Earl of Courtown, in the County of Wexford, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1762 for James Stopford, 1st Baron Courtown. He had previously represented County Wexford and Fethard in the Irish House of Commons. Stopford had already been created Baron Courtown, of Courtown in the County of Wexford, in 1758, and was made Viscount Stopford at the same time he was given the earldom. These titles are also in the Peerage of Ireland. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the second Earl. He was a Tory politician and served under William Pitt the Younger as Treasurer of the Household from 1784 to 1793. In 1796 he was created Baron Saltersford, of Saltersford in the County of Chester, in the Peerage of Great Britain. This title gave him and his descendants an automatic seat in the House of Lords.
His eldest son, the third Earl, was also a Tory politician. He succeeded his father as Treasurer of the Household and was also Captain of the Honourable Band of Gentlemen Pensioners for many years. He was succeeded by his third but eldest surviving son, the fourth Earl. He represented County Wexford in the House of Commons as a Tory. His only son from his first marriage, the fifth Earl, served as a Deputy Lieutenant of County Wexford. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the sixth Earl. He was Lord Lieutenant of County Wexford. His eldest son, the seventh Earl, was a Major-General in the Army and served as Deputy Assistant Adjutant-General at the War Office from 1941 to 1947. As of 2010 the titles are held by the latter's grandson, the ninth Earl, who succeeded his father in 1975. Lord Courtown is one of the ninety 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.
Archival History ↴
The collection was deposited in 1976-8 and was purchased in 2001-2002.
Immediate Source Acquisition ↴
Purchase
Content & Structure
Scope & Content: Stopford, family, Earls of Courtown ↴
The Courtown papers contain records of the Stopford family. They cover a period from the 18th to the 20th century and relate to the management of the lands in the counties of Wexford, Carlow and Kilkenny.
A small section of personal papers (letters between the 4th Earl and his wife Charlotte nee Montagu-Scott) have been transcribed.
Appraisal Destruction ↴
Permanent Retention
Arrangement ↴
The collection is arranged as follows:
Courtown volumes: 11183/V/1-251
Courtown papers: 11183/P1/ – P60/
Courtown maps & genealogy: 11183/MG/1-111
Conditions of Access & Use
Access Conditions
Please contact mscripts@tcd.ie in advance of your visit
A full descriptive list can be viewed online and the letters between the 4th Earl and his wife Charlotte (nee Montagu-Scott) have been transcribed and can also be viewed online
Archive Web Link →
Allied Materials
Related Material
The Manuscripts and Archives Research Library, Trinity College Dublin holds a variety of papers relating to the Stopford family and the Earls of Courtown:
IE TCD MS 11116: Papers of the Stopford family, Earls of Courtown (18th-20th century)
IE TCD MS 11412: Stopford family, Earls of Courtown, photograph albums
IE TCD MSS 9215-16: Courtown Estate Surveys, 1838-51
Descriptive Control Area
Archivist Note
Natalie Milne, February 2014.
Rules/Conventions
ISAD(G): General International Standard Archival Description. 2nd ed. Ottowa: International Council on Archives, 2000. National Council on Archives: Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names. Chippenham: National Council on Archives, 1997.
