Thomas Littleton Powys, 4th Baron Lilford
Encyclopedia
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
aristocrat
Aristocracy
Aristocracy , is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted with monarchy...
and ornithologist
Ornithology
Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and the aesthetic appeal of birds...
.
Lilford was the eldest son of Thomas Powys, 3rd Baron Lilford
Thomas Powys, 3rd Baron Lilford
Thomas Atherton Powys, 3rd Baron Lilford , was a British peer and Whig politician.Lilford was the son of Thomas Powys, 2nd Baron Lilford, and Henrietta Maria Atherton of Atherton Hall. He succeeded his father as second Baron in 1825...
, and Hon. Mary Elizabeth Fox, daughter of Henry Vassall-Fox, 3rd Baron Holland
Henry Vassall-Fox, 3rd Baron Holland
Henry Richard Vassall-Fox, 3rd Baron Holland PC was an English politician and a major figure in Whig politics in the early 19th century...
. He succeeded his father as fourth Baron in 1861. Lilford was one of the eight founders of the British Ornithologists' Union
British Ornithologists' Union
The British Ornithologists' Union aims to encourage the study of birds in Britain, Europe and elsewhere, in order to understand their biology and to aid their conservation....
in 1858 and its President from 1867 until his death. He was also the first President of the Northamptonshire Natural History Society.
Lilford travelled widely, especially in the Mediterranean Region and his extensive collection of birds was maintained in the grounds of his main residence at Lilford Hall
Lilford Hall
Lilford Hall is a Grade 1 listed stately 100-room home having a Jacobean exterior and Georgian interior with a floor area, located in the eastern part of the County of Northamptonshire in the United Kingdom, south of Oundle and north of Thrapston. A Grade 1 listed building is considered by the UK...
, his second residence being the Jacobean mansion of Bank Hall
Bank Hall
Bank Hall is a Jacobean mansion south of the village of Bretherton in Lancashire, England. It is a Grade II* Listed Building. The hall was built on the site of a previous building in 1608 during the reign of James I by the Banastre family who were Lords of the Manor. It was extended during the 18th...
in Bretherton
Bretherton
Bretherton is a small village and civil parish in the Borough of Chorley, Lancashire, England situated to the south west of Leyland and east of Tarleton. Its name suggests pre-conquest origins and its early history was closely involved with the manor house Bank Hall and the families who lived there...
, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, which he inherited from his father (3rd Baron Lilford), who had inherited the Bank Hall Estate from George Anthony Legh Keck
George Anthony Legh Keck
Lt.Col. George Anthony Legh Keck was born in 1784 at Stoughton, Leicestershire and was the son of Anthony James Keck and his wife Elizabeth . George Anthony Legh Keck was a member of the Legh family that lived at Lyme Hall at Lyme Park, Cheshire. His wife Elizabeth from Atherton Hall in Atherton...
a year before. Until 1891, his aviaries featured birds from around the globe, including rhea
Rhea (bird)
The rheas are ratites in the genus Rhea, native to South America. There are two existing species: the Greater or American Rhea and the Lesser or Darwin's Rhea. The genus name was given in 1752 by Paul Möhring and adopted as the English common name. Möhring's reason for choosing this name, from the...
s, kiwis, Pink-headed Duck
Pink-headed Duck
The Pink-headed Duck is a large diving duck that was once found in parts of the Gangetic plains of India, Bangladesh and in the riverine swamps of Myanmar but feared extinct since the 1950s. Numerous searches have failed to provide any proof of continued existence...
s and even a pair of free-flying Lammergeier
Lammergeier
The Lammergeier, Lammergeyer, or Bearded Vulture, Gypaetus barbatus , is the only member of the genus Gypaetus. Traditionally considered an Old World vulture, it actually forms a minor lineage of Accipitridae together with the Egyptian Vulture , its closest living relative...
s. He was responsible for the introduction of the Little Owl
Little Owl
The Little Owl is a bird which is resident in much of the temperate and warmer parts of Europe, Asia east to Korea, and north Africa. It is not native to Great Britain, but was first introduced in 1842, and is now naturalised there...
into England in the 1880s.
He also wrote about birds. His books included Notes on the Birds of Northamptonshire and Neighbourhood (1895) and Coloured Figures of the Birds of the British Islands, which was completed by Osbert Salvin
Osbert Salvin
Osbert Salvin FRS was an English naturalist, best known for co-authoring Biologia Centrali-Americana with Frederick DuCane Godman. This was a 52 volume encyclopedia on the natural history of Central America....
after his death.
Lord Lilford married, firstly, Emma Elizabeth Brandling, daughter of Robert William Brandling, in 1859. After her death in 1884 he married, secondly, Clementina, daughter of Ker Baillie-Hamilton, in 1885. He died in June 1896, aged 63, and was succeeded in the barony by his eldest son from his first marriage, John. Lady Lilford died in 1929. A metal plaque commemorating a "Cedar of Atlantica" planted by Lady Lilford in 1897, was found at Bank Hall
Bank Hall
Bank Hall is a Jacobean mansion south of the village of Bretherton in Lancashire, England. It is a Grade II* Listed Building. The hall was built on the site of a previous building in 1608 during the reign of James I by the Banastre family who were Lords of the Manor. It was extended during the 18th...
by a member of the Bank Hall Action Group
Bank Hall Action Group
The Bank Hall Action Group is a voluntary group which aims to raise public awareness and secure the future restoration of Bank Hall, a Jacobean mansion house near the banks of the River Douglas, in Bretherton, Lancashire....
in 2005 and is now on display in the Visitor Centre at Bank Hall.