Viscount De L'Isle
Encyclopedia
Penshurst
Penshurst is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks district of Kent, England. The parish is located on the northern slopes of the Weald, west of Tonbridge. Within the parish boundaries are the two villages of Penshurst and Fordcombe, with a combined population of some 1,479 persons. The...
in the County of Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
Peerage of the United Kingdom
The Peerage of the United Kingdom comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Act of Union in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great Britain...
. It was created in 1956 for William Sidney, 6th Baron de L'Isle and Dudley
William Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'Isle
William Philip Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'Isle and 6th Baron De L'Isle and Dudley VC KG GCMG GCVO KStJ PC , was the 15th Governor-General of Australia and the final non-Australian to hold the office...
. This branch of the Shelley family descends from John Shelley-Sidney, the only son of the second marriage of Sir Bysshe Shelley, 1st Baronet, of Castle Goring
Sir Bysshe Shelley, 1st Baronet
Sir Bysshe Shelley, 1st Baronet of Castle Goring was the grandfather of Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley.-Life:...
(see Shelley Baronets
Shelley Baronets
There have been three Baronetcies created for members of the Shelley family, one in the Baronetage of England and two in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. The three recipients of the titles represented two different branches of the family with a common ancestor in John Shelley of Michelgrove...
for earlier history of the family) by Elizabeth Jane, daughter of William Perry and Elizabeth, daughter and heir of the Hon. Thomas Sidney, fourth son of Robert Sidney, 4th Earl of Leicester
Robert Sidney, 4th Earl of Leicester
Robert Sidney, 4th Earl of Leicester was the son of Philip Sidney, 3rd Earl of Leicester and the former Lady Catherine Cecil.As a child, Robert Sidney and his sister Dorothy had their portrait painted by Sir Peter Lely....
(a title which had become extinct in 1743; see the Earl of Leicester
Earl of Leicester
The title Earl of Leicester was created in the 12th century in the Peerage of England , and is currently a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1837.-Early creations:...
1618 creation). In 1799 he assumed by Royal license the additional surname of Sidney on succeeding to the estates, including Penshurst Place
Penshurst Place
Penshurst Place is a historic building near Tonbridge, Kent, south east of London, England. It is the ancestral home of the Sidney family, and was the birthplace of the great Elizabethan poet, courtier and soldier, Sir Philip Sidney. The original medieval house is one of the most complete examples...
in Kent, of his maternal grandmother. In 1818 he was created a Baronet, of Penshurst in the County of Kent, in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom.
His son and heir apparent, Philip Sidney
Philip Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and Dudley
Philip Charles Shelley Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and Dudley GCH was a British Tory politician.Sidney was the only son of Sir John Shelley-Sidney, 1st Baronet and Henrietta Hunloke. The poet Percy Bysshe Shelley was his cousin. He was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford...
, represented Eye
Eye (UK Parliament constituency)
Eye was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected two Members of Parliament by the bloc vote system of election...
in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
. In 1835, fourteen years before succeeding his father in the baronetcy, he was raised to the Peerage of the United Kingdom as Baron De L'Isle and Dudley, of Penshurst in the County of Kent. The title derived from the fact that the title of "Viscount De L'Isle" had been held by his ancestors the Earls of Leicester (in turn deriving from their ancestors), but had become extinct along with the earldom in 1743. The title of "Dudley" came from the fact that Robert Sidney, 1st Earl of Leicester
Robert Sidney, 1st Earl of Leicester
Robert Sidney, 1st Earl of Leicester , second son of Sir Henry Sidney, was a statesman of Elizabethan and Jacobean England. He was also a patron of the arts and an interesting poet...
(of the 1618 creation
Earl of Leicester
The title Earl of Leicester was created in the 12th century in the Peerage of England , and is currently a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1837.-Early creations:...
) was the nephew of Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester
Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester
Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, KG was an English nobleman and the favourite and close friend of Elizabeth I from her first year on the throne until his death...
(of the 1564 creation)
Earl of Leicester
The title Earl of Leicester was created in the 12th century in the Peerage of England , and is currently a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1837.-Early creations:...
, the fifth son of John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland
John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland
John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, KG was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady Jane Grey on the English throne after the King's death...
, who was as well Viscount Lisle by right of his mother. Lord De L'Isle and Dudley discontinued the use of the surname Shelley.
His grandson, the fifth Baron (who only held the titles for two months in 1945 after succeeding his elder brother), notably served as Mayor of Chelsea and was a member of the London County Council
London County Council
London County Council was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889–1965 existence, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council...
. His son, the sixth Baron, was a prominent Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician and served as Secretary of State for Air
Secretary of State for Air
The Secretary of State for Air was a cabinet level British position. The person holding this position was in charge of the Air Ministry. It was created on 10 January 1919 to manage the Royal Air Force...
from 1951 to 1955. In 1956 he was created Viscount De L'Isle, of Penshurst in the County of Kent, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Lord De L'Isle later served as Governor-General of Australia
Governor-General of Australia
The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia at federal/national level of the Australian monarch . He or she exercises the supreme executive power of the Commonwealth...
. In 1965 he also succeeded his kinsman as ninth Baronet of Castle Goring. the titles are held by his son, the second Viscount, who succeeded in 1991.
The family seat is Penshurst Place
Penshurst Place
Penshurst Place is a historic building near Tonbridge, Kent, south east of London, England. It is the ancestral home of the Sidney family, and was the birthplace of the great Elizabethan poet, courtier and soldier, Sir Philip Sidney. The original medieval house is one of the most complete examples...
, near Tonbridge
Tonbridge
Tonbridge is a market town in the English county of Kent, with a population of 30,340 in 2007. It is located on the River Medway, approximately 4 miles north of Tunbridge Wells, 12 miles south west of Maidstone and 29 miles south east of London...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
.
Shelley-Sidney Baronets, of Penshurst Place (1818)
- Sir John Shelley-Sidney, 1st Baronet (18 December 1771–14 March 1849). Born John Shelley, he was the only son of the second marriage of Sir Bysshe Shelley, 1st Baronet, of Castle GoringSir Bysshe Shelley, 1st BaronetSir Bysshe Shelley, 1st Baronet of Castle Goring was the grandfather of Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley.-Life:...
(see Shelley BaronetsShelley BaronetsThere have been three Baronetcies created for members of the Shelley family, one in the Baronetage of England and two in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. The three recipients of the titles represented two different branches of the family with a common ancestor in John Shelley of Michelgrove...
for earlier history of the family) by Elizabeth Jane, daughter of William Perry and Elizabeth, daughter and heir of the Hon. Thomas Sidney, fourth son of Robert Sidney, 4th Earl of LeicesterRobert Sidney, 4th Earl of LeicesterRobert Sidney, 4th Earl of Leicester was the son of Philip Sidney, 3rd Earl of Leicester and the former Lady Catherine Cecil.As a child, Robert Sidney and his sister Dorothy had their portrait painted by Sir Peter Lely....
. In 1799 he assumed by Royal license the additional surname of Sidney on succeeding to the estates, including Penshurst PlacePenshurst PlacePenshurst Place is a historic building near Tonbridge, Kent, south east of London, England. It is the ancestral home of the Sidney family, and was the birthplace of the great Elizabethan poet, courtier and soldier, Sir Philip Sidney. The original medieval house is one of the most complete examples...
in Kent, of his maternal grandmother. In 1818 he was created a Baronet, of Penshurst in the County of Kent, in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. Shelley-Sidney married Henrietta, daughter of Sir Henry Hunloke, 4th Baronet, in 1799. Their daughter Emma married William WakefieldWilliam WakefieldWilliam Hayward Wakefield was an English colonel, the leader of the first colonizing expedition to New Zealand and one of the founders of Wellington. In 1826, he married Emily Sidney, a daughter of Sir John Sidney.-Early life:...
. Lady Shelly-Sidney died in February 1811. Shelley-Sidney remained a widower until his death in March 1849, aged 77. He was succeeded in the baronetcy by his son, PhilipPhilip Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and DudleyPhilip Charles Shelley Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and Dudley GCH was a British Tory politician.Sidney was the only son of Sir John Shelley-Sidney, 1st Baronet and Henrietta Hunloke. The poet Percy Bysshe Shelley was his cousin. He was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford...
, who had already been elevated to the peerage as Baron De L'Isle and Dudley.
- Sir Philip Sidney, 2nd BaronetPhilip Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and DudleyPhilip Charles Shelley Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and Dudley GCH was a British Tory politician.Sidney was the only son of Sir John Shelley-Sidney, 1st Baronet and Henrietta Hunloke. The poet Percy Bysshe Shelley was his cousin. He was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford...
(1800–1851) (created Baron De L'Isle and Dudley in 1835)
Barons De L'Isle and Dudley (1835)
- Philip Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and DudleyPhilip Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and DudleyPhilip Charles Shelley Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and Dudley GCH was a British Tory politician.Sidney was the only son of Sir John Shelley-Sidney, 1st Baronet and Henrietta Hunloke. The poet Percy Bysshe Shelley was his cousin. He was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford...
(1800–1851) - Philip Sidney, 2nd Baron De L'Isle and Dudley (1828–1898)
- Philip Sidney, 3rd Baron De L'Isle and Dudley (1853–1922)
- Algernon Sidney, 4th Baron De L'Isle and Dudley (1854–1945)
- William Sidney, 5th Baron De L'Isle and Dudley (1859–1945)
- William Sidney, 6th Baron De L'Isle and DudleyWilliam Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'IsleWilliam Philip Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'Isle and 6th Baron De L'Isle and Dudley VC KG GCMG GCVO KStJ PC , was the 15th Governor-General of Australia and the final non-Australian to hold the office...
(1909–1991) (created Viscount De L'Isle in 1956)
Viscounts De L'Isle (1956)
- William Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'IsleWilliam Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'IsleWilliam Philip Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'Isle and 6th Baron De L'Isle and Dudley VC KG GCMG GCVO KStJ PC , was the 15th Governor-General of Australia and the final non-Australian to hold the office...
(1909–1991) - Philip Sidney, 2nd Viscount De L'IslePhilip Sidney, 2nd Viscount De L'IslePhilip John Algernon Sidney, 2nd Viscount De L’Isle MBE, DL is a British peer and former soldier.The eldest son of the 1st Viscount De L'Isle, Sidney was educated at Tabley House, Mons OCS and Sandhurst. After service in the Rifle Brigade, in 1966, he became a Major in the Grenadier Guards and...
(b. 1945)
The heir apparent
Heir apparent
An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting, except by a change in the rules of succession....
is the present holder's son Hon. Philip William Edmund Sidney (b. 1985)
See also
- Shelley Baronets, of Castle GoringShelley BaronetsThere have been three Baronetcies created for members of the Shelley family, one in the Baronetage of England and two in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. The three recipients of the titles represented two different branches of the family with a common ancestor in John Shelley of Michelgrove...
- Earl of Leicester (1563 and 1618 creations)Earl of LeicesterThe title Earl of Leicester was created in the 12th century in the Peerage of England , and is currently a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1837.-Early creations:...
- Duke of Northumberland (1551 creation)Duke of NorthumberlandThe Duke of Northumberland is a title in the peerage of Great Britain that has been created several times. Since the third creation in 1766, the title has belonged to the House of Percy , which held the title of Earl of Northumberland from 1377....
- Viscount LisleViscount LisleThe title of Viscount Lisle has been created six times in the Peerage of England. The first creation, on 30 October 1451, was for John Talbot, 1st Baron Lisle. Upon the death of his son Thomas at the Battle of Nibley Green in 1470, the viscountcy became extinct and the barony abeyant.In 1475, the...
- Baron LisleBaron LisleBaron Lisle was a title that was created five times in the Peerage of England during the Middle Ages and Tudor period. The most recent creation came in the Peerage of Ireland in 1758, when John Lysaght was made Baron Lisle, of Mountnorth in the County of Cork. He had previously represented...