Earl of Aylesford
Encyclopedia
Earl of Aylesford, in the County of Kent, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain
. It was created in 1714 for the lawyer and politician Heneage Finch, 1st Baron Guernsey
. He had already been created Baron Guernsey in the Peerage of England
in 1703. Finch was the younger son of Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Nottingham
and the great-grandson of Elizabeth Heneage, 1st Countess of Winchilsea. Lord Aylesford's eldest son, the second Earl, represented Maidstone
and Surrey
in Parliament. In 1712 he married Mary Fisher, daughter of Sir Clement Fisher, 3rd Baronet. Through this marriage Packington Hall
in Warwickshire
came into the Finch family. Their son, the third Earl, sat as a Member of Parliament
for Leicestershire
and Maidstone
. His eldest son, the fourth Earl, represented Castle Rising
and Maidstone
in the House of Commons
, and after entering the House of Lords on his father's death, served as Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard
from 1783 to 1804 and as Lord Steward of the Household from 1804 to 1812.
His second but eldest surviving son, the fifth Earl, was a Tory
Member of Parliament
for Weobly. His son, the sixth Earl
, represented South Warwickshire
in Parliament as a Conservative
. His grandson, the tenth Earl, assumed by Royal license his grandmother's maiden surname of Knightley in addition to that of Finch. His son, the eleventh Earl, served as Lord Lieutenant of the West Midlands
. the titles are held by the latter's son, who succeeded in 2008. As a descendant of the first Countess of Winchilsea and the first Earl of Nottingham, he is also in remainder to these titles, which since 1729 are united under a single holder.
The Hon. Charles Finch
, younger son of the third Earl, was Member of Parliament for Maidstone. His son Charles Griffith-Wynne (who assumed the surname of Griffith-Wynne in lieu of his patronymic), was Member of Parliament for Caernarvonshire
. His son Charles Wynne sat as Member of Parliament for Caernarvon
.
The family seat is Packington Hall
in Warwickshire
.
The heir apparent
is the present holder's son (Heneage) James Daniel Finch-Knightley, Lord Guernsey (b. 1985)
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...
. It was created in 1714 for the lawyer and politician Heneage Finch, 1st Baron Guernsey
Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Aylesford
Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Aylesford, PC, KC was an English lawyer and statesman.-Early life:Second son of Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Nottingham, he was educated at Westminster School and at Christ Church, Oxford, where he matriculated on November 18, 1664...
. He had already been created Baron Guernsey in the Peerage of England
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....
in 1703. Finch was the younger son of Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Nottingham
Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Nottingham
Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Nottingham, PC , Lord Chancellor of England, was descended from the old family of Finch, many of whose members had attained high legal eminence, and was the eldest son of Sir Heneage Finch, recorder of London, by his first wife Frances Bell, daughter of Sir Edmond Bell of...
and the great-grandson of Elizabeth Heneage, 1st Countess of Winchilsea. Lord Aylesford's eldest son, the second Earl, represented Maidstone
Maidstone (UK Parliament constituency)
Maidstone was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.The parliamentary borough of Maidstone returned two Members of Parliament from 1552 until 1885, when its representation was reduced to one member...
and Surrey
Surrey (UK Parliament constituency)
Surrey was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1832. It was represented by two Members of Parliament until 1832....
in Parliament. In 1712 he married Mary Fisher, daughter of Sir Clement Fisher, 3rd Baronet. Through this marriage Packington Hall
Packington Hall
Packington Hall is a 17th century mansion situated at Great Packington, near Meriden, Warwickshire, England the seat of the Earl of Aylesford. It is a Grade II* listed building....
in Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
came into the Finch family. Their son, the third Earl, sat as a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Leicestershire
Leicestershire (UK Parliament constituency)
Leicestershire was a county constituency in Leicestershire, represented in the House of Commons. It elected two Members of Parliament , traditionally called Knights of the Shire, by the bloc vote system of election, to the Parliament of England until 1707, to the Parliament of Great Britain from...
and Maidstone
Maidstone (UK Parliament constituency)
Maidstone was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.The parliamentary borough of Maidstone returned two Members of Parliament from 1552 until 1885, when its representation was reduced to one member...
. His eldest son, the fourth Earl, represented Castle Rising
Castle Rising (UK Parliament constituency)
Castle Rising was a parliamentary borough in Norfolk, which elected two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons from 1558 until 1832, when it was abolished by the Great Reform Act...
and Maidstone
Maidstone (UK Parliament constituency)
Maidstone was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.The parliamentary borough of Maidstone returned two Members of Parliament from 1552 until 1885, when its representation was reduced to one member...
in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
, and after entering the House of Lords on his father's death, served as Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard
Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard
The Captain of the Queen's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard is a UK government post usually held by the Government Deputy Chief Whip in the House of Lords...
from 1783 to 1804 and as Lord Steward of the Household from 1804 to 1812.
His second but eldest surviving son, the fifth Earl, was a Tory
Tory
Toryism is a traditionalist and conservative political philosophy which grew out of the Cavalier faction in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It is a prominent ideology in the politics of the United Kingdom, but also features in parts of The Commonwealth, particularly in Canada...
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Weobly. His son, the sixth Earl
Heneage Finch, 6th Earl of Aylesford
Heneage Finch, 6th Earl of Aylesford DL , styled Lord Guernsey until 1859, was a British peer and politician.-Background:...
, represented South Warwickshire
South Warwickshire (UK Parliament constituency)
South Warwickshire was a parliamentary constituency in the county of Warwickshire in England. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.- History :...
in Parliament as a Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
. His grandson, the tenth Earl, assumed by Royal license his grandmother's maiden surname of Knightley in addition to that of Finch. His son, the eleventh Earl, served as Lord Lieutenant of the West Midlands
Lord Lieutenant of the West Midlands
This is a list of people who have served as Lord-Lieutenant of West Midlands since the creation of that office on 1 April 1974.*Charles Ian Finch-Knightley, 11th Earl of Aylesford 1 April 1974 – 1993* Sir Robert Richard Taylor 16 December 1993 – 2007...
. the titles are held by the latter's son, who succeeded in 2008. As a descendant of the first Countess of Winchilsea and the first Earl of Nottingham, he is also in remainder to these titles, which since 1729 are united under a single holder.
The Hon. Charles Finch
Charles Finch (MP)
Charles Finch was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1775 to 1780.Finch was the son of Heneage Finch, 3rd Earl of Aylesford and his wife Lady Charlotte Seymour, daughter of Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset.Finch was an Member of Parliament for Castle Rising, Norfolk ...
, younger son of the third Earl, was Member of Parliament for Maidstone. His son Charles Griffith-Wynne (who assumed the surname of Griffith-Wynne in lieu of his patronymic), was Member of Parliament for Caernarvonshire
Caernarvonshire (UK Parliament constituency)
Caernarvonshire was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1885 and from 1918 until 1950. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post...
. His son Charles Wynne sat as Member of Parliament for Caernarvon
Caernarfon (UK Parliament constituency)
Caernarfon was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Caernarfon in Wales. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system....
.
The family seat is Packington Hall
Packington Hall
Packington Hall is a 17th century mansion situated at Great Packington, near Meriden, Warwickshire, England the seat of the Earl of Aylesford. It is a Grade II* listed building....
in Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
.
Earls of Aylesford (1714)
- Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 1st Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 1st Earl of Aylesford, PC, KC was an English lawyer and statesman.-Early life:Second son of Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Nottingham, he was educated at Westminster School and at Christ Church, Oxford, where he matriculated on November 18, 1664...
(1649–1719) - Heneage Finch, 2nd Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 2nd Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 2nd Earl of Aylesford was a British peer and member of the House of Lords, styled Lord Guernsey from 1714 to 1719....
(1683–1757) - Heneage Finch, 3rd Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 3rd Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 3rd Earl of Aylesford , styled Lord Guernsey between 1719 and 1757, was a British peer and politician.-Background and education:...
(1715–1777) - Heneage Finch, 4th Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 4th Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 4th Earl of Aylesford PC, FRS, FSA , styled Lord Guernsey between 1757 and 1777, was a British peer, politician and artist.-Background and education:...
(1751–1812)- Charles Finch, Lord Guernsey (d. 1784)
- Heneage Finch, 5th Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 5th Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 5th Earl of Aylesford was a British peer, the eldest son of Heneage Finch, 4th Earl of Aylesford.He was styled Lord Guernsey until he succeeded his father in 1812....
(1786–1859) - Heneage Finch, 6th Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 6th Earl of AylesfordHeneage Finch, 6th Earl of Aylesford DL , styled Lord Guernsey until 1859, was a British peer and politician.-Background:...
(1824–1871)
- Heneage Finch, 7th Earl of Aylesford (1849–1885). He married 1871 Edith Peers-William (d. 1897), a daughter of Lt.-Col. Thomas Peers WilliamsThomas Peers WilliamsLt.-Col. Thomas Peers Williams was MP for Great Marlow 1820-1868 and December 1867-1868.Peers Williams live at Craig-y-Don near Beaumaris on Anglesey and Temple House at Bisham in Berkshire, near Marlow...
, MP for Great Marlow 1820–1868 and Father of the House of Commons http://www.leighrayment.com/commons/fathercommons.htm December 1867–1868, of Craig-y-Don near Beaumaris on Anglesey and Temple House, near Marlow. They had issue, two daughters. The Earl was separated from his wife in 1877, after which she bore a son, later known as Guy Bertrand (b. 1881) by the Marquess of Blandford, the future 8th Duke of Marlborough. This son, baptized only in 1883 as a son of the 7th Earl, claimed the earldom (the claim was made presumably by his mother or maternal relatives); this claim was denied by the House of Lords in July 1885. The 7th Earl was succeeded in 1885 by his brother.
- Charles Wightwick Finch, 8th Earl of Aylesford (1851–1924). He married, firstly 1873, Hon. Georgiana Agnes Bagot, daughter of William Bagot, 3rd Baron Bagot. He married, secondly 16 April 1879 Marcella Araminta Victoria Linton, née Ross (d. 1930), daughter of John Ross and widow of Captain John Wingfield Linton (by whom issue, one daughter Lady BrinckmanBrinckman BaronetsThe Broadhead, later Brinckman Baronetcy, of Burton or Monk Bretton in the County of York, is a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 30 September 1831 for Theodore Broadhead, Member of Parliament for Yarmouth. In 1842 he resumed by Royal Licence the old family surname of...
); they had issue three sons and two daughters. He was succeeded by his grandson, only child of his eldest son Lord Guernsey (1883–1914, killed in action).- Heneage Greville Finch, Lord Guernsey (1883–1914)
- Heneage Michael Charles Finch, 9th Earl of Aylesford (31 October 1908–28 May 1940), killed in action like his father; he married 18 April 1940 (as her second husband) Pamela Elizabeth Dugdale, née Coventry (16 October 1901–4 May 1990), elder daughter of the cricketer Colonel Hon. Charles John CoventryCharles CoventryColonel Charles John Coventry, CB played cricket for England in the first two Test matches they played against South Africa....
(1867–1929), second son of George Coventry, 9th Earl of CoventryGeorge Coventry, 9th Earl of CoventryGeorge William Coventry, 9th Earl of Coventry PC , styled Viscount Deerhurst until 1843, was a British Conservative politician...
and former wife of James George Greville Dugdale (1898–1964) of Wroxall Abbey, Warwick, Warwickshire, but had no issue by her (one stepdaughter). The earldom passed upon his death to his uncle.
- Charles Daniel Finch-Knightley, 10th Earl of Aylesford (23 August 1886–20 March 1958). He married Aileen Boyle (d. 1977), daughter of William McCormac Boyle, in 1918 and had issue 2 sons.
- Charles Ian Finch-Knightley, 11th Earl of AylesfordCharles Finch-Knightley, 11th Earl of AylesfordCharles Ian Finch-Knightley, 11th Earl of Aylesford DL, JP , styled Lord Guernsey between 1940 and 1958, was a British peer....
(1918–2008)
- Charles Heneage Finch-Knightley, 12th Earl of Aylesford (b. 27 March 1947). Succeeded 19 February 2008 to the earldom. He married Penelope Anstice Crawley (b. 1950), younger daughter of Kenneth Arnold Gibbs Crawley by his first wife Pamela Vickers, and niece of Aidan CrawleyAidan CrawleyAidan Merivale Crawley, MBE was a British journalist, television executive and editor, and politician...
in 1971, and has issue one son (b. April 1985), now styled Lord Guernsey, and four daughters (including twins).
The heir apparent
Heir apparent
An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting, except by a change in the rules of succession....
is the present holder's son (Heneage) James Daniel Finch-Knightley, Lord Guernsey (b. 1985)