Baron Middleton

Baron Middleton, of Middleton in the County of Warwick, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1711 for Sir Thomas Willoughby, 2nd Baronet, who had previously represented Nottinghamshire and Newark in Parliament. The Willoughby Baronetcy, of Wollaton in the County of Nottingham, had been created in the Baronetage of England in 1677, for his elder brother Francis Willoughby, with special remainder to the latter's only brother Thomas, who succeeded him in 1688.[3] Lord Middleton was succeeded by his eldest son, the second Baron. He sat as Member of Parliament for Nottinghamshire and Tamworth. On the death of his younger son, the fourth Baron (who had succeeded his elder brother), the line of the eldest son of the first Baron failed. He was succeeded by his cousin Henry Middleton, the fifth Baron. He was the son of the Hon. Thomas Willoughby (c. 1694–1742), second son of the first Baron. On the death of his son, the sixth Baron, this line of the family also failed.[2]

Barony of Middleton

Quarterly, 1st & 4th: Or fretty azure (for Willoughby of Parham and Eresby); 2nd & 3rd: Or on two bars gules three water bougets argent, two and one (for Willoughby of Middleton and Wollaton, formerly Bugge)[1]
Creation date1 January 1711[2]
MonarchQueen Anne
PeeragePeerage of Great Britain
First holderSir Thomas Willoughby, 2nd Baronet
Present holderMichael Willoughby, 13th Baron Middleton
Heir apparentHon. James Willoughby
Seat(s)Birdsall Hall
Former seat(s)Wollaton Hall
MottoVérité sans peur ("True without fear")

The late Baron was succeeded by his cousin Digby Willoughby, the seventh Baron. He was the son of a younger son of the aforementioned the Hon. Thomas Willoughby, second son of the first Baron. He was a captain in the Royal Navy. He died unmarried and was succeeded by his cousin, the eighth Baron. He was the grandson of Reverend the Hon. James Willoughby, younger son of the aforesaid the Hon. Thomas Willoughby, second son of the first Baron. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the ninth Baron, who in his turn was succeeded by his younger brother, the 10th Baron.[2] On the latter's death the titles passed to his second but eldest surviving son, the 11th Baron. He was Lord Lieutenant of the East Riding of Yorkshire. Since 2011, the titles are held by his grandson, the 13th Baron.[4]

Extensive estate and personal papers of the Willoughby family are held in the Middleton collection at the department of Manuscripts and Special Collections, The University of Nottingham.

The current family seat is Birdsall Hall, near Malton, North Yorkshire. The Middleton family owned Wollaton Hall, a stately home near Nottingham on which Mentmore Towers was based, and Middleton Hall in Warwickshire until they were sold by the 11th Baron in the 1920s.[4]

Baronets of Wollaton (1677)

Barons Middleton (1711)

The heir apparent is the present holder's eldest son, the Hon. James William Michael Willoughby (b. 1976).

The heir apparent's heir apparent is his son, Thomas Michael Jonathan Willoughby (b. 2007)

References
  1. The Peerage of England, Scotland, and Ireland: The peerage of England. W. Owen [and 2 others]. 1790. p. 413. Retrieved 10 December 2018. Quarterly: 1st and 4th, Or fretty Azure (Willoughby of Parham); 2nd and 3rd, Or on two Bars Gules three Water Bougets two and one Argent (Willoughby of Middleton).
  2. Mosley, Charles, ed. (2003). Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knighthood (107 ed.). Burke's Peerage & Gentry. ISBN 0-9711966-2-1.
  3. Cokayne, George Edward, ed. (1904), Complete Baronetage volume 4 (1665-1707), 4, Exeter: William Pollard and Co, retrieved 9 October 2018
  4. "Lord Middleton". The Daily Telegraph. 15 June 2011. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
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