Earl of Listowel is a title in the Peerage of Ireland

Peerage of Ireland

The Peerage of Ireland is the term used for those titles of nobility created by the English and later British monarchs of Ireland in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland. The creation of such titles came to an end in the 19th century. The ranks of the Irish peerage are Duke, Marquess, Earl,...

. It was created in 1822 for William Hare, 1st Viscount Ennismore and Listowel

William Hare, 1st Earl of Listowel

William Hare, 1st Earl of Listowel , known as Lord Ennismore from 1800 to 1816 and as the Viscount Ennismore and Listowel from 1816 to 1822, was an Irish peer and Member of Parliament....

, who had earlier represented Cork City

Cork City (Parliament of Ireland constituency)

Cork City was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons to 1800.-Boundaries and boundary changes:...

 and Athy

Athy (Parliament of Ireland constituency)

Athy was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons to 1800. Following the Act of Union 1800 the borough was disenfranchised.-History:In the Patriot Parliament of 1689 summoned by King James II, Athy was represented with two members....

 in the Irish House of Commons

Irish House of Commons

The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland, that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords...

. He had already been created Baron Ennismore, in the County of Kerry, in 1800, and Viscount Ennismore and Listowel, in 1816, also in the Peerage of Ireland. His grandson, the second Earl, represented Kerry

Kerry (UK Parliament constituency)

A former UK Parliament constituency in Ireland, returning two Members of Parliament. In 1885, it was split into four constituencies. From the time of Irish independence, the area was no longer represented in the UK Parliament, as it was no longer part of the United Kingdom.-Boundaries:This...

 and St Albans

St Albans (UK Parliament constituency)

St Albans is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Established in 1885, it is a county constituency in Hertfordshire, and elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.From 1554 to 1852 there was a...

 in the British 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...

. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the third Earl. In 1869 he was created Baron Hare, of Convamore in the County of Cork, 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...

, which gave him an automatic seat in the House of Lords

House of Lords

The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....

. Lord Listowel later held minor office in the second administration

Liberal Government 1880-1885

After ardently campaigning against the foreign policy of Lord Beaconsfield's Conservative Government, William Gladstone led the Liberal Party to victory in the United Kingdom General Election of 1880. The nominal leader of the Party, Lord Hartington, resigned in Gladstone's favour and Gladstone....

 of William Ewart Gladstone

William Ewart Gladstone

William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times , more than any other person. Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time...

. His grandson, the fifth Earl, was a Labour

Labour Party (UK)

The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...

 politician and notably served as the last Secretary of State for India and Burma. As of 2009 the titles are held by the latter's eldest son, the sixth Earl, who succeeded in 1997. Lord Listowel is one of the ninety elected hereditary peers that remain in the House of Lords after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999

House of Lords Act 1999

The House of Lords Act 1999 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that was given Royal Assent on 11 November 1999. The Act reformed the House of Lords, one of the chambers of Parliament. For centuries, the House of Lords had included several hundred members who inherited their seats;...

, and sits as a cross-bencher.

Another member of the family was the 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 John Hare, 1st Viscount Blakenham

John Hare, 1st Viscount Blakenham

John Hugh Hare, 1st Viscount Blakenham OBE, PC, DL , was a British Conservative politician.-Background and education:...

. He was the third son of the fourth Earl.

Listowel is a town in County Kerry

County Kerry

Kerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective...

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

.

Earls of Listowel (1822)

• William Hare, 1st Earl of Listowel
  William Hare, 1st Earl of Listowel
  William Hare, 1st Earl of Listowel , known as Lord Ennismore from 1800 to 1816 and as the Viscount Ennismore and Listowel from 1816 to 1822, was an Irish peer and Member of Parliament....
  
   (1751–1837)
  • Richard Hare, Viscount Ennismore (1773–1827)
• William Hare, 2nd Earl of Listowel
  William Hare, 2nd Earl of Listowel
  William Hare, 2nd Earl of Listowel KP , known as Viscount Ennismore from 1827 to 1837, was an Anglo-Irish peer and Member of Parliament....
  
   (1801–1856)
• William Hare, 3rd Earl of Listowel
  William Hare, 3rd Earl of Listowel
  William Hare, 3rd Earl of Listowel KP , known as Viscount Ennismore from 1837 to 1856, was an Anglo-Irish peer and Liberal politician.-Background:...
  
   (1833–1924)
• Richard Granville Hare, 4th Earl of Listowel (1866–1931)
• William Francis Hare, 5th Earl of Listowel
  William Hare, 5th Earl of Listowel
  William Francis Hare, 5th Earl of Listowel GCMG, PC , styled Viscount Ennismore between 1924 and 1931, was a British peer and Labour politician...
  
   (1906–1997)
• Francis Michael Hare, 6th Earl of Listowel
  Francis Hare, 6th Earl of Listowel
  Francis Michael Hare, 6th Earl of Listowel , is a British peer. He is one of the ninety hereditary peers elected to remain in the House of Lords after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999...
  
   (b. 1964)

The heir presumptive

Heir Presumptive

An heir presumptive or heiress presumptive is the person provisionally scheduled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir or heiress apparent or of a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question...

is the present holder's younger brother the Hon. Timothy Patrick Hare (b. 1966).