Titles Deprivation Act 1917
Encyclopedia
The Titles Deprivation Act 1917 is an Act of Parliament
of the United Kingdom
which authorised enemies of the United Kingdom during the First World War
to be deprived of their British peerage
s and royal titles.
, married Frederick III, German Emperor
. Thus George V
was a first cousin of William II, German Emperor
and of Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
. A more distant relative was Ernest Augustus, Crown Prince of Hanover, who was descended in the male line from George III
and thus was a Prince of Great Britain & Ireland.
Many members of the German royal families enjoyed British royal or noble titles, leading to a call for the deprivation of their titles during the First World War. In Parliament, beginning on November 18, 1914, Swift MacNeill
, Member of Parliament for South Donegal
, condemning the Dukes of Albany and Cumberland as traitors and demanding to know "what steps will be taken to secure that (they) shall no longer retain United Kingdom peerages and titles and a seat in the House of Lords." MacNeil continued his campaign until losing his seat after the 1918 election. After MacNeill lost his seat,Horatio Bottomley
, Member for Hackney South
, took up the charge.
In 1915, several Knights of the Most Noble Order of the Garter
were struck off the Rolls of the Order; but peerage titles cannot be withdrawn except by Act of Parliament. In 1917, therefore, the Parliament passed the Titles Deprivation Act authorising the deprivation of peerage titles, as well as princely dignities.
, which was to include at least two members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
. The committee was empowered to take evidence and report the names of British peers or princes "who have, during the present war, borne arms against His Majesty or His Allies, or who have adhered to His Majesty's enemies". The report would then be laid before both Houses of Parliament; if neither House passed a motion disapproving of the report within forty days, it was to be submitted to the King, whereupon the persons named therein would lose all British dignities. Thereafter, a successor of a person thus deprived of a peerage would be allowed to petition the Crown for revival of the deprived title; the petition would be referred to a committee of the Privy Council, which would recommend whether the petitioner be reinstated or not.
Under the Act, the King appointed to the committee:
The committee was established by an Order in Council issued by the King on 27 November 1917.
The committee issued its report on 1 August 1918 and it was thereafter laid before the Houses of Parliament. Since no resolution was passed by either House disapproving of the report, it was presented to the King on 28 March 1919, and, on the same date the King issued an Order in Council depriving the following persons of their titles (The names are listed in the form given in the King's Order in Council):
No descendant of any of these four persons has ever petitioned the Crown for the revival of their titles.
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
of the United Kingdom
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...
which authorised enemies of the United Kingdom during the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
to be deprived of their British peerage
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...
s and royal titles.
Background
The British Royal Family was closely related to many of the royal and princely families of Germany. Queen Victoria married Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, whose German titles passed eventually to the descendants of their youngest son Leopold, Duke of Albany. Victoria's eldest daughter, also named VictoriaVictoria, Princess Royal
The Princess Victoria, Princess Royal was the eldest child of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom and Prince Albert. She was created Princess Royal of the United Kingdom in 1841. She became German Empress and Queen of Prussia by marriage to German Emperor Frederick III...
, married Frederick III, German Emperor
Frederick III, German Emperor
Frederick III was German Emperor and King of Prussia for 99 days in 1888, the Year of the Three Emperors. Friedrich Wilhelm Nikolaus Karl known informally as Fritz, was the only son of Emperor William I and was raised in his family's tradition of military service...
. Thus George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
was a first cousin of William II, German Emperor
William II, German Emperor
Wilhelm II was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia, ruling the German Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia from 15 June 1888 to 9 November 1918. He was a grandson of the British Queen Victoria and related to many monarchs and princes of Europe...
and of Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was the fourth and last reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, two duchies in Germany , and the head of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from 1900 until his death in 1954...
. A more distant relative was Ernest Augustus, Crown Prince of Hanover, who was descended in the male line from George III
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
and thus was a Prince of Great Britain & Ireland.
Many members of the German royal families enjoyed British royal or noble titles, leading to a call for the deprivation of their titles during the First World War. In Parliament, beginning on November 18, 1914, Swift MacNeill
J. G. Swift MacNeill
John Gordon Swift MacNeill was an Irish Protestant nationalist politician and MP, in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland for South Donegal from 1887 until 1918, Professor of Constitutional and Criminal Law at the King's Inns, Dublin, 1882–88, and Professor of...
, Member of Parliament for South Donegal
South Donegal (UK Parliament constituency)
South Donegal was a UK Parliament constituency in Ireland, returning one Member of Parliament 1885–1922.Prior to the 1885 general election the area was part of the Donegal constituency. From 1922 it was not represented in the UK Parliament....
, condemning the Dukes of Albany and Cumberland as traitors and demanding to know "what steps will be taken to secure that (they) shall no longer retain United Kingdom peerages and titles and a seat in the House of Lords." MacNeil continued his campaign until losing his seat after the 1918 election. After MacNeill lost his seat,Horatio Bottomley
Horatio Bottomley
Horatio William Bottomley was a British financier, swindler, journalist, newspaper proprietor, populist politician and Member of Parliament .-Early life:...
, Member for Hackney South
Hackney South (UK Parliament constituency)
Hackney South was a parliamentary constituency in "The Metropolis" . It was represented by nine Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, only two of whom, Horatio Bottomley and Herbert Morrison, were returned.- History :The constituency was created...
, took up the charge.
In 1915, several Knights of the Most Noble Order of the Garter
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
were struck off the Rolls of the Order; but peerage titles cannot be withdrawn except by Act of Parliament. In 1917, therefore, the Parliament passed the Titles Deprivation Act authorising the deprivation of peerage titles, as well as princely dignities.
Deprivation of Titles
The Act allowed the King to establish a committee of the Privy CouncilPrivy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
, which was to include at least two members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is one of the highest courts in the United Kingdom. Established by the Judicial Committee Act 1833 to hear appeals formerly heard by the King in Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is one of the highest courts in the United...
. The committee was empowered to take evidence and report the names of British peers or princes "who have, during the present war, borne arms against His Majesty or His Allies, or who have adhered to His Majesty's enemies". The report would then be laid before both Houses of Parliament; if neither House passed a motion disapproving of the report within forty days, it was to be submitted to the King, whereupon the persons named therein would lose all British dignities. Thereafter, a successor of a person thus deprived of a peerage would be allowed to petition the Crown for revival of the deprived title; the petition would be referred to a committee of the Privy Council, which would recommend whether the petitioner be reinstated or not.
Under the Act, the King appointed to the committee:
- The Lord FinlayRobert Finlay, 1st Viscount FinlayRobert Bannatyne Finlay, 1st Viscount Finlay GCMG, PC, QC,MD was a British lawyer, doctor and politician who became Lord Chancellor of Great Britain.-Background and education:...
(Lord ChancellorLord ChancellorThe Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
) - The Viscount SandhurstWilliam Mansfield, 1st Viscount SandhurstWilliam Mansfield, 1st Viscount Sandhurst GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, PC was a British Liberal politician and colonial governor...
(Lord Chamberlain of the HouseholdLord ChamberlainThe Lord Chamberlain or Lord Chamberlain of the Household is one of the chief officers of the Royal Household in the United Kingdom and is to be distinguished from the Lord Great Chamberlain, one of the Great Officers of State....
) - The Marquess of LansdowneHenry Petty-FitzMaurice, 5th Marquess of LansdowneHenry Charles Keith Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne, KG, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, PC was a British politician and Irish peer who served successively as the fifth Governor General of Canada, Viceroy of India, Secretary of State for War, and Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs...
- The Marquess of CreweRobert Crewe-Milnes, 1st Marquess of CreweRobert Offley Ashburton Crewe-Milnes, 1st Marquess of Crewe KG, PC , known as The Lord Houghton from 1885 to 1895 and as The Earl of Crewe from 1895 to 1911, was a British statesman and writer....
- The Lord NewtonThomas Legh, 2nd Baron NewtonThomas Wodehouse Legh, 2nd Baron Newton PC, DL , was a British diplomat and Conservative politician who served as Paymaster-General during the First World War.-Background and education:...
- The Lord StamfordhamArthur Bigge, 1st Baron StamfordhamArthur John Bigge, 1st Baron Stamfordham, GCB, GCVO, GCIE, KCSI, KCMG , ISO, PC , was a British soldier and courtier. He was Private Secretary to Queen Victoria during the last few years of her reign, and to King George V during most of his reign...
(Private Secretary to the SovereignPrivate Secretary to the SovereignThe Private Secretary to the Sovereign is the senior operational member of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom, as distinct from the Great Officers of the Household. The Private Secretary is the principal channel of communication with Her Majesty's Government and the...
) - The Lord SumnerJohn Hamilton, 1st Viscount SumnerJohn Andrew Hamilton, 1st Viscount Sumner GCB, PC was a British lawyer and judge. He was appointed a judge of the High Court of Justice in 1909, a Lord Justice of Appeal in 1912 and a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary in 1913...
(a Lord of Appeal in OrdinaryLord of Appeal in OrdinaryLords of Appeal in Ordinary, commonly known as Law Lords, were appointed under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 to the House of Lords of the United Kingdom in order to exercise its judicial functions, which included acting as the highest court of appeal for most domestic matters...
)
The committee was established by an Order in Council issued by the King on 27 November 1917.
The committee issued its report on 1 August 1918 and it was thereafter laid before the Houses of Parliament. Since no resolution was passed by either House disapproving of the report, it was presented to the King on 28 March 1919, and, on the same date the King issued an Order in Council depriving the following persons of their titles (The names are listed in the form given in the King's Order in Council):
- His Royal Highness Leopold Charles, Duke of Albany, Earl of Clarence and Baron ArklowCharles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and GothaCharles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was the fourth and last reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, two duchies in Germany , and the head of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from 1900 until his death in 1954...
- His Royal Highness Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale, Earl of Armagh
- His Royal Highness Ernest Augustus (Duke of Brunswick), Prince of Great Britain and Ireland
- Henry,Viscount Taaffe of Corren and Baron of BallymoteHenry Taaffe, 12th Viscount TaaffeHeinrich von Taaffe, 12th Viscount Taaffe, also 12th Baron of Ballymote was an Austrian Irish peer until 1919.He was born at Innsbruck, the son of Count Eduard Taaffe, Minister-President of Austria from 1879 to 1893...
No descendant of any of these four persons has ever petitioned the Crown for the revival of their titles.