PEERAGES
Last updated 12/09/2017 (6 Jul 2024)
Date	Rank	Order	Name	Born	Died	Age
ROCHDALE
14 Feb 1913	B	1	Sir George Kemp Created Baron Rochdale 14 Feb 1913 MP for Heywood 1895‑1906 and Manchester North West 1910‑1912; Lord Lieutenant Middlesex 1929‑1945	9 Jun 1866	24 Mar 1945	78
24 Mar 1945 20 Jan 1960	V	2 1	John Durival Kemp Created Viscount Rochdale 20 Jan 1960	5 Jun 1906	24 May 1993	86
24 May 1993		2	St.John Durival Kemp	15 Jan 1938	27 Feb 2015	77
27 Feb 2015		3	Jonathan Hugo Durival Kemp	10 Jun 1961
ROCHE
29 Dec 1299	B	1	Thomas de la Roche Summoned to Parliament as Lord Roche 29 Dec 1299		c 1313
c 1313		2	John de la Roche		1314
1314		3	Thomas de la Roche		c 1324
c 1324		4	William de la Roche		c 1370
c 1370		5	John de la Roche		c 1372
c 1372		6	Mary de la Roche		c 1377
c 1377 to     9 Sep 1382		7	Margaret Fleming On her death the peerage fell into abeyance		9 Sep 1382
14 Oct 1935 to     22 Dec 1956	B[L]		Sir Alexander Adair Roche Created Baron Roche for life 14 Oct 1935 Lord Justice of Appeal 1934‑1935; Lord of Appeal in Ordinary 1935‑1938; PC 1934 Peerage extinct on his death	24 Jul 1871	22 Dec 1956	85
ROCHESTER
3 Nov 1613 to     Jul 1645	V	1	Robert Carr Created Viscount Rochester 25 Mar 1611, and Baron Brancepeth and Earl of Somerset 3 Nov 1613 See "Somerset"	c 1587	Jul 1645
13 Dec 1652	E	1	Henry Wilmot Created Baron Wilmot 29 Jun 1643 and Earl of Rochester 13 Dec 1652 MP for Tamworth 1640‑1643	2 Nov 1612	19 Feb 1658	45
19 Feb 1658		2	John Wilmot For further information on this peer, see the note at the foot of this page	1 Apr 1647	26 Jul 1680	33
26 Jul 1680 to     12 Nov 1681		3	Charles Wilmot Peerages extinct on his death	2 Jan 1671	12 Nov 1681	10
29 Nov 1682	E	1	Laurence Hyde Created Baron Wotton Basset and Viscount Hyde of Kenilworth 24 Apr 1681 and Earl of Rochester 29 Nov 1682 MP for Newport 1660, Oxford University 1661‑1679 and Wootton Bassett 1679‑1681; First Lord of the Admiralty 1679‑1684 and 1685‑1687; Lord President of the Council 1684‑1685; Lord Lieutenant of Ireland 1700‑1703; Lord President of the Council 1710‑1711; Lord Lieutenant Hertford 1686‑1688; Lord Lieutenant Cornwall 1710‑1711; PC 1679; KG 1685	15 Mar 1642	2 May 1711	69
2 May 1711		2	Henry Hyde He succeeded to the Earldom of Clarendon in 1723 with which title this peerage then merged until its extinction in 1753	Jun 1672	10 Dec 1753	81
23 Jan 1931	B	1	Sir Ernest Henry Lamb Created Baron Rochester 23 Jan 1931 MP for Rochester 1906‑1910 and 1910‑1918; Paymaster General 1931‑1935	4 Sep 1876	13 Jan 1955	78
13 Jan 1955		2	Foster Charles Lowry Lamb	7 Jun 1916	6 Feb 2017	100
6 Feb 2017		3	David Charles Lamb	8 Sep 1944
ROCHFORD
14 Oct 1495 to     8 Aug 1515	B	1	Thomas Butler, 7th Earl of Ormonde Created Lord Rochford 14 Oct 1495 On his death the peerage fell into abeyance	c 1424	8 Aug 1515
18 Jun 1525 to     13 Mar 1539	V	1	Thomas Boleyn Created Viscount Rochford 18 Jun 1525, Earl of Ossory 23 Feb 1528, Earl of Wiltshire and Earl of Ormonde 8 Dec 1529 Peerages extinct on his death	1477	13 Mar 1539	61
5 Jan 1533 to     17 May 1536	B	1	George Boleyn Summoned to Parliament as Lord Rochford 5 Jan 1533 He was attainted and the peerage forfeited		17 May 1536
6 Jul 1621	V	1	Henry Carey, 4th Baron Hunsdon Created Viscount Rochford 6 Jul 1621 and Earl of Dover 8 Mar 1628 See "Dover" - extinct 1677	c 1580	13 Apr 1666
10 May 1695	E	1	William Henry Nassau-de-Zulestein Created Baron Enfield, Viscount Tunbridge and Earl of Rochford 10 May 1695	7 Oct 1649	2 Jul 1708	58
2 Jul 1708		2	William Henry Nassau-de-Zulestein MP [I] for Kilkenny City 1705‑1710; MP for Steyning 1708	9 Jul 1682	27 Jul 1710	28
27 Jul 1710		3	Frederick Nassau-de-Zulestein	1683	14 Jun 1738	54
14 Jun 1738		4	William Henry Nassau-de-Zulestein Secretary of State 1768 and 1770‑1775; Lord Lieutenant Essex 1756‑1781. PC 1755; KG 1778	17 Sep 1717	28 Sep 1781	64
28 Sep 1781 to     3 Sep 1830		5	William Henry Nassau-de-Zulestein Peerage extinct on his death	28 Jun 1754	3 Sep 1830	76
ROCK
15 Oct 2015	B[L]		Kate Harriet Alexandra Rock Created Baroness Rock for life 15 Oct 2015	9 Oct 1968
ROCKINGHAM
29 Jan 1645	B	1	Sir Lewis Watson, 1st baronet Created Baron Rockingham 29 Jan 1645 MP for Lincoln 1614, 1621‑1623 and 1624‑1625	14 Jul 1584	5 Jan 1653	68
5 Jan 1653		2	Edward Watson	30 Jun 1630	22 Jun 1689	58
22 Jun 1689 19 Oct 1714	E	3 1	Lewis Watson Created Baron Throwley, Viscount Sondes and Earl of Rockingham 19 Oct 1714 MP for Higham Ferrers 1689; Lord Lieutenant Kent 1705‑1724	29 Dec 1655	19 Mar 1724	68
19 Mar 1724		4 2	Lewis Watson Lord Lieutenant Kent 1737‑1745	c 1714	4 Nov 1745
4 Nov 1745 to     26 Feb 1746		5 3	Thomas Watson MP for Canterbury 1741‑1745 On his death the creations of 1714 became extinct whilst the Barony passed to -	30 Dec 1715	26 Feb 1746	30
26 Feb 1746 19 Apr 1746	M	6 1	Thomas Watson-Wentworth Created Baron Malton 28 May 1728, Baron Wath, Baron Harrowden, Viscount Higham and Earl of Malton 19 Nov 1733 and Marquess of Rockingham 19 Apr 1746 MP for Malton 1715 and 1722‑1727 and Yorkshire 1727‑1728; Lord Lieutenant West Riding Yorkshire 1733‑1750; PC [I] by Jun 1737	13 Nov 1693	14 Dec 1750	57
14 Dec 1750 to     2 Jul 1782		2	Charles Watson-Wentworth Created Baron Malton [I] and Earl Malton [I] 17 Sep 1750 Prime Minister 1765‑1766 and 1782; Lord Lieutenant East and North Ridings Yorkshire 1751‑1762 and West Riding 1751‑1763 and 1765‑1782; KG 1760; PC 1765 Peerages extinct on his death	13 May 1730	2 Jul 1782	52
ROCKLEY
11 Jan 1934	B	1	Lord Evelyn Cecil Created Baron Rockley 11 Jan 1934 MP for Hertford 1898‑1900, Aston Manor 1900‑1918 and Aston 1918‑1929; PC 1917	30 May 1865	1 Apr 1941	75
1 Apr 1941		2	Robert William Evelyn Cecil	28 Feb 1901	6 Jan 1976	74
6 Jan 1976		3	James Hugh Cecil	5 Apr 1934	5 Dec 2011	77
5 Dec 2011		4	Anthony Robert Cecil	29 Jul 1961
ROCKSAVAGE
22 Nov 1815	E	1	George James Cholmondeley, 4th Earl Cholmondeley Created Earl of Rocksavage and Marquess of Cholmondeley 22 Nov 1815 See "Cholmondeley"	11 May 1749	10 Apr 1827	77
RODEN
1 Dec 1771	E[I]	1	Robert Jocelyn, 2nd Viscount Jocelyn Created Earl of Roden 1 Dec 1771 MP [I] for Old Leighlin 1745‑1756; PC [I] 1758 For information on his third son, Percy, see the note at the foot of this page	31 Jul 1731	22 Jun 1797	65
22 Jun 1797		2	Robert Jocelyn MP [I] for Dundalk 1783‑1798; PC [I] 1797; KP 1806	26 Oct 1756	29 Jun 1820	63
29 Jun 1820		3	Robert Jocelyn Created Baron Clanbrassill 17 Jul 1821 MP for co. Louth 1806‑1807 and 1810‑1820; PC 1812; KP 1821; PC [I] 1858	27 Oct 1788	20 Mar 1870	81
20 Mar 1870		4	Robert Jocelyn	22 Nov 1846	10 Jan 1880	33
10 Jan 1880		5	John Strange Jocelyn	5 Jun 1823	3 Jul 1897	74
3 Jul 1897		6	William Henry Jocelyn	5 Nov 1842	23 Jan 1910	67
23 Jan 1910		7	Robert Julian Orde Jocelyn	19 Apr 1845	18 Dec 1915	70
18 Dec 1915		8	Robert Soame Jocelyn	8 Sep 1883	30 Oct 1956	73
30 Oct 1956		9	Robert William Jocelyn	4 Dec 1909	18 Oct 1993	83
18 Oct 1993		10	Robert John Jocelyn	25 Aug 1938
RODGER OF EARLSFERRY
29 Apr 1992 to     26 Jun 2011	B[L]		Alan Ferguson Rodger Created Baron Rodger of Earlsferry for life 29 Apr 1992 Solicitor General for Scotland 1989‑1992; Lord Advocate 1992‑1995; Lord Justice General & President of the Court of Session 1996‑2001; Lord of Appeal in Ordinary 2001‑2009; Justice of the Supreme Court 2009‑2011; PC 1992 Peerage extinct on his death	18 Sep 1944	26 Jun 2011	66
RODGERS OF QUARRY BANK
12 Feb 1992	B[L]		William Thomas Rodgers Created Baron Rodgers of Quarry Bank for life 12 Feb 1992 MP for Stockton on Tees 1962‑1983; Minister of State, Board of Trade 1968‑1969; Minister of State, Treasury 1969‑1970; Minister Of State, Defence 1974‑1976; Secretary of State for Transport 1976‑1979; PC 1975	28 Oct 1928
RODNEY
19 Jun 1782	B	1	Sir George Brydges Rodney, 1st baronet Created Baron Rodney 19 Jun 1782 MP for Saltash 1751‑1754, Okehampton 1759‑1761, Penryn 1761‑1768, Northampton 1768‑1774 and Westminster 1780‑1782	13 Feb 1719	24 May 1792	73
24 May 1792		2	George Rodney MP for Northampton 1780‑1784	25 Dec 1753	2 Jan 1802	48
2 Jan 1802		3	George Rodney Lord Lieutenant Radnor 1804‑1842	18 Jun 1782	21 Jun 1842	60
21 Jun 1842		4	Thomas James Harley‑Rodney	12 Jun 1784	30 Oct 1843	59
30 Oct 1843		5	Spencer Rodney	30 May 1785	15 May 1846	60
15 May 1846		6	Rodney Bennett Rodney	21 May 1820	19 Aug 1864	44
19 Aug 1864		7	George Bridges Harley Bennett Rodney	28 Feb 1857	29 Dec 1909	52
29 Dec 1909		8	George Bridges Harley Guest Rodney	2 Nov 1891	18 Dec 1973	82
18 Dec 1973		9	John Francis Rodney	28 Jun 1920	13 Oct 1992	72
13 Oct 1992		10	George Brydges Rodney	3 Jan 1953	13 Feb 2011	58
13 Feb 2011		11	John George Brydges Rodney	5 Jul 1999
ROE
5 Jan 1917 to     7 Jun 1923	B	1	Sir Thomas Roe Created Baron Roe 5 Jan 1917 MP for Derby 1883‑1895 and 1900‑1916 Peerage extinct on his death	13 Jul 1832	7 Jun 1923	90
ROGAN
16 Jul 1999	B[L]		Dennis Robert David Rogan Created Baron Rogan for life 16 Jul 1999	30 Jun 1942
ROGERS OF RIVERSIDE
17 Oct 1996 to     18 Dec 2021	B[L]		Sir Richard George Rogers Created Baron Rogers of Riverside for life 17 Oct 1996 CH 2008 Peerage extinct on his death	23 Jul 1933	18 Dec 2021	88
ROKEBY
26 Feb 1777	B[I]	1	Richard Robinson Created Baron Rokeby 26 Feb 1777 For details of the special remainder included in the creation of this peerage, see the note at the foot of this page Archbishop of Armagh 1765‑1794; PC [I] 1765	c 1708	10 Oct 1794
10 Oct 1794		2	Matthew Robinson-Morris MP for Canterbury 1747‑1761 For further information on this peer, see the note at the foot of this page	12 Apr 1713	30 Nov 1800	87
30 Nov 1800		3	Morris Robinson	14 Jul 1757	10 May 1829	71
10 May 1829		4	Matthew Montagu MP for Bossiney 1786‑1790, Tregony 1790‑1796 and St. Germans 1806‑1812	23 Nov 1762	1 Sep 1831	68
1 Sep 1831		5	Edward Montagu	6 Jul 1787	7 Apr 1847	59
7 Apr 1847 to     25 May 1883		6	Henry Montagu Peerage extinct on his death	2 Feb 1798	25 May 1883	85
ROLL OF IPSDEN
19 Jul 1977 to     30 Mar 2005	B[L]		Sir Eric Roll Created Baron Roll of Ipsden for life 19 Jul 1977 Peerage extinct on his death	1 Dec 1907	30 Mar 2005	97
ROLLE
8 Jan 1748 to     17 Aug 1750	B	1	Henry Rolle Created Baron Rolle 8 Jan 1748 MP for Devon 1730‑1741 and Barnstaple 1741‑1748 Peerage extinct on his death	7 Nov 1708	17 Aug 1750	41
20 Jun 1796 to     3 Apr 1842	B	1	John Rolle Created Baron Rolle 20 Jun 1796 MP for Devon 1780‑1796 Peerage extinct on his death	16 Oct 1756	3 Apr 1842	85
ROLLO
10 Jan 1651	B[S]	1	Andrew Rollo Created Lord Rollo 10 Jan 1651	1577	12 Jun 1659	81
12 Jun 1659		2	James Rollo	11 Dec 1600	12 Jun 1669	68
12 Jun 1669		3	Andrew Rollo		4 Mar 1700
4 Mar 1700		4	Robert Rollo	c 1680	8 Mar 1758
8 Mar 1758		5	Andrew Rollo	c 1703	2 Jun 1765
2 Jun 1765		6	John Rollo	6 Feb 1708	26 Mar 1783	75
26 Mar 1783		7	James Rollo	8 Mar 1738	14 May 1784	46
14 May 1784		8	John Rollo	23 Apr 1773	24 Dec 1846	73
24 Dec 1846		9	William Rollo	28 May 1809	8 Oct 1852	43
8 Oct 1852		10	John Rogerson Rollo Created Baron Dunning 29 Jun 1869	24 Oct 1835	2 Oct 1916	80
2 Oct 1916		11	William Charles Wordsworth Rollo (also 2nd Baron Dunning)	8 Jan 1860	3 Mar 1946	86
3 Mar 1946		12	John Eric Henry Rollo (also 3rd Baron Dunning)	8 Jan 1889	3 Sep 1947	58
3 Sep 1947		13	Eric John Stapylton Rollo (also 4th Baron Dunning)	3 Dec 1915	25 Sep 1997	81
25 Sep 1997		14	David Eric Howard Rollo (also 5th Baron Dunning)	31 Mar 1943
ROMER
5 Jan 1938 to     19 Aug 1944	B	1	Sir Mark Lemon Romer Created Baron Romer 5 Jan 1938 Lord Justice of Appeal 1929‑-1938; Lord of Appeal in Ordinary 1938‑1944; PC 1929 Peerage extinct on his death	9 Aug 1866	19 Aug 1944	78
ROMILLY
3 Jan 1866	B	1	Sir John Romilly Created Baron Romilly 3 Jan 1866 MP for Bridport 1832‑1835 and 1846‑1847, and Devonport 1847‑1852; Solicitor General 1848‑1850; Attorney General 1850‑1851; Master of the Rolls 1851‑1873; PC 1851	10 Jan 1802	23 Dec 1874	72
23 Dec 1874		2	William Romilly For further information on the death of this peer, see the note at the foot of this page	12 Apr 1835	23 May 1891	56
23 May 1891		3	John Gaspard le Marchant Romilly For further information on the marriage of this peer, see the note at the foot of this page	1 Mar 1866	23 Jun 1905	39
23 Jun 1905 to     29 Jun 1983		4	William Gaspard Guy Romilly Peerage extinct on his death	8 Mar 1899	29 Jun 1983	84
ROMNEY
14 May 1694 to     8 Apr 1704	E	1	Henry Sydney Created Baron Milton and Viscount Sydney 9 Apr 1689 and Earl of Romney 14 May 1694 MP for Tamworth 1689; Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports 1691‑1702; Lord Lieutenant of Ireland 1692‑1695; Lord Lieutenant Kent 1689‑1704; PC 1689 Peerage extinct on his death	c Mar 1641	8 Apr 1704	63
22 Jun 1716	B	1	Sir Robert Marsham, 5th baronet Created Baron Romney 22 Jun 1716 MP for Maidstone 1708‑1716	17 Sep 1685	28 Nov 1724	39
28 Nov 1724		2	Robert Marsham	22 Aug 1717	16 Nov 1793	76
16 Nov 1793 22 Jun 1801	E	3 1	Charles Marsham Created Viscount Marsham and Earl of Romney 22 Jun 1801 MP for Maidstone 1768‑1774 and Kent 1774‑1790; Lord Lieutenant Kent 1797‑1808	28 Sep 1744	1 Mar 1811	66
1 Mar 1811		2	Charles Marsham MP for Hythe 1798‑1802 and 1806‑1807, and Downton 1803‑1806	22 Nov 1777	29 Mar 1845	67
29 Mar 1845		3	Charles Marsham MP for Kent West 1841‑1845	30 Jul 1808	2 Sep 1874	66
2 Sep 1874		4	Charles Marsham	7 Mar 1841	21 Aug 1905	64
21 Aug 1905		5	Charles Marsham	25 Oct 1864	13 Mar 1933	68
13 Mar 1933		6	Charles Marsham	9 Jul 1892	6 Sep 1975	83
6 Sep 1975		7	Nicholas Henry Marsham	22 Nov 1910	5 Jun 2004	93
5 Jun 2004		8	Julian Charles Marsham	28 Mar 1948
ROMSEY
18 Oct 1947	B	1	Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten Created Viscount Mountbatten of Burma 23 Aug 1946 and Baron Romsey and Earl Mountbatten of Burma 18 Oct 1947 See "Mountbatten of Burma"	25 Jun 1900	27 Aug 1979	79
RONALDSHAY
22 Aug 1892	M	1	Lawrence Dundas, 3rd Earl of Zetland Created Earl of Ronaldshay and Marquess of Zetland 22 Aug 1892 See "Zetland"	16 Aug 1844	11 Mar 1929	84
ROOKER
16 Jun 2001	B[L]		Jeffrey William Rooker Created Baron Rooker for life 16 Jun 2001 MP for Perry Barr 1974‑2001; PC 1999	5 Jun 1941
ROOKWOOD
18 Jun 1892 to     15 Jan 1902	B	1	Sir Henry John Selwin‑Ibbetson, 7th baronet Created Baron Rookwood 18 Jun 1892 MP for Essex South 1865‑1868, Essex West 1868‑1885 and Epping 1885‑1892; Financial Secretary to the Treasury 1878‑1880 Peerage extinct on his death	26 Sep 1826	15 Jan 1902	75
ROOS
22 Jul 1616 to     17 Dec 1632	B	1	Francis Manners, 6th Earl of Rutland Created Baron Roos 22 Jul 1616 Peerage extinct on his death	1578	17 Dec 1632	54
ROOS OF BELVOIR
17 Jun 1896	B	1	John James Robert Manners, 7th Duke of Rutland Created Baron Roos of Belvoir 17 Jun 1896 See "Rutland"	13 Dec 1818	4 Aug 1906	87
ROOTES
16 Feb 1959	B	1	Sir William Edward Rootes Created Baron Rootes 16 Feb 1959	17 Aug 1894	12 Dec 1964	70
12 Dec 1964		2	William Geoffrey Rootes	14 Jun 1917	17 Jan 1992	74
17 Jan 1992		3	Nicholas Geoffrey Rootes	12 Jul 1951
ROPER
12 May 2000 to     29 Jan 2016	B[L]		John Francis Hodgess Roper Created Baron Roper for life 12 May 2000 MP for Farnworth 1970‑1983; PC 2005 Peerage extinct on his death	10 Sep 1935	29 Jan 2016	80
ROS
27 Jan 1332 to     1338	B	1	John de Ros Summoned to Parliament as Lord Ros 27 Jan 1332 Peerage extinct on his death		1338
ROS DE WERKE
24 Jun 1295 to     1297	B	1	Robert Ros Summoned to Parliament as Lord Ros de Werke 24 Jun 1295 He was attainted and the peerage forfeited		after 1297
ROSCOMMON
5 Aug 1622	E[I]	1	James Dillon Created Baron Dillon 24 Jan 1619 and Earl of Roscommon 5 Aug 1622		Mar 1642
Mar 1642		2	Robert Dillon		27 Aug 1642
27 Aug 1642		3	James Dillon	c 1605	Oct 1649
Oct 1649		4	Wentworth Dillon PC [I] 1665	c 1630	18 Jan 1685
18 Jan 1685		5	Carey Dillon PC [I] 1674	1 Jul 1627	25 Nov 1689	62
25 Nov 1689		6	Robert Dillon		14 May 1715
14 May 1715		7	Robert Dillon		9 Jan 1721
9 Jan 1721		8	James Dillon Dormant on his death. The right of succession was-	1702	20 Aug 1746	44
[20 Aug 1746]		9	Robert Dillon		25 Mar 1770
[25 Mar 1770]		10	John Dillon		27 Aug 1782
[27 Aug 1782] 30 May 1799		11	Patrick Dillon His claim was allowed 30 May 1799. On his death the peerage again became dormant	15 Mar 1769	17 Nov 1816	47
[17 Nov 1816] 19 Jun 1828 to     15 May 1850		12	Michael James Robert Dillon His claim was allowed 19 June 1828 For further information, see the note at the foot of this page Peerage extinct on his death	2 Oct 1798	15 May 1850	51
ROSE OF MONEWDEN
17 Sep 2014	B[L]		Sir Stuart Alan Ransom Rose Created Baron Rose of Monewden for life 17 Sep 2014	17 Mar 1949
ROSEBERY
10 Apr 1703	E[S]	1	Archibald Primrose Created Lord Primrose & Dalmeny and Viscount of Primrose 1 Apr 1700, and Lord Dalmeny & Primrose, Viscount of Inverkeithing and Earl of Rosebery 10 Apr 1703	18 Dec 1664	20 Oct 1723	58
20 Oct 1723		2	James Primrose For information about his son, John, styled Lord Dalmeny, see the note at the foot of this page	1691	26 Nov 1755	64
26 Nov 1755		3	Neil Primrose KT 1771	1729	25 Mar 1814	84
25 Mar 1814		4	Archibald John Primrose Created Baron Rosebery [UK] 26 Jan 1828 MP for Helston 1805‑1806 and Cashel 1806‑1807; Lord Lieutenant Linlithgow 1843‑1863; PC 1831; KT 1840	14 Oct 1783	4 Mar 1868	84
4 Mar 1868		5	Archibald Philip Primrose Created Baron Epsom, Viscount Mentmore and Earl of Midlothian 3 Jul 1911 Lord Privy Seal 1885; Foreign Secretary 1886 and 1892‑1894; Prime Minister 1894‑1895; Lord President of the Council 1894‑1895; Lord Lieutenant Linlithgow 1873‑1929 and Midlothian 1884‑1929; PC 1881; KG 1892; KT 1895	7 May 1847	21 May 1929	82
21 May 1929		6	Robert Edward Harry Meyer Archibald Primrose MP for Midlothian 1906‑1910; Secretary of State for Scotland 1945; Lord Lieutenant Midlothian 1929‑1964; PC 1945; KT 1947	8 Jan 1882	31 May 1974	92
31 May 1974		7	Neil Archibald Primrose	11 Feb 1929	30 Jun 2024	95
30 Jun 2024		8	Harry Ronald Neil Primrose	20 Nov 1967
ROSEHILL
1 Nov 1647	B[S]	1	Sir John Carnegie Created Lord Lour 20 Apr 1639 and Lord Lour and Egglismadie and Earl of Ethie 1 Nov 1647 He exchanged the titles for the Earldom of Northesk and Barony of Rosehill in 1662 See "Northesk"	c 1580	18 Jan 1667
ROSENFIELD
12 Jul 2023	B[L]		Daniel Robert Rosenfield Created Baron Rosenfield for life 12 Jul 2023	2 May 1977
ROSENHEIM
31 Jul 1970 to     2 Dec 1972	B[L]		Sir Max Leonard Rosenheim Created Baron Rosenheim for life 31 Jul 1970 Peerage extinct on his death	15 Mar 1908	2 Dec 1972	64
ROSKILL
15 Apr 1980 to     4 Oct 1996	B[L]		Sir Eustace Wentworth Roskill Created Baron Roskill for life 15 Apr 1980 Lord Justice of Appeal 1971‑1980; Lord of Appeal in Ordinary 1980‑1986; PC 1971 Peerage extinct on his death	6 Feb 1911	4 Oct 1996	85
ROSMEAD
11 Aug 1896	B	1	Sir Hercules George Robert Robinson, 1st baronet Created Baron Rosmead 11 Aug 1896 Governor of Hong Kong 1859‑1865, Ceylon 1865‑1872, New South Wales 1872‑1879, New Zealand 1879‑1880 and Cape of Good Hope 1880‑1889 and 1895‑1897; PC 1883 For further information on this peer, see the note at the foot of this page	19 Dec 1824	28 Oct 1897	72
28 Oct 1897 to     26 May 1933		2	Hercules Arthur Temple Robinson Peerage extinct on his death	6 Nov 1866	26 May 1933	66
ROSS (Ireland)
4 Jan 1772 to     Sep 1802	E[I]	1	Sir Ralph Gore, 6th baronet Created Baron Gore 30 Jun 1764, Viscount Belleisle 25 Aug 1768 and Earl of Ross 4 Jan 1772 MP [I] for Donegal County 1747‑1765 Peerages extinct on his death	23 Nov 1725	Sep 1802	76
ROSS (Scotland)
1157	E[S]	1	Malcom Mac Heth Created Earl of Ross 1157
1215	E[S]	1	Ferquhard Created Earl of Ross 1215		1251
1251		2	William		May 1274
May 1274		3	William		28 Jan 1333
28 Jan 1333		4	Hugh		20 Feb 1334
20 Feb 1334		5	William		9 Feb 1372
9 Feb 1372		6	Euphemia Leslie		c 1394
c 1394		7	Alexander Leslie		8 May 1402
8 May 1402		8	Euphemia Leslie She resigned the peerage in favour of -
c 1410		9	Margaret Macdonald		c 1429
c 1429		10	Alexander Macdonald		4 May 1448
4 May 1448 to     10 Jul 1476		11	John Macdonald He surrendered the peerage to the Crown in 1476		c 1498
23 Jan 1481 29 Jan 1488 to     17 Jan 1504	E[S] D[S]	1 1	James Stewart Created Lord of Brechin, Navar and Ardmannoch and Earl of Ross 23 Jan 1481, and Lord Brechin & Navar, Earl of Edirdale, Marquess of Ormond and Duke of Ross 29 Jan 1488 Second son of James III of Scotland Peerages extinct on his death	Mar 1476	17 Jan 1504	27
1514 to     18 Dec 1515	D[S]	1	Alexander Stewart Styled Duke of Ross 1514 Fourth son of James IV of Scotland Peerage extinct on his death	30 Apr 1514	18 Dec 1515	1
1499	B[S]	1	Sir John Ross Created Lord Ross 1499		1501
1501		2	John Ross		9 Sep 1513
9 Sep 1513		3	Ninian Ross		Feb 1556
Feb 1556		4	James Ross		2 Apr 1581
2 Apr 1581		5	Robert Ross		Oct 1595
Oct 1595		6	James Ross		17 Dec 1633
17 Dec 1633		7	James Ross		17 Mar 1634
17 Mar 1634		8	William Ross		Aug 1640
Aug 1640		9	Robert Ross		Aug 1648
Aug 1648		10	William Ross		1656
1656		11	George Ross		Apr 1682
Apr 1682		12	William Ross Lord Lieutenant Renfrew 1715	c 1656	15 Mar 1738
15 Mar 1738		13	George Ross	c 1682	17 Jun 1754
17 Jun 1754 to     19 Aug 1754		14	William Ross On his death the peerage is presumed to have become extinct	1721	19 Aug 1754	33
ROSS OF HAWKHEAD
11 Aug 1815	B	1	George Boyle, 4th Earl of Glasgow Created Baron Ross of Hawkhead 11 Aug 1815 See "Glasgow" - this peerage extinct 1890	26 Mar 1766	6 Jul 1843	77
ROSS OF MARNOCK
24 Jul 1979 to     10 Jun 1988	B[L]		William Ross Created Baron Ross of Marnock for life 24 Jul 1979 MP for Kilmarnock 1946‑1979; Secretary of State for Scotland 1964‑1970 and 1974‑1976; PC 1964 Peerage extinct on his death	7 Apr 1911	10 Jun 1988	77
ROSS OF NEWPORT
4 Nov 1987 to     10 May 1993	B[L]		Stephen Sherlock Ross Created Baron Ross of Newport for life 4 Nov 1987 MP for Isle of Wight 1974‑1987 Peerage extinct on his death	6 Jul 1926	10 May 1993	66
ROSSE
2 Jul 1681	V[I]	1	Sir Richard Parsons, 3rd baronet Created Baron Oxmantown and Viscount Rosse 2 Jul 1681	c 1657	30 Jan 1703
30 Jan 1703 16 Jun 1718	E[I]	2 1	Richard Parsons Created Earl of Rosse 16 Jun 1718 For further information on this peer, see the note at the foot of this page		26 Jun 1741
26 Jun 1741 to     27 Aug 1764		2	Richard Parsons Peerage extinct on his death	c 1716	27 Aug 1764
3 Feb 1806	E[I]	1	Lawrence Harman Parsons Created Baron Oxmantown 25 Sep 1792, Viscount Oxmantown 6 Oct 1795 and Earl of Rosse 3 Feb 1806 MP [I] for Longford County 1775‑1792 The creations of 1792 and 1806 both contained a special remainder, failing heirs male of his body, to his nephew Sir Lawrence Parsons, 5th baronet	26 Jul 1749	20 Apr 1807	57
20 Apr 1807		2	Sir Lawrence Parsons, 5th baronet MP [I] for Dublin University 1782‑1790 and King's County 1791‑1800; MP for Kings County 1800‑1807; Lord Lieutenant Kings County; PC [I] 1805	21 May 1758	24 Feb 1841	82
24 Feb 1841		3	William Parsons MP for Kings County 1821‑1835; Lord Lieutenant Kings County 1831‑1867; President of the Royal Society 1849‑1854; KP 1845	17 Jun 1800	31 Oct 1867	67
31 Oct 1867		4	Lawrence Parsons Lord Lieutenant Kings County 1892‑1908; KP 1890 For further information on this peer, see the note at the foot of this page	17 Nov 1840	29 Aug 1908	67
29 Aug 1908		5	William Edward Parsons Lord Lieutenant Kings County 1908‑1918	14 Jun 1873	10 Jun 1918	44
10 Jun 1918		6	Lawrence Michael Harvey Parsons	28 Sep 1906	1 Jul 1979	72
1 Jul 1979		7	William Clere Leonard Brendan Willmer Parsons	21 Oct 1936

	John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester (creation of 1652)
	The following biography of Rochester appeared in the August 1966 issue of the Australian monthly magazine Parade:-
	Barbara Palmer, Duchess of Cleveland and imperious mistress of King Charles II, alighted from her coach at Whitehall Palace with a rustle of silk and satin. A young man, Lord Rochester no less, darted forward and planted a kiss on her lips. With a sweep of her arm Barbara promptly laid him flat on his back on the cobblestones. The watching courtiers burst into a roar of laughter, for each had writhed under the barbed wit of Lord Rochester and his humiliation delighted them. Rochester did not appear in the least humiliated. Picking himself up with a smile and a bow, he retorted with a sally of unprintable obscenity that brought a blush even to Barbara Palmer's painted cheeks.
	From King Charles downwards the mightiest figures in the land had learnt that it was a dangerous business to make an enemy of John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester. Poet, courtier, patron [of] literature and heartless debauchee, he was an outstanding personality of the gay and licentious world of Restoration England. He wrote some of the deadliest satires of his times and was later described as "the writer of the filthiest verses in the English language". Rochester manuscripts still lie unpublished and unpublishable in the British Museum. Apart from privately printed editions, only expurgated collections of his poems have been issued since his death.
	His life was a procession of scandals that strained even tolerant indulgence of the Merry Monarch, whom Rochester lampooned with ferocious gusto. He coined the celebrated and oft-quoted verse which he once pinned to the door of the royal bedroom:
	"Here lies our sovereign lord the King, Whose word no man relies on. He never said a foolish thing, Nor ever did a wise one."
	But Rochester was more than a profane rake. Apart from his own writings he earned a place in literary history as the friend of the greatest authors of his time. He patronised Dryden, Otway and many lesser poets and dramatists. He could turn from the grossest debauchery to debate fine points of classical scholarship and philosophy.
	John Wilmot was born at Ditchley, Oxfordshire, in 1647 and was 11 years old when he succeeded to his father's impoverished estate and the title of Earl of Rochester. The first earl, a Cavalier officer in the Civil War, died in France, where he had loyally served the exiled Charles II after Charles I was beheaded by Cromwell's Parliament. In 1660 came the Restoration. King Charles, his courtiers and his ladies trooped back to London to establish in Whitehall the wickedest, wittiest and most frivolous court England had seen.
	Young Rochester spent two years travelling in Europe before, having wasted most of his estate on personal adornment, he made his debut at court in 1664. He was then barely 17, but he had remarkably good looks, high spirits, a brilliant tongue and strong claims on King Charles's gratitude to his family. He knew how to exploit every asset. He won the powerful friendship of the royal favourite, the Duke of Buckingham, and the more tender esteem of the royal concubines. The king himself was fascinated by the dazzling youth whose mordant wit spared none of the greatest personages at court, including even the monarch and his mistresses. Rochester was the king's follower in the meanest of his amorous adventures, said one moralist.
	A pension from Charles was not enough to support Rochester's style of living, so early in 1665 the king urged him to pay court to Elizabeth Malet, a pretty young heiress worth £2500 a year. When Elizabeth defied the royal wishes and rejected his suit, Rochester plunged into the first of his many outrageous adventures. On the night of May 26 a gang of bravoes dragged the dragged the terrified girl from her coach at Charing Cross, bundled her into another carriage and drove out of the city with Rochester galloping behind. Amid a tremendous hue and cry the abductor was seized at Uxbridge by royal officers and thrown into the Tower of London by command of the angry king. But Charles could not resist Rochester's pleas for long. Within six weeks he was freed on volunteering to serve with Lord Sandwich's naval squadron, which was preparing to sail against the Dutch.
	For more than a year Rochester trod the deck as an exile from court, adding a reputation for gallantry [in] battle to a different kind of gallantry in the boudoir. During a bloody, four-day conflict with the Dutch Admiral Van Tromp in the Channel, he repeatedly risked his life carrying messages between the British ships in an open boat. His heroism was richly rewarded when he was allowed to return to court. Elizabeth Malet forgave her rough usage and married him and the royal pension rose to £1000 a year.
	For the next 10 years Rochester was the most notorious figure in the literary and fashionable life of London, charming and infuriating by his wit and startling even that tolerant age by his debauchery. One of his favourite haunts was the house of Mother Bennett, the city's most celebrated procuress, where Rochester presided over a mock court of the bedraggled harlots of Covent Garden.
	The poems which he circulated in manuscript were a mixture of scoffings at religion and morality, passionate love lyrics, venomous satires on high and low and the most blasphemous obscenities. He made a host of enemies. One, the pompous and conceited Lord Mulgrave, challenged him to a duel in the fields of Knightsbridge in 1669. After keeping Mulgrave waiting all day in a filthy little tavern on the spot, Rochester refused to fight and turned the affair to ridicule.
	At least once a year King Charles ordered the rake out of Whitehall, only to recall him in a few weeks when he wanted amusement or Rochester's aid in besieging some lady of the Court. During one of his temporary exiles Rochester took obscure lodgings in the city, called himself Dr. Alexander Bendo, and set up a quack physician's stall on Tower Hill. Disguised in a false beard and a long tattered gown with a fur collar he peddled a concoction of soot, ashes, soap and "nastier things" which he claimed would cure every ailment from toothache to obstruction of the liver. He sold equally dreadful cosmetics to the wives of courtiers and rich citizens, then re-appeared at court with bags of gold and silver he had earned as Dr. Bendo.
	Rochester and the Duke of Buckingham were involved in a more outrageous deception when the King visited Newmarket for his favourite sport of racing. The pair rented an inn outside the town and, posing as tavern-keepers, vied with each other in seducing every attractive young woman among their guests. The prank had a brutal ending when the husband of one victim hanged himself and Rochester callously packed the widow off to London and the clutches of Mother Bennett.
	In the early 1670s literary feuds added to the storms that dogged Rochester's career, for in the midst of his follies he retained an active interest in poets and playwrights. John Dryden had dedicated several dramas to his aristocratic patron and Rochester was proud of this association with the celebrated author. But when he heard that Dryden had also accepted the patronage of his old enemy, Lord Mulgrave, he became the dramatist's most relentless critic. By then, Rochester had become passionately enamoured of Elizabeth Barry [1658‑1713], a beautiful but brainless maid-servant. Rochester was determined to make his mistress an actress and also score off Dryden by promoting a half-starved but promising young dramatist named Thomas Otway [1652‑1685].
	He succeeded in both aims. In 1675 Elizabeth caused a sensation when she appeared in Otway's "Alcibiades" at the Dorset Garden Theatre. She went on to rival Nell Gwynne as the idol of the London stage. Otway's name was also made. But, when he had the presumption to fall in love with Elizabeth Barry, Rochester turned in arrogant contempt against his beggarly rival. Denouncing Otway as "the scum of the theatre" he pursued him with such venom that the frightened playwright temporarily fled from London by entering in the army.
	Rochester did not long enjoy his triumph. Though under 30 he had blazed out his youth in gross voluptuousness and his health was failing. In April 1680 the earl left the gay court of Whitehall for the last time and retired to the seclusion of a royal lodge which King Charles granted him amid the oak trees of Woodstock Park. His friends and foes were astonished to learn that he was absorbed in books of religion. Bishop Burnet, who visited him in July, declared him a truly repentant sinner. He died on July 26, 1680, only two days after the bishop left him. On his death-bed he pleaded, in vain, that all his profane and licentious manuscripts be collected and burnt.
	Percy Jocelyn, Bishop of Clogher, 3rd son of the 1st Earl of Roden (29 November 1764‑3 September 1843)
	After being educated at Trinity College Dublin, Jocelyn entered the Anglican Church in Ireland, rising to became Bishop of Ferns and Leighlin in 1809 before being transferred to the Bishopric of Clogher in 1820. Jocelyn's first brush with the law occurred in 1811 when his brother's coachman, James Byrne, accused the Bishop of committing an "unnatural crime". This was only a short time after the raid on an infamous "molly house" [a tavern or private room where gay men could meet, similar to today's gay bars]. The "molly house" was in Vere Street, London, and it was raided on 8 July 1810, when 27 men were arrested, although only 8 were tried and convicted. Of those convicted, six were pilloried and two were hanged at Newgate on 7 March 1811. One of the two who were executed was a 16-year-old boy. Sodomy continued to be a capital crime, with the last two men executed for this offence in November 1835.
	Jocelyn's response was to sue Byrne for criminal libel, upon which charge Byrne was convicted and sentenced to two years' imprisonment, together with three public floggings. Two of these floggings were carried out, Byrne nearly dying in the process, but the third flogging was cancelled after Byrne withdrew his accusation. Eleven years later, Byrne was vindicated by subsequent events.
	On 19 July 1822 a young soldier named John Moverley went to the White Lion public house in Haymarket, Westminster, where he bought a pint of porter which he took into the back parlour. Shortly afterwards, another man, dressed in clerical garb, came in, purchased a drink and he too went into the back parlour. For some reason, the publican's suspicions were aroused, and, together with some other men, the publican went into his back-yard and was able to observe his two customers through a window over which the curtains had been only partially drawn. There they saw the two men with their trousers down around their ankles. The publican and the other men burst into the back room, seized both Moverley and the cleric, and dragged them through the streets where they were severely beaten and their clothes torn to shreds by the crowd which had gathered. When they reached the watch-house in Vine Street, they were locked in the cells.
	Next morning they were transferred to the Marlborough Street police station, where they were examined. The cleric refused to divulge his identity, but was allowed to write a note addressed to a John Waring, a friend of his, which read: "John - come to me directly, don't say who I am, but I am undone. Come instantly, and inquire for a gentleman below stairs, 12 o'clock. I am totally undone. P.C." The P.C. stood for Percy Clogher, which is the usual manner in which bishops to this day sign their letters - i.e. [Christian name][Name of Bishopric].
	The following day, when they were placed before a magistrate, both men remained silent, but, in order to obtain bail, the men had to divulge their names and addresses. Jocelyn was granted bail of £1000 and was allowed to leave in safety via a back door.
	Inevitably, news of the scandal began to appear in the press, although Jocelyn's name was suppressed. However, within a few weeks it was common knowledge, and Jocelyn began to be attacked by pamphleteers and broadside writers, particularly in regard to his perceived hypocrisy, since it was pointed out that Jocelyn was a member of the Society for the Suppression of Vice. The following epigram did the rounds:-
	"The Devil to prove the Church was a farce Went out to fish for a Bugger. He baited his hook with a Soldier's arse And pulled up the Bishop of Clogher."
	In the meantime, immediately after his release on bail, Jocelyn fled to the Continent, where he took up residence in Paris. Moverley also disappeared after bail had been granted, and army records show that he deserted his regiment, the Foot Guards, but was never the subject of a court martial, presumably because he was never found.
	Both men failed to appear at their court hearings in September, and on 21 October 1822, the Metropolitan Court of Armagh, having heard all the evidence against Jocelyn, the Archbishop of Armagh, Primate of Ireland, "his grace the lord primate, in the presence and hearing of his brethren the lords bishops, of his vicar-general, and of other distinguished personages, rose from his seat, and, the entire of the auditory then standing, and the Bishop of Clogher being again thrice called, but not appearing, his grace proceeded to read the sentence in open court. When he had finished, he signed it in open court, and directed it to be lodged in the registry of his diocese; where it now remains a record of these important proceedings, and of their perfect consummation by the absolute deprivation and deposition of Dr. Percy Jocelyn from the bishopric of Clogher and from his episcopal order and authorities." [Annual Register for 1822, page 432].
	At some point Jocelyn returned to Great Britain where he lived under an assumed name in Glasgow and Edinburgh before dying on 3 September 1843.
	In the Annual Register for 1843 [Appendix to Chronicle, page 330] there appears the following obituary:-
	At Edinburgh, the Hon. And Rev. Percy Jocelyn, D.D. He was the second [sic] son of Robert, first Earl of Roden. He was consecrated to the see of Ferns and Leighlin, on the 3rd of Sept. 1809, in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin; was translated to the see of Clogher in 1820; and deprived in 1822. We copy from a contemporary journal the following interesting and not unprofitable record of this unhappy, but apparently repentant transgressor:- "An individual died here a short time since, who obtained an unenviable celebrity more than twenty years ago. This was the Bishop of Clogher, who was indicted for an unnatural crime, committed in St. James's, London, in 1822, forfeited bail and fled, was degraded from his ecclesiastical dignity, and has never since been heard of till now. He kept house at No. 4, Salisbury-place, Edinburgh, under the assumed name of Thomas Wilson, to which he removed four years ago, having previously resided in Glasgow. His mode of living was extremely private, scarcely any visitors being known to enter his dwelling; but, it was remarked, that the post occasionally brought him letters sealed with coronets. His incognito was wonderfully preserved. It was only known to one or two individuals in the neighbourhood, who kept the secret till after his death. The application for interment was made in the name of Thomas Wilson. There was a plate upon the coffin, which he got prepared some years before, but without any name upon it. It bore a Latin inscription, prepared years before, the sense of which was as follows: 'Here lies the remains of a great sinner, saved by grace, whose hope rests in the atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ'. He was very anxious to conceal his true name, having got it carefully obliterated from his books and articles of furniture. He gave instructions that his burial should be in the nearest churchyard; that it should be conducted in the most private and plain manner, and at six in the morning. His directions were complied with, except in the selection of the ground. His body was drawn to the New Cemetery in a hearse with one horse, followed by five mourners in a one-horse coach, at seven in the morning. Such was the obscure and humble death and funeral of the Hon. and Rev. Percy Jocelyn, the son of a peer, who spent the early years of his life in the society of the great, and held one of the highest ecclesiastical dignities of the empire.
	The special remainder to the Barony of Rokeby created in 1777
	From the London Gazette of 4 February 1777 (issue 11742, page 1):-
	The King has been pleased to order Letters Patent to be passed under the Great Seal of the Kingdom of Ireland, containing His Majesty's Grant of the Dignity of a Baron of the said Kingdom unto the most Reverend Father in God Richard Robinson, Doctor in Divinity, Lord Archbishop of Armagh, Primate and Metropolitan of all Ireland, and to his Issue Male, by the Name, Stile and Title of Baron of Rokeby of Armagh in the County of Armagh in the said Kingdom, with Remainder to Matthew Robinson, of West Layton in the North Riding of the County of York, Esq., and his Issue Male.
	Matthew Robinson-Morris, 2nd Baron Rokeby
	The following is extracted from The Emperor of the United States of America and Other Magnificent British Eccentrics by Catherine Caufield (Routledge & Kegan Paul, London 1981)
	Mr Robinson, as he was until he inherited his uncle's title in 1793 at the age of 81, was a singularly high-principled person. He resigned after two terms as Member of Parliament because of his disgust with the corruption of party politics. He himself voted independently. As a result he had enemies in both parties, though he was popular with the people. To his sister, the bluestocking, Mrs Montagu [wife of Edward Montagu and one of the wealthiest women of her time], who reproached him for some social solecism shortly after his elevation to the peerage, he shrugged, 'You know I was born a democrat'.
	Robinson had strong views on the subjects of fresh air and exercise. He walked everywhere, although he often took a carriage along for his servants, who had less stamina than he did and, as he remarked, finer clothes that were worth protecting from bad weather. At home, the windows were perpetually open and he seldom lit a fire. He spurned alcohol and believed that the English countryside produced sufficient to support the English people and that it was wicked to eat 'exotics' such as wheat. Robinson's diet consisted mainly of beef tea, but, because of his democratic beliefs, guests at his table could order whatever they liked.
	Robinson was a good and popular landlord. He never raised rents and he practised a peculiar system of land management, based on his political and philosophical principles, at Mount Morris, his 800-acre estate in east Kent. There were no fences, gates or stiles; trees were never felled, nothing was planted, and the gardens were returned to nature. But Robinson knew a great deal about grazing, so the black sheep and cattle that roamed freely on his land did well.
	Robinson's appearance was striking, largely due to his simple dress and a beard which, by the end of his life, reached to his knees. His moustache was long enough for him to be able to tuck the ends behind his ears. Country people often took him for a Turk and his friends felt, rather sadly, that his strange looks and odd manners detracted from the seriousness of his philosophy.
	He had several pet hates, notably doctors and the Bank of England. The latter he believed was certain sooner or later to fail. He made a £1  bet to that effect with a Canterbury alderman and bound his heirs to continue the wager after his death. Robinson was a great believer in the beneficial effects of water. He installed drinking fountains all along the roads of his property and always stopped to give a few coins to anyone he saw drinking from them. Every morning he bathed his eyes in salt water and that was just the beginning of his regimen. Robinson spent hours on end completely immersed in water, often until he fainted. He had a special bathing house built at Mount Morris with a glass front and a thatched roof. Here, sitting up to his neck in his favourite liquid, he ate his meals, received visitors, worked on his political pamphlets and planned the management of the estate.
	Robinson's sister told of how she learned of a trip her brother had made to a fashionable watering-place. She was taking a tour of the resort when her guide pointed out where Mr Robinson had bathed with a roast loin of veal floating at his side. 'The Quality', Mrs Montagu reported her guide as saying, 'did make a great wonderment at it, but it was nice veal and he gave what he did not eat of it to her and some others; to be sure he was the peculiarest gentleman she had ever heard of, but he was very good-natured.'
	William Romilly, 2nd Baron Romilly
	The 2nd Baron Romilly was the grandson of Sir Samuel Romilly, who committed suicide in 1818 in a fit of grief following the death of his wife. For further information, see the note under "Queenborough" in the House of Commons pages. In 1891, the 2nd Baron was suffocated as a result of a fire at his house. The following report of the subsequent inquest appeared in the Birmingham Daily Post of 28 May 1891:-
	The inquest on the bodies of Lord Romilly and Emma Lovell, a domestic servant, who were suffocated during the calamitous fire which occurred at 38, Egerton Gardens, Brompton Road, on Saturday night last, was opened yesterday afternoon.
	Thomas Hayter, butler to the deceased baron, stated that his lordship was fifty-six years of age. On Saturday last, at 11.15 p.m., witness was in the pantry in the basement. The drawing room bell rang, and witness went up. Lord Romilly was standing on the landing on the first floor, and said that he had tipped the lamp over. The drawing-room was well alight, the curtains being ablaze. Witness suggested the fire brigade being called, and then shut the drawing-room door. He and Lord Romilly then went down to the dining-room together, and witness gave the alarm to a cabman. He then lighted the hall gas, and blew up the whistle to the top floor. That should have awakened the servants at the top. Witness tried to get up the staircase, but was unable on account of the flames. The drawing-room door was then open, but witness did not see Lord Romilly whom he had left in the dining-room. Witness then waited for the brigade to arrive. There were three women servants and one male servant at the top of the house. Witness did not see what became of any of them. It seemed a long time to witness before the brigade arrived. The lamp in question was a duplex lamp. When witness last saw it was on a small Chippendale table, where witness placed it at eight o'clock. It was not quite full of oil, but there was nearly a quart of the best crystal oil in it. There was no other light in the room beside the lamp. There had never been an accident with the lamp before to witness's knowledge. There was an accident two years ago with a lamp that had a glass reservoir; but the lamp in question had a bronze reservoir. By the jury: His lordship was perfectly sober on the night in question.
	Witness called the brigade before he attempted to arouse the servants. He thought the best thing to do was to shut the door of the drawing-room, as that was done on the occasion of the last accident. Lord Romilly must have gone upstairs again and left the door open.
	John Lovell, 150, Morning Road, Kentish Town, a pianoforte maker, identified the body of Emma Annie Lovell, aged 43, as his sister. She was cook and housekeeper to Lord Romilly.
	Engineer James Morris, Metropolitan Fire Brigade, stated that he arrived at the fire at 11.34 p.m., from Knightsbridge Station. A woman was calling for help from the third floor window. A hydrant was got to work and the escape placed in position. Fireman Byne mounted the escape, from which witness was playing with the hydrant hose, and rescued the woman. The door was then broken open with a large axe and a branch got to work in the house. Lord Romilly was found in the front room on the first floor, the sitting-room. He was near the window, lying on the floor. He appeared to be alive, and witness used artificial respiration until a cab was called, and he was taken to the hospital. He was unconscious the whole of the time. The house was well alight back and front when witness got there, and after Lord Romilly had been removed the brigade got to work right through the house. Witness found the body of Miss Lovell in a back room on the third floor. She was lying near the window, and, seeing that there was still life witness used artificial respiration until the woman was removed. The fire had passed the woman and caught the bed. The body of Mary Nippard was found in a front room on the third floor. The whole of the house was well alight from the first to the fourth floor, The drawing-room was completely burnt out. The fire alarm is not visible from the house, but it was in a prominent position. Witness saw the butler outside the house, but not in it.
	By the Jury: If the women had been awake in time they could have escaped by the roof. If the drawing-room door had been kept closed the fire would have probably been confined to the drawing-room.
	George William Byne, whose hands were enveloped in surgical bandages, a fireman, stated that he was in charge of the escape, and was called at 11.30. He at once proceeded to the fire, and found a woman at the third-floor window screaming for help. The flames were coming out of the second-floor window. Witness fixed the escape and extension ladder, and ascended and rescued the woman. He made a second attempt, but was forced to return. He got burnt himself in passing the second-floor window.
	Mr. Alfred Spencer, an inspector under the Petroleum Act, stated that he had made experiments with the oil used, and found it to be the highest known test oil, which was usually known as "safety" oil. The lamp was not a safety lamp, and had one great defect, the burner being locked, and not screwed, to the neck of the reservoir, so that in a case such as this, where the lamp fell, the burner would be jerked off and the oil escape. Mr. B. Redwood, analyst, confirmed the previous witness's evidence.
	William John Andrews, who volunteered his evidence and was sworn, said that at 11.45 he saw the fire, and went with another man to Egerton Gardens. A fire escape was in position, and he alleged that the fireman in charge said he was afraid to ascend it, and the witness thereupon went up, got into the third-floor window, and found a young woman. Two firemen then came up and took the body away. The coroner's officer said a constable was present at the fire, but did not see this witness.
	The Coroner summed up, and in doing so paid a high compliment to the fireman Byne, who, he said, had acted in a most heroic manner. The jury endorsed the coroner's remarks, and returned a verdict of "Accidental death".
	John Gaspard le Marchant Romilly, 3rd Baron Romilly
	In August 1894, the engagement was announced of the 3rd Baron Romilly and Miss Violet Grey-Egerton, daughter of Sir Philip Grey-Egerton, 11th baronet. However, the marriage arising out of this engagement did not take place, since Violet transferred her affections to a young man named Waldron to whom she became engaged. Once again, this engagement was called off by Violet. She then became engaged, for the third time in three years, to Ernest Cunard.
	This time it seemed that the engagement would result in marriage. According to the story, all had been arranged, including the purchase of the trousseau and the issuing of the invitations. However, when the guests arrived at St. Peter's Church, in Eaton Square in London, where the ceremony was to take place, they were greeted with the news that Violet had been married on the previous day to her original fiancée, Lord Romilly, at St. George's, in Hanover Square.
	The Dublin paper Freeman's Journal reported in its issue of 7 August 1897 that "the marriage of Miss Grey Egerton and Lord Romilly has excited an extraordinary amount of interest. It took place under exceptionally romantic not to say sensational circumstances. The bride had been engaged three times in three years, to Lord Romilly, among others, but the engagement lasted only a couple of weeks. After a time Miss Grey Egerton became engaged to Mr. Cunard, a cousin of Sir Bache Cunard [3rd baronet and member of the family which founded the famous shipping line]. Their marriage was arranged to take place on Thursday, but on Wednesday the lady bestowed her hand and heart on Lord Romilly at St. George's, Hanover Square. The bride was given away by her maid, and Lord Romilly's solicitor acted as best man. The announcement was made to Mr. Cunard by telegram immediately after the ceremony. Since the famous elopement of the Marquis of Hastings with Mr. Henry Chaplin's betrothed the day before their intended wedding [see the note under 'Hastings'] there has been no case of this kind."
	The Pall Mall Gazette, also on 7 August 1897, contented itself with a somewhat briefer report - "The marriage of Miss Grey Egerton to Mr. Ernest Cunard will not take place."
	Both parties died young - Lord Romilly in June 1905, aged only 39. His wife survived him by less than a year before she died in March 1906.
	Michael James Robert Dillon, 12th Earl of Roscommon
	Dillon's claim to the Earldom of Roscommon was approved by the Committee of Privileges of the House of Lords on 19 June 1828. The following report appeared in The Standard on that date:-
	Their lordships sat this morning, at half-past ten o'clock, in a committee of privileges, when the hearing of the claims to the earldom of Roscommon was resumed.
	The Attorney General, and also Mr. Joy, who represented the Attorney General of Ireland, appeared on the part of the crown, and also on the behalf of Francis Stephen Dillon, the second claimant, who was allowed to support his claim at the public expense. Mr. Sydney Taylor appeared for the original claimant, Michael James Robert Dillon.
	At the last hearing of this case it will probably be recollected that a third claim to this peerage, that of Thomas Wentworth Dillon, was negatived by their lordships, not only on the ground of their being no evidence of a sufficiency to lead to further inquiry, but from their also being no one to support the claim.
	The Attorney General commenced his address by replying to the arguments used by the learned counsel, Mr. Sydney Taylor, in his speech delivered during the last session, and expressed his (the Attorney General's) concurrence in the opinion that gentleman had expressed, both as regarded the strong claims which his (Mr. Taylor's) had endeavoured to support, and also as to the extent they were supported by the evidence. The learned counsel proceeded to comment upon the whole circumstances of the claim, from its commencement to its termination in the house of parliament in Ireland; and contended that their lordships were called upon now to decide under nearly similar circumstances to what it was then. But the most important point which he (the Attorney General) had to draw their lordships' attention to, was the chasm which appeared in the pedigree, and one which must be considered of the utmost importance. The third claimant's, Thomas Wentworth Dillon, pretences having vanished, he would leave his name out of the question; and then came the present claimant, Michael James Robert Dillon, who claimed in right of being a descendant of the seventh son of the last Earl of Roscommon. In the pedigree produced their was an insufficiency of evidence as to no less than four of the sons having died without issue. From and after the second son there was no evidence to that fact, and none, it was admitted, could be produced. Now this was, he contended, a most fatal omission. It was not, as in more ordinary cases, the want of proof of one person dying without issue, but here were four persons, as regarded all of whom the default in the requisite evidence was not attempted to be denied, but all of whom, it were to be presumed, died without issue. This doctrine of presumptive evidence, he must contend, was carried too far in the present instance, and to too dangerous an extent. If this species of evidence was received, he considered it would form an alarming precedent, and be productive of much mischief. Upon this point principally, the deficiency in the evidence with respect to the pedigree, was it that he felt bound to resist the claim.
	The Attorney General [Sir Charles Wetherell] having concluded, Mr. Joy said that he also appeared before their lordships on the part of the crown, as representing the Attorney General of Ireland, but, after the address which had just been delivered by his learned friend, he (Mr. Joy) did not think it necessary to trouble their lordships with any observations of his own.
	Lord Redesdale rose and said that, having paid much care and attention to the whole of the circumstances adduced in evidence in this case, he felt bound to trouble their lordships with a few observations. This question, from the time it was first agitated, had occupied a space of 35 years, during which period there had been many aspirants to the dignity of the earldom of Roscommon and the barony of [Lord Dillon, Baron of] Kilkenny West; but the claim now resolved itself into a more narrow compass; the other claimants, from insufficiency of proof, or from other causes, having relinquished their supposed pretensions, the present claim might, therefore, be divided into two parties - the first being the original claimant, Michael James Robert Dillon, the second the claim made in opposition to this by Francis S. Dillon, who was supported in his proceedings by the crown, who was itself interested in his title coming into possession of the right and proper person. His lordship proceeded to advert to the evidence that had been gone into by the Irish House of Parliament, as being very favourable (and was considered so by that parliament) to the claim of the original claimant, Michael J. R. Dillon; and he (Lord Redesdale) could see nothing which had subsequently transpired to alter that favourable view of the merits of it. On the other hand, he could not but draw attention to a very strange circumstance, by which it was attempted to support the claim of the other party, Stephen Dillon. In the course of the evidence adduced on behalf of that claimant, a copy of an old monumental inscription was produced in furtherance of the proof of the pedigree. This inscription had been copied by a man named Gannon, who, it had been pronounced at the lordships' bar, was not worthy of being believed upon his oath. That man stated that he had taken the copy under circumstances which made it very improbable. The monumental stone no longer existed; but his lordship would read the alleged inscription upon it, as asserted by that witness:-
	"Underneath lieth the body of Thomas Dillon, of Kilkenny West, in this county. Also, the body of Lawrence Dillon, late of Ardnig**g, in the county of Roscommon (son of the said Thomas), who descended from the barons of Kilkenny West." These words, his lordship continued, "son of the said Thomas, "were not only in a different hand-writing in the copy of the inscription, but were interlined, and evidently written at a subsequent period to the other parts of it. This part of the evidence, his lordship contended, was altogether of such a suspicious description, as could not be received by any rational person; and the other parts of it were so shallow as not to bear competition with the merits of the opposing claim. With regard to the remarks which had been made in respect to the pedigree produced in support of the original claimant, which it was alleged was defective in proof as to four of the sons having died without issue, he (Lord Redesdale) would draw their lordships' attention to the space of time which had elapsed since this claim had been first made, and it was naturally to be supposed that in such a lapse of time the descendants, if there were any, of those persons would have come forward and asserted their rights. But not having done so, and no one appearing, it was fairly to be presumed there was ground to conclude there was no issue. He (Lord Redesdale) would appeal to a noble and learned lord, who usually presided in that house (the Lord Chancellor), what would be the event in a court of law, under a writ of right, and what determination a jury would come to, when every evidence it was possible to procure was produced to prove the party's dying without issue. The jury must decide in favour of the claimant under such circumstances, and how injurious it would prove to all parties were they to form a different judgment. All the evidence that could be expected has been shown to prove that the last [?] Earl of Roscommon died without issue. The only instance which had occurred of a fresh claim being started, was in the shape of an affidavit made so long as fourteen years ago; and even this length of time, without any other measure being started, was sufficient to form the presumption of the improbability, if not impossibility, of any issue existing of anterior right to that of the original claimant. Under all the circumstances, his lordship felt bound in strict justice to move "That it was the opinion of their lordships that Francis Stephen Dillon had not made out his claim to the earldom of Roscommon. And that Michael James Robert Dillon had made good his title to such dignity."
	The Lord Chancellor [Lord Lyndhurst] - "I cannot but express my full concurrence with the view taken of this question by the noble lord. When I was Attorney General this matter came under my notice; and after giving the subject every attention and consideration, I was perfectly satisfied in my own mind that the claim had been substantially made out by the original claimant. With respect to a writ of right which had been alluded to in such a case as the issuing of a writ of right for the recovery of a landed estate, and evidence similar to that now produced should be adduced, I feel no hesitation in saying that a jury must consider that evidence as conclusive. I am therefore of opinion that the original claimant has made good his claim. I am equally of opinion that the evidence set up by Francis Stephen Dillon has failed in making out his claim." His lordship proceeded to make some remarks on the evidence of the witness Gannon with respect to the copy of the inscription on the monument, and the interlineation which had been made therein, which he (Gannon) admitted had been afterwards introduced. The words thus introduced were those alone with affected the present question, and under all the different circumstances he could not but agree to the motion of the noble lord.
	The Earl of Shaftesbury, as chairman of their lordships' committee, then put the question, in the terms of the noble lord's (Redesdale) motion, which was agreed to.
	Michael James Robert Dillon, now Earl of Roscommon, was present during the hearing of the above proceedings, and was congratulated by numerous friends present on the favourable result.
	John Primrose, styled Lord Dalmeny, son of the 2nd Earl of Rosebery (1725‑11 Aug 1755)
	John Primrose, Lord Dalmeny, is shown in peerage reference works as having died unmarried in August 1755. While this is correct in a strictly legal sense, Dalmeny's 'marriage' provides a romantic story. The following edited account of this 'marriage' is taken from Chapters from Family Chests by Edward Walford [2 vols, Hurst and Blackett, London 1886].
	The young lady to whom Lord Dalmeny … became allied was named Kate, or, as she was always called, 'Kitty' Cannon, and her parents were substantial yeomen, occupying a large farm in the parish of Thorpe, which lies at the extreme north-east end of Essex, jutting out far into the German Ocean [i.e. the North Sea] … When she was just twenty, she gave her hand, and (it is to be presumed) her heart also, to the rector of Thorpe, a Reverend Mr. Gough.
	A quiet and remote parsonage, however, was not exactly suited to the taste of a young lady who had once sipped the cup of flattery from gentlemen who belonged to the clubs about St. James's, and who moved in courtly circles. Accordingly, one evening when she was staying in London, being present at a ball in the neighbourhood of the then fashionable district of Covent Garden, she managed to slip out, unobserved by her husband, and to run away with John, Lord Dalmeny, who was only a few years older than herself. She had no children, and doubtless his lordship was led to believe that she was a widow, and quite at her own disposal. [In 'The Complete Peerage' her name is given as Kitty Canham, and it is stated that he was baptised in February 1720, thus making her five years older than Lord Dalmeny.]
	The pair went abroad, and remained for two or three years travelling in the sunny south; but in the early summer of 1752 Kitty Cannon, or Kitty Gough, was taken seriously ill at Florence. Her illness turned into a galloping consumption, and in the May or June of that year she died. A few hours only before her death, she wrote upon a scrap of paper, "I am really the wife of the Reverend Mr. Gough, vicar of Thorpe, near Colchester, Essex; my maiden name was Kitty Cannon, and my family belong to the same parish. Bury me there."
	Lord Dalmeny's young wife, as he always thought her to be, was gone before he was able to realize the full meaning of the lines which she had written. At first he was disposed to reject them, as a creation of her sick brain; it was impossible for him to believe that the dear companion of his last few years was guilty of bigamy. But, whether true or false, he at once resolved, as she lay in her coffin at Florence, to give effect to her last wish, and he instantly prepared to carry her remains over to England.
	The body of this lovely woman was embalmed, and secured in 'a very firm oaken coffin, decorated with six large silver plates, and it was then put into a strong outer case of common deal, which concealed the ominous shape of its contents. The jewellery and wardrobe of the lady were packed in other chests, and with this cumbersome baggage Lord Dalmeny set out upon his melancholy journey by land to the south of France. At Marseilles he was able to engage a vessel for carry him and his packages by sea round to Dover, under the assumed name of Mr. Williams, a merchant of Hamburg; and on landing at Dover he transferred his belongings to a small coaster, which he hired to carry him to Harwich, then a busy and bustling port, only a few miles distant from Thorpe. The vessel, however, was forced by contrary winds to make for Colchester instead, where the Custom House officers came down to the 'Hythe' to examine the freight before they would allow it to be landed. They could not recognize in the elegant and polished gentleman, whom they saw dressed in the deepest of black and bowed down by grief, a common business man from Hamburg; and they very naturally thought, as only seven years had passed since the rebellion of 1745, that he was some emissary of the Pretender. So their loyalty took the alarm. It certainly was the plain duty of Custom House officials to see that no French tobacco, gloves, lace, or brocade was brought over in those large boxes without paying duty to King George. Accordingly, without giving any attention to the remonstrances of Mr. Williams, they were about to plunge their knives into the larger case, when the Hamburg merchant drew his sword and told them to desist. He at once made a clean breast of the affair, telling them that he was an Englishman, and, what was more, an English nobleman, and that the chest upon the wharf contained the body of his dead wife. But this explanation did not satisfy the officers, who were not sure that there was not a murder at the bottom of the transaction. They therefore at once broke the outer chest, tore open the coffin lid, and lifted the cere-cloths from the face of the embalmed corpse. Lord Dalmeny was taken, along with the coffin, to a church near at hand, where he was detained until he could prove the truth of his story.
	The news soon spread about, and crowds of the neighbouring villagers came to see the fair lady's face as she lay in her coffin. Many of these identified her features as those of the Kitty Cannon who had spent her childhood at Thorpe, and who had disappeared soon after her marriage with the vicar of that parish.
	But here was a further difficulty for his lordship; for, though the rest of his story was transparently true, it was clear that the lady was not really his lawful wife. A communication was at once forwarded to the vicar, who lost no time in coming over to the 'Hythe' and recognizing the corpse as that of his vanished partner. But what a mystery the whole affair was to him as well as to Lord Dalmeny, to whom at first, as may be supposed, he entertained and expressed no very friendly feelings. But he was soon pacified. Possibly he had preached but lately a sermon enforcing forgiveness of even intended wrongs, and here was a wrong which clearly was not intended. Accordingly as soon as he was able to contemplate the matter in all its bearings - the deception which had been practiced on the poor young nobleman, and the passionate constancy which had borne him up through his toilsome journey by land and voyage by sea in order to gratify his supposed wife's last prayer, and the faithfulness with which, like a dog, he watched beside her coffin in the church - he felt that he could not refuse to forgive the wrong, and he consented to meet Lord Dalmeny on a friendly footing.
	The interview between the two rival husbands is said in a family record to have been very moving, and no doubt must have been touching in the extreme … I am not able to tell my readers the exact words in which Lord Dalmeny assured the husband of his entire innocence of fraud, and of the honest intentions with which he had acted throughout. Even the discovery of the long-lost Kitty's deceit and guilt did not put his love to shame, or shake his determination to follow her to her last resting-place. And the same was the feeling of his lordship. The next day, as soon as the magistrates were satisfied that the law had not been broken, both husbands accompanied the loved remains to Thorpe Church, where the poor frail lady was buried with all the pomp and show which could have been accorded a real peeress. Which of the two paid the undertaker's bill is not stated; but I have every reason to believe that the cost was paid by Lord Dalmeny, or amicably settled between them. It was said that the funeral cortege was stopped for a few minutes at the gates of the vicarage, and that the young nobleman walked into the house, from which he presently came forth arm-in-arm with Mr. Gough, who was clothed in mourning as deep as his own, and with scarf and headband to match. This happened on July 9, 1752.
	After the funeral ceremony, Lord Dalmeny departed from the scene in great grief and to all appearance quite inconsolable, declaring that he should leave not only the shores of Essex, but those of England, for ever. Whether he kept his word in this respect is more than I can tell; but the tragical occurrence would seem to have shortened his days, for he survived his beloved Kitty little more than three years, dying at the age of thirty on August 11, 1755, in the lifetime of his father the earl, over whom the grave closed in the November following.
	Hercules George Robert Robinson, 1st baronet and later 1st Baron Rosmead
	Robinson, together with Sir George Grey, was probably the most able of Britain's colonial administrators during the 19th century. The following biography of Robinson is taken from the December 1958 issue of the Australian monthly magazine Parade:-
	Bitter controversies split New South Wales in the mid-1870s. Hostile camps brawled over state border duties, protection versus free trade, the "evils" of horse racing and the fate of bushranger Frank Gardiner. Political parties rowed within themselves. The position would have been calamitous but for one man - Governor Sir Hercules Robinson. Through every impasse he cut with clear, uncompromising views. Mostly he was right. On the few occasions when hardy souls claimed he was wrong, he was strong enough to get away with it. Not for nothing did Britain send one of her major but most tactful trouble-shooters to preside over a turbulent colony at a critical time in her destiny. In his half-century of service to the Crown, Sir Hercules Robinson, later Baron Rosmead, distinguished himself wherever trouble flared, from Ireland to Fiji.
	Hercules Robinson was born at Rosmead, County Westmeath, on December 19, 1824. He took the unusual name Hercules from his admiral father, who sent him to the Army's Sandhurst. He was already a captain when he left to join the civil service at 22. His first post was to Ireland's Board of Public Works. Hardly had he arrived than potato blight, leaping from America to Europe, wiped out all Ireland's staple food crop - potatoes. Over the next five years Ireland sloughed through the worst depression in her unhappy history. A million died of starvation. A million and a half [one and a half million] fled overseas. Heartless absentee landlords threw rent-defaulting peasants on to the roads. The killers of the White Boys secret society launched a reign of terror in a desperate bid for justice.
	In this welter of hunger and hate, Hercules Robinson was one of the few who worked to alleviate the misery. As Government agent he directed 750,000 men into building roads, bridges and drainage systems, paying them sufficient to keep starvation from their families. Robinson did so well in Ireland that at 30 he was appointed to the presidency of the Leeward Isle of Montserrat. A year later he was governor of nearby St. Kitt's and knighted by Queen Victoria.
	By now Robinson was one of the rising young men in Government service. Toughest post for any trouble-shooter was Hong Kong, seething with hostility following the Second Opium War, which the British captured by burning the summer palace of the Emperor in Peking. Hong Kong hated the British when Hercules Robinson was appointed its first [actually fifth] governor. Grimly he took over Kowloon, the promontory on the mainland ceded to Britain as a result of the war. Equally grimly he cleaned up the graft rampant on Hong Kong Island. The Chinese paid him grudging admiration as he rooted out profiteers and racketeers and bundled them back to England. Trade rocketed. The Chinese themselves grew wealthier. Robinson built more docks, piers and sea walls for the growing fleet of trading ships. He ended currency confusion by establishing a mint to stamp special British Hong Kong dollars.
	Meanwhile, trouble brewed in Ceylon. Cingalese leaders claimed they were suppressed by th British. Some of them greeted Hercules Robinson by walking out of the Legislative Council. Robinson talked them back while he investigated. Opposition dwindled as he set up village councils, private and village schools, a medical school, an Oriental library and established freedom of religion for all. With more irrigation and railways, peace and prosperity had settled on Ceylon when, in 1872, Robinson moved to another trouble spot - Australia.
	Robinson was NSW's 14th Governor. He arrived in Sydney on June 2, 1872, in the midst of political turmoil. Thirteen Ministries had come and gone in 16 hectic years of self-government. Dissolution and defeat dogged every party. When Robinson took office, Mr. (later Sir Henry) Parkes held the reins of government. Parkes was at loggerheads with Victoria and South Australia, whose Protectionist policies clashed with NSW's Free Trade. NSW producers were bitter at having to pay border duties on everything they sent into Victoria or South Australia. Twenty-eight years before it came, Robinson told Parkes bluntly there was only one solution - Federation. He added that the different railway gauges were just plain stupid.
	Meanwhile, he soon fell out with the wowsers [Australian slang for anybody who is obnoxiously puritanical]. Straitlaced pillars of the Church expressed pained surprise when he drove his own drag [coach] from Government House to Randwick races or to meetings of the Sydney Four-in-Hand Club. They accused him of gambling and malpractices. Thundered ageing Presbyterian leader, Dr. John Dunmore Lang, who even deplored cricket and yachting: "Horseracing turns polished men into clowns, and clowns into brutes". With a twinkle in his eye, Robinson admitted there were some abuses in horseracing. All true lovers of sport deplored them. "But, generally speaking, racing was innocent," he claimed. "It would always flourish wherever there was a tolerably well-to-do community. It was a fine old British institution."
	Robinson's guidance was felt in every phase of New South Wales life. In education he deplored the over-emphasis on technical subjects instead of classical. He told Sydney Grammar School at a prize-giving that their neglected playground was little better than a goat walk. He brought Henry Parkes and his enemy John Robertson together to form the first stable government. Under his urging, the railway lines pushed on to Bathurst and Tamworth. He saw the opening of the telegraph between Australia and Europe. The great Sydney international exhibition would have crashed in failure had he not swung Government financial support behind it. Robinson was again prophetic when he unveiled the statue of Captain Cook in Hyde Park. He predicted a great future - for a united, federated Australia.
	Hercules Robinson left Sydney briefly to add Fiji to the British Empire. Fiji King Thakombau [more correctly Cakobau - a "c" in Fijiian is pronounced as a hard "th" as in "then" and a "b" is pronounced as if was preceded by an "m"] was being pressed by his tribal enemies. Fijiians, not far removed from their cannibal state, were murdering European settlers and burning their homes. Thakombau wished to cede in return for guarantees. The ideal man for such a job was trouble-shooter Hercules Robinson. He made a quick trip to Fiji, persuaded Thakombau to grant unconditional cession in return for a pension of £1,500 and ran up the British flag over the islands.
	Despite his successes, Hercules Robinson was frequently in strife with his tough colonials. The greatest storm came when he released bushranger Frank Gardiner from gaol on licence. Gardiner had lived a respectable life in the period between committing his crimes and arrest. Humanitarians like W[illiam] B[ede] Dalley and William Forster, Colonial Secretary, said he should be given a chance. Other citizens opposed his release. Robinson let him out. [For information on Gardiner's fate, see the note under Sir Henry Pottinger, 2nd baronet.] The resultant clamour of rotest brought about the overthrow of the Parkes Ministry, but left the doughty Governor unmoved.
	Hercules Robinson had lived this down when he left Sydney in March, 1879. Crowds of small craft accompanied his ship down the harbour. Newspapers hailed him as the most progressive administrator the State had ever had.
	After a year in New Zealand the Government sent Robinson as High Commissioner to the new trouble spot, South Africa, where the Boers declared the Transvaal a republic and cut to pieces a British force at Majuba Hill. Robinson negotiated an uneasy peace. When Boer freebooters entered their State, however, he got tough, sent Sir Charles Warren and an army to hunt them back and annexed Bechuanaland [now Botswana] to Britain.
	Robinson was leading a quiet life in semi-retirement in England when Boer President Kruger refused to let the British railway pass through his territory. The Government again sent Robinson. He had persuaded Kruger to back down when Dr. Jameson collected his irregular roughriders and made his ill-advised raid deep into the Transvaal. Robinson again prevented war. He arranged the release of the captured raiders and sent Jameson back to England for trial and sentence.
	For two years Robinson kept a hand on the uneasy peace. A grateful Government, unready for war, elevated him to the Barony of Rosmead. By then he was 72. Ill-health dogged him. He returned home and died on October 28, 1897, hailed as one of Britain's greatest administrators.
	Richard Parsons, 2nd Earl of Rosse (first creation)
	Rosse was one of the founders of the Irish Hell-Fire Club and a noted libertine.
	One story concerning him is that he received a letter from a neighbouring cleric upbraiding him for his many and varied sins. Unperturbed, Rosse, having noted that the letter was addressed only to 'My Lord', immediately forwarded the letter to the Earl of Kildare, a man famous for his virtue and piety.
	Lawrence Parsons, 4th Earl of Rosse (second creation)
	The 4th Earl's father, the 3rd Earl of Rosse, was one of the world's leading astronomers during the nineteenth century. In 1845, the 3rd Earl completed construction of what was then the world's largest telescope, a six-foot reflecting telescope known as the "Leviathan of Parsonstown" which revealed the existence of spiral nebulas.
	The 4th Earl inherited his father's scientific interests. By all accounts, the Earl was somewhat careless regarding his clothing. According to one anecdote, he once was discovered in the engine room of a large manufacturing concern and was challenged by the chief engineer, who demanded to know his business there. The Earl calmly replied that he was waiting for the boiler to explode, at which the engineer prepared to throw him out, believing that the Earl was a dangerous lunatic. The Earl pointed out that unless the engineer tightened a certain screw, the boiler was bound to explode within the next ten minutes. When the engineer checked, he discovered that the Earl was correct, and demanded to know why he had not said anything sooner, to which the Earl responded that he had never had the opportunity of seeing a boiler explode.

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