| Barony of Baltimore | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Creation date | 1625; 401 years ago (1625) |
| Created by | James I |
| Peerage | Peerage of Ireland |
| First holder | Sir George Calvert |
| Last holder | Frederick Calvert, 6th Baron Baltimore |
| Remainder to | Heirs male of the body lawfully begotten |
| Extinction date | 4 September 1771 |
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Baron Baltimore, ofBaltimore, County Longford, was a title in thePeerage of Ireland. It was created in 1625 and ended in 1771, upon the death of its sixth-generation male heir, aged 40. Holders of the title were usually known asLord Baltimore.
The title was granted in 1625 toSir George Calvert (1580–1632), and it became extinct in 1771 on the death ofFrederick, 6th Baron Baltimore.[1] The title was held by six members/generations of the Calvert family, who were Lord proprietors of thepalatinatesProvince of Avalon inNewfoundland andMaryland Palatinate (later theProvince of Maryland and subsequentAmerican State ofMaryland).[2]
A reference to "Lord Baltimore" is to any one of the six barons and most frequently inU.S. history toCecil, 2nd Baron Baltimore (1600–1675, ruled 1632–1675), after whom the port city ofBaltimore, Maryland (1729/1797) and surroundingBaltimore County (1659) were named,[3] which took place in his lifetime due to his family's holdings. His father Sir George had supported English colonization of theNorth American territories, and his younger brother,Leonard Calvert (1606–1647, ruled 1634–1647), traveled across theAtlantic Ocean to become the first colonialGovernor of Maryland.[3]
In theBritish Isles, the family's main home was a landscaped mansion and estate ("park") in theHome Counties. In 1705, the 4th Baron sold tothe Crown a house and gardens (owned by virtue of his wife) known as Woodstock Park, which was promptly demolished and replaced byBlenheim Palace, a site regally granted to the victoriousDuke of Marlborough as a gift.[4] It swiftly became the only private mansion termed a palace in England; however, this loss was partially recouped when the 4th Baron inherited an additional manor house and farm inEpsom,Surrey, on the death of his distant cousin Lady Ann(s) Lewknor (née Mynne), his father having already owned, since 1692, from the death of Elizabeth Evelyn (née Mynne), a mid-17th century-built neighbouring fine house known asWoodcote Park.[4] Its ownership in the family passed down to the heirs of the 6th Baron.[5][4] His latter-day home in London itself was onRussell Square:
the handsome mansion on the south-east side of the square, at the corner of Guilford Street, was built, in 1759, for the eccentric and profligate Lord Baltimore ... it was at first called Baltimore House. Hither his lordship decoyed a young milliner, Sarah Woodcock, and was prosecuted for having caused her ruin, but acquitted. He died in 1771 at Naples, whence his remains were brought to London, andlay in state, as we have mentioned, at Exeter Change ... The house was subsequently occupied by the equally eccentricDuke of Bolton.
— E. Walford,Old and New London, Vol. 4, 1878[6]
The Lords Baltimore had notable early siblings and descendants:
There are many locations inMaryland named after the Barons Baltimore ("Lords Baltimore"), includingBaltimore County,Baltimore City,Calvert County,Cecil County,Charles County,Frederick County,Leonardtown,St. Leonard, andCalvert Cliffs. There are alsoCharles Street and Calvert Street inBaltimore.
Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore is the namesake ofCecil County, Maryland, Cecil Avenue, Cecil Elementary School andCalvert Street in Baltimore, along with another Calvert Street (alley) inBrooklyn (a South Baltimore city neighbourhood bordering suburbanAnne Arundel County) andCalvert Street in Washington, D.C. His wife, Anne Arundell, is the namesake ofAnne Arundel County, Maryland.
Harford County is named forHenry Harford (1758/1760–1835), the illegitimate son ofFrederick, 6th and last Baron Baltimore (1731–1771).Leonardtown, Maryland, nowcounty seat ofSt. Mary's, is named for the younger brother of the Cecil, 2nd Lord Baltimore, the 28-year-oldLeonard Calvert (1606–1647), who arrived in the Colonial settling expedition of 1634 and set up the provincial government in the new capital ofSt. Mary's City.
The main downtown street inCumberland, Maryland, is named Baltimore Street, along with Baltimore Avenue, the main north–south highway of commercial business along the Atlantic coast to the resort town ofOcean City. The Baltimore Road, which runs through the town ofBladensburg was made famous due to its role in theBattle of Bladensburg and the subsequent "Burning of Washington" during theWar of 1812.
On theAvalon Peninsula in theProvince of Newfoundland and Labrador of the northeasternDominion of Canada, there is a settlement namedCalvert, and in nearbyFerryland there is a "Baltimore School". There are also several other towns and villages acrossNorth America in the several states with the name of "Baltimore", "New Baltimore" or "Old Baltimore".
A life-sized bronze statue on a granite pedestal of Cecil, 2nd Lord Baltimore (1605–1675), is located on the steps of the western end at theSt. Paul Street entrance of theBaltimore City Circuit Court House, the third courts structure on the nearby colonial-era Courthouse Square site (located to the east alongNorth Calvert Street), constructed 1896–1900 (now renamed theClarence M. Mitchell Jr. Courthouse since 1985 for a noted local andCivil Rights Movement leader,Clarence M. Mitchell Jr. [1911–1984], known as "The 101st Senator") inBaltimore, Maryland. The statue of Cecil, Lord Baltimore, sponsored by theSociety of Colonial Wars in the State of Maryland, was dedicated November 21, 1908, and now faces a fountain and tree-shaded small plaza/park across the street, developed/laid out in 1964, between East Fayette and East Lexington Streets.
Before theAmerican Revolution, a common flag used by military units of the colonial militia of theProvince of Maryland was known as theCalvert Arms Flag. This flag had the originalUnion Jack from theActs of Union 1707 as acanton in the upper corner, with aSt. George's Cross and aSt. Andrew's Cross to represent the patron saint ofEngland andScotland, respectively.
This Union Jack canton is in the upper corner of the banner over the black and gold (yellow) chevrons depicted on the Calvert family'sshield andcoats-of-arms. Today, this historical colonial/provincial flag is often displayed throughout the state, especially at historical, heritage and festival events such as for theFrench and Indian War era, (1754–1763) at colonialFort Frederick inWashington County in the mountainous western panhandle of the state.
The modernflag of the State of Maryland still bears the Calvert-Crossland family / Lord Baltimore coats-of-arms and shield, and has been used since the 1880s with the four quarters reunited after the tragic splits in theborder states of theAmerican Civil War, with the NorthernUnion Army regiments using the black and gold chevrons and the SouthernConfederate States Army units using the red/white trefoil cross botonee.
