Writ of acceleration

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A writ in acceleration, commonly called a writ of acceleration was a type of writ of summons to the House of Lords that enabled the eldest son and heir apparent of a peer with multiple peerage titles to attend the House of Lords using one of his father's subsidiary titles.

A writ of acceleration could be granted only if the title being accelerated was a subsidiary one, and not the main title, and if the beneficiary of the writ was the heir apparent of the actual holder of the title. The heir apparent was not always summoned in his courtesy title. Rather, almost every person summoned to Parliament by virtue of a writ of acceleration was summoned in one of his father’s baronies. For example, William Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington, heir apparent of William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire, was summoned as Baron Cavendish of Hardwick. It was not possible for heirs apparent of peers in the Peerage of Scotland and Peerage of Ireland to be given writs of acceleration, as holders of titles in these peerages were not automatically guaranteed seat in the House of Lords.

An heir apparent receiving such a writ takes the precedence within the House of Lords owing to the title accelerated. Eg Viscount Cranborne takes, when accelerated to the barony of Cecil (created 1603), precedence ahead of all barons in parliament created after that date. When numbering the holders of peerages an accelerated title counts as a holder; so were the first earl and baron of 'somewhere' to have two sons and the barony to be accelerated in favour of the eldest, who predeceased his father without heirs, the younger brother would succeed as 2nd earl but 3rd baron. However, if the eldest son were to predecease his father with heirs the accelerated title would devolve on his heirs (according to the remainder governing the creation of the barony). Eg When Charles Boyle, Viscount Dungarvan, the eldest surviving son of the Earl of Burlington, was summoned to Parliament in 1689 in his father's barony of Clifford, but predeceased his father, his son the first Earl's grandson, was granted a writ of attendance to Lords in the barony.^[1]

The procedure of writs of acceleration was introduced by King Edward IV in the mid 15th century. It was a fairly rare occurrence, and only ninety-four writs of acceleration were issued in over 400 years. The last writ of acceleration was issued in 1992 to the Conservative politician and close political associate of John Major, Robert Michael James Gascoyne-Cecil, Viscount Cranborne, the eldest son and heir apparent of the 6th Marquess of Salisbury. He was summoned in his father’s junior barony of Baron Cecil of Essendon and not in his courtesy title of Viscount Cranborne. The procedure of writs of acceleration was abolished through the House of Lords Act of 1999, along with the automatic right of hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords.

The alternative to a writ of acceleration was to create a completely new peerage. For example, in 1832 Edward Smith-Stanley, Lord Stanley, son and heir apparent of Edward Smith-Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby, was given a new peerage as Baron Stanley, of Bickerstaffe. Two years later he succeeded his father in the Earldom. This was in contrast to his son, Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby, who in 1844 was summoned to the House of Lords through a writ of acceleration in the aforementioned title of Baron Stanley, of Bickerstaffe.

Two issues of writs of acceleration may be especially noted, of which the first also relates to the Stanley family. In 1628 James Stanley, Lord Strange, heir apparent of William Stanley, 6th Earl of Derby, was summoned to the House of Lords in the ancient Barony of Strange (created in 1299), a title assumed by his father. However, the House of Lords later decided that the sixth Earl’s assumption of the Barony of Strange had been erroneous. Consequently, it was deemed that there were now two Baronies of Strange, the original one created in 1299 and the new one, created "accidentally" in 1628 (see the Baron Strange for more information). Another noteworthy writ of acceleration was issued in 1717 to Charles Paulet, Marquess of Winchester, heir apparent of Charles Paulet, 2nd Duke of Bolton. He was meant to be summoned in his father’s junior title of Baron St John of Basing, but was mistakenly summoned as Baron Pawlett of Basing. This inadvertently created a new peerage. However, the Barony of Pawlett of Basing became extinct on his death, while the Dukedom was passed on to his younger brother, the fourth Duke.

1 Writs of acceleration
2 See also
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Writs of acceleration

Year	Person summoned	Summoned as	Succeeded as	Notes
1482	Thomas FitzAlan, Lord Maltravers	Baron Maltravers	Earl of Arundel (1487)
5 February 1532/33	Henry FitzAlan, Lord Maltravers	Baron Maltravers	Earl of Arundel (1544)
17 February 1532/33	Francis Talbot, Lord Talbot	Baron Talbot	Earl of Shrewsbury (1538)
4 October 1544	John Paulet, Lord St John of Basing	Baron St John of Basing	Marquess of Winchester (1572)
5 January 1552/53	John Dudley, Earl of Warwick	Earl of Warwick	Earl of Warwick (1553)
5 January 1552/53	George Talbot, Lord Talbot	Baron Talbot	Earl of Shrewsbury (1560)
1 March 1552/53	Francis Russell, Lord Russell	Baron Russell	Earl of Bedford (1555)
1553	Thomas Radclyffe, Viscount FitzWalter	Baron FitzWalter	Earl of Sussex (1553)
23 January 1558/59	Henry Hastings, Lord Hastings	Baron Hastings	Earl of Huntingdon (1560)
23 January 1558/59	Henry Stanley, Lord Strange	Baron Strange	Earl of Derby (1572)
5 May 1572	William Paulet, Earl of Wiltshire	Baron St John of Basing	Marquess of Winchester (1576)
January 1580/81	John Russell, Lord Russell	Baron Russell	Never succeeded	Heir Apparent of Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford but predeceased his father.
28 January 1588/89	Gilbet Talbot, Lord Talbot	Baron Talbot	Earl of Shrewsbury (1590)
28 January 1588/89	Ferdinando Stanley, Lord Strange	Baron Strange	Earl of Derby (1593)
16th C	William Howard, Lord Howard of Effingham	Baron Howard of Effingham	Never succeeded	Heir Apparent of Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham but predeceased his father.
31 January 1603/04	Henry Somerset, Lord Herbert	Baron Herbert	Earl of Worcester (1628)
13 July 1608	Henry O'Brien, Lord Ibrackan	Baron Ibrackan	Earl of Thomond (1624)
8 February 1609/10	Theophilus Howard, Lord Howard de Walden	Baron Howard de Walden	Earl of Suffolk (1626)
February 1620/21	William Seymour, Lord Beauchamp	Baron Beauchamp	Duke of Somerset (1660)
10 February 1623/24	John Paulet, Earl of Wiltshire	Baron St John of Basing	Marquess of Winchester (1628)
1626	Algernon Percy, Lord Percy	Baron Percy	Earl of Northumberland (1632)
1626	Spencer Compton, Lord Compton	Baron Compton	Earl of Northampton (1630)
22 May 1626	Edward Montagu, Lord Kimbolton	Baron Kimbolton	Earl of Manchester (1642)
1628	James Stanley, Lord Strange	Baron Strange	Earl of Derby (1642)	See introduction
1640	John Carey, Viscount Rochford	Baron Hunsdon of Hunsdon	Earl of Dover (1666)
3 November 1640	Thomas Howard, Viscount Andover	Baron Howard of Charlton	Earl of Berkshire (1669)
1640	Ferdinando Hastings, Lord Hastings	Baron Hastings	Earl of Huntingdon (1643)
3 November 1640	Hon. Thomas Wentworth	Baron Wentworth	Never succeeded	Heir Apparent of Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Cleveland but predeceased his father.
3 November 1640	Montagu Bertie, Lord Willoughby de Eresby	Baron Willoughby de Eresby	Earl of Lindsey (1642)
1641	George Digby, Lord Digby	Baron Digby	Earl of Bristol (1653)
14 May 1641	Oliver St John, Lord St John of Bletso	Baron St John of Bletso	Never succeeded	Heir Apparent of Oliver St John, 1st Earl of Bolingbroke
8 August 1662	Thomas Butler, Earl of Ossory	Earl of Ossory (to Irish House of Lords)	Never succeeded	Heir Apparent of James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde but predeceased father.
30 October 1665	William Brabazon, Lord Brabazon	Baron Brabazon	Earl of Meath (1675)
14 January 1677/78	Henry Howard, Earl of Arundel	Baron Mowbray	Duke of Norfolk (1684)
1 November 1680	Hon. Conyers Darcy	Baron Conyers	Earl of Holderness (1689)
11 July 1689	Charles Berkeley, Viscount Dursley	Baron Berkeley	Earl of Berkeley (1698)
1689	Charles Granville, Viscount Granville	Baron Granville	Earl of Bath (1701)
11 July 1689	Robert Sidney, Viscount L'Isle	Baron Sydney of Penshurst	Earl of Leicester (1698)
3 March 1690	Peregrine Osborne, Viscount Osborne	Baron Osborne	Duke of Leeds (1712)
19 April 1690	Robert Bertie, Lord Willoughby de Eresby	Baron Willoughby de Eresby	Earl of Lindsey (1701)	created Marquess of Lindsey in 1706 and Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven in 1715
5 March 1704/05	James Berkeley, Viscount Dursley	Baron Berkeley	Earl of Berkeley (1710)
28 December 1711	James Compton, Lord Compton	Baron Compton	Earl of Northampton (1727)
29 December 1711	Charles Bruce, Viscount Bruce of Ampthill	Baron Bruce of Whorlton	Earl of Elgin (1741)
28 January 1712/13	Peregrine Osborne, Viscount Osborne	Baron Osborne	Duke of Leeds (1729)
4 March 1714/15	Richard Lumley, Viscount Lumley	Baron Lumley	Earl of Scarbrough (1721)
9 March 1714/15	Chaworth Brabazon, Lord Brabazon	Baron Brabazon	Earl of Meath (1715)
16 March 1714/15	Peregrine Bertie, Marquess of Lindsey	Baron Willoughby de Eresby	Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven (1723)
12 April 1717	Charles Paulet, Marquess of Winchester	Baron Pawlett of Basing	Duke of Bolton (1722)	See introduction
8 November 1718	Anthony Grey, Earl of Harold	Baron Lucas of Crudwell	Never succeeded	Heir apparent of Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Kent but predeceased father.
1723	Hon. Charles Townshend	Baron Townshend	Viscount Townshend (1738)	As his father was already Lord Townshend, Charles was styled Lord Lynn after the barony's territorial designation of Lynn Regis
11 June 1733	John Hervey, Lord Hervey	Baron Hervey	Never succeeded	Heir Apparent of John Hervey, 1st Earl of Bristol but predeceased his father.
13 June 1751	William Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington	Baron Cavendish of Hardwick	Duke of Devonshire (1755)
1776	Francis Godolphin Osborne, Marquess of Carmarthen	Baron Osborne	Duke of Leeds (1789)
1797	Robert Hobart, Lord Hobart	Baron Hobart	Earl of Buckinghamshire (1804)
25 February 1799	George Granville Leveson-Gower, Earl Gower	Baron Gower	Marquess of Stafford (1803)	created Duke of Sutherland in 1833.
June 1801	Thomas Pelham, Lord Pelham of Stanmer	Baron Pelham of Stanmer	Earl of Chichester (1805)
1801	George Legge, Viscount Lewisham	Baron Dartmouth	Earl of Dartmouth (1801)
15 November 1803	Robert Banks Jenkinson, Lord Hawkesbury	Baron Hawkesbury	Earl of Liverpool (1808)
23 March 1803	George Ashburnham, Viscount St Asaph	Baron Ashburnham	Earl of Ashburnham (1812)
12 March 1806	George Spencer-Churchill, Marquess of Blandford	Baron Spencer of Wormleighton	Duke of Marlborough (1817)
4 November 1806	Alexander Hamilton, Marquess of Douglas and Clydesdale	Baron Dutton	Duke of Hamilton and Brandon (1819
11 April 1807	Charles Montagu-Scott, Earl of Dalkeith	Baron Scott of Tyndale	Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry (1812)
11 April 1807	George Gordon, Marquess of Huntly	Lord Gordon of Huntly	Duke of Gordon (1827)
12 March 1812	Hugh Percy, Earl Percy	Baron Percy	Duke of Northumberland (1817)
5 January 1822	George Horatio Cholmondeley, Earl of Rocksavage	Baron Newburgh	Marquess of Cholmondeley (1827)
25 November 1826	George Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, Earl Gower	Baron Gower	Duke of Sutherland (1833)	At the time of the writ of acceleration, he was heir apparent of George Leveson-Gower, 2nd Marquess of Stafford, who was created Duke of Sutherland in 1833
15 January 1833	Henry Paget, Earl of Uxbridge	Baron Paget of Beaudesert	Marquess of Anglesey (1854)
15 January 1833	Francis Russell, Marquess of Tavistock	Baron Howland	Duke of Bedford (1839)
1833	George Harry Grey, Lord Grey of Groby	Baron Grey of Groby	Never succeeded	Heir apparent of George Harry Grey, 6th Earl of Stamford but predeceased father
8 January 1835	George Charles Pratt, Earl of Brecknock	Baron Camden	Marquess Camden (1840)
2 July 1838	Francis Godolphin D'Arcy D'Arcy-Osborne, Marquess of Carmarthen	Baron Osborne	Duke of Leeds (1838)
1838	George Brudenell-Bruce, Viscount Savernake	Baron Bruce of Tottenham	Marquess of Ailesbury (1856)
28 February 1839	Hugh Fortescue, Viscount Ebrington	Baron Fortescue	Earl Fortescue (1841)
16 August 1841	Henry Charles Fitzalan-Howard, Earl of Arundel and Surrey	Baron Maltravers	Duke of Norfolk (1842)
8 September 1841	William Lowther, Viscount Lowther	Baron Lowther	Earl of Lonsdale (1844)
4 November 1844	Edward Smith-Stanley, Lord Stanley	Baron Stanley	Earl of Derby (1851)
8 April 1853	George Stevens Byng, Viscount Enfield	Baron Strafford	Earl of Strafford (1860)
11 July 1856	Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, Earl of Shelburne	Baron Wycombe	Marquess of Lansdowne (1863)
1859	Charles Bennett, Lord Ossulston	Baron Ossulston	Earl of Tankerville (1859)
5 December 1859	Hugh Fortescue, Viscount Ebrington	Baron Fortescue	Earl Fortescue (1861)
9 July 1863	Edward Adolphus Ferdinand Seymour, Earl St Maur	Baron Seymour	Never succeeded	Heir apparent of Edward Adolphus Seymour, 12th Duke of Somerset but predeceased father
14 September 1870	William Gordon Cornwallis Eliot, Lord Eliot	Baron St Eliot	Earl of St Germans (1877)
26 February 1874	George Henry Charles Byng, Viscount Enfield	Baron Strafford	Earl of Strafford (1886)
5 September 1876	William Coutts Keppell, Viscount Bury	Baron Ashford	Earl of Albemarle (1891)
1880	William Archer Amherst, Viscount Holmesdale	Baron Amherst	Earl Amherst (1886)
22 July 1887	Henry George Percy, Earl Percy	Baron Lovaine	Duke of Northumberland (1899)
6 June 1896	Henry John Brinsley Manners, Marquess of Granby	Baron Manners of Haddon	Duke of Rutland (1906)
1940	Roundell Cecil Palmer, Viscount Wolmer	Baron Selborne	Earl of Selborne (1942)
1941	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, Viscount Cranborne	Baron Cecil of Essendon	Marquess of Salisbury (1947)
16 January 1951	Gilbert James Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby, Lord Willoughby de Eresby	Baron Willoughby de Eresby	Earl of Ancaster (1951)
1992	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, Viscount Cranborne	Baron Cecil of Essendon	Marquess of Salisbury (2003)	created a life peer as Baron Gascoyne-Cecil in 1999