Baron Rivers
Encyclopedia
Peerage of England
The Peerage of England comprises all peerages created in the Kingdom of England before the Act of Union in 1707. In that year, the Peerages of England and Scotland were replaced by one Peerage of Great Britain....
, once in the Peerage of Great Britain
Peerage of Great Britain
The Peerage of Great Britain comprises all extant peerages created in the Kingdom of Great Britain after the Act of Union 1707 but before the Act of Union 1800...
and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
Peerage of the United Kingdom
The Peerage of the United Kingdom comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Act of Union in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great Britain...
. The first creation came in 1299 when John Rivers was summoned to Parliament as Baron Rivers. The title became extinct on the death of the second Baron in circa 1340. The second creation came in 1448. For more information on this creation, see Earl Rivers
Earl Rivers
Earl Rivers was an English title held in succession by the families of Woodville or Wydeville, Darcy and Savage. The first creation was made for Richard Woodville, 1st Baron Rivers in 1466 and remained in this family until 1491...
.
The third creation came in 1776 when George Pitt
George Pitt, 1st Baron Rivers
George Pitt, 1st Baron Rivers was a British diplomat and politician.-Background and education:He born in Geneva, the eldest son of George Pitt of Stratfieldsaye, Hampshire and his wife Mary Louise Bernier from Strasbourg. General Sir William Augustus Pitt was his younger brother...
was made Baron Rivers, of Strathfield-Say in the County of Southampton, in the Peerage of Great Britain. He was a descendant of John Pitt (16th century), the father of Thomas Pitt, ancestor of the Earls of Londonderry
Earl of Londonderry
Earl of Londonderry is a title that has been created three times in the Peerage of Ireland. The first creation came in 1622 in favour of Thomas Ridgeway, 1st Baron Ridgeway, who served as Treasurer of Ireland and was involved in the colonisation of Ulster...
, Barons Baron Camelford
Baron Camelford
Lord Camelford, Baron of Boconnoc, in the County of Cornwall, was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1784 for Thomas Pitt, who had previously represented Old Sarum and Okehampton in Parliament...
and Earls of Chatham
Earl of Chatham
Earl of Chatham, in the County of Kent, was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1766 for William Pitt the Elder on his appointment as Lord Privy Seal, along with the subsidiary title Viscount Pitt, of Burton Pynsent in the County of Somerset, also in the Peerage of Great...
, and of Sir William Pitt, whose grandson George Pitt married John Savage, 5th and last Earl Rivers (see Earl Rivers). George Pitt's eldest son and namesake was the aforementioned George Pitt, who was elevated to the peerage in 1776. In 1802 Lord Rivers was created Baron Rivers, of Sudeley Castle in the County of Gloucester, with remainder to 1) his brother General Sir William Augustus Pitt
William Augustus Pitt
General Sir William Augustus Pitt KB, PC was a long-serving if undistinguished senior officer of the British Army whose sixty years of service covered several major wars and numerous postings as garrison or regiment commander. He served as MP between 1754 and 1761...
and the heirs male of his body, and 2) William Horace Beckford (son of Peter Beckford
Peter Beckford (hunter)
Sir Peter Beckford , was one of 18th-century English peerage; he was a huntsman, a writer and the patron of the well-known Classical composer, pianist Muzio Clementi...
of Stapleton in Dorset by his wife the Honourable Louisa, daughter of Lord Rivers) and the heirs male of his body. This title was in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.
He was succeeded in both baronies by his son, the second Baron. He had previously represented Dorset
Dorset (UK Parliament constituency)
Dorset was a county constituency covering Dorset in southern England, which elected two Members of Parliament , traditionally known as knights of the shire, to the House of Commons of England from 1290 until 1707, to the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800, and to the House of...
in Parliament. He sold part of the family estates, those around Stratfield Saye House
Stratfield Saye House
Stratfield Saye House is a large stately home at Stratfield Saye in the north-east of the English county of Hampshire. It has been the home of the Dukes of Wellington since 1817.-Early history:...
to the nation in about 1814, so that it could be given to Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
. On his death in 1829 the barony of 1776 became extinct while he was succeeded in the barony of 1802 according to the special remainder to his nephew William Beckford, the third Baron. He was the son of the aforementioned Peter Beckford and the Honourable Louisa Pitt. He assumed at the same time by Royal license the surname of Pitt-Rivers in lieu of his patronymic. The fourth Baron held political office as a Lord-in-Waiting
Lord-in-Waiting
Most Lords in Waiting are Government whips in the House of Lords who are members of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. As members of the Royal Household their duties are nominal, though they are occasionally required to meet visiting political and state leaders on visits...
from 1853 to 1858 and 1859 to 1866. The title became extinct on the death of the sixth Baron in 1880.
Baron Rivers; First creation (1299)
- John Rivers, 1st Baron Rivers (d. c. 1311)
- John Rivers, 2nd Baron Rivers (d. c. 1340)
Baron Rivers; Third creation (1776)
- George Pitt, 1st Baron RiversGeorge Pitt, 1st Baron RiversGeorge Pitt, 1st Baron Rivers was a British diplomat and politician.-Background and education:He born in Geneva, the eldest son of George Pitt of Stratfieldsaye, Hampshire and his wife Mary Louise Bernier from Strasbourg. General Sir William Augustus Pitt was his younger brother...
(1721–1803) (created Baron Rivers again in 1802; see below) - George Pitt, 2nd Baron RiversGeorge Pitt, 2nd Baron RiversGeorge Pitt, 2nd Baron Rivers was a British politician.He was the only son of George Pitt, 1st Baron Rivers and his wife Penelope, daughter of Sir Henry Atkins, 4th baronet of Clapham, Surrey. He succeeded his father as Member of Parliament for Dorset in 1774, retaining the seat until 1790. In...
(1751–1828)
Baron Rivers; Fourth creation (1802)
- George Pitt, 1st Baron RiversGeorge Pitt, 1st Baron RiversGeorge Pitt, 1st Baron Rivers was a British diplomat and politician.-Background and education:He born in Geneva, the eldest son of George Pitt of Stratfieldsaye, Hampshire and his wife Mary Louise Bernier from Strasbourg. General Sir William Augustus Pitt was his younger brother...
(1721–1803) - George Pitt, 2nd Baron RiversGeorge Pitt, 2nd Baron RiversGeorge Pitt, 2nd Baron Rivers was a British politician.He was the only son of George Pitt, 1st Baron Rivers and his wife Penelope, daughter of Sir Henry Atkins, 4th baronet of Clapham, Surrey. He succeeded his father as Member of Parliament for Dorset in 1774, retaining the seat until 1790. In...
(1751–1828) - William Horace Pitt-Rivers, 3rd Baron Rivers (1777–1831)
- George Pitt-Rivers, 4th Baron RiversGeorge Pitt-Rivers, 4th Baron RiversGeorge Pitt-Rivers, 4th Baron Rivers , was a British peer and politician.-Background:Born George Beckford, Lord Rivers was the son of Horace Pitt-Rivers, 3rd Baron Rivers...
(1810–1866)- Hon. George Horace Pitt-Rivers (1834–1850)
- Hon. Granville Beckford Pitt-Rivers (1838–1855)
- Hon. William Frederick Pitt-Rivers (1845–1859)
- Henry Peter Pitt-Rivers, 5th Baron Rivers (1849–1867)
- Horace Pitt-Rivers, 6th Baron Rivers (1814–1880)