81-553: Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Kildare (1525 – 16 November 1585), also known as the "Wizard Earl " (a sobriquet also given to Henry Percy ), was an Irish peer. He was the son of Gerald FitzGerald, 9th Earl of Kildare and his second wife Elizabeth Grey of the Royal House of Grey . Young Lord Kildare became the sole male representative of the Kildare Geraldines at the age of twelve, after his half-brother, Silken Thomas ,
162-589: A California builder, Paul FitzGerald, as claimant to be the rightful Duke of Leinster. FitzGerald was claimed to be the grandson of Major Lord Desmond FitzGerald (1888–1916), the second son of The 5th Duke of Leinster , who was recorded as having been killed in action during the First World War , while serving with the Irish Guards . When Maurice, 6th Duke of Leinster , died, mad and childless, in February 1922,
243-553: A marquess ); and the (alleged) murderer John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan . The oldest earldoms in Scotland (with the exception of the Earldom of Dunbar and March ) originated from the office of mormaer , such as the Mormaer of Fife , of Strathearn , etc.; subsequent earldoms developed by analogy. The principal distinction between earldom and mormaer is that earldoms were granted as fiefs of
324-524: A Georgian house called Carton House which had replaced the castle in County Kildare. In Dublin, the Earl built a large townhouse residence on the southside of Dublin called Kildare House . When the Earl was awarded a dukedom and became Duke of Leinster , the house was renamed Leinster House . One of its occupants was Lord Edward FitzGerald , who became an icon for Irish nationalism through his involvement with
405-513: A condition of semi-captivity, on 16 November 1585. According to legend, his ghost returns to Kilkea Castle every seventh year, mounted on a silver-shod white charger. While at the court of Edward VI, FitzGerald met Mabel Browne , daughter of Sir Anthony Browne , Master of the Horse and his first wife Alice Gage; after Alice's death Anthony became the first husband of FitzGerald's sister, Elizabeth FitzGerald . Kildare and Mabel Browne married during
486-423: A few exceptions, the default rank of the peerage to which a former prime minister was elevated. The last prime minister to accept an earldom was Harold Macmillan , who became earl of Stockton in 1984. A British earl is entitled to a coronet bearing eight strawberry leaves (four visible) and eight silver balls (or pearls ) around the rim (five visible). The actual coronet is rarely, if ever, worn except at
567-588: A fictional portrayal of the life of FitzGerald's sister, Elizabeth FitzGerald. Earl Earl ( / ɜːr l , ɜːr əl / ) is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom . In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the peerage , ranking below a marquess and above a viscount . A feminine form of earl never developed; instead, countess is used. The title originates in the Old English word eorl , meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word
648-674: A helping hand). The motto "Crom A Boo" comes from the medieval Croom Castle and "Abu", meaning "up" in Irish; Crom Abu was the FitzGeralds' medieval warcry. Crom (Croom) and Shanet (Shanid) were two castles about 16 miles apart in County Limerick , one being the seat of the Geraldines of Kildare, and the other that of the Geraldines of Desmond , whose distinctive war cries were accordingly “Crom-a-boo” and “Shanet-a-boo.” In 1495 an act of Parliament
729-560: A legitimate heir of the 1st Duke of Leinster . The Most Noble Maurice (FitzGerald), 6th Duke of Leinster. (1887–1922) . Marquess and Earl of Kildare, County Kildare, Earl and Baron of Offaly, all in the Peerage of Ireland; Viscount Leinster of Taplow, co. Bucks, in the Peerage of Great Britain and Baron Kildare of Kildare in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; As of 2024, the 9th Duke and Marquess of Leinster and 29th Earl of Kildare
810-546: A rebellion deposed Tostig and recognised Morcar , the brother of Earl Edwin of Mercia, as Northumbria's new earl. The king accepted this, and Tostig was expelled from England. In 1066, according to the Domesday Book , the Godwin family estates were valued at £7,000, Earl Leofric of Mercia at £2,400, and Earl Siward of Northumbria at £350. In comparison, the king's lands were valued at £5,000. This concentration of land and wealth in
891-532: A region, the more influence an earl had. The most powerful were the earls of Chester, who by the middle of the 13th century were described as earls palatine . Their power derived from owning most of the land in Cheshire. As a result, the shire court and the earl's honour court were identical, and the sheriff answered to the earl. The earl of Oxford possessed less than an acre of land in Oxfordshire (most of his land
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#1732923865150972-496: A title (unless he has one in his own right). The eldest son of an earl, though not himself a peer , is entitled to use a courtesy title , usually the highest of his father's lesser titles (if any). For instance, prior to his father's elevation to the Dukedom of Edinburgh, the eldest son of the Earl of Wessex was styled as James, Viscount Severn . The eldest son of the eldest son of an earl
1053-596: A training ground for new earls. Nevertheless, the earldoms of Wessex and Mercia were becoming hereditary. For four generations, Mercia was passed from father to son: Leofwine , Leofric , Ælfgar , and Edwin . To reward Godwin for his support, Edward made his eldest son, Sweyn , an earl in 1043. Harold , Godwin's second oldest son, was made the earl of East Anglia. In 1045, an earldom was created for Godwin's nephew, Beorn Estrithson . After Sweyn left England in disgrace in 1047, some of his estates were taken over by Harold and Beorn. Ralf of Mantes , Edward's Norman nephew,
1134-484: Is Maurice FitzGerald (born 7 April 1948). A landscape gardener by profession, he is the elder son of the 8th Duke and his second wife, Anne. He was educated at Millfield and succeeded to his father's peerages on his death in 2004. On 19 February 1972, as Earl of Offaly, he married Fiona Mary Francesca Hollick. They had three children: As Maurice FitzGerald's only son died childless in 1997, his brother, Lord John FitzGerald (1952–2015), became heir presumptive to
1215-541: Is cognate with the Scandinavian form jarl . After the Norman Conquest , it became the equivalent of the continental count . In Scotland, it assimilated the concept of mormaer . Since the 1960s, earldoms have typically been created only for members of the royal family . The last non-royal earldom, Earl of Stockton , was created in 1984 for Harold Macmillan , prime minister from 1957 to 1963. Alternative names for
1296-421: Is entitled to use one of his grandfather's lesser titles, normally the second-highest of the lesser titles. Younger sons are styled The Honourable [ Forename ] [ Surname ], and daughters, The Lady [ Forename ] [ Surname ] ( Lady Diana Spencer being a well-known example). There is no difference between the courtesy titles given to the children of earls and the children of countesses in their own right, provided
1377-538: Is the head of the House of Kildare . The 3rd Duke of Schomberg , General and K.G. (1641–1719), was created The 1st Duke of Leinster in 1691. However, that creation became extinct upon Schomberg's death in July 1719. For the second creation, it was granted to James FitzGerald, 1st Duke of Leinster , who married to Lady Emily Lennox , the great-granddaughter of King Charles II of the Royal House of Stuart . The family seat of
1458-701: The Holy Roman Empire . He was educated at a monastery in Liège , and later spent time with Ercole Cardinal Gonzaga , Lord Bishop of Mantua , a scion of the House of Gonzaga and the effective ' Regent ' of the Duchy of Mantua . Due to his time in the Cardinal 's court, FitzGerald was fluent in Italian and experienced the court culture of Renaissance Italy . From there, he then moved on to Rome , and for three years studied under
1539-600: The Irish Rebellion of 1798 , which ultimately cost him his life. Leinster House was sold by the Leinsters in 1815. After nearly a century as the headquarters of the Royal Dublin Society , which held its famed Spring Show and Horse Show in its grounds, Oireachtas Éireann , the two chamber parliament of the new Irish Free State , rented Leinster House in 1922 to be its temporary parliament house. In 1924 it bought
1620-480: The North Sea Empire , extended beyond England, forcing him to delegate power to earls. Earls were governors or viceroys , ruling in the king's name, keeping the peace, dispensing justice, and raising armies. Like the earlier ealdormen, they received the third penny from their jurisdictions. Earls ranked above thegns in precedence and were the chief counselors in the witan (king's council). The office of earl
1701-510: The Old Norse word jarl . Proto-Norse eril , or the later Old Norse jarl , came to signify the rank of a leader. The Norman -derived equivalent count (from Latin comes ) was not introduced following the Norman Conquest of England though countess was and is used for the female title. Geoffrey Hughes writes, "It is a likely speculation that the Norman French title 'Count'
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#17329238651501782-462: The Peerage of Ireland . Notable among those who agreed to this policy of " surrender and regrant " were Ulick na gCeann Burke, 1st Earl of Clanricarde , Murrough O'Brien, 1st Earl of Thomond , Donald McCarthy, 1st Earl of Clancare , Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell , Randal MacDonnell, 1st Earl of Antrim and Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone . The earls of Tyrone and Tyrconnell later rebelled against
1863-444: The coronation of a new monarch, but in heraldry an earl may bear his coronet of rank on his coat of arms above the shield. An earl has the title Earl of [X] when the title originates from a placename, or Earl [X] when the title comes from a surname. In either case, he is referred to as Lord [X] , and his wife as Lady [X] . A countess who holds an earldom in her own right also uses Lady [X] , but her husband does not have
1944-735: The earl of Gloucester . After the Conquest, new earldoms tended to be named for the city and castle in which they were based. Some titles became attached to the family name rather than location. For example, the holder of the earldom of Surrey was more commonly called "Earl Warenne". The same was true of the earldom of Buckingham , whose holder was called "Earl Gifford". These earls may have preferred to be known by family names that were older and more prestigious than their newer territorial designations. The number of earls rose from seven in 1135 to twenty in 1141 as King Stephen ( r. 1135–1154 ) created twelve new earls to reward supporters during
2025-415: The 13th century earls had a social rank just below the king and princes, but were not necessarily more powerful or wealthier than other noblemen. The only way to become an earl was to inherit the title or to marry into one—and the king reserved a right to prevent the transfer of the title. By the 14th century, creating an earl included a special public ceremony where the king personally tied a sword belt around
2106-586: The Anarchy , the civil war fought with his cousin Empress Matilda for the English throne. In 1138, Stephen created eight new earldoms: In 1140, Roumare was given the earldom of Lincoln in exchange for Cambridge, and William d'Aubigny received the earldom of Sussex (commonly known as Arundel) . The same year, Geoffrey de Mandeville was made earl of Essex , and his is the oldest surviving charter of creation. Around
2187-512: The Conqueror ( r. 1066–1087 ) reduced the size of earldoms; those created after 1071 had responsibility for one shire. Like Norman counts, earls became military governors assigned to vulnerable border or coastal areas. To protect the Welsh Marches , the king made Roger de Montgomery the earl of Shrewsbury and Hugh d'Avranches the earl of Chester (see Marcher Lord ) . Likewise,
2268-539: The County of Buckingham (1747), Baron of Offaly (c. 1193), Baron Offaly (1620) and Baron Kildare , of Kildare in the County of Kildare (1870). The viscounty of Leinster is in the Peerage of Great Britain , the barony of Kildare in the Peerage of the United Kingdom , and all other titles in the Peerage of Ireland . The courtesy title of the eldest son and heir of the Duke of Leinster is Marquess of Kildare . The Duke of Leinster
2349-474: The Crown Office of the House of Lords in 1929, and the family had been denied access to them. Mrs Caudill believed the documents included evidence that her father agreed to relinquish the title for one generation but made it clear it was to be passed down to his son, her brother Leonard FitzGerald. Instead, it was passed down through her father's brother's family. It was alleged that an archivist had acknowledged
2430-479: The Kildare lands to him at this time. During the reign of Mary I , FitzGerald assisted in suppressing the rebellion of Sir Thomas Wyatt in 1554. He was then restored as Earl of Kildare and Baron of Offaly . He returned to Ireland soon after. Lord Kildare had a keen interest in alchemy , which caused much speculation among those living around Kilkea Castle . He was rumoured to possess magic powers, and thus earned
2511-661: The King, while mormaers were virtually independent. The earl is thought to have been introduced by the anglophile king David I . While the power attached to the office of earl was swept away in England by the Norman Conquest, in Scotland earldoms retained substantial powers, such as regality throughout the Middle Ages. It is important to distinguish between the land controlled directly by
Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Kildare - Misplaced Pages Continue
2592-586: The Leinster dukedom and its considerable wealth and estates devolved upon his youngest brother, Lord Edward FitzGerald , who succeeded as 7th Duke. However, Paul FitzGerald's supporters claim that Lord Desmond faked his death and emigrated to California , by way of Winnipeg , Canada , where he lived until his death in 1967. It was further claimed by Mrs Caudill that a package of documents, witnessed by Edward, Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII), Sir Edgar Vincent , and Lord Feversham , had been lodged by her father with
2673-539: The O'Briens of Thomond , and other powerful Irish clans related to the Geraldines through marriages, formed around FitzGerald's claim to the Earldom of Kildare . The League came to nothing, however, after the principal members were badly defeated in modern-day County Monaghan following a raid into The Pale in August 1539. FitzGerald escaped Ireland with a few loyal servants and was protected from King Henry VIII and his agents by both Francis I of France and Charles V of
2754-770: The aftermath of the Jacobite rising , the Heritable Jurisdictions Act brought the powers of the remaining ancient earldoms under the control of the sheriffs; earl is now simply a noble rank. Some of the most significant Earls ( Welsh : ieirll , singular iarll ) in Welsh history were those from the West of England. As Wales remained independent of any Norman jurisdiction, the more powerful Earls in England were encouraged to invade and establish effective " buffer states " to be run as autonomous lordships . These Marcher Lords included
2835-514: The building for parliamentary use. It has remained the parliament house of the Irish state . The Dukes of Leinster had by the early 20th century lost all their property and wealth. Their Carton House seat was sold (though one of Ireland's most historic buildings with perfectly preserved 18th century grounds, it was controversially turned into a hotel and golf course in the late 1990s by the current owner in an act condemned by environmentalists ), as later on
2916-400: The centuries wore on, the term earl came to be disassociated from the office, and later kings started granting the title of earl without it, and gradually without even an associated comitatus . By the 16th century there started to be earls of towns, of villages, and even of isolated houses; it had simply become a label for marking status, rather than an office of intrinsic power. In 1746, in
2997-693: The crown and were forced to flee Ireland in 1607; their departure, along with about ninety followers, is famed in Irish history as the Flight of the Earls , seen as the ultimate demise of native Irish monarchy. Ireland became part of the United Kingdom in 1801, and the last Irish earldom was created in 1824. The Republic of Ireland does not recognise titles of nobility. Notable later Irish earls include Jacobite leader Patrick Sarsfield, 1st Earl of Lucan ; Postmaster General Richard Trench, 2nd Earl of Clancarty ; Prime Minister William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne (later made
3078-617: The current Duke of Leinster is now Oakley Park, near Abingdon, Oxfordshire . He succeeded as 9th Duke of Leinster, 9th Marquess of Kildare, 28th Earl of Kildare, 9th Earl of Offaly, 9th Viscount Leinster of Taplow, 14th Baron Offaly, 6th Baron Kildare, and as the Premier Duke, Marquess and Earl in the Peerage of Ireland. This branch of the Cambro Norman FitzGerald/FitzMaurice dynasty , which came to Ireland in 1169 , were initially created Earls of Kildare . The earldom
3159-666: The ealdorman to be the chief officer in a shire . He commanded the local fyrd and presided over the shire court alongside the bishop . As compensation, he received the third penny : one-third of the shire court's profits and the boroughs ' revenues. Initially, the ealdorman governed a single shire. Starting with Edward the Elder ( r. 899–924 ), it became customary for one ealdorman to administer three or four shires together as an ealdormanry. During Cnut 's reign (1016–1035), ealdorman changed to earl (related to Old English eorl and Scandinavian jarl ). Cnut's realm,
3240-401: The earl, in a landlord-like sense, and the region over which he could exercise his office. Scottish use of Latin terms provincia and comitatus makes the difference clear. Initially these terms were synonymous, as in England, but by the 12th century they were seen as distinct concepts, with comitatus referring to the land under direct control of the earl, and provincia referring to
3321-547: The earls of Chester , Gloucester , Hereford , Pembroke and Shrewsbury (see also English Earls of March ). The first Earldoms created within Wales were the Lordship of Glamorgan (a comital title) and the Earldom of Pembroke . Tir Iarll (English: Earl's land ) is an area of Glamorgan , which has traditionally had a particular resonance in Welsh culture . An earldom became, with
Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Kildare - Misplaced Pages Continue
3402-468: The estate had to be divided between five co-heirs (the two daughters of his eldest sister and his three surviving sisters). Before the land could be divided, King Alexander II of Scotland claimed the earldom of Huntingdon. While the king's council dismissed this claim, the Scottish king was granted the lands attached to Huntingdon but not the title. This reduced the land available to John's co-heirs and created
3483-463: The grand-daughter of Lady Hermione's younger sister Urica Duncombe. The results of the tests found that it was "41 times more probable" that Ms Crawford and Paul FitzGerald were extremely closely related than were from different families. The proof that Paul FitzGerald is related to the titled family is the first DNA evidence ever produced in the case, and it strongly supports Mrs Fitz-Gerald Caudhill's long-held claim suggesting that her mysterious father
3564-557: The guidance of his kinsman, Reginald Cardinal Pole , later Lord Archbishop of Canterbury . During his exile from Ireland, FitzGerald fought with the Knights of Rhodes against the Turks and travelled as far as Tripoli in Libya, then held by the Knights of St. John . Following the death of Henry VIII in 1547, he travelled to England and was received at the court of Edward VI . The young king restored
3645-502: The hands of the earls, and one family in particular, weakened the Crown's authority. The situation was reversed when Harold Godwinson became king, and he was able to restore the Crown's authority. The Norman Conquest of 1066 introduced a new Anglo-Norman aristocracy that gradually replaced the old Anglo-Saxon elite. In Normandy , a duchy in the Kingdom of France , the equivalent of an earl
3726-493: The husband of the countess has a lower rank than she does. If her husband has a higher rank, their children will be given titles according to his rank. Earl of Kildare Duke of Leinster ( / ˈ l ɪ n s t ər / ; Irish : Diúc Laighean ) is a title and the premier dukedom in the Peerage of Ireland . The subsidiary titles of the Duke of Leinster are: Marquess of Kildare (1761), Earl of Kildare (1316), Earl of Offaly (1761), Viscount Leinster , of Taplow in
3807-654: The king's half-brother Odo of Bayeux was made earl of Kent to guard the English Channel . After the Revolt of the Earls in 1075, only four earldoms remained, all held by Anglo-Normans: Kent, Shrewsbury, Chester, and Northumbria. This number was reduced to three after 1082 when Odo of Bayeux was arrested and deprived of Kent. At the death of William Rufus in 1100, there were five earldoms: Chester, Shrewsbury, Surrey (or Warrenne), Warwick , and Huntingdon – Northampton . In 1122, Henry I made his illegitimate son Robert
3888-496: The king's interests in the region, thus being more like a coroner . As such, a parallel system of justice arose, between that provided by magnates (represented by the earls), and that by the king (represented by sheriffs), in a similar way to England having both Courts Baron and Magistrates , respectively. Inevitably, this led to a degree of forum shopping , with the king's offering – the Sheriff – gradually winning. As in England, as
3969-570: The king's name. However, they were developing more autonomy and becoming a threat to royal power. Three great aristocratic families had emerged: the Godwins of Wessex, Leofric of Mercia , and Siward of Northumbria . In theory, earls could be removed by the king. Edward deliberately broke the hereditary succession to Northumbria when Earl Siward died in 1055. He ignored the claims of Siward's son, Waltheof , and appointed Tostig Godwinson as earl. The earldom of East Anglia appears to have been used as
4050-568: The lands attached to the Chester earldom through a series of land exchanges with the co-heirs. In 1227, Henry III ( r. 1216–1272 ) granted his justiciar and chief minister , Hubert de Burgh , the earldom of Kent. The terms of inheritance were unprecedented: the earldom was to pass to Hubert's son by his third wife Margaret of Scotland , thereby passing over his eldest son by his first wife. It may have been thought that Margaret's royal blood made her children more worthy of inheritance. By
4131-588: The nickname "the Wizard Earl". He was a highly intelligent and cultivated man, "a product of the Renaissance ", but he seems to have lacked the political skills of his grandfather, The 8th Earl of Kildare , who virtually ruled Ireland for 35 years, and in the turbulent political atmosphere of the 1560s and 70s he was increasingly vulnerable to attack, especially since he openly professed the Roman Catholic faith. He
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#17329238651504212-483: The office rather than the officeholder. Stephen Baxter argued that given the evidence, it must be "assumed that the 'comital manors' in each shire could be transferred by the king from one earl to another with relative ease". However, not all scholars agree with the existence of such "comital" property. During the reign of Edward the Confessor (1042–1066), the earls were still royal officers governing their earldoms in
4293-504: The package had once existed, but the official line was that it was now lost. In February 2006, Lord Falconer of Thoroton , Lord Chancellor (2003–2007), and Harriet Harman , Minister of State in the Department for Constitutional Affairs , considered this claim . The claim was dismissed by Lord Falconer of Thoroton, despite a 30-year campaign by Paul FitzGerald's family reputedly costing £1.3 million. The Lord Chancellor adjudicated that
4374-541: The peerages. He died in 2015. Lord John FitzGerald had two children: The coat of arms of the Dukes of Leinster derives from the legend that John FitzGerald, 1st Earl of Kildare , as a baby in Woodstock Castle , was trapped in a fire when a pet monkey rescued him. The FitzGeralds then adopted a monkey as their crest (and later supporters) and occasionally use the additional motto Non immemor beneficii (Not forgetful of
4455-632: The personal regard of Queen Elizabeth , who twice dismissed the charges of treason against him. He conformed to the Protestant religion at the beginning of the reign of Queen Elizabeth. In his last years although technically a free man he was forbidden to leave London, save that he was permitted to take his seat in the Parliament of Ireland which met in Dublin during April–May 1585. Lord Kildare died in London, still in
4536-434: The possibility of an earl who was virtually landless. Earl Ranulf had been the greatest landholder in England, but after two partitions in five years, the land granted to each co-heir was small. William de Forz , husband of the senior co-heir, argued that as a county palatine the earldom of Chester should not be partitioned, but this argument was rejected by the king's court. Ultimately, the king himself gained possession of all
4617-539: The power of earls. He confiscated or demolished illegal castles. He reduced the number of earldoms by allowing them to die with their holders and did not create new ones. During his reign, "the title became a mark of rank, rather than a substantive office: the real power lay with the king's sheriffs and justices." The real power possessed by any individual earl in this period depended on the amount of land and wealth he possessed that could be translated into patronage and influence. The more land and resources concentrated in
4698-521: The province; hence, the comitatus might now only be a small region of the provincia . Thus, unlike England, the term county , which ultimately evolved from the Latin comitatus , was not historically used for Scotland's main political subdivisions. Sheriffs were introduced at a similar time to earls, but unlike England, where sheriffs were officers who implemented the decisions of the shire court, in Scotland they were specifically charged with upholding
4779-491: The rank equivalent to "earl" or "count" in the nobility structure are used in other countries, such as the hakushaku (伯爵) of the post-restoration Japanese Imperial era . In the 7th century, the common Old English terms for nobility was eorl or eorlcund man . However, this was later replaced by the term thegn . In the 11th century, under Danish influence, the Old English title ealdorman became earl , from
4860-513: The reign of Mary I on 28 May 1554, in the Chapel Royal . Amongst a certain branch of the FitzGerald's, there was a belief/legend that the 11th Earl of Kildare had been married to an Ellinor O'Kelly by Thomas Leverous (later Bishop of Kildare ) in 1545. This resulted in the birth of the progenitor of this branch of the FitzGerald's. However, the date purported for the marriage seems unlikely given
4941-517: The same time, Hugh Bigod was made earl of Norfolk . In February 1141, Stephen was captured at the Battle of Lincoln , and Empress Matilda elected "Lady of the English" in April. At this time, she created three earldoms for her own supporters. Her illegitimate brother Reginald de Dunstanville was made earl of Cornwall . Baldwin de Redvers was made earl of Devon , and William de Mohun , lord of Dunster ,
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#17329238651505022-443: The shire also limited the autonomy of the earls. They could not raise taxation, mint coins, issue charters , or hold their own courts (the shire courts that earls presided over were held in the king's name). F. W. Maitland wrote, "with the estates of the earls, we find it impossible to distinguish between private property and official property". He noted the existence of " manors of the shire" and "comital vills " that belonged to
5103-565: The tenth earl, was executed at Tyburn in February 1537 with five of his uncles. He spent the next few years on the run in Ireland and spent some time in Tír Chonaill (now mainly County Donegal ) in Ulster , under the guardianship of his aunt, Lady Eleanor McCarthy, the wife of Manus O'Donnell , An Ó Domhnaill . The short-lived Geraldine League , a federation including the O'Neills, the O'Donnells,
5184-435: The tenure of earldorman Ælfhere), which he had held since 1007. Cnut gave Godwin the earldom of Wessex in 1018. Eventually Godwin was also granted the earldom of Kent . Thorkell vanished from the records after 1023, and Godwin became the leading earl. Earldoms were not permanent territorial divisions; kings could transfer shires from one earldom to another. The fact that there was no local government administration beyond
5265-401: The timescale and that there would not be some written sources to confirm this event (the marriage to the head of the house of Kildare would always attract notice). Mabel died in 1610, much troubled in her last years by a lawsuit brought by her granddaughter Lettice, claiming that the Earl's will had been fraudulently altered. Gerald FitzGerald appears in The Irish Princess by Karen Harper ,
5346-501: The title was to remain with the existing holder, Maurice FitzGerald. Paul FitzGerald has a right of appeal against the Lord Chancellor's verdict by petitioning the monarch. In 2010, however, DNA evidence was presented that indicates that Paul FitzGerald is related to the wife of the 5th Duke, the former Lady Hermione Duncombe. As reported in The Scotsman , With the help of Dunfermline-based genealogist Lloyd Pitcairn, Mrs FitzGerald Caudill [Paul FitzGerald's aunt] traced Maud Crawford,
5427-458: The waist of the new earl, emphasizing the fact that the earl's rights came from him. Earls still held influence and, as "companions of the king", generally acted in support of the king's power. They showed their own power prominently in 1327 when they deposed King Edward II . They would later do the same with other kings of whom they disapproved. In 1337 Edward III declared that he intended to create six new earldoms . The first Irish earldom
5508-402: Was a count . The definition and powers of French counts varied widely. Some counts were nearly independent rulers who gave only nominal loyalty to the King of France . In Normandy, counts were junior members of the Norman dynasty with responsibility for guarding border regions. In 1066, there were three Norman counts: Richard of Évreux , Robert of Eu , and Robert of Mortain . William
5589-484: Was abandoned in England in favour of the Germanic 'Earl' [...] precisely because of the uncomfortable phonetic proximity to cunt ". In the other languages of Great Britain and Ireland, the term is translated as: Welsh iarll , Irish and Scottish Gaelic iarla , Scots erle , eirle or earle , Cornish yurl, yarl, yerl . The office of earl evolved from the ealdorman, an office within Anglo-Saxon government . The English king appointed
5670-423: Was also unfortunate in being the father-in-law of Lord Delvin, who was suspected of treason throughout his career. His restoration as Earl of Kildare aroused the hostility of many, both Old English and New English, and successive Lord Deputies , and throughout his career he was frequently accused of treason , and was imprisoned in Dublin Castle and later in the Tower of London . He owed his survival mainly to
5751-430: Was created Earl of Kildare in the Peerage of Ireland . He was subsequently restored to the original letters patent in 1569, as 11th earl. The second (1554-created) earldom became extinct in 1599, although the original earldom survived. The family was originally based in Maynooth Castle in Maynooth in County Kildare . In later centuries the family owned estates in County Waterford with their country residence being
5832-572: Was created in 1316 for John FitzGerald . Two senior FitzGeralds, Garret Mór FitzGerald and his son, Garret Óg FitzGerald served as Lords Deputy of Ireland, the representative of the Lord of Ireland (the King of England ) in Ireland. The tenth earl, Thomas FitzGerald, known as Silken Thomas , was attainted and his honours were forfeit in 1537. In 1554, Thomas's half-brother and only male heir, Gerald FitzGerald ,
5913-431: Was created the earl of Winchester in 1207. This was the first new hereditary earldom created since the reign of Stephen. An earldom could be dramatically impacted upon by multiple partitions. In 1232, Ranulf de Blondeville, 6th Earl of Chester died childless. His lands were divided between his four sisters with the title going to the eldest's son, John of Scotland, Earl of Huntingdon . John died in 1237, and once again
5994-569: Was in Essex), and therefore possessed no power in the county. An earldom along with its land was inherited generally according to primogeniture . If the only heirs were female, then the land would be partitioned equally between co-heirs with the eldest co-heir receiving the title. In 1204, Robert de Beaumont, 4th Earl of Leicester , died without children. His heirs were his sisters, Amice and Margaret. Amice's son, Simon de Montfort , succeeded as earl of Leicester, and Margaret's husband, Saer de Quincy ,
6075-533: Was made earl of Hereford , a territory formerly part of Sweyn's earldom. In 1053, Harold succeeded his father, and Ælfgar, son of Earl Leofric, became earl of East Anglia. A major reshuffle occurred after both Leofric and Ralf died in 1057. Ælfgar succeeded his father in Mercia, and Gyrth Godwinson took East Anglia. An earldom was created for Leofwine Godwinson out of the south-eastern shires belonging to Harold. In exchange, Harold received Ralf's earldom. In 1065,
6156-572: Was made earl of Somerset . Aubrey de Vere was made earl of Oxford in 1142. Sometime around 1143, Matilda's constable Patrick of Salisbury was made earl of Salisbury . During the Anarchy, earls took advantage of the power vacuum to assume Crown rights. Robert of Gloucester, Patrick of Salisbury, Robert of Leicester , and Henry of Northumbria all minted their own coinage. Earls and barons had also built adulterine castles (castles built without royal permission). It fell to Stephen's successor Henry II ( r. 1154–1189 ) to again curtail
6237-494: Was not hereditary. While sons of earls could expect to inherit their father's office, this was not automatic. Only the king could make someone an earl. Initially, Cnut kept Wessex for himself and divided the rest of England into three earldoms. He gave the earldom of East Anglia to Thorkell the Tall and the earldom of Northumbria to Eric . Eadric Streona retained the earldom of Mercia (having been unified with western Mercia in
6318-467: Was passed (10 Hen. 7. c. 20 (Ir)) “to abolish the words Crom-a-boo and Butler-a-boo.” The word “Abu” or “Aboo,” an exclamation of defiance, was the usual termination of the war cries in Ireland, as in a' buaidh , "to victory!" Saint Patrick's Saltire , a red saltire on a white field, may have been adapted from the duke's arms on the 1783 creation of the Order of Saint Patrick , of which the 2nd Duke of Leinster
6399-579: Was the Earl of Ulster , granted to the Norman knight Hugh de Lacy in 1205 by John , King of England and Lord of Ireland . Other early earldoms were Earl of Carrick (1315), Earl of Kildare (1316), Earl of Desmond (1329) and Earl of Waterford (1446, extant). After the Tudor reconquest of Ireland (1530s–1603), native Irish kings and clan chiefs were encouraged to submit to the English king (now also King of Ireland ) and were, in return, granted noble titles in
6480-405: Was the son of Lady Hermione, the wife of the fifth Duke of Leinster. Theresa Pamella Caudill died on July 25, 2015. It had also previously been alleged that Edward FitzGerald , who succeeded as 7th Duke, was the biological son of the 11th Earl of Wemyss (1857–1937). Were this to be established, then neither the present Duke nor any other descendant of his grandfather, the 7th Duke, would be
6561-602: Was their other residence in Waterford. The family now live in a smaller property in Ramsden, Oxfordshire . A controversial claim by claimants who say they are descended from the 5th Duke , which is reported to have been largely debunked by Michael Estorick in 1981, was made in 2006 and subsequently failed. In 2005, a claim was filed with the Department of Constitutional Affairs by Theresa Pamella Caudill, daughter of Eleanor and Maurice F. “Desmond” FitzGerald, on behalf of her nephew,
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