The Fitton Baronetcy, of Gawsworth

Gawsworth

Gawsworth is a civil parish and village in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is one of the eight ancient parishes of Macclesfield Hundred. Twenty acres of the civil parish were transferred to Macclesfield civil parish in 1936The country houses...

 in the County of Chester

Cheshire

Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...

, was a title in the Baronetage of England. It was created on 2 October 1617 by James I

James I of England

James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...

 for Edward Fitton, of Gawsworth Hall, Gawsworth, Cheshire. The Fitton family were settled in Gawsworth from about the 13th century. The first Baronet's ancestors included Sir Edward Fitton (1500-1553), High Sheriff of Cheshire

High Sheriff of Cheshire

The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities associated with the post have been transferred elsewhere or are now defunct, so that its functions...

 in 1544 and Sir Edward Fitton (1527-1579), Treasurer of Ireland and President of Connaught. His father Sir Edward Fitton (1548-1606) was an unsuccessful colonist of Munster

Munster

Munster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the south of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial purposes...

. His sister Mary Fitton

Mary Fitton

Mary Fitton was the daughter of Sir Edward Fitton of Gawsworth, Cheshire and Alice Halcroft, and is considered by some to be the "Dark Lady" of Shakespeare's sonnets. Her elder sister, Anne, married John Newdigate in 1587, at the age of fourteen...

 was Maid of Honour to Elizabeth I

Elizabeth I of England

Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...

.

The second Baronet, High Sheriff

High Sheriff

A high sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement officer in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.In England and Wales, the office is unpaid and partly ceremonial, appointed by the Crown through a warrant from the Privy Council. In Cornwall, the High Sheriff is appointed by the Duke of...

 in 1633, was an officer in the service of Charles II

Charles II of England

Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...

 and was briefly Governor of Bristol following that city's fall during the English Civil War

English Civil War

The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...

. The baronetcy became extinct on his death in 1643. He left his estate by his will of 1641 to his Irish cousin William Fitton of Awne (grandson of Sir Edward Fitton, Treasurer of Ireland) to the exclusion of his seven sisters and their husbands. The will was disputed and lengthy legal proceedings followed involving Alexander Fitton

Alexander Fitton

Sir Alexander Fitton sometimes known as Baron Gawsworth, was an Irish barrister who became Lord Chancellor of Ireland despite having spent many years in prison.- Family and early career :...

, Lord Chancellor of Ireland (son of William) and Charles Gerard, Baron Gerard

Baron Gerard

There have been three baronies created for descendants of the Gerard family who resided at Bryn, Ashton in Makerfield, Lancashire and Kingsley, Cheshire in the 13th century....

, son of Penelope Fitton eldest daughter of the first Baronet. Settlement in 1663 passed the estate to Gerard, who was later created Earl of Macclesfield

Earl of Macclesfield

Earl of Macclesfield is a title that has been created twice. The first creation came in the Peerage of England in 1679 in favour of the soldier and politician Charles Gerard, 1st Baron Gerard...

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Fitton Baronets, of Gawsworth (1617)

• Sir Edward Fitton, 1st Baronet (1572-1619)
• Sir Edward Fitton, 2nd Baronet (1603-1643)