Peerage of the United Kingdom
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The Peerage of the United Kingdom is one of the five peerages in the United Kingdom. It comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Acts of Union in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great Britain. New peers continued to be created in the Peerage of Ireland until 1898 (the last creation was the Barony of Curzon of Kedleston).
The House of Lords Act 1999 reformed the House of Lords. Until then, all peers of the United Kingdom were automatically members of the House of Lords. However, from that date, most of the hereditary peers ceased to be members, whereas the life peers retained their seats. All hereditary peers of the first creation (i.e. those for whom a peerage was originally created, as opposed to those who inherited a peerage), and all surviving hereditary peers who had served as Leader of the House of Lords, were offered a life peerage to allow them to continue to sit in the House, should they wish.
Peers in the Peerage of Scotland and Peerage of Ireland did not have an automatic seat in the House of Lords following the Acts of Union of 1707 and 1800, though the law permitted a limited number to be elected by their fellows to serve in the House of Lords as representative peers.[a] Some peerages of the United Kingdom were created to get around this obstacle and allow certain Scottish and Irish peers to enjoy the automatic right to sit in the House of Lords.[b][3][4][5][6]
Ranks
[edit]The ranks of the peerage are duke, marquess, earl, viscount, and baron.[7]
The last non-royal dukedom was created in 1874, and the last marquessate was created in 1936. Creation of the remaining ranks, except baronies for life, mostly ceased once Harold Wilson's Labour government took office in 1964, and only thirteen (nine non-royal and four royal) people have been created hereditary peers since then. These were:
| Grantee | Date of creation | Title(s) | Noted for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reginald Manningham-Buller, The 1st Baron Dilhorne | 7 December 1964 | Viscount Dilhorne | Former Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain |
| Robert Grimston, Bt. | 11 December 1964 | Baron Grimston of Westbury | Former Member of Parliament |
| Frederick Erroll | 19 December 1964 (extinct 2000) | Baron Erroll of Hale | Former Cabinet Minister |
| Robert Renwick, Bt. | 23 December 1964 | Baron Renwick | — |
| Michael Hughes-Young | 31 December 1964 | Baron St Helens | Former Member of Parliament |
| John Morrison | 1 January 1965 | Baron Margadale | Former Chairman of the 1922 Committee |
| William Whitelaw | 16 June 1983 (extinct 1999) | Viscount Whitelaw | Former Home Secretary |
| George Thomas | 11 July 1983 (extinct 1997) | Viscount Tonypandy | Former Speaker of the House of Commons |
| Harold Macmillan | 24 February 1984 | Earl of Stockton Viscount Macmillan of Ovenden |
Former Prime Minister |
| Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor Formerly Prince Andrew |
23 July 1986 | Duke of York Earl of Inverness Baron Killyleagh |
Second son of Queen Elizabeth II on his wedding day |
| In October 2025, amid controversy surrounding Andrew's ties to child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Buckingham Palace announced that Charles III had started a "formal process" to remove his brother's style, titles, and honours. Andrew's name was removed from the Roll of the Peerage the same day.[8] This did not revoke his peerages, which can only be done by act of Parliament and not personally through the Sovereign's prerogatives, but means he is no longer entitled to any place in the orders of precedence derived from them and that he will cease to be addressed or referred to by any title derived from his peerages in public life, as well as official documents.[9][10] | |||
| Prince Edward | 19 June 1999 | Earl of Wessex Viscount Severn |
Third son of Queen Elizabeth II on his wedding day |
| 10 March 2019 | Earl of Forfar | On his 55th birthday (used by the Earl and his wife as their primary title when they are in Scotland)[11] | |
| On 10 March 2023 he was further created Duke of Edinburgh, the title held by his father during lifetime. This 2023 creation however is non-hereditary, i.e. 'for life' by his elder brother King Charles III.[12] | |||
| Prince William | 29 April 2011 | Duke of Cambridge Earl of Strathearn Baron Carrickfergus |
First son of then-Charles, Prince of Wales on his wedding day |
| Prince Harry | 18 May 2018 | Duke of Sussex Earl of Dumbarton Baron Kilkeel |
Second son of then-Charles, Prince of Wales on his wedding day |
Dukes in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
[edit]- Subsidiary title.
| Shield | Title | Creation | Grantee | Reason | Monarch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
11 May 1814 |  Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Wellington |
Military Peerage–Army | The Prince Regent on behalf of King George III | |
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28 January 1833 |  George Leveson-Gower, Marquess of Stafford |
— | King William IV | |
 |
27 February 1874 | Hugh Grosvenor, Marquess of Westminster |
— | Queen Victoria | |
 |
13 January 1876 |  Charles Gordon-Lennox, Duke of Richmond |
Incumbent cabinet minister | ||
 |
24 May 1881 | Prince Leopold | Currently suspended | ||
 |
7 April 1892 |  George Campbell, Duke of Argyll |
Former cabinet minister and father-in-law of Princess Louise daughter of Queen Victoria | ||
 |
24 April 1900 | Alexander Duff, Earl of Fife |
Son-in-law of the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII)[c] | ||
  |
31 March 1928 |  Prince Henry |
On his 28th birthday | King George V | |
 |
12 October 1934 |  Prince George |
In anticipation of his forthcoming marriage to Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark | ||
  |
23 July 1986 |  Prince Andrew |
On his wedding day to Sarah Ferguson. Currently suspended | Queen Elizabeth II | |
  |
29 April 2011 |  Prince William of Wales |
On his wedding day to Catherine Middleton | ||
 |
18 May 2018 |  Prince Harry of Wales |
On his wedding day to Meghan Markle | ||
 |
10 March 2023 |  Prince Edward |
On his 59th birthday, (Title not hereditary, it will become extinct on his death) | King Charles III |
Marquesses (United Kingdom)
[edit]- Subsidiary title.
Earls (United Kingdom)
[edit]- Subsidiary title.
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Viscounts (United Kingdom)
[edit]- Subsidiary title.
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Hereditary barons (United Kingdom)
[edit]- Subsidiary title.
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Extinct peerages since the Passage of the House of Lords Act 1999
[edit]Extinct dukedoms
[edit]| Shield | Title | Creation | Extinct | Grantee | Reason | Monarch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
20 November 1947 | 8 September 2022 (Merged with the Crown) |
 Philip Mountbatten |
On his wedding day to Princess Elizabeth | King George VI |
Extinct earldoms
[edit]| Shield | Title | Creation | Extinct | Grantee | Reason | Monarch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
  |
4 June 1831 | 30 December 2000 | George FitzClarence | [note 1] | King William IV | |
 |
30 June 1838 | 31 January 2018 | William King-Noel, Baron King |
— | Queen Victoria | |
 |
19 January 1898 | 31 December 2010 | Hardinge Giffard, Baron Halsbury[note 70] |
Incumbent Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain | ||
 |
27 July 1914 | 16 December 2011 | Herbert Kitchener, Viscount Kitchener of Khartoum[note 71] |
Military Peerage–Army[note 1] | King George V |
Extinct viscountcies
[edit]
Extinct baronies
[edit]| Shield | Title | Creation | Extinct | Grantee | Reason | Monarch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
  |
Baron Lawrence | 3 April 1869 | 14 August 2023 |  John Lawrence, Bt. |
Former Viceroy of India | Queen Victoria |
 |
Baron Deramore | 18 November 1885 | 20 August 2006 | Thomas Bateson, Bt. |
Former Member of Parliament for the Conservative Party[note 1] | |
 |
Baron Herschell | 8 February 1886 | 26 October 2008 | Farrer Herschell | Incumbent Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain | |
 |
Baron Lyell | 4 July 1914 | 11 January 2017 | Leonard Lyell, Bt. |
Former Member of Parliament for the Liberal Party | King George V |
 |
Baron Melchett | 15 June 1928 | 29 August 2018 | Alfred Mond, Bt. |
Former cabinet minister | |
 |
Baron Sysonby | 24 June 1935 | 23 October 2009 | Frederick Ponsonby[note 76] | — | |
|
Baron Wardington | 17 July 1936 | 19 March 2019 | Beaumont Pease | Chairman of Lloyds Bank | King Edward VIII |
 |
Baron Chatfield | 4 June 1937 | 30 September 2007 | Ernle Chatfield | Military Peerage–Navy | King George VI |
 |
Baron Birdwood | 25 January 1938 | 11 July 2015 | William Birdwood, Bt. |
Military Peerage–Army | |
 |
Baron Belstead | 27 January 1938 | 3 December 2005 | John Ganzoni, Bt. |
Former Member of Parliament for the Conservative Party | |
 |
Baron Balfour of Inchrye | 5 July 1945 | 14 April 2013 | Harold Balfour | ||
 |
Baron Broughshane | 19 September 1945 | 24 March 2006 | William Davison | ||
 |
Baron Wilson | 12 March 1946 | 1 February 2009 | Henry Maitland Wilson | Military Peerage–Army | |
 |
Baron Citrine | 16 July 1946 | 5 August 2006 | Walter Citrine | Incumbent General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress | |
|
Baron Macdonald of Gwaenysgor | 13 April 1949 | 27 January 2002 | Gordon Macdonald | Former Governor of Newfoundland | |
|
Baron Greenhill | 8 July 1950 | 13 January 2020 | Ernest Greenhill | — | |
|
Baron Strang | 16 January 1954 | 19 December 2014 | William Strang | — | Queen Elizabeth II |
|
Baron Gladwyn | 12 April 1960 | 15 August 2017 | Gladwyn Jebb | Former Ambassador to France | |
 |
Baron Erroll of Hale | 19 December 1964 | 14 September 2000 | Frederick Erroll | Former cabinet minister |
Current titles without heirs
[edit]Current UK Peers
[edit]Current Scottish and Irish peers with British titles
[edit]| Title | Imperial Title | Monarch | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earl | |||
 Earl of Arran |
Baron Sudley | Queen Victoria | Heirs to the Earldom of Arran (Ireland, 1762) |
| Earl of Clancarty |
Viscount Clancarty | King George IV | |
| Baron Trench | The Prince Regent | ||
| Viscount | |||
| Viscount Powerscourt |
Baron Powerscourt | Queen Victoria | Heirs to the Viscountcy of Powerscourt (Ireland, 1744) |
| Baron | |||
| Baron Rossmore |
Baron Rossmore | Queen Victoria | — |
Peerages in remainder to other Peerages
[edit]- Subsidiary title.
Titles
[edit]Marquesses, earls, viscounts and barons are all addressed as 'Lord X', where 'X' represents either their territory or surname pertaining to their title. Marchionesses, countesses, viscountesses and baronesses are all addressed as 'Lady X'. Dukes and duchesses are addressed just as 'Duke' or 'Duchess' or, in a non-social context, 'Your Grace'
Lists of peers
[edit]- 30 Dukes: see List of dukes in the peerages of Britain and Ireland
- 34 Marquesses: see List of marquesses in the peerages of Britain and Ireland
- 189 Earls and countesses: see List of earls in the peerages of Britain and Ireland
- 110 Viscounts: see List of viscounts in the peerages of Britain and Ireland
- 443 Hereditary Barons: see List of barons in the peerages of Britain and Ireland
- Women: see List of peerages created for women and List of peerages inherited by women
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ↑ The Peerage Act 1963 gave Scottish Peers an automatic right to sit in the Lords[1]
- ↑ Following the establishment of the Irish Free State in December 1922, Irish peers ceased to elect representatives, although those already elected continued to have the right to serve for life; the last of the temporal peers, Francis Needham, 4th Earl of Kilmorey, by chance a peer from an Ulster family, died in 1961[2]
- ↑ Originally created for Alexander Duff, Earl of Fife on his wedding day to Princess Louise of Wales on 29 July 1889[note 1]
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 Current Peerage with Special Remainder according to the link
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Scottish Representative Peer
- ↑ 3rd son of William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire
- ↑ 2nd son of George Leveson-Gower, 1st Duke of Sutherland
- ↑ 3rd son of John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford
- ↑ 4th son of Garret Wesley, 1st Earl of Mornington
- ↑ 2nd son of Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Marquess of Stafford
- ↑ 2nd son of Henry Trevor, 21st Baron Dacre
- ↑ 2nd son of Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer
- ↑ Grandson of William Lowther, 1st Earl of Lonsdale
- ↑ Grandson of George Bridgeman, 2nd Earl of Bradford
- ↑ Eldest son of Walter Runciman, 1st Baron Runciman
- ↑ 3rd son of James Alexander, 4th Earl of Caledon
- ↑ 2nd son of Louis Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Milford Haven
- ↑ Grandson of George Lyttelton, 4th Baron Lyttelton
- ↑ 2nd son of David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor
- ↑ 3rd son of Morton Gray Stuart, 17th Earl of Moray
- ↑ 3rd son of Richard Hare, 4th Earl of Listowel
- ↑ 3rd son of Henry Erskine, 10th Earl of Buchan
- ↑ Grandson of John Manners, 3rd Duke of Rutland
- ↑ Eldest son of John Hope, 2nd Earl of Hopetoun
- ↑ 2nd son of John Hope, 2nd Earl of Hopetoun
- ↑ 3rd son of Robert Stewart, 1st Marquess of Londonderry
- ↑ 3rd son of George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough
- ↑ Grandson of John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute
- ↑ 7th son of Garret Wesley, 1st Earl of Mornington
- ↑ The Barony of Kilmarnock remained a subsidiary title of the Earldom of Erroll until the death in 1941 of the eighteenth Earl's great-great-grandson, the twenty-second Earl. The earldom, which could be passed on through female lines, was inherited by the late Earl's daughter and only child, the twenty-third Countess. The barony of Kilmarnock, which could only be passed on to male heirs, was inherited by the Earl's younger brother, the sixth Baron. He assumed the surname of Boyd in lieu of Hay the same year he succeeded to the title[13][14]
- ↑ 8th son of Charles Cadogan, 1st Earl Cadogan
- ↑ Grandson of Arthur Chichester, 1st Marquess of Donegall
- ↑ Eldest son of Edward Smith-Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby
- ↑ Eldest son of Frederick Ponsonby, 3rd Earl of Bessborough
- ↑ Great-Grandson of George Byng, 1st Viscount Torrington
- ↑ 3rd son of Frederick Ponsonby, 3rd Earl of Bessborough
- ↑ Eldest son of Archibald Acheson, 2nd Earl of Gosford
- ↑ Eldest son of John Stanley, 1st Baron Stanley of Alderley
- ↑ 3rd son of Henry Conyngham, 1st Marquess Conyngham
- ↑ 9th son of Henry Somerset, 5th Duke of Beaufort
- ↑ 3rd son of Robert Grosvenor, 1st Marquess of Westminster
- ↑ 4th son of George Cavendish, 1st Earl of Burlington
- ↑ 4th son of George Herbert, 11th Earl of Pembroke
- ↑ Grandson of James Douglas, 14th Earl of Morton
- ↑ A descendant of Edward Chichester, 1st Viscount Chichester
- ↑ 2nd son of Henry Howard, 13th Duke of Norfolk
- ↑ Eldest son of Augustus FitzGerald, 3rd Duke of Leinster
- ↑ 4th son of George Sackville-West, 5th Earl De La Warr
- ↑ 3rd son of Arthur Hill, 3rd Marquess of Downshire
- ↑ Grandson of John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford
- ↑ The Barony was a subsidiary title of the earldom until the death of the ninth Earl's grandson, the eleventh Earl, in 1915. The earldom, which could be passed on to female heirs, was inherited by the Earl's daughter and only child, the twelfth Countess. The barony of Strathspey, which could only be inherited by males, were passed on to the Earl's brother, the fourth Baron[15]
- ↑ 2nd son of Walter Montagu Douglas Scott, 5th Duke of Buccleuch
- ↑ 2nd son of Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby
- ↑ Eldest son of Ivor Guest, 1st Baron Wimborne
- ↑ 2nd son of Charles Hardinge, 2nd Viscount Hardinge
- ↑ 2nd son of Thomas Cochrane, 11th Earl of Dundonald
- ↑ 4th son of Charles Wood, 2nd Viscount Halifax
- ↑ Great-Grandson of Frederick Ponsonby, 3rd Earl of Bessborough
- ↑ A descendant of Henry Howard, 22nd Earl of Arundel, in remainder of the Duke of Norfolk
- ↑ 3rd son of Edward Guinness, 1st Earl of Iveagh
- ↑ Great-Grandson of John Hope, 2nd Earl of Hopetoun
- ↑ Grandson of James Gascoyne-Cecil, 2nd Marquess of Salisbury
- ↑ 2nd son of Walter Hore-Ruthven, 9th Lord Ruthven of Freeland
- ↑ Great-Grandson of William Kerr, 6th Marquess of Lothian
- ↑ 2nd son of Thomas Pakenham, 5th Earl of Longford
- ↑ 3rd son of Alfred Lawrence, 1st Baron Trevethin
- ↑ 3rd son of Edward O'Neill, 2nd Baron O'Neill
- ↑ 3rd son of Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer
- ↑ Eldest son of Edward Scawen Wyndham, 5th Baron Leconfield
- ↑ A descendant of Gilbert Vane, 2nd Baron Barnard
- ↑ 2nd son of Victor Hope, 2nd Marquess of Linlithgow
- ↑ Grandson of James Grimston, 2nd Earl of Verulam
- ↑ Created Baron Halsbury on 26 June 1885.
- ↑ Created Viscount Kitchener of Khartoum on 11 July 1902.
- ↑ Created Baron Gough on 7 April 1846.
- ↑ Created Baron Leverhulme on 21 June 1917.
- ↑ Created Baron Greenwood on 31 August 1929.
- ↑ Created Baron Alanbrooke on 18 September 1945.
- ↑ Great-Grandson of Frederick Ponsonby, 3rd Earl of Bessborough
References
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ↑ "Peerage Act 1963". www.parliament.uk.
- ↑ Gadd, R.P. "A short account of the peerage of Ireland". The Heraldry Society. Retrieved 18 January 2013.
- ↑ May, Thomas Erskine (1851). A practical treatise on the law, privileges, proceedings and usage of Parliament. Butterworths. pp. 6–8, 15. Retrieved 18 January 2013.
- ↑ Price, Jacob M (December 1961). "The Sixteen Peers of Scotland: An Account of the Elections of the Representative Peers of Scotland, 1707–1959 by James Fergusson". The Journal of Modern History. 33 (4): 439. doi:10.1086/238935.
- ↑ Malcomson 2000 p.312; "(40 Geo. 4 c.39 [Ir.]) An Act to regulate the Mode by which the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and the Commons to Serve in the United Kingdom on the Part of Ireland, shall be summoned and returned to the said Parliament". The statutes at large, passed in the Parliaments held in Ireland. Vol. 20. Dublin: Boulter Grierson. 12 June 1800. pp. 349–358.
- ↑ May, Erskine (1862). The Constitutional History of England since the Accession of George III 1760–1860. Boston: Crosby & Nichols. p. 228.
- ↑ "The Dukes of the Peerage of the United Kingdom". Archived from the original on 12 May 2008. Retrieved 11 May 2008.
- ↑ "Roll of the Peerage" (PDF). College of Arms. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
- ↑ "No. 64895". The London Gazette. 6 November 2025. p. 21342.
- ↑ Torrance, David (12 March 2026). "The removal of titles and honours". House of Commons Library. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
- ↑ "New title for the Earl of Wessex". The Royal Family. 10 March 2019.
- ↑ "No. 63995". The London Gazette. 15 March 2023. p. 4994.
- ↑ "Gilbert Alan (6th Baron Kilmarnock) Boyd (Previously Hay) b. 15 Jan 1903 d. 15 Mar 1975: The Douglas Archives". www.douglashistory.co.uk. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
- ↑ "Gilbert Allan Rowland Boyd, 6th Baron Kilmarnock - Person - National Portrait Gallery". www.npg.org.uk. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
- ↑ "Death of Lord Seafield". The Evening Post. 7 January 1916. p. 3. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
Sources
[edit]- The Roll of the Peerage, The Crown Office, Ministry of Justice