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Topicthe 7th duke of sutherland by Alan Sutherland,   24/10/2002  
ReplyRe: the 7th duke of sutherland by John N Sutherland,   28/11/2002  
QuestionRe: Re: the 7th duke of sutherland by Alan Sutherland,   30/11/2002  
NoneRe: Re: Re: the 7th duke of sutherland by Jean Sutherland,   16/12/2004  
SmileRe: Re: Re: the 7th duke of sutherland by alexander hector george sutherland leveson gower,   16/04/2006  
ReplyRe: the 7th Duke of Sutherland by Mark Sutherland-Fisher,   03/02/2007  
 

Re: the 7th Duke of Sutherland
Date: 03/02/2007
Author: Mark Sutherland-Fisher
The Duchy of Sutherland is a fiction in that the title was not granted to one who owned the county. An unusual but not unique situation. The 1st Duke was of the family of Leveson-Gower, descended from a 16th century courtier who like so many, made a strategic marriage and as each generation followed his example, became richer and more powerful. The family acquired numerous English titles including Earl Gower and Marquess of Stafford. George Granville Leveson-Gower, Earl Gower was born in 1758 son of the 1st Marquess of Stafford and his wife Lady Louisa Egerton, who herself was daughter of Scrope Egerton, 1st Duke of Bridgewater. In 1785 he married the 20 year old Elizabeth Sutherland, who 14 years earlier had been declared Countess of Sutherland, 19th of that title in the Sutherland Peerage Case. She was arguably the largest landowner in Scotland but her acres were poor. He was the wealthiest heir in Europe, by then being in line to inherit the wealth though not title of Duke of Bridgewater and most of the coal fields of Staffordshire and Leicestershire and one of the most profitable canals in England. In spite of the dynastic aspect, it was a love match. Earl and Countess Gower were in Paris through the Reign of Terror and as British Ambassador, he was heavily involved in the attempt to rescue the royal family, in truth the real Scarlett Pimpernel! As Marquess of Stafford, he controlled his wife's lands and in 1833 for his services to the Crown and the fact that both he and his wife had royal blood, he was elevated to a Dukedom by William IV. Advised that it was inappropriate to take the title Duke of Stafford, he elected instead to name his new Dukedom after his wife's estates even though Sutherland had never been a Scottish ducal title like Hamilton, Queensberry, Argyll, Lennox and others. In terms of the Letters Patent the Dukedom of Sutherland can only pass to the most senior male descendant of the 1st Duke. His second son Lord Francis Leveson-Gower had been created Earl of Ellesmere in his own right and took the surname Egerton as part of another inheritance. The late 6th Duke was therefore the 2nd cousin of Elizabeth, 24th and present Countess of Sutherland and the 7th Duke the nearest male descendant after the 7th Duke of the 1st Duke. Surnames are irrelevant. Members of the family frequently change them by Royal Licence to qualify for another inheritance or collection of titles. I trust this clarifies the situation. Mark Genealogist and Past President: Clan Sutherland
 

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