The Smithson Baronetcy, of Stanwick in the County of York, is a title in the

Baronetage of England 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 ...

. It was created on 2 August 1660 for Hugh Smithson (1598-1670) of

Stanwick St John Stanwick St John is a village, civil parish, former Manorialism, manor and ecclesiastical parish in the county of North Yorkshire, (formerly "North Riding" of Yorkshire), England. It is situated between the towns of Darlington and Richmond, ...

, Yorkshire. Sir Hugh Smithson, 3rd Baronet, married Elizabeth Langdale, daughter of Marmaduke Langdale, Baron Langdale. Sir Hugh Smithson, the fourth Baronet, married Lady Elizabeth Seymour, daughter of

Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset General Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset (11 November 16847 February 1750) was a British Army officer, Whig politician and peer who sat in the House of Commons from 1708 to 1722 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Percy and took his ...

and heiress of the Percy family, Earls of Northumberland. In 1749 the Duke of Somerset was created

Earl of Northumberland The title of Earl of Northumberland has been created several times in the Peerage of England and of Great Britain, succeeding the title Earl of Northumbria. Its most famous holders are the House of Percy (''alias'' Perci), who were the most po ...

, with remainder to his son-in-law Sir Hugh Smithson, who succeeded as second Earl on his father-in-law's death in 1750. He assumed the surname of Percy and was created

Duke of Northumberland Duke of Northumberland is a noble title that has been created three times in English and British history, twice in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of Great Britain. The current holder of this title is Ralph Percy, 12th Duke of N ...

in 1766. The baronetcy remains merged with the dukedom.

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

in Washington DC was founded with the legacy of

James Smithson James Smithson (c. 1765 – 27 June 1829) was a British chemist and mineralogist. He published numerous scientific papers for the Royal Society during the early 1800s as well as defining Calamine (mineral), calamine, which would eventually be ...

, illegitimate son of Sir Hugh, 4th Baronet (

Hugh Percy, 1st Duke of Northumberland Hugh Percy, 1st Duke of Northumberland, (6 June 1786) was an English peer, politician, and landowner. Origins Hugh Smithson was born , the son of Langdale Smithson (b. 1682) of Langdale, and Philadelphia Reveley. He was a grandson of Sir Hu ...

Smithson baronets of Stanwick (1660)

* Sir Hugh Smithson, 1st Baronet (–1670) *Sir Jerome Smithson, 2nd Baronet (–1684) *Sir Hugh Smithson, 3rd Baronet (1657–1729) **Langdale Smithson * Sir Hugh Smithson (later Percy), 4th Baronet (c.1714–1786) (succeeded as

in 1750 and created Duke of Northumberland in 1766) ''For further succession, see

.''

Arms

The Arms of Smithson of Stanwick, Yorkshire (ancient) are

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct an accurate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual d ...

ed ''Argent, a chevron engrailed sable between three oak leaves erect slipped vert'' SmithsonAugmentedArms

The arms of the Smithson baronets of Stanwick are ''Or, on a chief embattled azure three suns proper''.Collins, Arthur, The English Baronetage, vol.3, part 1; Victoria County History, Stanwick St John

Smithson baronets of Stanwick (1660)

Arms

See also

Notes

References

Further reading