Baron Hume of Berwick was a title which has been created twice. The first creation was in either the Peerage of England or the Peerage of Scotland. The second creation was in the Peerage of Great Britain.

First creation

The title was first created as Baron Hume of Berwick on 7 July 1604, for George Home, Lord

Treasurer of Scotland The Treasurer was a senior post in the pre-Union government of Scotland, the Privy Council of Scotland. Lord Treasurer The full title of the post was ''Lord High Treasurer, Comptroller, Collector-General and Treasurer of the New Augmentation'', f ...

, member of the English Privy Council, and Keeper of the Great Wardrobe. (In 1605 he was further created

Earl of Dunbar The title Earl of Dunbar, also called Earl of Lothian or Earl of March, was the head of a comital lordship in south-eastern Scotland between the early 12th century and the early 15th century. The first man to use the title of Earl in this earldom ...

). Some sources say that it was created in the Peerage of England. The second edition of the

Complete Peerage ''The Complete Peerage'' (full title: ''The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom Extant, Extinct, or Dormant''; first edition by George Edward Cokayne, Clarenceux King of Arms; 2nd edition rev ...

, however, states that "In vol iv f the first edition of that work ''sub'' DUNBAR, this was regarded as an English creation, following Crawfurd, who treats it as such on the authority of Dugdale. On further consideration, however, the Editors have come to the conclusion that the clause in the patent enabling the grantee to nominate a kinsman to succeed him in the dignity marks it as a Scottish creation, for such a power of nomination is unknown to the English Peerage." and that "He ''d. s.p.m.'' Jan 1610/11, since which time his honours have remained ''dormant''. Most sources cite the title as being extinct. Nicolas, Sir Harris, revised by William Courthope,

Somerset Herald Somerset Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. In the year 1448 Somerset Herald is known to have served the Duke of Somerset, but by the time of the coronation of King Henry VII in 1485 his successor ...

, ''The Historic Peerage of England'', London, 1857 However, the 2003 edition of ''Debretts'' gives an opposing view when it states: "''The Lordship of Home (or Hume) of Berwick, cr by patent 1604 upon George Home... with remainder to his heirs for ever, is held to have descended to the

Earls of Home Earl of Home ( ) is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1605 for Alexander Home of that Ilk, 6th Lord Home. The Earl of Home holds, among others, the subsidiary titles of Lord Home (created 1473), and Lord Dunglass (1605), in ...

through lady Anna Home''".Kidd, Charles, & Williamson, David, editors, ''Debrett's Peerage & Baronetage'', Macmillan, London, 2003: 808, who fail to state their authority for this or by whom it "is held". This "Lady Anna Home" was the daughter of George Home, 1st Earl of Dunbar and the mother of

James Home, 3rd Earl of Home James Home, 3rd Earl of Home (died 1666) was a Scottish courtier and landowner. He was the son of Sir James Home of Whitriggs and Anne Home, daughter of George Home, 1st Earl of Dunbar and Elizabeth Gordon, daughter of Alexander Gordon of Gight an ...

. The question of the continued existence of the title came to the fore again in 1963 when the Prime Minister,

Alec Douglas-Home Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home, Baron Home of the Hirsel (; 2 July 1903 – 9 October 1995), styled as Lord Dunglass between 1918 and 1951 and being The 14th Earl of Home from 1951 till 1963, was a British Conservative politician who se ...

, 14th Earl of Home, was required to renounce all of his peerages under the new Peerage Act 1963, in order to sit in the House of Commons. Douglas-Home signed the historic 'Instrument of Disclaimer' on 23 October 1963, in which this peerage was inserted, along with all of his other peerages. Upon his death in 1995, his son,

David Douglas-Home, 15th Earl of Home David Alexander Cospatrick Douglas-Home, 15th Earl of Home, (; 20 November 1943 – 22 August 2022) was a British banker and hereditary peer. He was a Conservative member of the House of Lords from 1996 until his death in 2022. Background an ...

, resumed his father's disclaimed titles. It is said that he maintains a claim to the title of Lord Hume of Berwick, but no such claim has as yet been placed before the Crown. ''Debretts'' also state this peerage is more likely to belong to the Peerage of Scotland given its unusual remainder. To circumvent this uncertainty with relation to Douglas-Home's disclaimer, the Lord Chancellor's office listed both "The Lordship of Hume of Berwick in the peerage of Scotland" and "The Barony of Hume in the Peerage of England" in the instrument of disclaimer, an obvious anomaly.

Second creation

On 14 May 1776, Alexander Hume-Campbell, Lord Polwarth, son and heir of

Hugh Hume-Campbell, 3rd Earl of Marchmont Hugh Hume-Campbell, 3rd Earl of Marchmont PC FRS (15 February 1708 – 10 January 1794), styled Lord Polwarth between 1724 and 1740, was a Scottish politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1734 until 1740 when he succeeded to the peerag ...

, was created Baron Hume of Berwick, in the Peerage of Great Britain, but the title became extinct when he died without issue.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hume of Berwick 1604 establishments in England Extinct baronies in the Peerage of England Extinct baronies in the Peerage of Great Britain Noble titles created in 1604 Noble titles created in 1776 Peerages created for eldest sons of peers Dormant lordships of Parliament Alec Douglas-Home

First creation

Second creation

See also

Notes