Coat of arms of the Marquess of Northampton

Baron Compton is an

abeyant Abeyance (from the Old French ' meaning "gaping") describes a state of temporary dormancy or suspension. In law, it can refer to a situation where the ownership of property, titles, or office is not currently Vesting, vested in any specific perso ...

title in the

Peerage of England The Peerage of England comprises all peerages created in the Kingdom of England before the Act of Union in 1707. From that year, the Peerages of England and Scotland were closed to new creations, and new peers were created in a single Peerag ...

, meaning that inheritance of the title stopped because there was no legal priority as to which daughter would inherit the title. The title was created in 1572 for the Tudor politician, Sir Henry Compton. In 1618, his son was created

Earl of Northampton Earl of Northampton is a title in the Peerage of England that has been created five times. Earls of Northampton, First Creation (1071) * Waltheof (d. 1076) * Maud, Queen of Scotland (c.1074–1130/31) * Simon II de Senlis (1103–1153) * Simon II ...

. The titles remained united until the fifth earl died without any male heirs in 1754 and the title passed to his only daughter, Charlotte, who had already inherited the title of Baroness Ferrers of Chartley from her mother in 1740. Charlotte was the wife of Hon. George Townshend, who became Viscount Townshend in 1764 and was created

Marquess Townshend Marquess Townshend is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain held by the Townshend family of Raynham Hall in Norfolk. The title was created in 1787 for George Townshend, 4th Viscount Townshend. History The Townshend family descends from Rog ...

after her death in 1770. The title then remained with the marquessate until her grandson, the third marquess, died childless in 1855 and both baronies became abeyant between his sisters and their descendants.

Barons Compton (1572)

* Henry Compton, 1st Baron Compton (1544–1589) * William Compton, 1st Earl of Northampton, 2nd Baron Compton (d. 1630) * Spencer Compton, 2nd Earl of Northampton, 3rd Baron Compton (1601–1643) * James Compton, 3rd Earl of Northampton, 4th Baron Compton (1622–1681) * George Compton, 4th Earl of Northampton, 5th Baron Compton (1664–1727) * James Compton, 5th Earl of Northampton, 6th Baron Compton (1687–1754) * Charlotte Townshend, 16th Baroness Ferrers of Chartley, 7th Baroness Compton (d. 1770) * George Townshend, 2nd Marquess Townshend, 8th Baron Compton (1753–1811) * George Townshend, 3rd Marquess Townshend, 9th Baron Compton (1778–1855)

Family tree

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Compton 1572 establishments in England

Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

Abeyant baronies in the Peerage of England Noble titles created in 1572