Duke of Westminster 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 in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great ...

. It was created by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...

in 1874 and bestowed upon Hugh Grosvenor, 3rd Marquess of Westminster. It is the most recent dukedom conferred on someone not related to the British royal family. The 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Dukes were each grandsons of the first. The present holder of the title is Hugh Grosvenor, the 7th Duke, who inherited the dukedom on 9 August 2016 on the death of his father, Gerald. The present duke is a godfather of

Prince George of Wales Prince George of Wales (George Alexander Louis; born 22 July 2013) is a member of the British royal family. He is the eldest child of William, Prince of Wales, and Catherine, Princess of Wales. George is the eldest grandchild of King Cha ...

. The Duke of Westminster's seats are at

Eaton Hall, Cheshire Eaton Hall is the country house of the Duke of Westminster. It is south of the village of Eccleston, in Cheshire, England. The house is surrounded by its own formal gardens, parkland, farmland and woodland. The estate covers about . The f ...

, and at

Abbeystead House Abbeystead House is a large country house to the east of the village of Abbeystead, Lancashire, England, some 12 km (7 miles) south-east of Lancaster. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II l ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

. The family's London town house was Grosvenor House,

Park Lane Park Lane is a dual carriageway road in the City of Westminster in Central London. It is part of the London Inner Ring Road and runs from Hyde Park Corner in the south to Marble Arch in the north. It separates Hyde Park to the west from ...

, while Halkyn Castle was built as a sporting lodge for the family in the early 1800s. The traditional burial place of the Dukes is the Old Churchyard adjacent to St Mary's Church, Eccleston.

History of the Grosvenor family

Richard Grosvenor was created Baronet of Eaton in January 1622.George Edward Cokayne ''Complete Baronetage Volume 1'' 1900
/ref> Sir Richard Grosvenor, the 7th Baronet, was created Baron Grosvenor in 1761, and in 1784 became both Viscount Belgrave (

Belgrave, Cheshire Belgrave is a historic village in Cheshire, England. The area is part of the estates owned the Dukes of Westminster who have their seat at Eaton Hall, Cheshire. The village has a few houses and the Grosvenor Garden Centre. Belgrave Lodge is lo ...

) and Earl Grosvenor under

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

. The title Marquess of Westminster was bestowed upon Robert Grosvenor, the 2nd Earl Grosvenor, at the coronation of

William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded h ...

in 1831. The subsidiary titles are: Marquess of Westminster (created 1831), Earl Grosvenor (1784), Viscount Belgrave, of Belgrave in the County of Chester (1784), and Baron Grosvenor, of Eaton in the County of Chester (1761). The Dukedom and Marquessate are in the

; the rest are in the

Peerage of Great Britain The Peerage of Great Britain comprises all extant peerages created in the Kingdom of Great Britain between the Acts of Union 1707 and the Acts of Union 1800. It replaced the Peerage of England and the Peerage of Scotland, but was itself re ...

. The

courtesy title A courtesy title is a title that does not have legal significance but rather is used through custom or courtesy, particularly, in the context of nobility, the titles used by children of members of the nobility (cf. substantive title). In some con ...

of the eldest son and heir to the Duke is ''Earl Grosvenor''.

Grosvenor Baronets, of Eaton (1622)

Sir Richard Grosvenor, 1st Baronet Sir Richard Grosvenor, 1st Baronet (9 January 1585 – 14 September 1645) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1621 and 1629. He is an ancestor of the modern day Dukes of Westminster. Grosveno ...

(1584–1645) was an MP *

Sir Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Baronet Sir Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Baronet (c. 1604 – 31 January 1665) was an ancestor of the modern day Dukes of Westminster. He was the son of Sir Richard Grosvenor, 1st Baronet and Lettice Cholmondley, daughter of Sir Hugh Cholmondeley. He spent ...

(1604–1664), a son of the 1st Baronet **Roger Grosvenor (c. 1628–1661), a son of the 2nd Baronet, predeceased his father *

Sir Thomas Grosvenor, 3rd Baronet Sir Thomas Grosvenor, 3rd Baronet (20 November 1656 – 2 July 1700) was an English Member of Parliament, and an ancestor of the modern day Dukes of Westminster. He was the first member of the family to build a substantial house on the presen ...

(1656–1700), son of Roger *

Sir Richard Grosvenor, 4th Baronet Sir Richard Grosvenor, 4th Baronet (26 June 1689 – 12 July 1732) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1715 to 1732. He was the brother of Sir Robert Grosvenor, 6th Baronet, an ancestor of the modern day Dukes of Wes ...

(1689–1732), eldest son of the 3rd Baronet, died without issue * Sir Thomas Grosvenor, 5th Baronet (1693–1733), second son of the 3rd Baronet, died unmarried *

Sir Robert Grosvenor, 6th Baronet Sir Robert Grosvenor, 6th Baronet (7 May 1695 – 1 August 1755) of Eaton Hall, Cheshire, was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1733 to 1755. He was an ancestor of the present Dukes of Westminster. Grosvenor was t ...

(1695–1755), third and youngest son of the 3rd Baronet * Sir Richard Grosvenor, 7th Baronet (1731–1802) (created Baron Grosvenor in 1761)

Barons Grosvenor (1761)

Earls Grosvenor (1784)

Marquesses of Westminster (1831)

St Mary's Church Eccleston, Grosvenor Chapel 1

Dukes of Westminster (1874)

Line of succession

There is no heir to the Dukedom of Westminster. The

Earl of Wilton Earl of Wilton, of Wilton Castle in the County of Herefordshire, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1801 for Thomas Egerton, 1st Baron Grey de Wilton, along with the subsidiary title of Viscount Grey de Wilton, ...

is heir presumptive to the Marquessate.

Family tree

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Westminster Mayfair Dukedoms in the Peerage of the United Kingdom

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are r ...

1874 establishments in the United Kingdom 1622 establishments in England Noble titles created in 1874 Noble titles created for UK MPs