Viscount De L'Isle, of

Penshurst Penshurst is a historic village and civil parish located in a valley upon the northern slopes of the Kentish Weald, at the confluence of the River Medway and the River Eden, within the Sevenoaks district of Kent, England. The village is situ ...

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

. It was created in 1956 for William Sidney, 6th Baron de L'Isle and Dudley, VC, KG, GCMG, GCVO (1909–1991).

History

This branch of the Shelley family descends from John Shelley-Sidney, the only son of the second marriage of Sir Bysshe Shelley, 1st Baronet, of Castle Goring (see Shelley Baronets for earlier history of the family) by Elizabeth Jane, daughter of William Perry and Elizabeth, daughter and heir of the Hon. Thomas Sidney, fourth son of

Robert Sidney, 4th Earl of Leicester Robert Sidney, 4th Earl of Leicester (17 December 1649 – 11 November 1702) was the son of Philip Sidney, 3rd Earl of Leicester, and the former Lady Catherine Cecil. Life As a child, Robert Sidney and his sister Dorothy had their portrait pa ...

(a title which had become extinct in 1743; see the

Earl of Leicester Earl of Leicester is a title that has been created seven times. The first title was granted during the 12th century in the Peerage of England. The current title is in the Peerage of the United Kingdom and was created in 1837. Early creatio ...

1618 creation). In 1799 he assumed by Royal licence the additional surname of Sidney on succeeding to the estates, including

Penshurst Place Penshurst Place is a historic building near Penhurst, Kent, south east of London, England. It is the ancestral home of the Sidney family, and was the birthplace of the great Elizabethan poet, courtier and soldier, Sir Philip Sidney. The ori ...

in Kent, of his maternal grandmother. In 1818 he was created a Baronet, of Penshurst in the County of Kent, in the

Baronetage of the United Kingdom 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 ...

. His son and heir apparent,

Philip Sidney Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...

, represented Eye 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 ...

. In 1835, fourteen years before succeeding his father in the baronetcy, he was raised to the Peerage of the United Kingdom as Baron De L'Isle and Dudley, of Penshurst in the County of Kent. He was son-in-law of then King William IV. The title derived from the fact that the title of "Viscount De L'Isle" had been held by his ancestors the Earls of Leicester (in turn deriving from their ancestors), but had become extinct along with the earldom in 1743. The title of "Dudley" came from the fact that Robert Sidney, 1st Earl of Leicester ( of the 1618 creation) was the nephew of

Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, (24 June 1532 – 4 September 1588) was an English statesman and the favourite of Elizabeth I from her accession until his death. He was a suitor for the queen's hand for many years. Dudley's youth was o ...

( of the 1564 creation), the fifth son of

John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland (1504Loades 2008 – 22 August 1553) was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady J ...

, who was as well Viscount Lisle by right of his mother. Lord De L'Isle and Dudley discontinued the use of the surname Shelley. His grandson, the fifth Baron (who only held the titles for two months in 1945 after succeeding his elder brother), notably served as Mayor of Chelsea and was a member of the

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kn ...

. His son, the sixth Baron, was a prominent

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 in ...

politician and served as

Secretary of State for Air The Secretary of State for Air was a secretary of state position in the British government, which existed from 1919 to 1964. The person holding this position was in charge of the Air Ministry. The Secretary of State for Air was supported by ...

from 1951 to 1955. In 1956 he was created Viscount De L'Isle, of Penshurst in the County of Kent, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Lord De L'Isle later served as

Governor-General of Australia The governor-general of Australia is the representative of the monarch, currently King Charles III, in Australia.Penshurst Place Penshurst Place is a historic building near Penhurst, Kent, south east of London, England. It is the ancestral home of the Sidney family, and was the birthplace of the great Elizabethan poet, courtier and soldier, Sir Philip Sidney. The ori ...

, near

Tonbridge Tonbridge ( ) is a market town in Kent, England, on the River Medway, north of Royal Tunbridge Wells, south west of Maidstone and south east of London. In the administrative borough of Tonbridge and Malling, it had an estimated population ...

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 ...

. Close to it is the parish church of

St John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

where the Sidney Chapel houses many memorials to the family.

Shelley-Sidney Baronets, of Penshurst Place (1818)

* Sir John Shelley-Sidney, 1st Baronet (1771–1849) * Sir Philip Sidney, 2nd Baronet (1800–1851) (created Baron De L'Isle and Dudley in 1835)

Barons De L'Isle and Dudley (1835)

Philip Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and Dudley Philip Charles Shelley Sidney, 1st Baron De L'Isle and Dudley GCH (11 March 1800 – 4 March 1851) was a British Tory politician. Early life Sidney was the only son of Sir John Shelley-Sidney, 1st Baronet and Henrietta Hunloke. The poet ...

(1800–1851) * Philip Sidney, 2nd Baron De L'Isle and Dudley (1828–1898) * Philip Sidney, 3rd Baron De L'Isle and Dudley (1853–1922) * Algernon Sidney, 4th Baron De L'Isle and Dudley (1854–1945) *William Sidney, 5th Baron De L'Isle and Dudley (1859–1945) * William Sidney, 6th Baron De L'Isle and Dudley (1909–1991) (created Viscount De L'Isle in 1956)

Viscounts De L'Isle (1956)

* William Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'Isle (1909–1991) * Philip Sidney, 2nd Viscount De L'Isle (b. 1945) 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 only son the Hon. Philip William Edmund Sidney (b. 1985).

Line of Succession

Philip John Algernon Sidney, 2nd Viscount De L'Isle (born 1945) ** (1) ''Hon.'' Philip William Edmund Sidney (b. 1985)

References

Sources

* *Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990. * {{DEFAULTSORT:De Lisle Viscountcies in the Peerage of the United Kingdom 1956 establishments in the United Kingdom Noble titles created in 1956 Noble titles created for UK MPs