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Viscount Astor

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Viscountcy Astor
Created byGeorge V
PeeragePeerage of the United Kingdom
MottoAd Astra ("To the stars")[1]
William Waldorf Astor,
1st Viscount Astor

Viscount Astor, of Hever Castle in the County of Kent, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1917 for the financier and statesman William Waldorf Astor, 1st Baron Astor. He had already been created Baron Astor, of Hever Castle in the County of Kent, in 1916, also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.[3]

His eldest son, the second Viscount, was the husband of Nancy Astor, Viscountess Astor, the first woman to sit in the House of Commons. As of 2017 the titles are held by their grandson, the fourth Viscount, who succeeded his father in 1966. He is one of the ninety-two elected hereditary peers that remain in the House of Lords after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999, and sits as a Conservative.

John Jacob Astor, 1st Baron Astor of Hever, was the second son of the first Viscount. This peerage, Baron Astor of Hever, was a separate creation in 1956 and not to be confused with the Viscount's subsidiary title of Baron Astor, of Hever Castle in the County of Kent. The Hon. David Astor, the Hon. Michael Astor and the Hon. Jakie Astor, younger sons of the second Viscount, all gained prominence in public life.

The family seat is Ginge Manor, near Wantage, Oxfordshire. The first three Viscounts Astor are buried within the chapel (also known as the Octagon Temple) at the Cliveden estate near Taplow, Buckinghamshire.[4]

Baron Astor (1916)

Viscounts Astor (1917)

The heir apparent is the present holder's eldest son, the Hon. William Waldorf Astor (b. 1979).
The heir apparent's heir apparent is his son, William Waldorf Astor (b. 2012)

Ancestry

See also

References

  1. ^ Fox-Davies, Arthur Charles (1929). Armorial Families: a Directory of Gentleman of Coat-Armour. Hurst & Blackett. p. 58. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
  2. ^ "No. 30156". The London Gazette. 29 June 1917. p. 6409.
  3. ^ a b "Death of Lord Astor – a Great Anglo-American". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 20 October 1919. p. 16.
  4. ^ dijit.net. "Astor Mausoleum - Mausolea & Monuments Trust". www.mmtrust.org.uk. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
  5. ^ "Obituary: Lord Astor – A Life of Public Service". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 1 October 1952. p. 9.
  6. ^ a b "Obituary: Viscount Astor – Former M.P. for East Fulham". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 9 March 1966. p. 12.
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