Elizabeth Rawdon, 16th Baroness Botreaux
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Rawdon, Countess of Moira in the Peerage of Ireland
(23 March 1731 – 11 April 1808) was a literary patron and antiquarian; she also held five English peerages in her own right. She was born at Donington Park
, Leicestershire
, England
and died at Moira
, County Down
, Northern Ireland
.
Her father was Theophilus Hastings, 9th Earl of Huntingdon
and her mother was Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon
, founder of the Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion
religious denomination. Elizabeth was 16th Baron Botreaux
and 15th Baron Hungerford
, in her own right (suo jure
), inheriting the titles on the death of her brother Francis Hastings, 10th Earl of Huntingdon
. She was the third wife of John Rawdon, 1st Earl of Moira
.
, Baroness Hungerford
, Baroness de Moleyns, Baroness Hastings of Hastings
and Baroness Hastings of Hungerford
.
In the fifteenth century, several prominent families of Wiltshire
(Botreaux, Hastings, Moleyns, and Hungerford) intermarried, inherited land from each other, and were occasionally summoned to parliament. By modern law, each of these summons is held to be in virtue of a permanent and heritable barony. Five of these summons are held to have created distinct baronies which were inherited by the family of Hastings: The two Hastings baronies exist because different titles were used in the summons; also, two of the Hungerfords, father and son, successively followed the wrong side in the Wars of the Roses
and were attainted
and executed, by which they lost everything including their titles; their inheritance was restored to the granddaughter and her husband (Edward Hastings, 2nd Baron Hastings
) by a reversal of the attainder, but only after the grandson-in-law had been summoned as Lord Hastings of Hungerford, a different title and so a different barony than his father's summons as Lord Hastings of Hastings.
The son of this marriage did well at court, married Henry VIII's mistress, and was made Earl of Huntingdon
; his son also married well, to Catherine Pole, the eldest daughter of Henry Pole, 1st Baron Montagu
and through him great-granddaughter of George of Clarence. She did not bring the Hastings any of the Pole titles, and the Poles did not inherit any titles from George of Clarence; he was attainted before he was executed for treason. Lord Montagu and his mother were also attainted and executed for conspiracy to displace Henry VIII, so none of their titles descended to the Hastings family. If they had not been forfeit, modern peerage law would hold them to be in abeyance
; Catherine was one of several sisters.
The tenth Earl of Huntingdon was the Countess of Moira's brother; when he died, a year after her husband, seated at her son's dining-room table, she was the only surviving sister, and her sisters had had no children; so she inherited the baronies (but continued to be known as Countess of Moira). Since the Earldom had been created with descent to heirs male, it went to their cousin, Theophilus Henry Hastings, 11th Earl of Huntingdon.
After her death in 1808, her son inherited the baronies, and proved his right to be Baron Hastings - he had also taken the family name of Rawdon-Hastings according to his uncle's will. As Earl of Moira, he had social position, but no political power after the Irish Parliament had been abolished in 1800. He had personally been created Baron Rawdon of Rawdon, in 1783, during his father's lifetime, which gave him a seat in the British House of Lords
; but sitting in the ancient Barony of Hastings was much more distinguished. His political career also went well; he had married Flora Campbell, 6th Countess of Loudoun
in 1804 (as a Scottish Earldom, Loudon is inherited by the eldest daughter when there are no sons); was considered for Prime Minister after the assassination of Spencer Percival in 1812; and was Governor-General of India
from 1813 to 1817. He continued to be known as Earl of Moira until he was promoted to be Marquess of Hastings
on his return.
These descents are central to the line of potential descent of the Crown described in the 2004 Channel 4
TV documentary Britain's Real Monarch
, which considers a claim based on the theory that Edward IV of England
was illegitimate, and that the Crown should be traced through George of Clarence, his brother (with his attainder reversed), not through Edward's daughter, Elizabeth of York
.
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,...
(23 March 1731 – 11 April 1808) was a literary patron and antiquarian; she also held five English peerages in her own right. She was born at Donington Park
Donington Hall
Donington Hall is a house and residual estate in Castle Donington, North West Leicestershire, located close to the city of Derby. The Hall serves as the headquarters for airline BMI....
, Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and died at Moira
Moira, County Down
Moira is a village in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is in the northwest of the county, near the borders with counties Antrim and Armagh. The M1 motorway and Dublin–Belfast railway line are nearby. The settlement has existed since time immemorial...
, County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
.
Her father was Theophilus Hastings, 9th Earl of Huntingdon
Theophilus Hastings, 9th Earl of Huntingdon
Theophilus Hastings, 9th Earl of Huntingdon was the son of Theophilus Hastings, 7th Earl of Huntingdon and Mary Frances Fowler. He married Lady Selina Shirley, daughter of Washington Shirley, 2nd Earl Ferrers and Mary Levinge, on 3 June 1728.There is a monument to him in St Helen's Church,...
and her mother was Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon
Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon
Selina, Countess of Huntingdon was an English religious leader who played a prominent part in the religious revival of the 18th century and the Methodist movement in England and Wales, and has left a Christian denomination in England and Sierra Leone.-Early life:Selina Hastings was born as Lady...
, founder of the Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion
Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion
The Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion is a small society of evangelical churches, founded in 1783 by Selina, Countess of Huntingdon as a result of the Evangelical Revival. For years it was strongly associated with the Calvinist Methodist movement of George Whitefield...
religious denomination. Elizabeth was 16th Baron Botreaux
Baron Botreaux
Baron Botreaux is a title in the Peerage of England, created in 1368.The title was created by writ of summons, by Edward III to William de Botreaux, 1st Baron Botreaux in 1368....
and 15th Baron Hungerford
Baron Hungerford
The Barony of Hungerford was created in the Peerage of England on 7 January 1426 for Walter Hungerford, who was summoned to parliament, had been Member of Parliament, Speaker of the House and invested as Knight of the Order of the Garter before and was made Lord High Treasurer one year before he...
, in her own right (suo jure
Suo jure
Suo jure is a Latin phrase meaning "in her [or his] own right".It is commonly encountered in the context of titles of nobility, especially in cases where a wife may hold a title in her own right rather than through her marriage....
), inheriting the titles on the death of her brother Francis Hastings, 10th Earl of Huntingdon
Francis Hastings, 10th Earl of Huntingdon
Francis Hastings, 10th Earl of Huntingdon PC was a British peer and politician.He was the son of the 9th Earl of Huntingdon and his wife, Selina. Hastings succeeded as Earl of Huntingdon and Baron Botreaux on his father's demise in 1746...
. She was the third wife of John Rawdon, 1st Earl of Moira
John Rawdon, 1st Earl of Moira
John Rawdon, 1st Earl of Moira , known as Sir John Rawdon, Bt, between 1724 and 1750 and as The Lord Rawdon between 1750 and 1762, was an Irish peer.-Background:...
.
Descent and titles
Her husband was Earl of Moira, and Baron Rawdon of Moira, in the Irish Peerage; she was therefore Countess of Moira in his right; after his death she also inherited five English baronies: Baroness BotreauxBaron Botreaux
Baron Botreaux is a title in the Peerage of England, created in 1368.The title was created by writ of summons, by Edward III to William de Botreaux, 1st Baron Botreaux in 1368....
, Baroness Hungerford
Baron Hungerford
The Barony of Hungerford was created in the Peerage of England on 7 January 1426 for Walter Hungerford, who was summoned to parliament, had been Member of Parliament, Speaker of the House and invested as Knight of the Order of the Garter before and was made Lord High Treasurer one year before he...
, Baroness de Moleyns, Baroness Hastings of Hastings
Baron Hastings
Baron Hastings is a title that has been created three times. The first creation was in the Peerage of England in 1295, and is still extant. The second creation was in the Peerage of England in 1299, and became extinct on the death of the first holder in c. 1314...
and Baroness Hastings of Hungerford
Baron Hastings
Baron Hastings is a title that has been created three times. The first creation was in the Peerage of England in 1295, and is still extant. The second creation was in the Peerage of England in 1299, and became extinct on the death of the first holder in c. 1314...
.
In the fifteenth century, several prominent families of Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
(Botreaux, Hastings, Moleyns, and Hungerford) intermarried, inherited land from each other, and were occasionally summoned to parliament. By modern law, each of these summons is held to be in virtue of a permanent and heritable barony. Five of these summons are held to have created distinct baronies which were inherited by the family of Hastings: The two Hastings baronies exist because different titles were used in the summons; also, two of the Hungerfords, father and son, successively followed the wrong side in the Wars of the Roses
Wars of the Roses
The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic civil wars for the throne of England fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet: the houses of Lancaster and York...
and were attainted
Attainder
In English criminal law, attainder or attinctura is the metaphorical 'stain' or 'corruption of blood' which arises from being condemned for a serious capital crime . It entails losing not only one's property and hereditary titles, but typically also the right to pass them on to one's heirs...
and executed, by which they lost everything including their titles; their inheritance was restored to the granddaughter and her husband (Edward Hastings, 2nd Baron Hastings
Edward Hastings, 2nd Baron Hastings
Edward Hastings, 2nd Baron Hastings, KB was an English peer born in Kirby Muxloe Castle, Leicestershire, England to Sir William Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings and Katherine Neville. He succeeded to his title on the execution of his father William Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings on 13 June 1483...
) by a reversal of the attainder, but only after the grandson-in-law had been summoned as Lord Hastings of Hungerford, a different title and so a different barony than his father's summons as Lord Hastings of Hastings.
The son of this marriage did well at court, married Henry VIII's mistress, and was made Earl of Huntingdon
Earl of Huntingdon
Earl of Huntingdon is a title which has been created several times in the Peerage of England. The title is associated with the ruling house of Scotland, and latterly with the Hastings family.-Early history:...
; his son also married well, to Catherine Pole, the eldest daughter of Henry Pole, 1st Baron Montagu
Henry Pole, 1st Baron Montagu
Henry Pole, 1st Baron Montagu , the only holder of the title Baron Montagu under its 1514 creation, was most famous as one of the peers in the trial of Anne Boleyn.-Life:...
and through him great-granddaughter of George of Clarence. She did not bring the Hastings any of the Pole titles, and the Poles did not inherit any titles from George of Clarence; he was attainted before he was executed for treason. Lord Montagu and his mother were also attainted and executed for conspiracy to displace Henry VIII, so none of their titles descended to the Hastings family. If they had not been forfeit, modern peerage law would hold them to be in abeyance
Abeyance
Abeyance is a state of expectancy in respect of property, titles or office, when the right to them is not vested in any one person, but awaits the appearance or determination of the true owner. In law, the term abeyance can only be applied to such future estates as have not yet vested or possibly...
; Catherine was one of several sisters.
The tenth Earl of Huntingdon was the Countess of Moira's brother; when he died, a year after her husband, seated at her son's dining-room table, she was the only surviving sister, and her sisters had had no children; so she inherited the baronies (but continued to be known as Countess of Moira). Since the Earldom had been created with descent to heirs male, it went to their cousin, Theophilus Henry Hastings, 11th Earl of Huntingdon.
After her death in 1808, her son inherited the baronies, and proved his right to be Baron Hastings - he had also taken the family name of Rawdon-Hastings according to his uncle's will. As Earl of Moira, he had social position, but no political power after the Irish Parliament had been abolished in 1800. He had personally been created Baron Rawdon of Rawdon, in 1783, during his father's lifetime, which gave him a seat in the British 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....
; but sitting in the ancient Barony of Hastings was much more distinguished. His political career also went well; he had married Flora Campbell, 6th Countess of Loudoun
Flora Campbell, 6th Countess of Loudoun
Flora Mure-Campbell, Marchioness of Hastings and 6th Countess of Loudoun was a British peeress, second daughter of James Mure-Campbell, 5th Earl of Loudoun and Lady Flora Macleod....
in 1804 (as a Scottish Earldom, Loudon is inherited by the eldest daughter when there are no sons); was considered for Prime Minister after the assassination of Spencer Percival in 1812; and was Governor-General of India
Governor-General of India
The Governor-General of India was the head of the British administration in India, and later, after Indian independence, the representative of the monarch and de facto head of state. The office was created in 1773, with the title of Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William...
from 1813 to 1817. He continued to be known as Earl of Moira until he was promoted to be Marquess of Hastings
Marquess of Hastings
Marquess of Hastings was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 6 December 1816 for Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 2nd Earl of Moira. The Rawdon family descended from Francis Rawdon , of Rawdon, Yorkshire. His son George Rawdon settled in the village of Moira in Downshire, and...
on his return.
These descents are central to the line of potential descent of the Crown described in the 2004 Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
TV documentary Britain's Real Monarch
Britain's Real Monarch
Britain's Real Monarch was a historical documentary presented by Tony Robinson first shown on Channel 4 on 3 January 2004. It has also been broadcast in America and Australia...
, which considers a claim based on the theory that Edward IV of England
Edward IV of England
Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...
was illegitimate, and that the Crown should be traced through George of Clarence, his brother (with his attainder reversed), not through Edward's daughter, Elizabeth of York
Elizabeth of York
Elizabeth of York was Queen consort of England as spouse of King Henry VII from 1486 until 1503, and mother of King Henry VIII of England....
.