Earl of Caledon, of Caledon in the County of Tyrone, is a title in the

Peerage of Ireland The Peerage of Ireland consists of those titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is one of the five divisi ...

. It was created in 1800 for James Alexander, 1st Viscount Caledon. He was a merchant who had made an enormous fortune in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. He also represented the constituency of Londonderry City in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fran ...

. Alexander had already been created Baron Caledon in 1790 and Viscount Caledon, of Caledon in the County of Tyrone, in 1797, also in the Peerage of Ireland. In 1784, James Alexander purchased a city house in Dublin at Rutland Square (now

Parnell Square Parnell Square () is a Georgian square sited at the northern end of O'Connell Street in the city of Dublin, Ireland. It is in the city's D01 postal district. Formerly named ''Rutland Square'', it was renamed after Charles Stewart Parnell (1 ...

) where he lived when serving as an MP for Derry. He was succeeded by his son, the second Earl. He was the first

Governor of the Cape Colony This article lists the governors of British South African colonies, including the colonial prime ministers. It encompasses the period from 1797 to 1910, when present-day South Africa was divided into four British colonies namely: Cape Colony (p ...

and sat in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...

as an

Irish Representative Peer This is a list of representative peers elected from the Peerage of Ireland to sit in the British House of Lords after the Kingdom of Ireland was brought into union with the Kingdom of Great Britain. No new members were added to the House after ...

from 1804 to 1839. His son, the third Earl, briefly represented

County Tyrone County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an administrative division for local government but retai ...

in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

as a

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. The ...

and was an Irish Representative Peer between 1841 and 1855. His eldest son, the fourth Earl, sat in the House of Lords as an Irish Representative Peer from 1877 to 1898. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the fifth Earl. He never married and was succeeded by his nephew, the 6th Earl. He was the son of the Hon. Herbrand Charles Alexander, second son of the fourth Earl. Today the titles are held by his only son, the seventh Earl, who succeeded in 1980. Lord Caledon was made Lord Lieutenant of County Armagh in 1989. The family's lineage can be traced to Captain Andrew Alexander, of

Errigal Errigal () is a mountain near Gweedore in County Donegal, Ireland. It is the tallest peak of the Derryveagh Mountains and the tallest peak in County Donegal. Errigal is also the most southern and the highest of the mountain chain called the ...

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconn ...

, who was granted lands at Ballyclose near Limavady, County Londonderry, in 1663 and was later attainted by the parliament called by James II in Dublin in 1689. He had a son, Jacob Alexander, who was the ancestor of the Alexanders of Ahilly (Donegal), by his first wife, a Miss Phillips, who was a relative of the Alexanders, and by his second wife, Miss Hillhouse, he had a son, John Alexander, who married Anne White, daughter of John White, of Cadyhill, County Londonderry, and had four children. His second son Nathaniel Alexander was born in 1689 and became an

Alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members t ...

of the city of Derry in 1755 and died on 22 September 1761, having had with other children a third son, James Alexander, who became the 1st Earl of Caledon. The style Viscount Alexander is used as a courtesy title for the Earl's eldest son and heir apparent. The family seat is

Caledon House Caledon can refer to: South Africa * Caledon, Western Cape, a town in South Africa * Caledon River in South Africa Elsewhere * Caledon, County Tyrone in Northern Ireland * Caledon, Ontario in Canada * Caledon Bay in Arnhem Land, in the Northern T ...

, also called Caledon Castle, near Caledon in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

Earls of Caledon (1800)

James Alexander, 1st Earl of Caledon James Alexander, 1st Earl of Caledon (1730 – 22 March 1802) was an Irish landlord, merchant, politician and member of the UK's House of Lords (upper chamber of parliament) as a representative peer for Northern Ireland. An Irish 'nabob' Alexan ...

(1730–1802) *

Du Pre Alexander, 2nd Earl of Caledon Du Pré Alexander, 2nd Earl of Caledon KP (14 December 1777 – 8 April 1839), styled The Honourable Du Pré Alexander from 1790 to 1800 and Viscount Alexander from 1800 to 1802, was an Irish peer, landlord and colonial administrator, and was th ...

(1777–1839) *

James Du Pre Alexander, 3rd Earl of Caledon James Du Pre Alexander, 3rd Earl of Caledon (27 July 1812 – 30 June 1855), styled Viscount Alexander from birth until 1839, was a soldier and politician. Born into an Ulster-Scots aristocratic family in London, he was the son of The 2nd Ea ...

(1812–1855) * James Alexander, 4th Earl of Caledon (1846–1898) * Eric James Desmond Alexander, 5th Earl of Caledon (1885–1968) *Denis James Alexander, 6th Earl of Caledon (1920–1980) * Nicholas James Alexander, 7th Earl of Caledon (born 1955) The

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

is the present holder's son Frederick James Alexander, Viscount Alexander (born 1990).

Line of succession

(1730–1802)'' ** Coronet of a British Earl

(1777–1839)'' *** Coronet of a British Earl

(1812–1855)'' **** Coronet of a British Earl

''Maj. James Alexander, 4th Earl of Caledon (1846–1898)'' ***** Coronet of a British Earl

''Maj. Eric James Desmond Alexander Alexander, 5th Earl of Caledon (1885–1968)'' ***** ''Lt.-Col. Hon. Herbrand Charles Alexander (1888–1965)'' ****** Coronet of a British Earl

''Maj. Denis James Alexander, 6th Earl of Caledon (1920–1980)'' ******* Coronet of a British Earl

Nicholas James Alexander, 7th Earl of Caledon (born 1955) ******** (1) Frederick James Alexander, ''Viscount Alexander'' (born 1990) ***** Coronet of a British Earl

''Field Marshal Harold Rupert Leofic George Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis (1891–1969)'' ****** (2,1) Coronet of a British Earl

Shane William Desmond Alexander, 2nd Earl Alexander of Tunis (born 1935) ****** (3,2) ''Hon.'' Brian James Alexander (born 1939) ***** ''Col. Hon. William Sigismund Patrick Alexander (1895–1972)'' ****** (4) Alastair Patrick Lindsay Alexander (born 1935) ****** (5) Desmond Charles Bernard Alexander (born 1938)

References

Attribution

* *Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Caledon Earldoms in the Peerage of Ireland

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particula ...

Noble titles created in 1800

Earls of Caledon (1800)

Line of succession

See also

References

Attribution