Hugh Molyneux, 7th Earl of Sefton

7th Earl of Sefton with the American socialite Josephine Armstrong (1903–1980) at Plumpton Racecourse in 1940. They married in 1941.

Hugh William Osbert Molyneux, 7th Earl of Sefton (22 December 1898 – 13 April 1972) was the last of the Earls of Sefton. He was the eldest son of Osbert Molyneux, 6th Earl of Sefton (1871–1930)

He was educated at West Downs School, Harrow School and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He married in 1941 Josephine Gwynne Armstrong (1903–1980), daughter of George Armstrong of Virginia, United States. The Countess was a lifelong friend of the Duchess of Windsor.

After pursuing a military career, he was appointed aide-de-camp to the Governor-General of Canada (1919), to the Viceroy of India, Lord-in-waiting to the King (1936–37) and Lord Mayor of Liverpool (1944–45). He was also a chairman of the stewards of the British Jockey Club and Constable of Lancaster Castle, his ancestors having held the Constableship of Liverpool Castle until it was destroyed c. 1700.

He was a sports enthusiast and an owner of racehorses, including Medoc II (FR) which won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1942, St Lucia which won the 1958 Coronation Stakes and Irish Lizard which twice finished third in the Grand National, in 1953 and 1954. He was a descendant of William Philip Molyneux, 2nd Earl of Sefton, who founded the Waterloo Cup and the Grand National.

His seats were Croxteth Hall, Lancs; Abbeystead House, Wyresdale Forest; and Grosvenor Cottage, Culross Street, W1. On his death his earldom became extinct and Croxteth Hall passed into public hands. On his widow's death in 1980 Abbeystead and the Wyresdale Forest estate were sold to the Duke of Westminster.

See also

• Earl of Sefton Stakes

External links

• Leigh Rayment's Peerage Pages
• Lundy, Darryl. "Hugh William Osbert Molyneux, 7th Earl of Sefton". The Peerage. www.thepeerage.com. Retrieved 18 May 2010.
• Diaries and papers of the family of Molyneux of Sefton (1815–1953). Reference 920 SEF. Liverpool Record Office and Local History Service. www.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 18 May 2010.