Baron Hastings - 1461 Creation

1461 Creation

Sir William Hastings (c. 1430–1483) served as Lord Chamberlain and as Ambassador to France. He was summoned to Parliament as Lord Hastings on 26 July 1461. Lord Hastings was beheaded on Tower Hill in 1483 on a charge of treason by Richard of Gloucester. His son, Edward, the second Baron, married Mary, daughter of Robert Hungerford, 3rd Baron Hungerford, who had been attainted in 1461. Mary managed to obtain a reversal of the attainders of the Barony of Hungerford, Barony of Botreaux and Barony of De Moleyns. Their son, the third Baron, inherited the Barony of Hastings from his father and the Baronies of Hungerford, Botreaux and De Moleyns from his mother. In 1513 he was created Earl of Huntingdon.

On the death of the tenth Earl in 1789 the earldom became dormant, while the baronies of Hastings, Hungerford, Botreaux and De Moleyns passed on to his sister Elizabeth, the wife of John Rawdon, 1st Earl of Moira. Their son, the second Earl of Moira, inherited the four baronies on his mother's death in 1808. In 1816 he was created Marquess of Hastings. Lord Hastings married Flora Mure-Campbell, 6th Countess of Loudoun. Their son, the second Marquess, also inherited the Earldom of Loudoun from his mother. He married Barbara, 20th Baroness Grey de Ruthyn. On the death in 1868 of their younger son, the fourth Marquess (who had also succeeded his mother as Baron Grey de Ruthyn), the marquessate became extinct, the Scottish earldom of Loudoun passed on to his eldest sister, while the Baronies of Hastings, Hungerford, Botreaux, De Moleyns and Grey de Ruthyn fell into abeyance between the sisters.

In 1871 the Baronies of Botreaux, Hungerford, Moleyns and Hastings were called out of abeyance in favour of Edith, Countess of Loudoun (but not the Barony of Grey de Ruthyn, which was called out of abeyance in 1885 in favour of a different heir). On the death of the Countess of Loudoun's son, the 11th Earl, in 1920, the earldom passed to his eldest niece, Elizabeth, while the four Baronies fell into abeyance between Elizabeth and her younger sisters.

In 1921 the Baronies of Hastings and Botreaux were called out of abeyance in favour of Elizabeth (and the Barony of Stanley was called out of abeyance in her favour at the same time). However, the barony of De Moleyns and the barony of Hungerford were called out of abeyance in favour of a different heir (see the Viscount St Davids). On Elizabeth's death in 1960 the baronies of Hastings, Stanley and Botreaux fell into abeyance between her daughters. As of 2007, they remain in abeyance.