Duke of Westminster

## Dukedom of Westminster

Quarterly: 1st and 4th, Azure a Portcullis with chains pendant Or on a Chief of the last between two united Roses of York and Lancaster a Pale charged with the Arms of King Edward the Confessor (City of Westminster); 2nd and 3rd, Azure a Garb Or (Grosvenor).

### **First holder**

Hugh Grosvenor,
3rd Marquess of Westminster

### **Remainder to**

the 1st Duke's heirs male of the body lawfully begotten

### **Subsidiary titles**

Marquess of Westminster
Earl Grosvenor
Viscount Belgrave
Baron Grosvenor
Baronet of Eaton

### **Motto**

**VIRTUS NON STEMMA**
 *(Virtue, not ancestry)*

### **Remainder to**

the 1st Baronet's heirs male of the body lawfully begotten

**Duke of Westminster** is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created by Queen Victoria in 1874 and bestowed upon Hugh Grosvenor, 3rd Marquess of Westminster. It is the most recent dukedom conferred on someone not related to the British royal family.

The 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Dukes were each grandsons of the first. The present holder of the title is Hugh Grosvenor, the 7th Duke, who inherited the dukedom on 9 August 2016 on the death of his father, Gerald. The present duke is a godfather of Prince George of Cambridge.

The Duke of Westminster's seats are at Eaton Hall, Cheshire, and at Abbeystead House, Lancashire. The family's London town house was Grosvenor House, Park Lane. The traditional burial place of the Dukes is the Old Churchyard adjacent to St Mary's Church, Eccleston.

## History of the Grosvenor family

Richard Grosvenor was created Baronet of Eaton in January 1622. Sir Richard Grosvenor, the 7th Baronet, was created **Baron Grosvenor** in 1761, and in 1784 became both **Viscount Belgrave** (Belgrave, Cheshire) and **Earl Grosvenor** under George III. The title **Marquess of Westminster** was bestowed upon Robert Grosvenor, the 2nd Earl Grosvenor, at the coronation of William IV in 1831.

The subsidiary titles are: **Marquess of Westminster** (created 1831), **Earl Grosvenor** (1784), **Viscount Belgrave**, of Belgrave in the County of Chester (1784), and **Baron Grosvenor**, of Eaton in the County of Chester (1761). The Dukedom and Marquessate are in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; the rest are in the Peerage of Great Britain. The courtesy title of the eldest son and heir to the Duke is *Earl Grosvenor*.

## Grosvenor Baronets, of Eaton (1622)

* Sir Richard Grosvenor, 1st Baronet (1584–1645) was an MP
* Sir Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Baronet (1604–1664), a son of the 1st Baronet
	+ Roger Grosvenor (c. 1628–1661), a son of the 2nd Baronet, predeceased his father
* Sir Thomas Grosvenor, 3rd Baronet (1656–1700), son of Roger
* Sir Richard Grosvenor, 4th Baronet (1689–1732), eldest son of the 3rd Baronet, died without issue
* Sir Thomas Grosvenor, 5th Baronet (1693–1733), second son of the 3rd Baronet, died unmarried
* Sir Robert Grosvenor, 6th Baronet (1695–1755), third and youngest son of the 3rd Baronet
* Sir Richard Grosvenor, 7th Baronet (1731–1802) (created **Baron Grosvenor** in 1761)

## Line of succession

<templatestyles src="Tree list/styles.css" />

* *Hugh Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster (1825–1899)*
	+ *Victor Grosvenor, Earl Grosvenor (1853–1884)*
		- *Hugh Grosvenor, 2nd Duke of Westminster (1879–1953)*
			* *Edward Grosvenor, Earl Grosvenor (1904–1909)*
	+ *Lord Arthur Grosvenor (1860–1929)*
		- *Robert Grosvenor (1895–1953)*
			* *Hugh Grosvenor (1927–1947)*
	+ *Lord Henry Grosvenor (1861–1914)*
		- *William Grosvenor, 3rd Duke of Westminster (1894–1963)*
	+ *Lord Robert Grosvenor (1869–1888)*
	+ *Lord Gerald Grosvenor (1874–1940)*
	+ *Lord Hugh Grosvenor (1884–1914)*
		- *Gerald Grosvenor, 4th Duke of Westminster (1907–1967)*
		- *Robert Grosvenor, 5th Duke of Westminster (1910–1979)*
			* *Gerald Grosvenor, 6th Duke of Westminster (1951–2016)*
				+ Hugh Grosvenor, 7th Duke of Westminster (b. 1991)
	+ *Lord Edward Grosvenor (1892–1929)*

There is no heir to the Dukedom of Westminster. The Earl of Wilton is heir presumptive to the Marquessate.

## Family tree

Grosvenor family tree: Earls Grosvenor, Marquesses and Dukes of Westminster

## See also

* Earl of Wilton
* Baron Ebury
* Baron Stalbridge

## References

1. ↑ Duke of Westminster nominations, CVQO. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
2. ↑ Duke - Debrett's.
3. ↑ Prince George's godparents announced. *BBC News* (23 October 2013).
4. ↑ George Edward Cokayne *Complete Baronetage Volume 1* 1900