Earl of Stirling

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Earl of Stirling was a title in the Peerage of Scotland created on 14 June 1633, along with the titles Viscount Canada and Lord Alexander of Tullibody, for William Alexander, 1st Viscount Stirling. He had already been created Viscount of Stirling and Lord Alexander of Tullibody on 4 September 1630. He had been created a baronet in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia, of Menstrie, Clackmannan on 12 July 1625.

It became dormant upon the death of the 5th Earl in 1739, although one William Alexander of New York, known to history as Major General Lord Stirling of the American Revolutionary Army, pursued a claim to succeed to the dormant earldom in the early 1760s from senior male descent from the first earl's grandfather, which was ultimately turned down by the House of Lords-although he was allowed to vote in the election of the Scottish representative peers.

There was an attempt to assert that there was a new grant of the title of Earl of Dovan in 1637 connected with the title of Earl of Stirling, and a new destination of descent for the title of Earl of Stirling, but the court case against Alexander Humphrys-Alexander (1783-1859) filed in 1839 ruled that the documents in support of such case were forgeries.

1 Baronets of Menstrie (1625)
2 Viscounts of Stirling (1630)
3 Earls of Stirling (1633)
4 See also
5 References

[edit] Baronets of Menstrie (1625)

Sir William Alexander, 1st Baronet (1576–1640) (created 1st Viscount of Stirling in 1630)

[edit] Viscounts of Stirling (1630)

William Alexander, 1st Viscount of Stirling (1576–1640) (created 1st Earl of Stirling in 1633)

[edit] Earls of Stirling (1633)

William Alexander, 1st Earl of Stirling (1576-1640)
William Alexander, 2nd Earl of Stirling (d.1640)
Henry Alexander, 3rd Earl of Stirling (d.1644)
Henry Alexander, 4th Earl of Stirling (d.1691)
Henry Alexander, 5th Earl of Stirling (1664-1739)

[edit] See also

William Alexander, (1726-1783), was a descendant from the 1st Earl's grandfather, whose claim to the earldom was not recognized by the British House of Lords. However the claimant was permitted to vote with the Scottish Representative peers, and was known as "Lord Stirling".