Adrian FitzGerald

Last updated

Sir Adrian James Andrew Denis FitzGerald, 6th Baronet of Valencia, 24th Knight of Kerry (born 24 June 1940) is a Conservative Party politician in the UK and former Mayor of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. He is the current "Green" Knight of Kerry, and thus has been the only holder of an active Irish hereditary knighthood since the 2011 death of his distant cousin Desmond FitzGerald, 29th Knight of Glin. [1] [2] The title has no official recognition in Ireland, which has been a republic since 18 April 1949 when the Republic of Ireland Act 1948 came into effect.

Contents

Family

Adrian FitzGerald is the eldest son and heir of Sir George FitzGerald M.C., 5th Baronet, 23rd Knight of Kerry, by his wife Angela (Lady FitzGerald), daughter of Captain James Rankin Mitchell, of Mayfair, Adrian was educated at Harrow School. [3]

Career

A founder-member (1962) of the Conservative Monday Club, he was firstly editor of their Newsletter, and from 196774 editor of their glossy magazine, Monday World. [4] He has served as an elected Councillor of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London from 1974 until his retirement in 2002, [5] as Mayor (1984–85), and as Chairman of their Education and Libraries Committees from 1995. In 1989-90 he was Deputy Leader of the London Fire and Civil Defence Authority. [6]

Other interests

Sir Adrian has also served as Chairman of the Anglo-Polish Society for 1989–92, and is currently its president. He is vice chairman of the London chapter of the Irish Georgian Society and a patron of the Save Sloane Square campaign [7] and the anti-euthanasia organisation Alert. [8]

Sir Adrian is a Knight of Malta, and was President of the Irish Association of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM) resigning in May 2015. He divides his time between his homes in South Kensington, London, and Cappoquin, County Waterford, Ireland.

Ancestry

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knight of Glin</span>

The Knight of Glin, also known as the Black Knight or Knight of the Valley, was a hereditary title held by the FitzGerald and FitzMaurice families of County Limerick, Ireland, since the early 14th century. The family was a branch of the FitzMaurice/FitzGerald Dynasty commonly known as the Geraldines and related to the now extinct Earls of Desmond who were granted extensive lands in County Limerick by the Crown. The title was named after the village of Glin, near the Knight's lands. The Knight of Glin was properly addressed as "Knight".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FitzGerald dynasty</span> Cambro-Norman, later Hiberno-Norman dynasty, holding power in Ireland over centuries

The FitzGerald dynasty is a noble and aristocratic dynasty of Cambro-Norman and Anglo-Norman origin. They have been peers of Ireland since at least the 13th century, and are described in the Annals of the Four Masters as having become "more Irish than the Irish themselves" or Gaels, due to assimilation with the native Gaelic aristocratic and popular culture. The dynasty has also been referred to as the Geraldines and Ireland's largest landowners. They achieved power through the conquest of large swathes of Irish territory by the sons and grandsons of Gerald de Windsor. Gerald de Windsor was the first Castellan of Pembroke Castle in Wales, and became the male progenitor of the FitzMaurice and FitzGerald Dynasty. His father, Baron Walter FitzOther, was the first Constable and Governor of Windsor Castle for William the Conqueror, and was the Lord of 38 manors in England, making the FitzGeralds one of the "service families" on whom the King relied for his survival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerald FitzGerald, 14th Earl of Desmond</span> Irish rebel earl (died 1583)

Gerald FitzGerald, 14th Earl of Desmond, also counted as 15th or 16th, owned large part of the Irish province of Munster. In 1565 he fought the private Battle of Affane against his neighbours, the Butlers. After this, he was for some time detained in the Tower of London. Though the First Desmond Rebellion took place in his absence, he led the Second Desmond Rebellion from 1579 to his death and was therefore called the Rebel Earl. He was attainted in 1582 and went into hiding but was hunted down and killed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knight of Kerry</span>

Knight of Kerry, also called The Green Knight, is one of three Hiberno-Norman hereditary knighthoods, all of which existed in Ireland since feudal times. The other two were The White Knight, being dormant since the 19th century, and the Knight of Glin, dormant since 2011. All three belong to the FitzMaurice/FitzGerald Dynasty commonly known as the Geraldines being created by the Earls of Desmond for their kinsmen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maurice FitzGerald, 1st Earl of Desmond</span> Irish nobleman

Maurice FitzThomas FitzGerald, 1st Earl of Desmond in Dublin Castle, Dublin, Ireland was an Irish nobleman in the Peerage of Ireland, Captain of Desmond Castle in Kinsale, so-called ruler of Munster, and for a short time Lord Justice of Ireland. Called "Maurice the Great", he led a rebellion against the Crown, but he was ultimately restored to favour.

Sir Maurice FitzGerald, 18th Knight of Kerry was an hereditary knight and an Irish Whig politician.

There have been four baronetcies created for persons with the surname FitzGerald, one in the Baronetage of Ireland and three in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Knight (Fitzgibbon family)</span> Medieval Irish noble title

The White Knight is one of three Anglo-Norman hereditary knighthoods within Ireland dating from the medieval period. The title was first conferred upon Maurice Fitzgibbon in the early 14th century. The other two knighthoods, both in the Fitzgerald family, are the Knight of Glin, which has become dormant after 700 years, and the Knight of Kerry, which is held by Adrian FitzGerald, 6th Baronet, 24th Knight of Kerry.

Richard William Brinsley Norton, 8th Baron Grantley, is a retired banker and politician. In early life he worked for the Conservative Party, but joined the UK Independence Party (UKIP) when it was founded in 1993. As Richard Grantley, he was a member of the House of Lords from 1995 to 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Connor O'Brien, 2nd Viscount Clare</span> Irish viscount (1605–1670)

Connor O'Brien, 2nd Viscount Clare was the son of Daniel O'Brien, 1st Viscount Clare and Catherine FitzGerald, a daughter of Gerald, 14th Earl of Desmond.

Cormac na Haoine MacCarthy Reagh, 13th Prince of Carbery (1490–1567) was an Irish chieftain who owned almost half a million acres in south west Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James FitzGerald, 6th Earl of Desmond</span>

James FitzGerald, 6th Earl of Desmond, called 'the Usurper', was a younger son of Gerald FitzGerald, 3rd Earl of Desmond, and Lady Eleanor, daughter of James Butler, 2nd Earl of Ormond.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John FitzThomas, 1st Baron Desmond</span> Justiciar of Ireland

John FitzThomas, 1st Baron Desmond was the son of Thomas Fitzmaurice, Lord OConnello by his wife Ellinor, daughter of Jordan de Marisco, and sister of Geoffrey de Marisco, who was appointed justiciar of Ireland in 1215. He was the grandson of Maurice FitzGerald, Lord of Lanstephan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James FitzGerald, 13th Earl of Desmond</span> Irish earl (died 1558)

James fitz John FitzGerald, 13th Earl of Desmond, also counted as the 14th, ruled 22 years, the first 4 years as de facto earl until the death of James FitzGerald, de jure 12th Earl of Desmond, called Court Page, who was murdered by James fitz John's brother Maurice fitz John FitzGerald, called Totane. James fitz John FitzGerald maintained himself in power by skilful diplomacy, avoiding armed conflict and destruction. He was appointed Lord Treasurer of Ireland in 1547.

Sir Peter George FitzGerald, 1st Baronet, 19th Knight of Kerry was an Anglo-Irish nobleman.

Major Sir George Peter Maurice FitzGerald, 5th Baronet, 23rd Knight of Kerry was a hereditary knight and British soldier. He was the son of Sir Arthur Henry Brinsley FitzGerald and Mary Eleanor Forester. He was educated at Harrow School and at Sandhurst. He fought in the Palestine Campaign in 1939, where he was mentioned in despatches. He fought in the Second World War and was decorated with the award of Military Cross (M.C.) in 1944. He retired from the military in 1948, with the rank of Major, late of the Irish Guards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James FitzGerald, de jure 12th Earl of Desmond</span> 16th-century Irish earl

James fitz Maurice FitzGerald, de jure 12th Earl of Desmond, also counted 13th, was called Court Page as he grew up as a hostage for his grandfather Thomas FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Desmond, the Bald, at the court of Henry VIII. He should have succeeded this grandfather in 1534, but John FitzGerald, de facto 12th Earl of Desmond usurped the earldom and was followed in 1536 by his son James, fitz John. In 1539 the lord deputy of Ireland, Leonard Grey seized some Desmond land in southern County Cork and handed it to Court Page, who came to Ireland to claim his rights but was killed by Maurice fitz John FitzGerald, called Totane. He was succeeded by James fitz John, now rightful 13th earl.

Sir Valentine Browne, 2nd Baronet, of Molahiffe, was an Irish landowner and MP.

Sir Valentine Browne, 1st Baronet, of Molahiffe, owned a large estate in south-west Ireland and was a lawyer who served as high sheriff of County Kerry.

Richard Power, 1st Baron Power of Curraghmore

References

  1. "Desmond FitzGerald". The Daily Telegraph . 16 September 2011. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  2. Byrne, Luke (17 September 2011). "'After 700 years, I'm the last of the Irish knights' - Independent.ie". Irish Independent. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  3. Mosley, Charles, editor, Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 106th edition, 1999, Crans, Switzerland, ISBN   2-940085-02-1; p. 1064
  4. Copping, Robert, The Story of The Monday Club - The First Decade, London, April 1972, pp. 6, 14.
  5. Councillor biography at RBKC
  6. Burke's (1999) p. 1064
  7. Save Sloane Square Archived 2 April 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  8. Alert's Patrons Archived 20 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine
Titles of nobility (Ireland)
Preceded by Knight of Kerry
2001–present
Incumbent
Baronetage of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Baronet
(of Valencia)
2001–present
Incumbent