Earl of Orford 18 Apr 1813 7 Dec 1894 81
5  
7 Dec 1894 8 Robert Horace Walpole,Earl of Orford 10 Jul 1854 27 Sep 1931 77
6
27 Sep 1931 9 Robert Henry Montgomerie Walpole 25 Apr 1913 25 Feb 1989 75
7
25 Feb 1989 10 Robert Horatio Walpole 8 Dec 1938
8
WALSINGHAM
7 Apr 1722 E[L] 1 Melusina von der Schulenberg c 1693 16 Sep 1778
to     Created Baroness of Aldborough and 
16 Sep 1778 Countess of Walsingham for life 7 Apr 1722
Peerages extinct on her death
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For information on the connection between the de
Grey family and the tradion of the "Babes in the 
Wood," see the note at the foot of this page
17 Oct 1780 B 1 Sir William de Grey 7 Jul 1719 9 May 1781 61
Created Baron Walsingham 17 Oct 1780
MP for Newport 1761-1770 and Cambridge 
University 1770-1771 Lord Chief Justice of the
Common Pleas 1771-1780  PC 1771
9 May 1781 2 Thomas de Grey 14 Jul 1748 16 Jan 1818 69
MP for Wareham 1774, Tamworth 1774-1780
and Lostwithiel 1780-1781. Postmaster
General 1787-1794.  PC 1783
16 Jan 1818 3 George de Grey 11 Jun 1776 26 Apr 1831 54
For further information on the death of this peer and
his wife,see the note at the foot of this page
26 Apr 1831 4 Thomas de Grey 10 Apr 1778 8 Sep 1839 61
8 Sep 1839 5 Thomas de Grey 6 Jul 1804 31 Dec 1870 66
31 Dec 1870 6 Thomas de Grey 29 Jul 1843 3 Dec 1919 76
MP for Norfolk West 1865-1871
3 Dec 1919 7 John Augustus de Grey 21 Mar 1849 10 Mar 1929 79
10 Mar 1929 8 George de Grey 9 May 1884 29 Nov 1965 81
29 Nov 1965 9 John de Grey 21 Feb 1925
WALSTON
10 Feb 1961 B[L] 1 Henry David Leonard George Walston 16 Jun 1912 29 May 1991 78
to     Created Baron Walston for life 10 Feb 1961
29 May 1991 Peerage extinct on his death
WALTHAM
22 Jun 1762 B[I] 1 John Olmius 18 Jul 1711 5 Oct 1762 51
Created Baron Waltham 22 Jun 1762
MP for Weymouth 1737-1741 and 1761-1762
and Colchester 1741-1742 and 1754-1761
5 Oct 1762 2 Drigue Billers Olmius 12 Mar 1746 10 Feb 1787 40
to     MP for Weymouth 1768-1774 and Maldon
10 Feb 1787 1784-1787
Peerage extinct on his death
WALTON OF DETCHANT
24 Jul 1989 B[L] 1 John Nicholas Walton 16 Sep 1922
Created Baron Walton of Detchant for life
24 Jul 1989
WANDESFORD
15 Mar 1707 B[I] 1 Sir Christopher Wandesford 19 Aug 1656 15 Sep 1707 51
Created Baron Wandesford and 
Viscount Castlecomer 15 Mar 1707
15 Sep 1707 2 Christopher Wandesford 2 Mar 1684 23 Jun 1719 35
MP for Morpeth 1710-1714 and Ripon 1714
Secretary at War 1717  PC [I] 1710
23 Jun 1719 3 Christopher Wandesford 1717 10 May 1736 18
10 May 1736 4 George Wandesford 22 Sep 1687 25 Jun 1751 63
25 Jun 1751 5 John Wandesford 24 May 1725 12 Jan 1784 58
15 Aug 1758 E[I] 1 Created Earl Wandesford 15 Aug 1758
to     Peerages extinct on his death
12 Jan 1784
WANDSWORTH
19 Jul 1895 B 1 Sydney James Stern 1845 10 Feb 1912 66
to     Created Baron Wandsworth 19 Jul 1895
10 Feb 1912 MP for Stowmarket 1891-1895
Peerage extinct on his death
WANTAGE
23 Jul 1885 B 1 Robert James Loyd-Lindsay VC 16 Apr 1832 10 Jun 1901 69
to     Created Baron Wantage 23 Jul 1885
10 Jun 1901 MP for Berkshire 1865-1885. Lord
Lieutenant Berkshire 1886-1901
Peerage extinct on his death
For further information on this peer and VC
winner, see the note at the foot of this page
WARD
23 Mar 1644 B 1 Sir Humble Ward 14 Oct 1670
Created Baron Ward 23 Mar 1644
14 Oct 1670 2 Edward Ward,Lord Dudley 1631 3 Aug 1701 70
3 Aug 1701 3 Edward Ward,Lord Dudley 20 Dec 1683 28 Mar 1704 20
28 Mar 1704 4 Edward Ward,Lord Dudley 16 Jun 1704 6 Sep 1731 27
6 Sep 1731 5 William Ward,Lord Dudley 16 Oct 168- 20 May 1740
20 May 1740 6 John Ward,Viscount Dudley c 1700 6 May 1774
6 May 1774 7 John Ward,Viscount Dudley 22 Feb 1725 10 Oct 1788 63
10 Oct 1788 8 William Ward,Viscount Dudley 21 Jan 1750 25 Apr 1823 73
25 Apr 1823 9 John William Ward,Earl of Dudley 9 Aug 1781 6 Mar 1833 51
6 Mar 1833 10 William Humble Ward 9 Jan 1781 6 Dec 1835 54
6 Dec 1835 11 William Ward
He was created Earl of Dudley (qv) in 1860
with which title this peerage then merged
WARD OF NORTH TYNESIDE
23 Jan 1975 B[L] 1 Irene Mary Bewick Ward 23 Feb 1895 26 Apr 1980 85
to     Created Baroness Ward of North Tyneside
26 Apr 1980 for life 23 Jan 1975
MP for Wallsend 1931-1945 and Tynemouth
1950-1974  CH 1973
Peerage extinct on her death
WARD OF WITLEY
11 Nov 1960 V 1 George Reginald Ward 20 Nov 1907 15 Jun 1988 80
to     Created Viscount Ward of Witley
15 Jun 1988 11 Nov 1960
MP for Worcester 1945-1960. Secretary
of State for Air 1957-1960.  PC 1957
Peerage extinct on his death
WARDE
29 Nov 1299 B 1 Robert de la Warde 25 Jan 1307
to     Summoned to Parliament as Lord
25 Jan 1307 Warde 29 Nov 1299
On his death the peerage fell into abeyance
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3 Dec 1326 B 1 Simon Warde 9 Apr 1334
to     Summoned to Parliament as Lord
9 Apr 1334 Warde 3 Dec 1326
Peerage extinct on his death
WARDINGTON
17 Jul 1936 B 1 John William Beaumont Pease 4 Jul 1869 7 Aug 1950 81
Created Baron Wardington 17 Jul 1936
7 Aug 1950 2 Christopher Henry Beaumont Pease 22 Jan 1924 6 Jul 2005 81
6 Jul 2005 3 William Simon Pease 15 Oct 1925
WARGRAVE
22 Nov 1922 B 1 Sir Edward Alfred Goulding,1st baronet 5 Nov 1862 17 Jul 1936 73
to     Created Baron Wargrave 22 Nov 1922
17 Jul 1936 MP for Devizes 1895-1906 and
Worcestershire 1908-1922  PC 1918
Peerage extinct on his death
WARING
18 Jul 1922 B 1 Sir Samuel James Waring,1st baronet 19 Apr 1860 9 Jan 1940 79
to     Created Baron Waring 18 Jul 1922
9 Jan 1940 Peerage extinct on his death
WARKWORTH
2 Oct 1749 B 1 Algernon Seymour,Duke of Somerset 11 Nov 1684 7 Feb 1750 65
Created Baron Warkworth and Earl of
Northumberland 2 Oct 1749
See "Northumberland"
WARNER
29 Jul 1998 B[L] 1 Norman Reginald Warner 8 Sep 1940
Created Baron Warner for life 29 Jul 1998
PC 2006
WARNOCK
6 Feb 1985 B[L] 1 Helen Mary Warnock 14 Apr 1924
Created Baroness Warnock for life 6 Feb 1985
WARRINGTON
17 Apr 1690 E 1 Henry Booth,2nd Baron Delamer 13 Jan 1652 2 Jan 1694 41
Created Earl of Warrington 17 Apr 1690
MP for Cheshire 1678-1681. Lord Lieutenant
Cheshire 1689-1694.  PC 1689
2 Jan 1694 2 George Booth 2 May 1675 2 Aug 1758 83
to     Peerage extinct on his death
2 Aug 1758
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22 Apr 1796 E 1 George Harry Gray,Earl of Stamford 1 Oct 1737 23 May 1819 81
Created Baron Delamer and Earl of
Warrington 22 Apr 1796
23 May 1819 2 George Harry Gray,Earl of Stamford 31 Oct 1765 26 Apr 1845 79
26 Apr 1845 3 George Harry Gray,Earl of Stamford 7 Jan 1827 2 Jan 1883 55
to     Peerage extinct on his death
2 Jan 1883
WARRINGTON OF CLYFFE
25 Oct 1926 B 1 Thomas Rolls Warrington 29 May 1851 26 Oct 1937 86
to     Created Baron Warrington of Clyffe
26 Oct 1937 25 Oct 1926
Lord Justice of Appeal 1915-1926. PC 1915
Peerage extinct on his death
WARSI
11 Oct 2007 B[L] 1 Sayeeda Warsi 28 Mar 1971
Created Baroness Warsi for life 11 Oct 2007
PC 2010
WARWICK
1088 E 1 Henry de Newburgh c 1048 20 Jun 1123
Created Earl of Warwick 1088
20 Jun 1123 2 Roger de Newburgh 12 Jun 1153
12 Jun 1153 3 William de Newburgh 15 Nov 1184
15 Nov 1184 4 Waleran de Newburgh 12 Dec 1204
12 Dec 1204 5 Henry de Newburgh 10 Oct 1229
10 Oct 1229 6 Thomas de Newburgh 26 Jun 1242
26 Jun 1242 7 Margaret
She married (1) John Marshal who died Oct
1242 and (2) John du Plessis who died 26
Feb 1263, both of whom were Earls in her
right
26 Feb 1263 8 William Mauduit 8 Jan 1268
8 Jan 1268 9 William de Beauchamp 9 Jun 1298
9 Jun 1298 10 Guy Beauchamp 10 Aug 1315
10 Aug 1315 11 Thomas Beauchamp 12 Nov 1369
KG c 1348
12 Nov 1369 12 Thomas Beauchamp 8 Apr 1401
KG 1373
8 Apr 1401 13 Richard Beauchamp 30 Apr 1439
KG 1403
30 Apr 1439 14 Henry Beauchamp 21 Mar 1425 11 Jun 1446 21
5 Apr 1445 D 1 Created Duke of Warwick 5 Apr 1445
to     On his death the Dukedom became extinct
11 Jun 1446 whilst the Earldom passed to -
11 Jun 1446 15 Anne Beauchamp Feb 1443 3 Jan 1449 5
to     On her death the peerage reverted to the
3 Jan 1449 Crown
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
23 Jul 1449 E 1 Richard Nevill 22 Nov 1428 14 Apr 1471 42
Created Earl of Warwick 23 Jul 1449
KG 1461
14 Apr 1471 2 Anne Nevill (widow of 1st Earl) Feb 1493
Feb 1493 3 Edward Plantagenet,1st Earl of Salisbury 21 Feb 1475 24 Nov 1499 24
to     He was attainted and the peerages forfeited
24 Nov 1499
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18 Feb 1547 E 1 John Dudley,Viscount Lisle 22 Aug 1553
Created Earl of Warwick 18 Feb 1547
and Duke of Northumberland (qv) 1551
He was attainted and the peerages forfeited
5 Jan 1553 2 John Dudley 21 Oct 1554
to     Summoned to Parliament by a Writ of
21 Oct 1554 Acceleration as Earl of Warwick  5 Jan 1553
Peerage extinct on his death
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26 Dec 1561 E 1 Ambrose Dudley c 1528 21 Feb 1590
to     Created Baron Lisle 25 Dec 1561 and
21 Feb 1590 Earl of Warwick 26 Dec 1561
Lord Lieutenant Warwick 1569-1570 and
1587-1589.  KG 1563
Peerages extinct on his death
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
2 Aug 1618 E 1 Robert Rich,Baron Rich Dec 1559 24 Mar 1619 59
Created Earl of Warwick 2 Aug 1618
24 Mar 1619 2 Robert Rich May 1587 19 Apr 1658 70
MP for Maldon 1610-1611 and 1614-1619.
Lord Lieutenant Essex 1625
19 Apr 1658 3 Robert Rich 28 Jun 1611 29 May 1659 47
MP for Essex 1629 and 1640-1641
29 May 1659 4 Charles Rich 1616 24 Aug 1673 57
MP for Sandwich 1645-1653 and Essex 1659
24 Aug 1673 5 Robert Rich,2nd Earl of Holland c 1620 16 Apr 1675
16 Apr 1675 6 Edward Rich,3rd Earl of Holland 1673 31 Jul 1701 28
For information of this peer's trial for murder in
1699,see the note at the foot of this page
31 Jul 1701 7 Edward Henry Rich,4th Earl of Holland 20 Jan 1698 16 Aug 1721 23
16 Aug 1721 8 Edward Rich,5th Earl of Holland 1695 7 Sep 1759 64
to     Peerages extinct on his death
7 Sep 1759
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13 Nov 1759 E 1 Francis Greville,Earl Brooke
Created Earl of Warwick 13 Nov 1759
The peerage remains united with the Earldom
of Brooke (qv)
WARWICK OF UNDERCLIFFE
10 Jul 1999 B[L] 1 Diana Warwick 16 Jul 1945
Created Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe
for life 10 Jul 1999
WASSERMAN
11 Jan 2011 B[L] 1 Gordon Joshua Wasserman
Creared Baron Wasserman for life 11 Jan 2011
WATERFORD
17 Jul 1446 E[I] 1 John Talbot,1st Earl of Shrewsbury
Created Earl of Waterford 17 Jul 1446
This peerage reamins united with the 
Earldom of Shrewsbury (qv)
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19 Aug 1789 M[I] 1 George de la Poer Beresford,2nd Earl of
Tyrone 8 Jan 1735 3 Dec 1800 65
Created Marquess of Waterford
19 Aug 1789
PC [I] 1763  KP 1783
3 Dec 1800 2 Henry de la Poer Beresford 23 May 1772 16 Jul 1826 54
PC [I] 1801  KP 1806
16 Jul 1826 3 Henry de la Poer Beresford 26 Apr 1811 29 Mar 1859 47
KP 1845
For further information on the 'curse' to which 
tradition ascribes a number of violent deaths of
members of the Beresford family, see the note
at the foot of this page
29 Mar 1859 4 John de la Poer Beresford 27 Apr 1814 6 Nov 1866 52
6 Nov 1866 5 John Henry de la Poer Beresford 21 May 1844 23 Oct 1895 51
MP for Waterford 1865-1866. Lord
Lieutenant Waterford 1874-1895.  KP 1868
PC [I] 1879  PC 1885
23 Oct 1895 6 Henry de la Poer Beresford 28 Apr 1875 1 Dec 1911 36
KP 1902
1 Dec 1911 7 John Charles de la Poer Beresford 6 Jan 1901 25 Sep 1934 33
For further information on the Waterford Peerage
claim of 1913-1918, see the note at the foot
of this page
25 Sep 1934 8 John Hubert de la Poer Beresford 14 Jul 1933
WATERPARK
15 Jun 1792 B[I] 1 Sarah Cavendish 1 Apr 1740 4 Aug 1807 67
Created Baroness Waterpark 
15 Jun 1792
4 Aug 1807 2 Sir Richard Cavendish,3rd baronet 13 Jul 1765 1 Jun 1830 64
1 Jun 1830 3 Henry Manners Cavendish 8 Nov 1793 31 Mar 1863 69
MP for Knaresborough 1830-1832, 
Derbyshire South 1832-1835 and Lichfield
1854-1856
31 Mar 1863 4 Henry Anson Cavendish 14 Apr 1839 3 Aug 1912 73
3 Aug 1912 5 Charles Frederick Cavendish 11 May 1883 27 Jan 1932 48
27 Jan 1932 6 Henry Sheppard Hart Cavendish 18 May 1876 26 Nov 1948 72
26 Nov 1948 7 Frederick Caryll Phillip Cavendish 6 Oct 1926
WATEVYLL
3 Dec 1326 B 1 Sir Robert de Watevyll 6 May 1330
to     Summoned to Parliament as Lord
6 May 1330 Watevyll 3 Dec 1326
Peerage extinct on his death
WATH
19 Nov 1733 B 1 Thomas Watson-Wentworth 13 Nov 1693 14 Dec 1750 57
Created Baron Malton 28 May 1728,
Baron Wath,Baron Harrowden,
Viscount Higham and Earl of Malton
19 Nov 1733 and Marquess of
Rockingham 19 Apr 1746
See "Rockingham"
WATKINS
10 May 1972 B[L] 1 Tudor Elwyn Watkins 9 May 1903 2 Nov 1983 80
to     Created Baron Watkins for life 10 May 1972
2 Nov 1983 MP for Brecon and Radnor 1945-1970
Peerage extinct on his death
WATKINSON
26 Jun 1964 V 1 Harold Arthur Watkinson 25 Jan 1910 19 Dec 1995 85
to     Created Viscount Watkinson 
19 Dec 1995 26 Jun 1964
MP for Woking 1950-1964. Minister of
Transport and Civil Aviation 1955-1959.
Minister of Defence 1959-1962.  PC 1955
CH 1962
Peerage extinct on his death
WATSON
28 Apr 1880 B[L] 1 William Watson 25 Aug 1827 14 Sep 1899 72
to     Created Baron Watson for life 28 Apr 1880
14 Sep 1899 MP for Glasgow and Aberdeen Universities
1876-1880. Solicitor General [S] 1874-1876
Lord Advocate 1876-1880. Lord of Appeal
in Ordinary 1880-1899.  PC 1878
Peerage extinct on his death
WATSON OF INVERGOWRIE
6 Nov 1997 B[L] 1 Michael Goodall Watson 1 May 1949
Created Baron Watson of Invergowrie
for life 6 Nov 1997
MP for Glasgow Central 1989-1997
WATSON OF RICHMOND
23 Jul 1999 B[L] 1 Alan John Watson 3 Feb 1941
Created Baron Watson of Richmond for life
23 Jul 1999
WAVELL
22 Jul 1943 V 1 Archibald Percival Wavell 5 May 1883 24 May 1950 67
1 May 1947 E Created Viscount Wavell 22 Jul 1943 and
Viscount Keren and Earl Wavell 1 May 1947
Field Marshal 1943. Viceroy of India 1943-1947
PC 1943  Lord Lieutenant London 1949-1950
24 May 1950 2 Archibald John Arthur Wavell 11 May 1916 24 Dec 1953 37
to     Peerages extinct on his death
24 Dec 1953
WAVENEY
10 Apr 1873 B 1 Sir Robert Alexander Shafto Adair,2nd baronet 25 Aug 1811 15 Feb 1886 74
to     Created Baron Waveney 10 Apr 1873
15 Feb 1886 MP for Cambridge 1847-1852 and 1854-1857
Lord Lieutenant Antrim 1884-1886
Peerage extinct on his death
WAVERLEY
28 Jan 1952 V 1 John Anderson 8 Jul 1882 4 Jan 1958 75
Created Viscount Waverley 28 Jan 1952
MP for Scottish Universities 1938-1950.
Governor of Bengal 1932-1937. Lord Privy
Seal 1938-1939. Home Secretary 1939-1940.
Lord President of the Council 1940-1942.
Chancellor of the Exchequer 1943-1945.
PC [I] 1920. PC 1938. OM 1957
4 Jan 1958 2 David Alastair Pearson Anderson 18 Feb 1911 21 Feb 1990 79
21 Feb 1990 3 John Desmond Forbes Anderson 31 Oct 1949
WAVERTREE
27 Oct 1919 B 1 William Hall Walker 25 Dec 1856 2 Feb 1933 76
to     Created Baron Wavertree 27 Oct 1919
2 Feb 1933 MP for Widnes 1900-1919
Peerage extinct on his death
WEARDALE
10 Jan 1906 B 1 Philip James Stanhope 8 Dec 1847 1 Mar 1923 75
to     Created Baron Weardale 10 Jan 1906
1 Mar 1923 MP for Wednesbury 1886-1892, Burnley
1893-1900 and Harborough 1904-1905
Peerage extinct on his death
For further information on this peer,see the
note at the foot of this page
WEATHERILL
15 Jul 1992 B[L] 1 Bruce Bernard Weatherill 25 Nov 1920 6 May 2007 86
to     Created Baron Weatherill for life 15 Jul 1992
6 May 2007 MP for Croydon Northeast 1964-1992
Speaker of the House of Commons 1980-1992
PC 1980
Peerage extinct on his death
WEBB JOHNSON
22 Jun 1948 B 1 Sir Alfred Edward Webb-Johnson,1st baronet 4 Sep 1880 28 May 1958 77
to     Created Baron Webb Johnson 
28 May 1958 22 Jun 1948
Peerage extinct on his death
WEDDERBURN OF CHARLTON
20 Jul 1977 B[L] 1 Kenneth William Wedderburn 13 Apr 1927 9 Mar 2012 84
to     Created Baron Wedderburn of Charlton
9 Mar 2012 for life 20 Jul 1977
Peerage extinct on his death
WEDGWOOD
21 Jan 1942 B 1 Josiah Clement Wedgwood 16 Mar 1872 26 Jul 1943 71
Created Baron Wedgwood 21 Jan 1942
MP for Newcastle under Lyme 1906-1942.
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
1924.  PC 1924
26 Jul 1943 2 Francis Charles Bowen Wedgwood 20 Jan 1898 22 Apr 1959 61
22 Apr 1959 3 Hugh Everard Wedgwood 20 Apr 1921 25 Apr 1970 49
25 Apr 1970 4 Piers Anthony Weymouth Wedgwood 20 Sep 1954
WEEKS
9 Jul 1956 B 1 Ronald Morce Weeks 13 Nov 1890 19 Aug 1960 69
to     Created Baron Weeks 9 Jul 1956
19 Aug 1960 Peerage extinct on his death
WEI
28 May 2010 B[L] 1 Nathanael Ming-Yan Wei 19 Jan 1977
Created Baron Wei for life 28 May 2010
WEICK
13 Aug 1677 B[S] 1 John Campbell,Earl of Caithness 1635 28 Mar 1717 81
Created Lord Glenurchy,
Benederaloch,Ormelie and Weick,
Viscount of Tay and Paintland,and
Earl of Breadalbane and Holland
13 Aug 1681
See "Breadalbane and Holland"
WEIDENFELD
25 Jun 1976 B[L] 1 Arthur George Weidenfeld 13 Sep 1919
Created Baron Weidenfeld for life 25 Jun 1976
WEINSTOCK
17 Jul 1980 B[L] 1 Arnold Weinstock 29 Jul 1924 23 Jul 2002 77
to     Created Baron Weinstock for life 17 Jul 1980
23 Jul 2002 Peerage extinct on his death
WEIR
25 Jun 1938 V 1 William Douglas Weir 12 May 1877 2 Jul 1959 82
Created Baron Weir 26 Jun 1918 and
Viscount Weir 25 Jun 1938
Secretary of State for Air 1918.  PC 1918
2 Jul 1959 2 James Kenneth Weir 10 Sep 1905 16 Aug 1975 69
16 Aug 1975 3 William Kenneth James Weir 9 Nov 1933
WELBY
16 Apr 1894 B 1 Reginald Earle Welby 3 Aug 1832 30 Oct 1915 83
to     Created Baron Welby 16 Apr 1894
30 Oct 1915 PC 1913
Peerage extinct on his death
WELLES
6 Feb 1299 B 1 Sir Adam de Welles 1 Sep 1311
Summoned to Parliament as Lord
Welles 6 Feb 1299
1 Sep 1311 2 Robert de Welles 1 Jan 1297 29 Aug 1320 23
29 Aug 1320 3 Adam de Welles 22 Jul 1304 27 Feb 1345 40
27 Feb 1345 4 John de Welles 23 Aug 1334 11 Oct 1361 27
11 Oct 1361 5 John de Welles 20 Apr 1352 26 Aug 1421 69
26 Aug 1421 6 Lionel de Welles 1406 29 Mar 1461 54
to     KG 1457
29 Mar 1461 He was attainted and the peerage forfeited
1468 7 Richard de Welles c 1429 12 Mar 1469
to     He obtained a reversal of the attainder 
12 Mar 1469 in 1468,but he was later attainted and the
peerage forfeited
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
15 Nov 1482 B 1 Sir Richard Hastings Sep 1503
to     Summoned to Parliament as Lord
Sep 1503 Welles 15 Nov 1482
Peerage extinct on his death
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
1487 V 1 John Welles 9 Feb 1499
to     Created Viscount Welles 1487
9 Feb 1499 KG 1488
Peerage extinct on his death
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
8 Jan 1781 B[I] 1 Thomas Knox 20 Apr 1729 5 Nov 1818 89
Created Baron Welles 8 Jan 1781 and
Viscount Northland 5 Jul 1791
See "Northland"
Lady Henrietta Herbert, daughter of the 1st Earl Waldegrave 
The following biography of Lady Henrietta Herbert appeared in the Australian monthly magazine
"Parade":-
'Between 1734 and 1737 London devotees of the new-fangled Italian opera were divided into two
riotous and quarrelsome factions in one of the bitterest little wars in theatrical history. Idol of 
one party was Signor Buonocini's company at the Haymarket whose resplendent star was the 
famous "castrate," Farinelli, brought at vast expense from his native Italy. On the other hand
was Mr Handel's troupe at Covent Garden, dominated by the handsome, robust and swaggering
figure of the English tenor John Beard. "That vile race of operatic eunuchs" was how Beard's
admirers contemptuously described his falsetto­voiced rivals whose piercing notes delighted the
fashionable Haymarket audiences. And any possible doubts about John Beard's complete
masculinity were soon dispelled when he became the centre of one of the most startling amorous
scandals of the 18th century. 
 
'In those days it was regarded as perfectly natural if any well-bred gentleman chose to enliven 
his leisure hours by keeping a stage player as a mistress. But when an aristocratic young widow,
bearing one of the noblest names in Britain, ran off with an actor it was a different kettle of fish
altogether. However, the moralists were eventually consoled by the fact that the bewitching,
beautiful and sensuous Lady Henrietta Herbert paid a heavy price for her romance with John
Beard. Ruined, disgraced and condemned to years of poverty and degradation, she was dead 
at the age of 35, "sunk into the grave under the weight of her woes."
 
'No one could have prophesied such a dismal fate when Henrietta Waldegrave, daughter of the
first Earl Waldegrave, was born in a manor house in Essex in 1717. Her mother died when she
was an infant and she saw little of her father, who spent most of his life as a diplomat abroad 
and was for 10 years English Ambassador in Paris. As it was, the earl's children, Henrietta and
her two young brothers, had plenty of influential kinsmen who were prepared to take care of 
in their father's absence. Until the age of 13 Henrietta lived in the household of her grandmother,
the eccentric, painted and spendthrift old dowager Lady Waldegrave [Henrietta FitzJames 1667-
1730] who was the illegitimate daughter of King James II and Arabella Churchill. When the 
dowager died, leaving a mass of debts owing to dancing masters, dressmakers and wine 
merchants, Henrietta was transferred to the custody of her maternal grandparents, Sir John 
[3rd baronet] and Lady Webb. 
 
'In her teens the girl was already a celebrated beauty with a small, delicate figure, slender waist,
sparkling black eyes and "the air of an accomplished coquette." Because of her amorous 
disposition, the Webbs warned her father in Paris that she should be married off as soon as 
speedily as possible. Fortunately she had no lack of suitors. For two years the Webbs conducted
negotiations with various potential husbands until finally in the autumn of 1733 they received an
offer that satisfied their demands for wealth and nobility. An envoy arrived from the aged Marquis
of Powis seeking Henrietta as a bride for his younger son, Lord Edward Herbert, in exchange for a
marriage settlement of £25,000. 
 
Powis's elder son was a middle-aged roué who showed no inclination to take a wife and the 
marquis was becoming desperate in his determination to see an heir born to his noble house 
before he died. Henrietta, aged 17, almost fainted from disgust when she curtseyed to her 
betrothed as he stepped from the coach that drove him up to the Webbs' mansion in London. 
Lord Edward was a dull, sickly, pompous man of 46, prematurely aged by debauchery, suffering
from gout and dropsy and obviously with one foot in the grave. Nevertheless, consoled by the
thought that she would soon be a wealthy widow, Henrietta accepted him, and in July 1734 she
became Lady Henrietta Herbert. 
 
'Four months later Edward considerately died while taking the waters at Bath leaving his widow
pregnant and old Powis jubilant at the prospect of a grandson at last. However, to the fury of
the marquis, the child was a girl - a circumstance that was to have a disastrous effect on the
future of its wayward mother. In his rage of frustration Powis refused to hand over Henrietta's
promised marriage settlement, starting a bitter and costly legal dispute that dragged through the
courts for years afterwards. At first the loss of the money meant little, for Lady Henrietta had
her own family resources and the lovely, gay young widow cut a dashing figure at the court of
King George II. King George himself "delighted in her conversation" and she had many suitors who
would have been only too glad to share the nuptial bed vacated by Lord Edward Herbert.
 
'Then one fateful evening, probably late in 1736, Henrietta was one of a court party visiting the
Covent Garden opera, and for the first time she laid eyes on the rising singer John Beard. Beard
was then barely 20, one year older than Henrietta. He was a fine actor and an impressive stage
figure, standing over six feet tall, with a voice "of such power and sweetness as the English 
theatre had never known."
 
'He had begun his career as a poor tradesman's son singing in the choir of the Chapel Royal where
King George and his family attended services. There he was discovered by George Frederick 
Handel, the German composer who had settled in London, and at 18 he made his operatic debut
in Handel's Pastor Fido at Covent Garden. Within a few years Beard was the rage of the faction
that supported Handel's English singers against the Italian "castrati" of the rival Haymarket 
company. 
 
'Lady Henrietta became one of Beard's most enraptured admirers. Night after night she appeared 
in a box at Covent Garden until her infatuation was the joke of the fashionable world. It was 
even reported that she helped finance the paid "claques" of ruffians who often set the Haymarket
audiences in uproar by hooting and brawling during the Italians' performance. Yet, after she
first saw Beard on the stage, 18 months were to pass before Lady Henrietta met her idol in the
flesh. How she contrived the meeting remained a mystery. According to one story she made an
assignation through the help of an actress, who was the mistress of a court acquaintance.
Another rumour claimed that she brazenly accosted Beard when he attended St. James's Palace
to sing at a private concert staged by Handel for the royal family.
 
'Whatever the truth, by the summer of 1738 London society was buzzing with the sensational
story that the aristocratic widow and the handsome player were lovers. The acid-tongued Lady
Mary Wortley-Montagu commented that "since my lady was capable of such low amours she
would doubtless bestow her favours next on a good-looking porter or hackney coachman."
Henrietta's brother, John, a young officer in the Foot Guards, reacted even more savagely to
the news of his sister's degrading liaison. John Beard, he told Henrietta angrily, already 
notoriously kept a common actress as a mistress and "lay with her every night in a bawdy house
20 paces from Covent Garden Theatre." When this brotherly advice was rejected, Lieutenant
Waldegrave philosophically added, "Well, I see there is no prudence to be expected below the
girdle," [this remark is also attributed to Lord Egmont] and declared he would have nothing to do
with her in future. Most of Henrietta's friends charitably hoped that her amorous adventure would
be of fleeting duration, but an even more shocking surprise awaited them.
'By early in 1738 the cutthroat competition between the rival opera companies had ended in both
crashing into bankruptcy and Beard's operatic career had come to an end. Handel turned to the
composition of his famous oratorios. Beard remained his favourite tenor and, since, the singer was
also an accomplished actor, he found additional work on the dramatic stage. 
 
'Saturday, January 8, 1739, was a particularly busy day for John Beard. In the afternoon he sang
a leading role in Handel's new oratorio Saul. In the evening he appeared in a play at Drury Lane.
At midnight he married Lady Henrietta Herbert. The parson had been bribed to silence. The
The ceremony took place in an obscure suburban church and several months elapsed before 
Henrietta dared disclose the secret marriage. Then in the hope that the scandal would die down,
the pair fled to Lille in France from where Henrietta sent a stream of letters to her father in Paris
begging for his help and forgiveness.  Earl Waldegrave ignored every plea. A year later when, a
dying man he was recalled from his ambassador's post he went to his deathbed still refusing to
see or listen to her. 
'Back in England, Henrietta found herself ostracised by court and society and within a few years
sickness and poverty added to the misfortunes of the ill-starred lovers. Through Handel's 
patronage Beard continued his career as a singer and actor, appearing in the first productions of
The Messiah, Samson, Belshazzar and the master's other famous oratorios. But his salary was
meagre and as his popularity waned a swarm of creditors descended on the lodgings he occupied
with Henrietta in the dingy purlieus of Holborn. Henrietta's efforts to extort her marriage 
settlement from the Powis family were fruitless and she was forced to hand over her infant
daughter to guardians appointed by the unrelenting marquis.
 
'In 1750 the couple's fortunes suffered another blow when Beard was beaten up by thugs on his
way home from the theatre and incapacitated for months from appearing on the stage. A year
later they drifted into a worse slum district near Covent Garden after Henrietta had pawned the
sole remaining relics of the jewels and fine dresses that had once dazzled the court of King 
George. And there - worn out by illness, debts, despair and the loss of her beauty - the 
forgotten Lady Henrietta died on May 31, 1753, on the eve of her 36th birthday. Her lover 
survived her by nearly 40 years [he died 5 February 1791] - ending his days in modest prosperity 
after taking as his second wife the daughter of the manager of Drury Lane Theatre. Lady 
Henrietta's epitaph was spoken by one of her friends of happier days: "She made a sacrifice of 
reputation, riches, beauty and life itself upon the altar of Venus."
 
George Waldegrave, 5th Earl Waldegrave
The 5th Earl drowned in the Thames shortly before his 10th birthday. 'The Times' of 2 July
1794 reported his death:-
'On Sunday afternoon, about four o'clock, the Earl of Waldegrave, a youth about ten years
of age, was unfortunately drowned while he was bathing in the Thames, near a field called
the Brocas, in the parish of Eton. His Lordship was educating at Eton school, and going out
with two of his companions, the latter were induced, from the heat of the day, to bathe, but
desired his Lordship. As the water was deep, and he not an expert swimmer, not to venture
in. Lord Waldegrave however jumped into the river, and was never perceived to rise, as it is
supposed he got entangled among the weeds. The body was not found till Monday morning,
and was taken up close by the place where he sunk.'
George Edward Waldegrave, 7th Earl Waldegrave
Waldegrave appears to have been a wild young man, who was constantly in the news for all
the wrong reasons. His most serious brush with the law occurred on 5 June 1840, Waldegrave,
Captain William Duff and two other men became involved in a scuffle with Police Constable
Charles Wheatley in a street at Hampton, now a south-western suburb of London, and close
to Twickenham. Wheatley was badly beaten about the head with a bludgeon and Waldegrave
and his friends fled the scene, with Waldegrave and Duff being subsequently arrested and
charged with assault.
The following account of this affair is taken from 'The Examiner' of 21 February 1841:-
'On Friday, the 5th of June [1840], at past midnight, a hired fly, containing four persons, drove
into the quiet town of Hampton. The oaths and vociferations of the party were described as
profane and obscene in the extreme. On being spoken to by the horse-patrol, they became yet
more violent; and on a policeman coming up they assaulted him in a most brutal manner, one
of them striking him on the head with a bludgeon, or 'life preserver.' Leaving him on the ground
in that state, they drove off furiously, having alarmed the inhabitants by their yells and
vociferations.
'By the number of the fly, which the patrol succeeded in taking, the owner was traced. It was
ascertained that the vehicle was hired in the name of the Earl of [sic] Waldegrave; and that
his Lordship, with three others - one of whom, Captain Duff, was also identified - were taken
up at his Lordship's villa at Twickenham - the whole party being attired in masquerade dresses -
that they proceeded to Kingston, where there was a fair; and that after amusing themselves
by annoying the quietly-disposed part of the company, and aiding the swell mob by creating
confusion in the fair, of which the pickpockets took the advantage, they returned yelling like
infernals, and fright[en]ing the sleeping inhabitants of the villages through which they passed.'
When the matter came before the Courts, the Chief Justice, Lord Denman, suggested, as
punishment, that Waldegrave and Duff make a payment in compensation to the injured 
policeman. A storm immediately broke in the newspapers, with furious editorials being published,
roundly condemning Lord Denman for applying one law for the rich and another for the poor.
The papers delighted in pointing out that a working man had been sentenced to 15 years'
transportation for a far lesser assault on a policeman. The public's perception of 'one law for
the rich and another for the poor' had, no doubt, been recently confirmed by the acquittal
of the notorious Earl of Cardigan for fighting a duel with Harvey Tuckett.
Public opinion finally swayed the authorities to try Waldegrave and Duff in May 1841. This
time, both were found guilty and sentenced to six months' imprisonment. His life in prison
does not appear to have been too harsh, since his wife and servants were allowed to live
with him until his release in November 1841. He died 5 years later, on 28 September 1846,
aged only 30.
The barony of Wallscourt
This peerage was created on 31 July 1800, one of 16 peerages created on that day. The
patent creating the peerage included a special remainder "in default of the issue male of his
body, to the heirs male of the body of his father."
The peerage appears to have been created in recognition of the first Baron's father, who, since
he was a Catholic in a time prior to Catholic emancipation, was not able to be granted any
honours or office. His son, however, was a convert to Anglicanism, although some cynics believed
his conversion to be somewhat of a sham, and that he converted so as to place himself in a 
position where a peerage could be granted to him.
The potential situation that the special remainder failed to take into account was what would 
happen if the first Baron Wallscourt died without male issue during the lifetime of his father. 
This is exactly what happened, since when the 1st Baron died on 28 March 1803, his father was
still alive, and he remained alive until 19 January 1806.
On the death of the 1st Baron therefore, it could be argued that the peerage had become 
extinct, since at that point there were no heirs in existence. The peerage was, however, treated 
as being in suspense until the death of the 1st Baron's father, when the peerage was claimed by
the 1st Baron's nephew, the son of the 1st Baron's deceased younger brother. On the death of
the 2nd Baron, the peerage passed to his cousin, who was the son of the youngest brother of
the first peer. It is worth noting that none of the subsequent Barons Wallscourt ever dared to
draw any attention to the legitimacy of their peerage by seeking election as an Irish 
representative peer, nor did they ever seek to vote in any such elections.
While the holders of the peerage sought to avoid publicity, the younger generations of the family
seemed unable to avoid it - unfortunately, all the publicity they received was of a negative 
nature. The youngest daughter of the 4th Baron, Margaret Phyllis Farrington, died in July 1910, 
when she died following an overdose of the chloroform which she habitually used to help her 
sleep. But it was the 5th and last Baron Wallscourt who generated the worst publicity. He
married, in 1897, Ellen Mayo, widow of P. Boisset. Before he succeeded to the peerage in 1918, 
he had often graced the police courts for various offences, and had been convicted of gross 
brutality and cruelty to his wife. In October 1915, when he was a lieutenant in the Royal
Welsh Fusiliers, he was court-martialled for drunkenness and being absent without leave. He was
bankrupted on at least two occasions.
After his death in 1920, his long-suffering widow committed suicide in February 1921. The report
on her death which appeared in 'The Times' on 9 February 1921 reads:-
'Ellen Lady Wallscourt, widow of the fifth Baron Wallscourt, to whom she was married in 1897, 
was found dead on Monday evening at her flat in Marine-square, Brighton.
'As there was no response to repeated knockings at the front door, which was locked, Constable
Edwards, who had been called to the house, entered the next house and forced the balcony 
window of the flat. He found Lady Wallscourt lying dead in bed dressed in her night attire. Her
right arm was supporting her head, and the left arm was lying across the body.
'On a table beside the bed was a small bottle containing white powder and an empty glass. There
was also a black-edged envelope addressed to the coroner. On a piece of paper was written, "My
name is Elinor Lady Wallscourt." There was also a note: "Mr. Donne [a local solicitor] will tell you
why I had to put an end to my awful misery."
The de Grey family (Barons Walsingham) and the "Babes in the Wood"
The story of the "Babes in the Wood" is one of the most enduring of all English traditions. It is 
based on the story of two Norfolk children whose cruel uncle caused them to be abandoned in
the woods, where the children died. Their story was first told in a ballad published in 1595, and
modern scholarship indicates that the story is based on factual events.
The following [edited] article relating to the de Grey family and the Babes in the Wood appeared 
in the Wellington, New Zealand "Evening Post" of 28 March 1930:-
'John de Grey, Baron Walsingham, recently died, leaving large estates in the County of Norfolk.
His family was an ancient one. But of all his possessions and claims to distinction there was none
which he valued more highly than the fact that he owned the wood where the "Babes of the 
Wood" of the famous nursery and pantomime tale were left to die by their wicked uncle.
'One of Lord Walsingham's ancestors was, it is asserted, the father of the unfortunate babes, 
and another ancestor was the unspeakable uncle. That his family were involved in the crime did
not embarrass Lord Walsingham in the least, for the legend has become hallowed by the 
centuries. Few old stories are more familiar than the "Babes in the Wood," but it will probably
come as a surprise to many to hear that these children and their heartless uncle were real
people, related to some of the great families in the peerage.
'Lord Walsingham's principal country seat was Morton Hall, Thetford. Upon this estate is a place
called Wayland Wood, and near the wood is a very ancient house called Griston Hall, reputed to
be "the cruel uncle's house." It was here, according to tradition, that the babes were left by
their uncle before they were taken out by his hired ruffians into the wood to die. The locality
is wild and lonely, and one feels that an atmosphere of sorrow and mystery still haunts the place.
'The great oak under which the dead babies were said to have been found covered with leaves
was destroyed by lightning in 1879. Many people came to gather chips from the tree. Today
visitors frequently ask permission to cut a stick of the wood as a souvenir.
'The tragedy is believed to have occurred about 1562, soon after the reign of Henry VIII, who
had close relations with the de Grey family. The story was first published in 1595 under the 
title, "Babes in the Wood," with the sub-title, "The Norfolk Gent, His Will and Testament and
Howe he Commytted the Keeping of His Children to His Owne Brother, Who Delte Most Wickedly
with Them and howe God Plagued Him for It."
'In the original version the name of the father was given as Arthur Truelove, obviously an 
invention. According to tradition he was a member of the de Grey family. The author dared not
venture to make dangerous statements about the powerful de Grey family under their right name.
'The boy was called Cassander, and the girl Jane.......the first Jane mentioned in the de Grey
pedigree was Jane Bennett, who lived about 1560, and was the wife of William de Grey, who 
owned Griston Hall, Merton, "the wicked uncle's house." She was presumably the mother of the
babes.
'The story is that the Norfolk gentleman died as a young man, leaving a son, aged three, and a
daughter, aged two. Their mother died at nearly the same time, and the two children were placed
in a dangerous position in that turbulent age. To each child the father left a handsome fortune,
but he provided that if they died during their minority the money was to go to their uncle.
'The dying father entrusted the two children to the care of his brother with solemn and earnest
prayers to protect them Soon after his brother's death the uncle hired two ruffians to murder the
children. One of the men relented and quarrelled with the other, whom he killed. The survivor, 
instead of murdering the children, left them in Wayland Wood, a gloomy place, where little 
children might easily be lost.
'They wandered about, trying to satisfy their hunger with blackberries, the juice of which they
mistook for blood. Finally they died at night of cold and terror. The story was put in ballad form
soon after its first publication. According to a passage in the ballad, the robin red-breasts 
covered the children with leaves.
'After describing the tragedy, the narrative goes on to tell how everything went wrong with the
uncle after his wicked deed:-
    "His barns were fired, his goods consumed,
     His cattle died within the field,
     And nothing with him staid."
'The uncle's two sons deserted him and went privateering in the Spanish Main. In the end:-
     "He pawned and mortgaged all his land,
     Ere seven years came about."
'The bad man was thrown in prison for debt, and there died in misery. Before he died the ruffian
he had employed and who left the children in the wood confessed. The ballad concludes with a
warning to those who are made guardians of fatherless children to be faithful to their trust.
'It has now been proved that there was at about this time a Robert de Grey who was much hated
and got into many mysterious difficulties. There is little doubt that he was the model for "the
Wicked Uncle." The records show that Edmund de Grey bought Griston Hall in 1541.
'The little boy's uncle was Robert de Grey, to whom the estate would descend in case the life
owner died without children. There had been a quarrel between Robert and his older brother,
William, who nevertheless entrusted his children to him and left him a legacy on condition, as his
will of 1562 says, "that he confesseth he has offended me."
'An old document states that the little boy was lost unaccountably while on a visit to a relative.
This fact was perhaps embellished with romantic and tragic details to make up the popular story
and ballad.
'The facts prove that Robert de Grey was much disliked among the country people, both because
he was suspected of doing away with this nephew and for other reasons. He was several times
imprisoned in Norwich and in London, and was heavily fined. He died a bankrupt.
'From the time of his death the tragic legend became fixed on Wayland Wood. Robert de Grey, 
"the Wicked Uncle," abandoned Griston Hall as his residence and set about rebuilding Merton Hall,
which is still the chief seat of the de Greys.
"The fact remains that the legend has been passed down from generation to generation, and in
the summer time this wood is visited by many anxious to see the spot where the Wicked Uncle
lost the Babes in the Wood and to view the old house in which he lived," said the present Lord
Walsingham. "It has a great fascination for children, and older persons are nearly as much
interested in it."
'Merton Hall has also many strange legends connected with it. An ancient castle stood on the 
spot long before "the Wicked Uncle" began the present building with his presumably ill-gotten
wealth.
'Merton Park is a place alleged to be haunted by ghosts and goblins, witches and fairies. Recently
there was found here a human skeleton without a head buried with ancient coins and weapons. 
It is supposed that this was some unfortunate member of the family whose head had been 
removed on the block and whose body alone could be recovered. Some people declare that the
headless ghost haunts the park at night calling for its lost head.
'The lives of two children seem but a trifle in all the bloodshed and tragedies that have happened
in this historic region, but the art of an old country ballad writer has made their story immortal.'
George de Grey, 3rd Baron Walsingham and his wife
Lord and Lady Walsingham both died as a result of a fire in their residence on 26 April 1831. The
following account appeared in "The Times' of 28 April 1831:-
'This morning [26 April 1831] a fire, dreadful rather in its consequences to human life than for the
ravages of the flames, broke out at the residence of Lord Walsingham, at No. 55, Upper Harley
Street, Cavendish Square. Many versions are given of the origin of the melancholy accident. The
fire was first discovered by Wm. Wigram, Esq., the bank director, who resides in the next house
to that of Lord Walsingham, and who was on his return from a party. Mr. Wigram instantly
communicated the alarm to the constable on duty, and sent his own servants to knock at the 
door. They had some difficulty in alarming the family, the servants all sleeping in the back part
of the house. The flames were at this time bursting out of the bedroom window of the Noble 
Lord, the front room of the second pair.
'As soon as the servants could be alarmed, they proceeded to the room of the Noble Lord, and 
found it completely one mass of flame and smoke, through which it was impossible to proceed so 
as to ascertain what had become of his Lordship. A party of police, under the orders of Scholfield,
who had been attending at a rout in Manchester Square, arrived; and the whole neighbourhood
being at this time alarmed, the streets were much crowded.; the activity of the officers, 
however, preserved order for the working of the fire-engines, which rapidly arrived; those of the 
Royal Exchange, the County, and the Sun, in which office the premises were, we hear, insured to 
insured to a very considerable amount, were soon in attendance, having observed the flames 
from the Hampstead road, where they had been endeavouring to extinguish a fire that had broken
out at an earlier hour in the morning on the premises of Mr. Baylis, an extensive pawnbroker, at
the corner of Eden Street.
'They commenced playing on the upper part of the house, which was now one volume of vivid 
flame; and others which also came up directed their exertions to the safety of the adjoining
houses. The furniture in these last was hastily removed, and by the exertions used by the
firemen, who obtained a speedy supply of water, the flames were prevented from spreading.
 
'Mr. Braithwaite's fire-engine, worked by steam, was also in attendance, and serviceable after it 
had been got to work.
'The servants of the house proceeded to the apartment of Lady Walsingham, who slept in a back 
room on the same floor with his Lordship, and communicated the alarm of fire; it is to be
regretted that, instead of opening her door and going down stairs with the servants, she did not
adopt the certainty of security which it afforded. In the agitation and hurry of mind consequent
upon the alarm, she attempted to escape by jumping out of the window into a back yard, where 
she was found soon after lying in an outhouse, in the most shocking state of mutilation; both
her thighs were fractured and her arms broken. She was immediately after being found conveyed
with all care into a stable in Devonshire Mews. Dr. Clarke, his Lordship's medical adviser, and 
some other professional gentlemen who had learned the dismal tidings, were in constant 
attendance upon the unfortunate lady, until death released her from her sufferings, about half-
past five o'clock.
'It renders the death of Lady Walsingham the more melancholy, to think that her life could have 
been saved had she opened the door and descended the staircase with the servants, all of
escaped with safety.
'As soon as the flames were partially subdued, the drawing-room and lower part of the house 
having remained comparatively uninjured, the servants and officers proceeded to the apartments
of the Noble Lord, and found his remains in a state of almost entire destruction, the extremities,
hands and feet, were literally consumed to ashes, and the head and skeleton of the body alone
remained presenting any thing like an appearance of humanity. It was impossible to recognise the
melancholy remnant of mortality, so entirely had the flames wrought the work of destruction. The
remains were removed to the stable in which the mangled body of Lady Walsingham lay, and 
there a Coroner's inquest was to have been held this day, before the Coroner for Middlesex.
'The origin of the fire cannot as yet be ascertained, but from its having broken out in the 
sleeping-room of the deceased Peer, shortly after his Lordship, who had, it was stated, been
out at a party, retired to rest, it is conjectured he left the taper lighted by the bed side, and
having fallen asleep without extinguishing it, the flames were thereby communicated.
Mr. Lazenby, the superintendent, and Inspectors Stride and Adamson, of the D division, were on
the spot soon after the fire broke out, and by the exertions of the men under their command,
succeeded in saving the greater part of the valuable property, which was removed to the
adjoining houses and watch house.
'Yesterday, at 11 o'clock, a jury, consisting of the most respectable inhabitants of the parish, 
sat at the Weymouth Arms, Weymouth-street, on the bodies of Lord Thomas and Lady Matilda
Mary Walsingham. Sir Peter Laurie was present, and interested himself in the melancholy 
investigation. [Laurie was Lord Mayor of London 1832-1833]
'Mary Rolfe stated that she was lady's-maid to the deceased, and was with her ladyship on
Tuesday night, about 10 o'clock, when her ladyship retired to bed. She left her ladyship in bed
without fire or candle. Lord Walsingham slept in another apartment on the second floor, on the 
opposite side of the staircase. Witness slept in a spare room on the stor[e]y over Lord 
Walsingham's room. She went to bed about 11 o'clock, and awoke about 2, when she was 
alarmed by the noise of water running. She opened her bed-room window, and called fire. She
ran down stairs in her night clothes and escaped; but she could not tell how, she was in such
a state of terror…….There were 4 rooms on the second floor, and witness did not see the fire
in his lordship's room till some time afterwards. She saw Lady Walsingham after she leapt from
the window in dreadful agony, and observed that she [Lady Walsingham] believed her lord was
burnt. She did not state why she leapt from the window instead of going down the staircase.
'John Richard Ellmore, of New Cavendish-street, surgeon, stated that he was called in soon after
2 o'clock that morning, to attend Lady Walsingham. He found her ladyship dreadfully wounded in 
a loft over the coachman's stable. On examination found a cut on the forehead, another over the
eye, the nose broken, and both thigh bones fractured; the greater part of the bone of one
protruded just above the knee joint three of four inches. The right arm was broken, the elbow of
which was literally crumbled to pieces. Notwithstanding these numerous severe injuries, her
ladyship was perfectly sensible, expressed strong anxiety for the fate of Lord Walsingham,
continually exclaiming that "he must be lost," and wished to know if anything had been heard of 
him. Archdeacon de Grey, the brother-in-law of Lord [Lady?] Walsingham, was present, and 
asked if her ladyship had any wish respecting the execution of a testamentary paper, and she 
replied she was so confused and agonized, as to be incapable. She was in a dying state, and a 
clergyman was introduced who prayed with her, and a little before 6 o'clock she emitted from her 
stomach a great quantity of blood; she was suffocated. Before she expired, she stated that she 
was awoke by the smoke, which filled her room, and she opened the window and threw herself 
on the leads below. She said she believed the fire had broke out in Lord Walsingham's room, and 
she had previously expressed to Dr. Clarke her fear that some serious accident would occur 
through his lordship's carelessness.
'Jane Mills, housemaid to the deceased, was awoke by the ringing of bells, about 2 o'clock, in
either her lord or lady's bed-room. Got up instantly, and Lady Walsingham's maid said the house
was on fire. Witness said, "nonsense," but ran downstairs on observing smoke, and opened Lord
Walsingham's room-door. Observed the bed drapery and the clothes in flames; the smoke and
heat were so oppressive she could only call out, and receiving no answer, she ran through Lady
Walsingham's room, and she [Lady Walsingham] asked what was the matter? Witness replied his
lordship's bed-curtains were on fire. She ran to another room to get water, but before she
could het it, and return to his lordship's room with the water, a voice called to her to escape,
and she put the water down, and escaped downstairs. There was no fire then in her ladyship's
room, and she might have escaped with ease if she had had presence of mind. His lordship 
always had a candle and fire in his room.
'A fireman deposed to finding his lordship's body, burnt to a cinder, in the ruins of the drawing-
room, at 6 o'clock that morning.
'Mr. Stirling, the Coroner, summed up, and the jury returned a verdict - "That the deaths of the
deceased were caused accidentally, and by misfortune."
Robert James Loyd-Lindsay VC, 1st Baron Wantage
Lindsay (he added the additional name of Loyd in 1858) was a Senior Subaltern and Captain 
in the Scots Fusilier Guards during the Crimean War. Following his actions at the Battle of the 
Alma (20 September 1854) and the Battle of Inkerman (5 November 1854), Lindsay was
awarded the Victoria Cross.
Although the order of the Victoria Cross was not established until 1856, it was backdated to
1854 so as to recognise acts of valour performed during the Crimean War.
Lindsay's award was gazetted on 24 February 1857, the citation reading as follows:-
'When the formation of the line of the regiment was disordered at Alma, Captain Lindsay
stood firm with the colours, and by his example and energy greatly tended to restore order.
At Inkerman, at a most trying moment, he, with a few men, charged a party of Russians,
driving them back, and running one through the body himself.'
William Humble Ward, 10th Baron Ward
According to a report in the 'Chicago Daily Tribune' of 7 September 1902, which reports upon
the appointment of the 2nd Earl of Dudley as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, the 2nd Earl's
grandfather, the 10th Baron Ward "was in holy orders [and] displayed towards the latter 
portion of his life such an unconquerable aversion not merely to ecclesiastical vestments but
even to ordinary clothes that he used constantly to be found wandering about the country
roads and lanes in the garb of Adam prior to the fall. Indeed, whenever he could manage to
escape his keepers he would at once proceed to dispense with his attire, no matter what the
condition of the weather or where he happened to be."
Edward Rich, 6th Earl of Warwick (creation of 1618)
Warwick was tried in the House of Lords on 28 March 1699 for the murder of Richard Coote. The
following account of the events which led up to his trial was written by Martin Hume and 
published in 'The English Illustrated Magazine' for November 1898:-
'It was a dark, rainy night at the end of October 1698. In an upper room of the Greyhound 
Tavern in the Strand, hard by Charing Cross, there sat drinking deeply a roistering crew of fine 
gentlemen in flowing periwigs and gold-laced coats. Among them were the Earl of Warwick and 
Holland, a very great personage indeed; Lord Mohun, the famous duellist, who six years before 
had been an accessory to the murder of Mountfort, the actor, in Howard Street, Strand; and 
three other gentlemen bearing the King's commission. Most of them had wandered from tavern to 
tavern all the afternoon, and at eight o'clock in the evening had settled down at the Greyhound 
to make a night of it. While the carouse was in full swing the company was joined by a bosom 
friend of the Earl's, called by courtesy Captain Richard Coote, whose ensign's commission in the 
Guards, which two months before had cost four hundred guineas, had been partly paid for with
money lent by the Earl.
'Coote was a quarrelsome young swashbuckler in his cups, and at one o'clock in the morning took
umbrage at something that Captain French had said or done. As a quarrel seemed brewing, the
reckoning was called for and paid, and the six gentlemen trooped downstairs to the tavern bar,
there to take a parting glass. Tapsters and porters were sent shouting down the Strand for
coaches, but the night was tempestuous and the hour late, and no coaches were to be had. In
the meanwhile Coote had again fallen out with French. "Damn ye, sirrah," he shouted, "I shall
smile when I like and frown when I like!" "Nay, Dick," said Mohun, "there shall be no fighting
tonight!" And Lord Warwick, more sober than the rest, also sought to appease the rising storm.
But when the porters came back to say that they could find no coaches, but that two chairs
were at the door, they heard the clash of arms, and found Lords Warwick and Mohun with Coote, 
outside the bar, their swords drawn, facing French, James, and Docwra, who were behind the bar
flourishing their weapons. But soon the arms were sheathed, and the company wended their way
to the door, while the attendants shouted for more chairs to take them home.
'Into the two chairs that were standing there Coote and French entered. "We will settle this 
business at once," said the former. But Mohun interfered. "Whither go ye, Dick?" said he to Coote.
"Where but to Leicester Fields to settle with this rogue?" was the reply. "That shall ye not," said 
Mohun. "There shall be no fighting tonight, and I will pink the first man who tries it." Then he
invited his friends to come to his lodgings to crack another bottle or two. But the would-be
combatants threatened the poor chairmen to stick them through if they did not trot off to 
Leicester Fields; and only when Warwick and Mohun talked of calling the watch and the Guard
from Whitehall, did Coote and French leave the sedan chairs and re-enter the tavern. Soon six
chairs were collected at the door. The Lords put Coote into the first one, and themselves 
entered the next two, ordering the three to go towards Westminster. But when they reached the
corner of St.Martin's Lane, where the post-office now stands, Coote directed his chairmen to 
turn up the lane. The two noblemen behind him called to them to stop, and brought their chairs 
abreast. There again in the road they renewed their entreaties that Coote would defer his quarrel 
and accompany them to Westminster; but as they were reasoning with him, the chairs containing 
the three other gentlemen swung past them up St. Martin's Lane, just visible through the night 
by the dim lanterns they carried. At the sight of them Coote whipped out his sword, and swore 
that he would stick it into his front chairman if he did hurry on to overtake them. "Well," said
Mohun, "if ye will, ye will, and I will see ye through with it," and up St.Martin's Lane trotted the 
chairmen at their best pace, after those who had passed them on the way.
'Through the mire and slush, by narrow Hemming's Row and Green Street, all deserted and silent
at this hour of the morning, they reached the lower corner of Leicester Fields, where the 
chairmen were bidden to halt and set down their passengers. The neighbourhood was a quiet and
aristocratic one, the field around it only just developing the streets. At the upper side of the
square was the great mansion of the Earls of Leicester, occupying the site of the present 
Leicester Place. To the west of this, where the Empire now stands, was the stately Savile House,
and beyond it, a tavern called the Standard; and other fine mansions were arising on the other
sides of the square, among them being the house of the Marquis of Carmarthen, who only a few
months before had entertained there his boon-companion, the great Czar Peter. The centre of
the fields was enclosed by an iron railing, with an entrance to each of the sides, wide enough
only for a foot-passenger to pass through.
'The three leading chairs had set down their passengers at the upper end of the square; and as
their chairmen plodded their way back again to Charing Cross, glad to be free to go home for
the night, they passed the chairs that had brought Warwick, Mohun, and Coote, still standing 
at the corner of Green Street. In answer to inquiry as to why they waited there, the bearers
said they only tarried to light their pipes; but it may be questioned whether curiosity or the
chance of a profitable job had not a share in their delay. In any case, the statements of those
men throw the only impartial light that exists upon the event that followed. Warwick, Mohun, and
Coote wended their way up the square past where the Alhambra now stands, and entered the
so-called fields in the centre, where, doubtless, French, James, and Docwra awaited them.
'According to their own statement, the three chairmen at the corner of Green Street very shortly
afterwards heard excited cries of "Chairs! Chairs!" from the fields, and hurried up to the railings
at the upper end, where Lord Warwick excitedly begged the first comers to life the sedan over
the rails. The men demurred at this, as they said they could not lift it back again with a man
inside. While they were arguing thus, Captain French staggered out of the nearest passage with
his sword in his hand. "I am a dead man," he groaned; "take me to the Bagnio in Long Acre!" And
with this he entered the chair and was carried off. Next Lord Warwick issued from the fields
bleeding copiously from a wound in his right hand, his sword covered with blood from hilt to point,
and entering the second chair, called for a handkerchief to bind up his hand, and ordered the
bearers to take him also to the Bagnio to have his wounds dressed. When the third chairman
entered the fields with a lantern they found two gentlemen, whom they professed to be unable
to identify, holding up Coote, who was mortally wounded. The gentlemen, they said, seemed
greatly distressed at Coote's condition, and earnestly begged the men to lift their chair over the
rails that the dying man might be carried away. Who was to pay, the men asked, for the damage
that would be done to the vehicle by the blood? Besides, if they lifted it over how could they get
it back again? Promises of lavish reward - a hundred guineas, if needful - at last prevailed upon
them to do as they were asked, the chair being broken in the process. With the unconscious man
huddled up bleeding to death in their broken chair, the bearers soon found themselves alone, for
the two gentlemen sought safety in flight. In dire distress the men clamoured for the watch; but
one guardian of the peace came after the other, and sagely shook his head. This was a serious
business, and great gentlemen were mixed up in it. It was safer to let it alone - besides, they
belonged to another ward. At last, when Captain Coote was dead in real earnest, a posse bolder
than the rest marched the unoffending chairmen to the lock-up, and carried the corpse of 
Captain Coote to the Round House in St. Martin's Lane.
'In the meanwhile, Lord Warwick and French were being cared for by the surgeon at the Bagnio. 
The Earl on his arrival was intensely agitated, and showed deep concern for the condition of
French, a fact which was afterwards used to his disadvantage at his trial. He had begged the
servants who had admitted him to the Bagnio to deny his presence to any person who might
inquire there for him; and when, some half-hour later, a loud knocking was heard at the door,
the Earl himself insisted on going down and reconnoitring through the spyhole in the door. When
he found it was James and Docwra, he unhesitatingly welcomed them, another point which went
against him. Attention was called to the fact that while the Earl's sword was red - he said from
the wound in his hand, which had filled the hilt and sheath with blood - and Coote's sword, which
had been brought in by James, was slightly stained, the weapons of the other three gentlemen
had no marks of blood upon them. At three o'clock in the morning, the whole company, except
French, who was too ill to be moved, left the Bagnio, and the Earl appears to have made 
immediate arrangements for flight. Mohun's share in the affray is not certainly known. On his
trial before his peers for manslaughter, when he was acquitted, he asserted that he had been
wounded in the hand during the preliminary affray at the tavern, and at the fatal fight was 
unable to draw his sword.
'The next day, Oct. 30, all fashionable London was astir with the news of the encounter. It was
found that Coote had two wounds, either of which would have been mortal, both on the left side;
and it was contended that these, from their position, could hardly have been dealt by an 
adversary in front of him. Warwick asserted that he had stood by his friend Coote's side, to
defend him against his assailants, and told the story of the fight next day to some friends at the
Ship and Castle Tavern on Cornhill, that French had killed Coote, whilst he, Warwick, was 
engaged with James. But news reached him in the City from the Court end of the town that 
public gossip spoke already of him as the homicide. His sword, it was said, was alone stained with 
blood; he had shown more concern for French's hurt than was likely if he knew that the latter 
had killed his dear friend Coote; he had sought concealment at the Bagnio, and his agitation was 
marked; he welcomed James and Docwra with effusion, though, according to his version, they 
had sided against him; he had spoken of flight to the country as soon as he entered the Bagnio. 
The King was in Holland and Parliament was not sitting. Warwick had no relish for languishing in a 
gaol until he could claim the privileges of his peerage, and when he learnt that all fingers pointed 
to him as the murderer of his friend while pretending to defend him, he fled to the coast and 
thence to France; and Mohun also placed the sea between himself and pursuit. The three 
commoners were in due course arrested and put upon their trial for manslaughter at the Old 
Bailey. They were found guilty and adjudged light sentences, French escaping punishment by 
pleading clergy, in which cases burning in the hand was nominally substituted for imprisonment, 
but was usually remitted by the King.
'When Parliament met early in the following year, 1699, the two peers surrendered themselves to
be tried by the House of Lords. A Royal Commission was issued by the King, a special court 
erected in Westminster Hall, and, under the Presidency of the Lord Steward (Somers), with all 
the pomp and ancient circumstance usual at the trial of a peer, the Earl of Warwick was 
arraigned for murder. It is difficult at this time to understand why this was done, as the three 
commoners concerned in the affair had only been indicted and convicted of manslaughter; and 
the evidence against the Earl was purely presumptive and circumstantial. He contended that the 
blood on his sword came from his own wounded hand, that the dead man was his dearest friend, 
that far from gaining by his death, he had lent him large sums of money; that from the very 
beginning of the quarrel, he (the Earl) had acted the part of peacemaker, and only when he saw 
his friend assailed by superior numbers had he drawn to defend, not to injure him. The 
prosecutors - the law officers if the Crown - tried their hardest to prove that the wounds of the 
dead man were such as would be made by the Earl's sword, which was stated to be a broad one; 
but they had to deal with a stolid surgeon who made the post mortem examination. He knew 
nothing; was unable to judge; could not say; refused to commit himself, and so on, until the Lord 
Steward had firmly to rebuke him for his obvious unwillingness. A grave Constitutional question 
arose during the Earl's defence. The remission of French's penalty of burning on the hand was 
signed by the King during the peer's trial; and Warwick asked for permission to call French to 
testify that he himself had killed Coote in fair fight. At great length it was argued, and finally 
decided, that remission of punishment did not necessarily carry with it the King's pardon; and 
that French, still being an unpunished criminal, could not be called as a witness. For some reason 
or another, it is evident that the Crown was anxious to secure the Earl's conviction for murder; 
but as each peer in his turn - nearly a hundred of them in all - was called upon for his verdict he 
gave his vote for manslaughter, and refused to convict on the graver charge. When the final 
verdict of manslaughter was pronounced the Earl, of course, did what in the good old days he
was entitled to do - he pleaded privilege of peerage, and walked out a free man; but with the 
indelible stain upon him of having killed his friend while fighting by his side. The evidence against 
him seems strangely inconclusive now, and leads to the opinion that there were political reasons 
for seeking to fasten upon him the odium of murder. It was some hours after the fight that 
French ostentatiously called the attention of the servant at the Bagnio to the fact that, 
although his sword was dirty, it had no blood upon it; but Coote's wounds, though fatal, were 
only a few inches deep, and French's sword might have cleaned of blood by thrusting it into the
wet ground immediately after the wound was given. The share in the affray of the fire-eating 
Mohun, moreover, was not satisfactorily defined. He disappeared immediately after the 
encounter, and was subsequently acquitted even of manslaughter by the House of Lords.'
The Curse of the Waterfords
The number of violent deaths in the Waterford family is traditionally attributed to a curse uttered
against one of the earlier Marquesses during the agrarian troubles in the 19th century. Popular
belief has it that the curse would always remain on the family until seven Beresfords had died. 
The curse may or may not be related to the 'Black Ribbon' worn by the wife of Sir Tristram
Beresford, 3rd baronet (qv).
Whatever the origin of the curse, there seems to be little doubt that the Beresford family 
suffered more than their fair share of violent deaths.  Attached below are the details of seven of
such deaths:-
Lord James Beresford (6 Oct 1816-27 Apr 1841) - Lord James was the 5th son of the 2nd
Marquess of Waterford, and thus younger brother of the 3rd Marquess, of whom more below. He
committed suicide in April 1841 by cutting his throat while aboard a ship in which he was 
travelling home to England from Colombo, and was consequently buried at sea.
The following rather gruesome account appeared in 'The Times' of 17 May 1841:-
'......It appears that Lord James Beresford, who was only in the 25th year of his age, embarked
passenger on board the Tigris for England, and that it was remarked at the time, and at a 
subsequent period during the voyage, that his Lordship appeared to be labouring under slight
symptoms of insanity, and that his servant was in consequence ordered to pay more than usual
care and attention to his Lordship, which he did. On the night of Tuesday, the 27th of April, his
Lordship was in his own cabin, and did not evince to the servant or to the passengers during the
day anything particularly remarkable in his usually somewhat eccentric manners. The servant, 
before going to lie down in his settee for the night, went to his Lordship's cabin for the purpose
of inquiring whether his Lordship needed any further attendance that evening, and having 
repeatedly knocked at his state-room door without receiving any answer, the servant opened it,
and discovered the cabin floor partly covered with blood, and on proceeding to the water-closet
adjoining the apartment he found his master reclining over the seat, with his head nearly severed
from his body, and quite dead. The rash act was committed with a razor, and so determined had
been his Lordship to effect his dreadful purpose, that only a small portion of skin at the back part
of the neck attached the head to the body.....'
Henry de la Poer Beresford, 3rd Marquess of Waterford - as a young man, the 3rd Marquess
was notorious for his wild behaviour. After being educated at Eton, he was sent down from 
Oxford. His name often appears in the newspapers of the 1830s, usually in connection with
the racetracks, the hunting fields or the police-courts. His companions were generally young
men of wealth such as the 7th Earl Waldegrave, prostitutes and prize-fighters. 
Waterford's pranks were the stuff of legend. On one occasion he arranged for a donkey to be
placed in the bed of a sleeping stranger at an inn at Melton Mowbray; with his pistol, he shot
out the eyes of the family portraits hanging on the walls of the ancestral home; he smeared
aniseed on the hooves of the local parson's horse, and then hunted the terrified cleric with a 
pack of hounds, and he was greatly disappointed with the attitude of the Great Western
Railway when it refused his request to start two locomotives from opposite directions on a 
single line so that he could witness the resulting crash, even though he offered to pay all
costs. 
Given the Marquess's nature, it is not surprising that he was invited to the Eglinton Tournament
in 1839 [see the note under 'Eglinton' for further information on this tournament]. Here he met
and fell in love with Louisa Stewart, daughter of the 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay. They were
married in June 1842, after which the Marquess gave up his wild ways and settled down to live
happily on his estates, where he became somewhat of a model landlord, working hard to reduce
the effects of the Great Famine on his tenants and neighbours. He remained devoted to
hunting, however, and it was on the hunting-field that he met his death when he was thrown 
from his horse, breaking his neck.
John Henry de la Poer Beresford, 5th Marquess of Waterford - about 12 years before his
death, the 5th Marquess suffered a severe back injury which caused him to be in constant pain.
In the year before his death, he underwent an operation which considerably relieved his pain,
but a few months before his death he tripped on a carpet at the family seat at Curraghmore,
which aggravated his old injury, causing the pain to return. On 23 October 1895, the Marquess
committed suicide by shooting himself through the head with a revolver.
Lord Delaval James de la Poer Beresford, brother of the 5th Marquess - Lord Delaval was
born 19 January 1862.  At some point around 1890 he migrated to America, where he is 
reported to have owned a large ranch in the Mexican state of Chihuahua and another property 
at Medicine Hat in Alberta, Canada. He was travelling between his two properties on the 
Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad on 22 December 1906. The train was running
two hours late, and the driver was running at high speed in an attempt to make up some of the 
lost time when, at Enderlin in North Dakota, the train ran into a switch engine and the carriages
were derailed before bursting into flames. Nine passengers were killed, including Lord Delaval. 
Charles Claudius de la Poer Beresford, kinsman of the 5th Marquess - Charles was a
Captain in the Army, commanding the 1st Field Troop, Royal Engineers. On 30 May 1910, at
6.30 a.m., Captain Beresford was with his troop when a horse being exercised on the road 
near where he was, in turn, seated on his horse, suddenly bolted with its rider. Beresford
attempted to check the other horse's flight, with the result that a collision occurred and
both horses and riders were thrown to the ground. When he was taken to hospital, Beresford
was found to have a fractured skull, from which he died later that day.
Henry de la Poer Beresford, 6th Marquess of Waterford - on 1 December 1911 the 6th
Marquess was drowned when he fell into a small river which ran through his estate. At the
subsequent inquest, evidence was given that he was last seen talking with one of his
gardeners before returning to his house. At the time it was dark, and it appears that the
Marquess had wandered off the path and fallen down a steep slope into the river, where his
body was found early the following morning.
John Charles de la Poer Beresford, 7th Marquess of Waterford - in April 1923, the Marquess
was being driven home to his house at Curraghmore when someone fired a shot at his car,
wounding his driver in the head. In December 1927, he was nearly killed when the car he was
driving skidded and overturned in a ditch. His luck finally ran out on 25 September 1934 when
he saw a hare of his front lawn and, after picking up a rifle in his gun-room, he slipped and the
gun accidentally discharged, shooting him through his right temple.
The Waterford Peerage Claim of 1913-1918
The claimant in this case was a gardener named George Tooth who claimed to be the son of
the fifth Marquess of Waterford. His case was that, on 29 March 1873, the wife of the fifth
Marquess gave birth to a still-born child. The Marchioness died a week later, on 4 April 1873,
and the mother and child were buried together. At that time, Lady Waterford had a cook
whose sister had given birth to an illegitimate child at a workhouse. Lady Waterhouse, out of
sympathy, had taken the child from the workhouse and had it educated, and Lord Waterford
continued to do so after her death.
Tooth alleged that he was the child that was supposed to have been still-born. He began to
make this claim about 1893, and, as time passed and the witnesses were reaching old age, 
he commenced an action to perpetuate their testimony. The chief witnesses were Mrs.
Priscilla White who, as Miss Priscilla Kynaston, had been a maid companion to the Marchioness,
and Mrs. Price (now Mrs. Vivian) who had been a personal friend of the Marchioness. The
testimony of these two witnesses was taken in July 1913. Both witnesses denied that Tooth
was the son of the Marquess, and confirmed that the child had been still-born and buried 
with his mother.
In March 1914, Tooth commenced an action for slander against Mrs. White for having stated 
that he was not the son of the fifth Marquess. This case was dismissed by the Court of Appeal,
but immediately afterwards, Tooth began to send abusive letters and postcards to Mrs. White,
accusing her of being part of a conspiracy and of being a murderess. He was arrested and
charged with criminal libel, and, after pleading guilty, was bound over to keep the peace for
twelve months.
Tooth's claim to be the son of the fifth Marquess was heard in the Probate, Divorce and
Admiralty Division of the High Court in January 1918. The claim was made in the form of a
petition by "George Beresford, sometimes known as George Tooth," a gardener, for a
declaration under the Legitimacy Declaration Act that he was the lawful son of John Henry
de la Poer, fifth Marquess of Waterford. The petition was opposed by the current Marquess,
who was then a minor, whose mother appeared as guardian.
The following extract from 'The Times' of 1 February 1918 gives the judgment of the presiding 
judge (Lord Coleridge):-
'In this case the petitioner claims real and personal property, and applies by petition to this
Court for a declaration that he is the legitimate child of the fifth Marquess of Waterford, born
on March 29, 1873, in lawful wedlock. The respondent says that the petitioner is the child of
one Georgina Tooth, and was born in the Holborn Workhouse on January 25, 1872.
'On August 9, 1872, Mrs. Vivian, the divorced wife of a Captain Vivian, was married to Lord
Waterford. At that time she was living at 7, Upper Brook-street, Mayfair, but in the autumn of
1872 she moved to 27, Chesham-place. There, on March 29, 1873, she was confined. There
was a doctor in attendance, named Gream, a man of high repute, and I have before me a 
signed certificate by him that Lady Waterford was delivered of a stillborn child. Lord Waterford,
Doctor Gream, and Lady Waterford's maid, Priscilla Kynaston, and, possibly, other persons were
present at the birth, and their account is that the infant was born, and that it cried, but that
after a short time it died. The little dead body was handed to Priscilla Kynaston by Dr. Gream.
All the household knew of its death.
'His Lordship referred to the burial of the child at Brompton Cemetery on April 1, and continued:
Three days later Lady Waterford died, and it was decided that, in the sad circumstances, the
little thing which had been born of her body should be buried with its mother at Curraghmore,
the family seat. Mr. Pitney has proved the exhumation and the making of another coffin, which
was somewhat more elaborate than the original one, and which was also encased in blue
velvet. That coffin was taken by Mr. Pitney to Ireland. He travelled with it, and did not lose
sight of it, and I have the most conclusive evidence of its interment in Ireland. The family
vault was either full or its was thought advisable not to bury the two coffins in it, and,
therefore, a brick grave, or vault, had been prepared. A great many members of the family
attended the funeral, and in that new brick grave at Curraghmore were placed the body of
Lady Waterford in her coffin and, alongside it, the body of the stillborn infant. No one doubted
these facts at the time; no one thought of doubting them. There was a tomb erected with an
inscription on it that Lady Waterford had died and was buried with her stillborn child. Later, in
the church, an exquisite monument was placed to the memory of Lady Waterford showing her
robed, with her infant nestling at her side.
'These facts have been proved before me. I am asked by the petitioner to pronounce, in face
of these facts, that the child was born alive, and that it survived; that it was smuggled out
of the house, 27 Chesham-place, without the knowledge of any of the servants, no one knows
whither; and that some dead body was smuggled into the house without the knowledge of any
of the servants, no one knows whence; that Dr. Gream knowingly gave a false certificate; that
Priscilla Kynaston, now Mrs. White, was privy to this conspiracy, and that her account of what
occurred is a tissue of lies; and that Lord Waterford, who had had a son and heir born to him
and members of his family were privy to this conspiracy. All I can say is that I should be
credulous indeed if I were to adopt so incredible a story based on nothing but insinuation.
'His Lordship asked:- Who, then, is the claimant? He referred to the birth, on January 25, 1872, 
in the Holborn Workhouse, of the son of Georgina Tooth, a servant in the service of Mrs.
Vivian, and the death of the mother nine days later.  He continued:- The death of this
friendless and deserted girl and the survival of the little, derelict infant were brought to the
knowledge of Mrs. Vivian. Mrs. Vivian, whatever may have been her frailties, seems to have
been a very warm-hearted woman. Mrs. Vivian was at that time, at the convent, no doubt
an occasion in the life of anyone which would enlist sober and humane thoughts.
'The child of Georgina Tooth had no lawful claim on Mrs. Vivian. Compassion alone determined
her to provide for it. She sent Priscilla Kynaston to the guardians of Holborn Workhouse to
take the child to the convent, and on February 21, 1872, it was christened in the name of
"George Tooth." By that name the claimant has since been known, and in that name he now
brings his suit. A kindly, respectable woman of middle age, Mrs. Duncan, was found to take
charge of this little, derelict orphan. It cannot be denied that the child handed to Mrs. 
Duncan was the claimant. As George Tooth was living, and was shown at 7, Upper Brook-street,
where his maintenance was paid for, in the autumn of 1872, he could not be the child of Lord
and Lady Waterford which was born at 27, Chesham-place, dead or alive, on March 29, 1873.
The petitioner attempts to combat that by urging that Mrs. Duncan did not take charge of the
child before April, 1873. That is merely pure contradiction. The petitioner himself was too
young to know, and the evidence on this point which has been presented to me I entirely
decline to accept.
'Further, the claimant urges that his upbringing was paid for by Lord Waterford after Lady
Waterford's death, and that that was suspicious conduct on the part of Lord Waterford
and ground for supposing that he must have been his father. The real truth is this. Lord
Waterford was undoubtedly deeply moved by the tragedy of his wife's death. It was natural,
it was very creditable, that he should wish to continue the maintenance of the little orphan,
the subject of such disinterested charity on the part of his dead wife. I find that it has
been conclusively proved before me that Lady Waterford was, on March 29, 1873, confined
of a stillborn child, and that she and her little one sleep together in Curraghmore Churchyard.
It has also been proved before me, and I also find, that the claimant is the son of Georgina
Tooth, and was born in the Holborn Workhouse on January25, 1872, and that he has not, and
never has had, any connexion, legitimate or illegitimate, with any member of the Waterford
family.'
Philip James Stanhope, Baron Weardale
Lord Weardale was a son of the 5th Earl Stanhope, and had sat in the House of Commons for
Wednesbury 1886-1892, Burnley 1893-1900 and Harborough 1904-1905, in the following year
being created Baron Weardale,
In March 1912, Weardale became joint president (with Lord Curzon) of the National League for
Opposing Woman Suffrage, an organisation devoted to opposing the extension of the right to
vote to women. Needless to say, this position did not endear him to members of the Suffragette
movement.
On 18 February 1914, Lord Weardale was attacked at Euston Station, as reported in 'The Times'
of the following day:-
'A violent attack was made on Lord Weardale at Euston Station just before 10 o'clock yesterday
morning. His assailant was a young woman armed with a dog-whip, who apparently mistook him
for the Prime Minister [Herbert Asquith]…….Lord Weardale had just alighted from his motor-car
and was walking towards the train when the young woman rushed at him. The first blow struck
knocked his hat off, and further blows caused him to fall. The suffragist was immediately seized
by members of the London and North-Western Railway Police.'
Although the woman initially refused to divulge her name, by the time she appeared before the
Clerkenwell Police Court on 25 February 1914, she had been identified as Mary Lindsay, aged 24.
'The Times' reported:- 
'At Clerkenwell Police Court yesterday Mary Lindsay, 24, of Harvard Court, West Hampstead,
was charged, on remand with assaulting Lord Weardale by striking him on the head with a dog-
whip at Euston Station.
'At a previous hearing a solicitor had appeared on behalf of Miss Lindsay and had stated that
she struck Lord Weardale in mistake for Mr. Asquith and that an apology would be tendered. 
When asked yesterday by Mr. Bros [the Magistrate] if she wished to say anything, she replied,
"I did make a mistake in taking Lord Weardale for Mr. Asquith. At the same time, I cannot 
possibly offer an apology. Although Lord Weardale was not so much power for torturing women
as Mr. Asquith, I hold him in just as much contempt."
'Mr. Bros -You were remanded to see whether you were really of sound mind. The doctor who
has had you under his care says he is of opinion that, although you are of highly-strung nerves
and impulsive, there is no evidence to justify him saying you are insane. It occurred to me that
it was the act of an insane person.
'The accused - Not at all.
'The Magistrate - You understand your act? - Yes, absolutely. I think men who torture women
in the 20th century should be thrashed.
'This old gentleman had not tortured women. - It was quite enough that he is president of the
Anti-Suffrage Society.
'Here is an old man, 70 years of age, nearly - All the more shame.
'You seem to me really to have no respect for age. - I don't see that age comes into it. It is not
a question of age at all.
'But here is a harmless old gentleman going about his business, and he is suddenly attacked by a
wild woman, who hits him on the head with a dog-whip, a most offensive weapon. Had you been
insane, there would have been some excuse. But you knew what you were doing, and you must
pay the penalty. Forty shillings or 14 days.
'The fine was paid.'
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