Jump to content

Earl of Lennox

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Earldom of Lennox
Arms of Lennox:Argent, a saltire between four roses gules
Creation date12th century
PeeragePeerage of Scotland
First holderDavid of Scotland, Earl of Huntingdon(first known)
Former seat(s)Balloch Castle

TheEarlorMormaer of Lennoxwas the ruler of the region of theLennoxin western Scotland. It was first created in the 12th century forDavid of Scotland, Earl of Huntingdonand later held by theStewart dynasty.

Ancient earls

[edit]
Loch Lomond, the heart of the Lennox
Map of Scotland showing the Lennox

The first earl recorded isAilin I,sometimes called 'Alwin'. He is traditionally said to have been created Earl of Lennox byKing Malcolm IVin 1154, but this is likely too early a date. [Note: Other sources say Arkil (Arkyll) was the first mormaer. He fled Northumberland for Scotland about 1070 and was made Mormaer of Levenax by Malcolm. That title was in the 12th century changed to earl of Lennox.] The earldom may in fact have been created in the late twelfth century byKing William the Lionfor his brotherDavid,and after David gained the higher title Earl of Huntingdon, he resigned the Earldom of Lennox and it passed to Ailin.

Earl Ailin's parentage and background is unknown. His line continued as Earls of Lennox until the time ofEarl Duncanin the fifteenth century. Duncan's daughterIsabellamarriedMurdoch,son ofRobert, Duke of Albany.Duncan hoped this marriage would improve the family's prospects, but it would in fact be their downfall. Duke Robert had murderedDavid,the heir to the throne, and when David's brotherJamesbecame king, he wreaked his vengeance: almost the entire family were executed, including Earl Duncan, despite the fact he had had no part in the murder.

Isabella was imprisoned inTantallon Castle,but she escaped execution, and succeeded her father as Countess of Lennox. All four of her sons died in her lifetime: two from King James's retribution, and two from natural causes. She had several grandsons, but none of them were legitimate, and the earldom therefore died with her around the year 1457.

Stewart earls

[edit]
Arms of Stewart of Darnley, Earls of Lennox:Or, a fess chequy argent and azure

In 1473 the earldom was reclaimed bySir John Stewart of Darnley,who was the grandson of Elizabeth Lennox, daughter to Earl Duncan and sister to Countess Isabella. In 1565 his great-great-great-grandsonHenry, Lord DarnleymarriedMary, Queen of Scots.He would be murdered atKirk o' Fieldin 1567, and therefore on the death of his fatherEarl Matthew,the earldom of Lennox passed toJames,the son of Henry and Mary. James would accede as King of Scots a few months later, and the title consequently merged with the Crown.

In 1572, the earldom was conferred upon King James's uncleCharles.He did not long enjoy the title, for he died four years later at the age of twenty-one. It was next granted to the king's great-uncleRobertin 1578. This Robert, described as being "symple and of lyttle action or accomte", was persuaded to exchange the earldom of Lennox for the earldom of March, so that the king could give the former title to his friend and cousinEsmé.In 1581, Esmé's earldom was raised to a dukedom, and his line continued as Dukes of Lennox until the time of his great-grandsonCharles,who died childless in 1672 after drowning atElsinorewhile on a diplomatic mission to the Danish government.

In 1675, the Dukedom of Lennox was conferred uponCharles,bastard son ofKing Charles II,along with the EnglishDukedom of Richmondand several other titles. However, he would later sell his lands in the Lennox to theDuke of Montrose,meaning he became Duke of Lennox in name alone. This line survives today, and is currently headed by anotherCharles.Despite being Stewarts, they used "Lennox" as their surname, which was changed to "Gordon-Lennox" in the 19th century after the fourth Duke married Lady Charlotte Gordon, sister and heiress toGeorge, Duke of Gordon.

List of earls and dukes of Lennox

[edit]

Earls of Lennox (12th century)

[edit]

The title became extinctc.1459, as all four sons of Countess Isabella died without legitimate issue.

Earls of Lennox (2nd creation) (1488)

[edit]
Quartered arms of Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox, displaying an inescutcheon of Lennox

Earls of Lennox, third creation (c.1571)

[edit]

Earls of Lennox, fourth creation (1578)

[edit]

Earls of Lennox, fifth creation (1580)

[edit]

Dukes of Lennox, first creation (1581)

[edit]

Dukes of Lennox, second creation (1675)

[edit]

Stewart family

[edit]
Arms of Stewart, Dukes of Richmond and Lennox and Seigneurs d'Aubigny: Quarterly of 4, 1&4:Royal arms of King Charles VII of France within a bordure gules charged with eight buckles or;2&3:Stewart of Darnley within a bordure engrailed gules fordifference;overall an inescutcheon of Lennox[1]
The Château d'Aubigny-sur-Nère, paternal home ofEsmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox, 1st Earl of Lennox.Built by SirRobert Stewart, 4th Seigneur d'Aubigny(c. 1470 – 1544) and known to the French today asle château des Stuarts

Ludovic Stewart, 1st Duke of Richmond, 2nd Duke of Lennox

[edit]

Ludovic Stewart, 1st Duke of Richmond, 2nd Duke of Lennox(1574–1624), was the eldest son and heir ofEsmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox, 1st Earl of Lennox(1542–1583), a Roman Catholic French nobleman of Scottish ancestry who on his move to Scotland at the age of 37 became a favorite of the 13-year-old King James VI of Scotland (later James I of England), of whose father,Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley,he was a first cousin. In 1579/80 Esmé Stewart was created Earl of Lennox,Lord Darnley,Aubigny and Dalkeith and in 1581 he was createdDuke of Lennox,Earl of Darnley,Lord Aubigny,Dalkeith, Torboltoun and Aberdour.[2]

The founder of the French branch of the Stewart family ofDarnleyinRenfrewshire,Scotland, was SirJohn Stewart of Darnley(c. 1380– 1429), 1st Seigneur de Concressault, 1st Seigneur d'Aubigny, 1stComte d'Évreux,a warrior who commanded the Scottish army in France assisting the French King Charles VII to expel the invading English forces under King Henry V during theHundred Years War.He was much appreciated by the French king who showered him with honours and landed estates and granted him the "glorious privilege of quartering the royal arms of France with his paternal arms".[1]The residence of the Stewart family in France was the Château d'Aubigny,Aubigny-sur-Nère,in the ancient county ofBerry.

King James I regarded all Esmé's family with great affection, and instructed his son King Charles I to do well by them. Charles faithfully fulfilled this obligation, and as a result the Lennox family had considerable influence at the Scottish and English Courts over the next two generations. In 1603 as well as being granted the reversion of Cobham Hall, he was also granted the possession ofTemple NewsamHall in Yorkshire, the birthplace ofHenry Stewart, Lord Darnley,father of King James I and first cousin of Ludovic's father. In 1613 Ludovic Stewart was createdBaron of Settrington(of Yorkshire) andEarl of Richmond(of Yorkshire) and in 1623Earl of Newcastle-Upon-TyneandDuke of Richmond.[3]He married three times but died on 16 February 1623/4, aged 50, without legitimate issue,[4]when all his titles, excepting those inherited from his father, became extinct. He was buried inWestminster Abbey,in theRichmond Vault[5]in theHenry VII Chapel(that king formerly having beenEarl of Richmond) above which survives his magnificent black marble monument byHubert Le Sueurwith gilt-bronze recumbent effigies of himself and his wife.

Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox

[edit]

Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox(1579–1624), younger brother and heir, who had succeeded his father as 7th Seigneur d'Aubigny (which French title was able to be passed directly to a younger son). He died on 30 July 1624 of spotted fever, just 5 months after his elder brother. He marriedKatherine Clifton, 2nd Baroness Clifton(c. 1592– 1637) of Leighton Bromswold, Huntingdonshire, as a consequence of which in 1619 he was created Baron Stuart of Leighton Bromswold and Earl of March. He was buried in Westminster Abbey.

James Stewart, 1st Duke of Richmond, 4th Duke of Lennox

[edit]

James Stewart, 1st Duke of Richmond, 4th Duke of Lennox(1612–1655), son and heir, a third cousin of KingCharles I.In 1624 King James I created the 12-year-old newly-fatherless James Stewart asDuke of Richmondand in 1628, following the death of Frances Howard (Lady Cobham), he gained vacant possession of Cobham Hall, which became his main residence. He was a key member ofRoyalistparty in theEnglish Civil Warand in 1641–42 he served asLord Warden of the Cinque Ports,which office was administered from nearbyDover Castlein Kent. He marriedMary Villiers,daughter ofGeorge Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham.

Esmé Stuart, 2nd Duke of Richmond, 5th Duke of Lennox

[edit]

Esmé Stuart, 2nd Duke of Richmond, 5th Duke of Lennox(1649–1660) was the infant son the 1st Duke. On his father's death when he was aged 6, and following the defeat of the royalist faction in the Civil War, he and his mother went into exile in France, where he died of the smallpox aged 10 in 1660 (the year of theRestoration of the Monarchy), when his titles passed to his first cousinCharles Stewart, 3rd Duke of Richmond, 6th Duke of Lennox.He was buried inWestminster Abbey,where survives his monument, a black obelisk surmounted by an urn containing his heart.[5]

Charles Stewart, 3rd Duke of Richmond, 6th Duke of Lennox

[edit]

Charles Stewart, 3rd Duke of Richmond, 6th Duke of Lennox(1639–1672) was the only son ofGeorge Stewart, 9th Seigneur d'Aubigny(1618–1642) (a younger brother of the 1st & 4th Duke), by his wifeKatherine Howard,a daughter ofTheophilus Howard, 2nd Earl of Suffolk.He was appointed jointLord Lieutenant of KentandVice-Admiral of Kent.With the Civil War over and the Stuart monarchy restored, he re-built the central block at Cobham Hall, between 1662 and 1672, to the design of the architect Peter Mills.[6]His "Gilt Hall" of 1672 (with marble wall decorations added in the 18th c. byJames Wyatt) was considered by King George IV to be the finest room in England.[6]He married three times but died childless.

Family tree

[edit]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^abCust, Lady Elizabeth,Some Account of the Stuarts of Aubigny, in France,London, 1891, pp.12-14[1]
  2. ^G. E. Cokayne,The Complete Peerage,n.s., vol. VII, 1929, p.603
  3. ^G. E. Cokayne,The Complete Peerage,n.s., vol.7, p.606
  4. ^Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1911
  5. ^ab"Ludovic, Frances & Esme Stuart".Westminster Abbey.Retrieved23 February2020.
  6. ^abBritish Listed Buildings."Cobham Hall (Including Kitchen and Stable Court), Cobham, Kent".britishlistedbuildings.co.uk.Retrieved23 February2020.
  • Anderson, John, "The Celtic Earls of Lennox" in Sir James Paul (ed.)The Scots PeerageVol. 5, (Edinburgh, 1909), pp. 324–343
  • Steuart, A., "Stewart, Duke of Lennox" in Sir James Paul (ed.)The Scots PeerageVol. 5, (Edinburgh, 1909), pp. 344–362
  • Grant, Francis, "Lennox, Duke of Lennox" in Sir James Paul (ed.)The Scots PeerageVol. 5, (Edinburgh, 1909), pp. 363–371
  • Brown, Michael, "Earldom and Kindred: The Lennox and Its Earls, 1200–1458" in Steve Boardman and Alasdair Ross (eds.)The Exercise of Power in Medieval Scotland, c.1200–1500,(Dublin/Portland, 2003), pp. 201–224
  • Neville, Cynthia J.,Native Lordship in Medieval Scotland: The Earldoms of Strathearn and Lennox, c. 1140–1365,(Portland & Dublin, 2005)

Further reading

[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Earl_of_Lennox&oldid=1178978393"