Sir Robert Shirley, 7th Baronet, of Staunton Harold, 13th Baron Ferrers of Chartley, created 1st Earl Ferrers (20 October 1650 – 25 December 1717) was an English peer

Peerage

The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...

 and courtier

Courtier

A courtier is a person who is often in attendance at the court of a king or other royal personage. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the residence of the monarch, and social and political life were often completely mixed together...

.

Shirley was the third son of Sir Robert Shirley, 4th Baronet and his wife, Catherine. In 1669, he inherited his baronetcy from his infant nephew and in 1677, he was confirmed as Baron Ferrers of Chartley

Baron Ferrers of Chartley

The title Baron Ferrers of Chartley was created on February 6, 1299 for John de Ferrers, son of Robert de Ferrers, 6th Earl of Derby. The daughter of the 6th Baron Ferrers of Chartley, Anne, married Walter Devereux who was summoned to parliament as Lord Ferrers in her right. Their descendants...

 after the title became abeyant on the death of his kinsman, Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex

Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex

Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex was an English Parliamentarian and soldier during the first half of the seventeenth century. With the start of the English Civil War in 1642 he became the first Captain-General and Chief Commander of the Parliamentarian army, also known as the Roundheads...

.

From 1682-85, Lord Ferrers was Master of the Horse

Master of the Horse

The Master of the Horse was a position of varying importance in several European nations.-Magister Equitum :...

 to the Queen consort

Queen consort

A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king. A queen consort usually shares her husband's rank and holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles. Historically, queens consort do not share the king regnant's political and military powers. Most queens in history were queens consort...

, Catherine of Braganza

Catherine of Braganza

Catherine of Braganza was a Portuguese infanta and queen consort of England, Scotland and Ireland as the wife of King Charles II.She married the king in 1662...

 and her Lord Steward

Lord Steward

The Lord Steward or Lord Steward of the Household, in England, is an important official of the Royal Household. He is always a peer. Until 1924, he was always a member of the Government...

 from 1685 until her death in 1705. From 1685-86, he was Colonel

Colonel

Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

 of The Princess Anne of Denmark's Regiment of Foot, Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire

Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire

This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant for Staffordshire. Since 1828, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Staffordshire.-Lord Lieutenants of Staffordshire:*Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford 1559...

 from 1687-89 and was admitted to the Privy Council

Privy council

A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...

 in 1689.

In 1711, Lord Ferrers was created Earl Ferrers. On his death six years later, his earldom passed to his second (but eldest surviving) son, whilst his barony passed to his granddaughter, Elizabeth

Elizabeth Compton, Countess of Northampton

Elizabeth Compton, Countess of Northampton , suo jure 14th Baroness Ferrers of Chartley, was a British peeress....

, her father and elder brother having predeceased Lord Ferrers in 1698 and 1714, respectively.

Family

On 28 December 1671, Lord Ferrers married the heiress, Elizabeth Washington (d. 1693) and they had four sons:

• Hon. Robert (1673–1698)
• Hon. Washington, later 2nd Earl Ferrers (1677–1729)
• Hon. Henry, later 3rd Earl Ferrers (1691–1745)
• Hon. Laurence (1693–1743), father of the 4th
  Laurence Shirley, 4th Earl Ferrers
  Laurence Shirley, 4th Earl Ferrers was the last member of the House of Lords hanged in England.The 4th Earl Ferrers, descendant of an ancient and noble family, was the eldest son of Hon. Laurence Ferrers, himself a younger son of the Robert Shirley, 1st Earl Ferrers-a descendant of Robert...
  
  , 5th
  Washington Shirley, 5th Earl Ferrers
  Vice Admiral Washington Shirley, 5th Earl Ferrers, FRS was a British Royal Navy officer, peer, freemason and amateur astronomer.-Biography:...
  
   and 6th Earl Ferrers.

In 1699, Lord Ferrers married Selina Finch and they had four children:

• Hon. George (1705–1787)
• Hon. Sewallis (d. 1765), married Margaret Walpole, Countess of Orford.
• Lady Anne (d. 1779), married Sir Robert Furnese, 2nd Baronet
  Sir Robert Furnese, 2nd Baronet
  Sir Robert Furnese, 2nd Baronet was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1708 to 1733.Furnese was the son of Sir Henry Furnese, 1st Baronet, of Gunnersbury House, and his first wife Anne Brough, daughter of Robert Brough.In 1708 Furnese was elected MP for Truro and held the...
  
  .
• Lady Selina, married Peter Bathurst.

See also

List of deserters from James II to William of Orange

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