Baron Ormathwaite, of Ormathwaite in the County of Cumberland, was 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 B ...

. It was created on 16 April 1868 for Sir John Walsh, 2nd Baronet, the long-standing former Member of Parliament for Sudbury and

Radnorshire Radnorshire () was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974, later becoming a Districts of Wales, district of Powys from 1974 to 1996. It covered a sparsely populat ...

. The family descended from William Benn, of Moor Row in

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...

, the member of an old north-country family. His son John Benn was in the service of the

Honourable East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

and represented Bletchingley in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, 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 ...

. He married Margaret, daughter of Joseph Fowke, of Bexley,

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, by his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Joseph Walsh. In 1795 he assumed by Royal licence the surname of Walsh in lieu of Benn, in accordance with the will of his wife's uncle Sir John Walsh (1726-1795). In 1804 he was created a Baronet in the

Baronetage of the United Kingdom Baronets are hereditary titles awarded by the Crown. The current baronetage of the United Kingdom has replaced the earlier, existing baronetages of England, Nova Scotia, Ireland and Great Britain. To be recognised as a baronet, it is necessary ...

. He was succeeded by his only son, the aforementioned second Baronet, who was elevated to the peerage in 1868. Apart from his long spell in the House of Commons he also served as Lord-Lieutenant of Radnorshire. On his death the titles passed to his son, the second Baron. He sat as Member of Parliament for

Leominster Leominster ( ) is a market town in Herefordshire, England; it is located at the confluence of the River Lugg and its tributary the River Kenwater. The town is north of Hereford and south of Ludlow in Shropshire. With a population of almos ...

and

and served as Lord-Lieutenant of Radnorshire. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the third Baron. He represented Radnorshire in Parliament as a

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

and was Lord-Lieutenant of Radnorshire. Lord Ormathwaite also held several positions at the Royal court, notably as Master of the Ceremonies from 1907 to 1920. He was childless and on his death the titles passed to his younger brother, the fourth Baron. He was succeeded by his younger brother, the fifth Baron. He held several minor diplomatic positions. When he died the titles passed to his son, the sixth Baron. The sixth and last Baron Ormathwaite was a farmer and landowner, who owned the Pen-y-Bont Hall Estate, near Oswestry, Shropshire. He never married and on his death in 1984 the baronetcy and barony became extinct. As late as in 1937 the Ormathwaite Estate comprised some 28000 acres of land, primarily in Radnorshire and other parts of the Welsh Borders.

Walsh Baronets of Ormathwaite, Cumberland (1804)

* Sir John Benn Walsh, 1st Baronet (1759–1825) * Sir John Benn Walsh, 2nd Baronet (1798–1881) (created Baron Ormathwaite in 1868)

Barons Ormathwaite (1868)

John Walsh, 1st Baron Ormathwaite John Benn Walsh, 1st Baron Ormathwaite (9 December 1798 – 3 April 1881), known as Sir John Walsh, Bt, between 1825 and 1868, was a Great Britain, British Tories (British political party), Tory and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Part ...

(1798–1881) * Arthur Walsh, 2nd Baron Ormathwaite (1827–1920) * Arthur Henry John Walsh, 3rd Baron Ormathwaite (1859–1937) *George Harry William Walsh, 4th Baron Ormathwaite (1863–1943) * Reginald Walsh, 5th Baron Ormathwaite (1868–1944) *John Arthur Charles Walsh, 6th Baron Ormathwaite (1912–1984)

References

*''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1968 edition) * *
Information on the Walsh familyAstronomy and Geology compared
by Lord Ormathwaite, 1872 {{DEFAULTSORT:Ormathwaite Extinct baronies in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Noble titles created in 1868 Peerages created for UK MPs