Duke of Wellington (title)
| Dukedom of Wellington | |
|---|---|
Quarterly 1st & 4th: Gules, a cross argent in each quarter five plates in saltire (Wellesley); 2nd & 3rd: Or, a lion rampant gules ducally collared gold (Cowley) over-all in the centre chief point an escutcheon of augmentation charged with the Union badge.
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| Creation date | 11 May 1814 |
| Monarch | The Prince Regent (on behalf of George III) |
| Peerage | Peerage of the United Kingdom |
| First holder | Arthur Wellesley, 1st Marquess of Wellington |
| Present holder | Charles Wellesley, 9th Duke |
| Heir apparent | Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Douro |
| Remainder to | the 1st Duke's heirs male of the body lawfully begotten |
| Subsidiary titles | Marquess of Wellington Marquess of Douro Earl of Mornington Earl of Wellington Viscount Wellesley Viscount Wellington Baron Mornington Baron Douro |
| Seat(s) |
Stratfield Saye House Apsley House |
Duke of Wellington is a hereditary title of the senior rank in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It derived from Wellington in Somerset, and was created for Arthur Wellesley, 1st Marquess of Wellington (born The Hon. Arthur Wesley) (1769–1852), the Anglo-Irish Army leader who is distinguished for leading the decisive victory with Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher over Napoleon Bonaparte's forces at Waterloo in Brabant (now Walloon Brabant, Belgium); Wellesley later served twice as British Prime Minister. General references to "the Duke of Wellington" usually refer to Arthur Wellesley as the 1st Duke of Wellington, unless the context suggests a later date.
The first duke's father was created the 1st Earl of Mornington and their male-line ancestors were wealthy agricultural and urban landowners in both countries, among the Anglo-Irish Protestant Ascendancy.
The dukedom has descended to heirs male of the body with 11 other titles in various jurisdictions.
The titles of Duke of Wellington and Marquess of Douro were bestowed upon Arthur Wellesley, 1st Marquess of Wellington, on 11 May 1814 after he returned home a hero following Napoleon's abdication. He fought some 60 battles in his military career, and never lost a single one. He was considered 'the conqueror of Napoleon'. He stands as one of the two finest soldiers Britain has ever produced, the other being the Duke of Marlborough.
The subsidiary titles of the Duke of Wellington are: Marquess of Wellington (1812), Marquess of Douro (1814), Earl of Mornington (1760 – but only inherited by the Dukes of Wellington in 1863), Earl of Wellington (1812), Viscount Wellesley (1760 – inherited in 1863), Viscount Wellington (1809), Baron Mornington (1746 – also inherited in 1863), and Baron Douro (1809). The Viscountcy of Wellesley and the Barony and Earldom of Mornington are in the Peerage of Ireland; the rest are in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.
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