Viscount De L'Isle, of Penshurst in the County of Kent, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1956 for William Philip Sidney, 6th Baron de L'Isle and Dudley. The Viscount also holds two baronetcies.
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History
John Shelley-Sidney was 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 Perry, daughter of William Perry and Elizabeth Sydney, daughter and heir of the Hon. Thomas Sidney, fourth son of Robert Sidney, 4th Earl of Leicester (a title which had become extinct in 1743; see the Earl of Leicester 1618 creation for more information). In 1799 he assumed by Royal license the additional surname of Sidney on succeeding to the estates, including Penshurst Place 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. His son and heir apparent Philip Charles Sidney represented Eye in the House of Commons. In 1835, fourteen years before succeeding his father in the baronetcy, he was raised to the peerage as Baron De L'Isle and Dudley, of Penshurst in the County of Kent, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The title derived from the fact that the title of Viscount De L'Isle had been held by his ancestors the Earls of Leicester (and by their ancestors), but had become extinct along with the earldom in 1743. Also, 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 (of the 1563 creation; see the Earl of Leicester 1563 creation), the fifth son of the powerful magnate John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, who was also Baron and Viscount De Lisle. 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. His son, the sixth Baron, was a prominent Conservative politician and served as Secretary of State for Air 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. In 1965 he also succeeded his kinsman as ninth Baronet of Castle Goring. As of 2007 the titles are held by his son, the second Viscount. The family seat is Penshurst Place, near Tonbridge, Kent.
Sidney Baronets, of Penshurst Place (1818)
- Sir John Shelley Sidney, 1st Baronet (1771–1827)
- 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 (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)
The Heir Apparent is the present holder's son Hon. Philip William Edmund Sidney (b. 2 Apr 1985)
See also
- Shelley Baronets, of Castle Goring
- Earl of Leicester (1563 and 1618 creations)
- Duke of Northumberland (1551 creation)
- Viscount Lisle
- Baron Lisle
References
- Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990.
- Leigh Rayment's Peerage Page
