Baron Northbourne, of

Betteshanger Betteshanger is a village near Deal in East Kent, England. It gave its name to the largest of the four chief collieries of the Kent coalfield. The population of the village is included in the civil parish of Northbourne. Before the coal mine ...

in the

County of Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces the ...

, is a title in the

Peerage of the United Kingdom The Peerage of the United Kingdom is one of the five Peerages in the United Kingdom. It comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Acts of Union 1800, Acts of Union in 1801, when it replaced the ...

. It was created in 1884 for Sir Walter James, 2nd Baronet, who had earlier represented

Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually abbreviated to Hull, is a port city and unitary authority in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Estuary, inland from the North Sea and south-east ...

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. ...

as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

. His son, the second Baron, sat as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for

Gateshead Gateshead () is a large town in northern England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle to which it is joined by seven bridges. The town contains the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Sage ...

. The latter's great-grandson, the fifth Baron, who succeeded his father in 1982, was one of the ninety elected

hereditary peer The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of September 2022, there are 807 hereditary peers: 29 dukes (including five royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 190 earls, 111 viscounts, and 443 barons (disregarding subsid ...

s that were allowed to remain in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

after the passing of the

House of Lords Act 1999 The House of Lords Act 1999 (c. 34) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the House of Lords, one of the chambers of Parliament. The Act was given Royal Assent on 11 November 1999. For centuries, the House of Lords ...

, and sat as a cross-bencher until his retirement in 2018. , the titles are held by his son, the sixth baron, who succeeded his father in that year. The James baronetcy, of Langley Hall, in the County of Berkshire, was created in the

Baronetage of Great Britain Baronets are a rank in the British aristocracy. The current Baronetage of the United Kingdom has replaced the earlier but existing Baronetages of England, Nova Scotia, Ireland, and Great Britain. Baronetage of England (1611–1705) King James I ...

in 1791 for the first Baron's grandfather Sir Walter James, the last

Warden of the Mint Warden of the Mint was a high-ranking position at the Royal Mint in England from 1216 to 1829. The warden was responsible for a variety of minting procedures and acted as the immediate representative of the current monarch inside the mint. The role ...

. Born Walter James Head, he assumed by Act of Parliament the surname of James only in 1778. His son and heir John James notably served as Minister Plenipotentiary to the Netherlands. The latter was the father of the second Baronet, who was raised to the peerage in 1884. The Hon. Cuthbert James, second son of the second Baron, represented

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 87,889 as of 2011. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, char ...

in the House of Commons as a Conservative between 1919 and 1930. The first Baron Northbourne was the grandson of

Robert Stewart, 1st Marquess of Londonderry Robert Stewart, 1st Marquess of Londonderry PC (Ire) (1739–1821), was a County Down landowner, Irish Volunteer, and member of the parliament who, exceptionally for an Ulster Scot and Presbyterian, rose within the ranks of Ireland's "Angli ...

, making him first cousin twice removed of

Sir Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from 1 ...

, who was the grandson of his first cousin Lady Frances Anne Emily Vane, Duchess of Marlborough. He was also the great grandson of

Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden, PC (baptised 21 March 1714 – 18 April 1794) was an English lawyer, judge and Whig politician who was first to hold the title of Earl Camden. As a lawyer and judge he was a leading proponent of civil liberties, ...

James baronets, of Langley Hall (1791)

*Sir Walter James James, 1st Baronet (1759–1829) **John James (died 1818) * Sir Walter Charles James, 2nd Baronet (1816–1893) (created Baron Northbourne in 1884)

Baron Northbourne (1884)

Betteshanger House, Northbourne Geograph-3389049-by-Stephen-Richards

* Walter Charles James, 1st Baron Northbourne (1816–1893) * Walter Henry James, 2nd Baron Northbourne (1846–1923) * Walter John James, 3rd Baron Northbourne (1869–1932) * Walter Ernest Christopher James, 4th Baron Northbourne (1896–1982)Paull, John (2014
Lord Northbourne, the man who invented organic farming, a biography
Journal of Organic Systems, 9 (1), pp. 31–53. * Christopher George Walter James, 5th Baron Northbourne (1926–2019) * Charles Walter Henri James, 6th Baron Northbourne (born 1960) The heir apparent is his elder son, Hon. Henry Christopher William James (born 1988).

Line of succession

'' Walter Charles James, 1st Baron Northbourne (1816–1893)'' ** Coronet of a British Baron

'' Walter Henry James, 2nd Baron Northbourne (1846–1923)'' *** Coronet of a British Baron

'' Walter John James, 3rd Baron Northbourne (1869–1932)'' **** Coronet of a British Baron

'' Walter Ernest Christopher James, 4th Baron Northbourne (1896–1982)'' ***** Coronet of a British Baron

'' Christopher George Walter James, 5th Baron Northbourne (1926–2019)'' ****** Coronet of a British Baron

'' Charles Walter Henri James, 6th Baron Northbourne (born 1960)'' ******* (1) ''Hon.'' Henry Christopher William James (born 1988) ******* (2) ''Hon.'' Alexander Oliver Charles James (born 1996) ****** (3) ''Hon.'' Anthony Christopher Walter Paul James (born 1963) ******* (4) Edward Christopher William James (born 2001) ****** (5) ''Hon.'' Sebastian Richard Edward Cuthbert James (born 1966) ******* (6) Arthur Sebastian Christopher Hamilton James (born 1999) ******* (7) Alfred Sebastian Anthony Walter James (born 2001) ******* (8) Albert Linus Sebastian Harry James (born 2006) ***''Lt.-Col. Hon. Cuthbert James (1872–1930)'' ****''Maj. Thomas James (1906–1976)'' ***** ''Antony Nigel James (1944–2016) ****** (9) Alexander Robert James (born 1974) ****** (10) Charles Henry Thomas James (born 1976) *** ''Hon. Wilfred James (1874–1908)'' **** ''Henry Norman James (1903–1989)'' ***** (11) John Henry James (born 1947) ****** (12) Nicholas John James (born 1976)

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Northbourne Baronies in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Noble titles created in 1884 Noble titles created for UK MPs