Earl of Durham
Encyclopedia
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...
. It was created in 1833 for the prominent Whig
British Whig Party
The Whigs were a party in the Parliament of England, Parliament of Great Britain, and Parliament of the United Kingdom, who contested power with the rival Tories from the 1680s to the 1850s. The Whigs' origin lay in constitutional monarchism and opposition to absolute rule...
politician and colonial official John Lambton, 1st Baron Durham
John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham
John George Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham GCB, PC , also known as "Radical Jack" and commonly referred to in history texts simply as Lord Durham, was a British Whig statesman, colonial administrator, Governor General and high commissioner of British North America...
. Known as "Radical Jack", he played a leading role in the passing of the Great Reform Act of 1832
Reform Act 1832
The Representation of the People Act 1832 was an Act of Parliament that introduced wide-ranging changes to the electoral system of England and Wales...
. As Governor General of British North America
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
he was the author of the famous Report on the Affairs of British North America
Report on the Affairs of British North America (1839)
The Report on the Affairs of British North America, commonly known as The Durham Report, is an important document in the history of Quebec, Ontario, Canada and the British Empire....
, known in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
as the Durham Report. Lambton had already been created Baron Durham, of the City of Durham and of Lambton Castle in the County Palatine of Durham, in 1828, and was created Viscount Lambton at the same time as he was raised to the earldom. These titles are also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.
He was succeeded by his eldest surviving son, the second Earl. He served as Lord-Lieutenant of County Durham from 1854 to 1879. On his death the titles passed to his eldest twin son, the third Earl. He was Lord-Lieutenant of County Durham from 1884 to 1928 and was made a Knight of the Garter in 1909. He died childless and was succeeded by his younger twin brother, the fourth Earl. He represented South Durham
South Durham (UK Parliament constituency)
South Durham, formally the Southern Division of Durham and often referred to as Durham Southern, was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
and South East Durham
South East Durham (UK Parliament constituency)
South East Durham was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
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...
. His grandson, the sixth Earl, was 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...
politician. He disclaimed
Peerage Act 1963
The Peerage Act 1963 is the Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that permitted peeresses in their own right and all Scottish hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords, and which allows newly inherited hereditary peerages to be "disclaimed".-Background:The Act resulted largely from the...
his peerages shortly after succeeding his father in 1970, but continued improperly to style himself Viscount Lambton. As of 2009 the titles are held by his only son, the seventh Earl, who succeeded in 2006. Before succeeding in the earldom he styled himself Lord Durham to avoid confusion with his father.
Several other members of the Lambton family have also gained distinction. Both the first Earl's father, William Henry Lambton
William Henry Lambton
William Henry Lambton was a British Member of Parliament, representing the City of Durham, a role in which he was succeeded by his brother. He was the son of John Lambton, who preceded him in representing Durham in the House of Commons....
(1764–1797), and grandfather General John Lambton
John Lambton
Major-General John Lambton of Harraton Hall, later of Lambton Castle, County Durham, was a British soldier and Member of Parliament.Lambton was the fourth son of Ralph Lambton...
(1710–1794), as well as his great-uncle Henry Lambton (1697–1761), represented the City of Durham in Parliament. The Hon. Sir Hedworth Lambton
Hedworth Meux
Admiral of the Fleet The Hon Sir Hedworth Meux GCB KCVO , formerly The Hon Hedworth Lambton was an English naval officer famous for bringing help to the British forces in the Siege of Ladysmith....
(1856–1929) (who assumed the surname of Meux in lieu of Lambton), third son of the second Earl, was an Admiral of the Fleet
Admiral of the Fleet
An admiral of the fleet is a military naval officer of the highest rank. In many nations the rank is reserved for wartime or ceremonial appointments...
. The Hon. Charles Lambton (1857–1949), fourth son of the second Earl, was a Brigadier-General in the Army. The Hon. George Lambton
George Lambton
George Lambton was a British thoroughbred racehorse trainer. He was British flat racing Champion Trainer in the 1906, 1911 and 1912 seasons....
(1860–1945), fifth son of the second Earl, was a thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
racehorse trainer who trained two Epsom Derby
Epsom Derby
The Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
winners. The Hon. Sir William Lambton
William Lambton (British Army officer)
Major-General The Hon. Sir William Lambton KCB CMG CVO DSO was a British Army officer who commanded 4th Division during World War I.-Military career:...
(1863–1936), sixth son of the second Earl, was a Major-General in the Army.
The ancestral seats of the Lambton family are Lambton Castle
Lambton Castle
Lambton Castle, located in County Durham, England, between the towns of Washington and Chester-le-Street, is a stately home, the ancestral seat of the Lambton family, the Earls of Durham...
, near Chester-le-Street, County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
, and Fenton near Wooler
Wooler
Wooler is a small town in Northumberland, England. It lies on the edge of the Northumberland National Park, by the Cheviot Hills and so is a popular base for walkers and is referred to as the "Gateway to the Cheviots"...
, Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
.
Earls of Durham (1833)
- John George Lambton, 1st Earl of DurhamJohn Lambton, 1st Earl of DurhamJohn George Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham GCB, PC , also known as "Radical Jack" and commonly referred to in history texts simply as Lord Durham, was a British Whig statesman, colonial administrator, Governor General and high commissioner of British North America...
(1792–1840)- Hon. Charles William Lambton (1818–1831)
- George Frederick d'Arcy Lambton, 2nd Earl of DurhamGeorge Lambton, 2nd Earl of DurhamGeorge Frederick D'Arcy Lambton, 2nd Earl of Durham , known as Viscount Lambton from 1831 to 1845, was a British peer....
(1828–1879) - John George Lambton, 3rd Earl of DurhamJohn Lambton, 3rd Earl of DurhamJohn George Lambton, 3rd Earl of Durham KG, GCVO, PC , known as Viscount Lambton until 1879, was a British peer....
(1855–1928) - Frederick William Lambton, 4th Earl of DurhamFrederick Lambton, 4th Earl of DurhamFrederick William Lambton, 4th Earl of Durham was a British peer, a Liberal politician, and the son of George Lambton, 2nd Earl of Durham. He inherited the Earldom from his twin brother, John Lambton, 3rd Earl of Durham, when the latter died with no legitimate children.He married Beatrix Bulteel...
(1855–1929) - John Frederick Lambton, 5th Earl of DurhamJohn Lambton, 5th Earl of DurhamJohn Lambton was the 5th Earl of Durham. He is best remembered for the donation of Penshaw Monument to the National Trust.John Lambton married Hermione Bullough, daughter and sole heir of George Bullough, 1st Baronet Bullough....
(1884–1970)- John Roderick Geoffrey Francis Edward Lambton, Viscount Lambton (1920–1941)
- Antony Claud Frederick Lambton, 6th Earl of Durham (1922–2006) (disclaimed 1970)
- Edward Richard Lambton, 7th Earl of Durham (b. 1961)
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 Frederick Lambton, Viscount Lambton (b. 1985)