Earl of Ely
Encyclopedia
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,...
for members of the Loftus family. This family descended from Nicholas Loftus, who was raised to the Peerage of Ireland as Baron Loftus, of Loftus Hall
Loftus Hall
Loftus Hall is a large mansion house on the Hook peninsula, County Wexford, Ireland that is said to have been haunted both by the devil and by the ghost of a young woman....
in the County of Wexford
County Wexford
County Wexford is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wexford. In pre-Norman times it was part of the Kingdom of Uí Cheinnselaig, whose capital was at Ferns. Wexford County Council is the local...
, in 1751. In 1756 he was further honoured when he was made Viscount Loftus, of Ely in the County of Wicklow
County Wicklow
County Wicklow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wicklow, which derives from the Old Norse name Víkingalág or Wykynlo. Wicklow County Council is the local authority for the county...
. He was succeeded by his son, Nicholas, the second Viscount
Nicholas Hume-Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely
Nicholas Hume-Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely PC was a British peer and member of the House of Lords. He represented the constituency of Fethard, County Wexford, Ireland....
. He had previously represented Fethard 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...
. In 1766 he was created Earl of Ely in the Peerage of Ireland. Lord Ely assumed the additional surname of Hume. He was succeeded by his son, Nicholas, the second Earl
Nicholas Hume-Loftus, 2nd Earl of Ely
Nicholas Hume-Loftus, 2nd Earl of Ely was a British peer and member of the House of Lords, briefly styled Viscount Loftus in October 1766. He represented the constituencies of Fethard, County Wexford and Bannow, Ireland.He became earl of Ely on the death of his father, Nicholas Hume-Loftus, 1st...
. He represented both Fethard and Bannow
Bannow (Parliament of Ireland constituency)
Bannow was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons to 1800.- Boundaries and Boundary Changes :This constituency was the borough of Bannow in County Wexford.-History:...
in the Irish Parliament.
The earldom became extinct on his early death in 1769 while he was succeeded in the barony and viscountcy by his uncle, Henry, the fourth Viscount
Henry Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely
Henry Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely KP, PC , styled The Honourable from 1751 to 1769 and known as Henry Loftus, 4th Viscount Loftus from 1769 to 1771, was an Irish peer and politician....
. He represented Bannow and County Wexford in the Irish House of Commons. In 1771 the earldom was revived when he was created Earl of Ely in the Peerage of Ireland. However, all three titles became extinct on his death in 1783. He devised his estates to his nephew Charles Tottenham
Charles Loftus, 1st Marquess of Ely
Charles Tottenham Loftus, 1st Marquess of Ely KP, PC was an Irish peer and politician.Born Charles Tottenham, he assumed the surname of Loftus in 1783, after inheriting the estates of his uncle Henry Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely. He represented Fethard in the Irish House of Commons from 1776 to 1783...
, who assumed the surname of Loftus in lieu of his patronymic and was created Baron Loftus in 1789, Viscount Loftus in 1789, Earl of Ely in 1794 and Marquess of Ely
Marquess of Ely
Marquess of Ely, of the County of Wexford, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1800 for Charles Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely. He was born Charles Tottenham, the son of John Tottenham, who had been created a Baronet, of Tottenham Green in the County of Wexford, in the Baronetage of...
in 1800. See the latter title for more information on these peerages.
The title refers to Ely in County Wicklow
County Wicklow
County Wicklow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wicklow, which derives from the Old Norse name Víkingalág or Wykynlo. Wicklow County Council is the local authority for the county...
, not to the City of Ely
Ely, Cambridgeshire
Ely is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about by road from London. It is built on a Lower Greensand island, which at a maximum elevation of is the highest land in the Fens...
in Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
, and the second syllable is pronounced to rhyme with "lie" rather than "lee" (and so the title is pronounced in the same way as the first name Eli
Eli (name)
The given name Eli has several origins. All masculine names are derived from Hebrew:# with spelling , a reference to Eli, the high priest in the Books of Samuel. Traditional English-speaking Christian uses of the name are generally based on this Eli...
).
Viscounts Loftus (1756)
- Nicholas Loftus, 1st Viscount Loftus (c. 1687–1763)
- Nicholas Hume-Loftus, 2nd Viscount LoftusNicholas Hume-Loftus, 1st Earl of ElyNicholas Hume-Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely PC was a British peer and member of the House of Lords. He represented the constituency of Fethard, County Wexford, Ireland....
(d. 1766) (created Earl of Ely in 1766)
Earls of Ely; First creation (1766)
- Nicholas Hume-Loftus, 1st Earl of ElyNicholas Hume-Loftus, 1st Earl of ElyNicholas Hume-Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely PC was a British peer and member of the House of Lords. He represented the constituency of Fethard, County Wexford, Ireland....
(d. 1766) - Nicholas Hume-Loftus, 2nd Earl of ElyNicholas Hume-Loftus, 2nd Earl of ElyNicholas Hume-Loftus, 2nd Earl of Ely was a British peer and member of the House of Lords, briefly styled Viscount Loftus in October 1766. He represented the constituencies of Fethard, County Wexford and Bannow, Ireland.He became earl of Ely on the death of his father, Nicholas Hume-Loftus, 1st...
(1738–1769)
Viscounts Loftus (1756; Reverted)
- Henry Loftus, 4th Viscount LoftusHenry Loftus, 1st Earl of ElyHenry Loftus, 1st Earl of Ely KP, PC , styled The Honourable from 1751 to 1769 and known as Henry Loftus, 4th Viscount Loftus from 1769 to 1771, was an Irish peer and politician....
(1709–1783) (created Earl of Ely in 1771)