| Earldom of Cadogan | |
|---|---|
  Quarterly: 1st and 4th gules, a lion rampant reguardant or (for Cadogan); 2nd and 3rd argent, three boar's heads couped sable. | |
| Creation date | 27 December 1800 |
| Creation | Second |
| Created by | George III |
| Peerage | Peerage of Great Britain |
| First holder | Charles Cadogan, 3rd Baron Cadogan |
| Present holder | Edward Charles Cadogan, 9th Earl |
| Heir apparent | George Edward Charles Diether Cadogan, Viscount Chelsea |
| Remainder to | Heirs male of the first earl's body lawfully begotten[1] |
| Subsidiary titles | Viscount Chelsea Baron Oakley |
| Former seat | Culford Park |
| Motto | QUI INVIDET MINOR EST ("He who envies is the inferior") |
Earl Cadogan/kəˈdʌɡən/ is a title that has been created twice in thePeerage of Great Britain for the Cadogan family. The second creation, in 1800, was forCharles Cadogan, 3rd Baron Cadogan.[3]
Of Welsh origin, the family name was speltCadwgan until the early 15th century. According toBurke's Peerage, the family descends from: Rees ap Griffith ap Llewelyn ap Meredith Bengoch ap Howell (Lord of Penbuallt) ap Sitsylt (Lord ofBuilth) ap Llewelyn (Lord of Builth) ap Cadwgan apElystan Glodrydd ("The Renowned"), Prince of Fferreg, of Dol-y-Gaer,Breconshire.[3]
Major William Cadogan (1601–1661) was a cavalry officer inOliver Cromwell's army. His sonHenry Cadogan was a barrister in Dublin. His eldest sonWilliam Cadogan was a noted soldier, politician and diplomat. He was a general in the army and fought in theWar of the Spanish Succession and also served asAmbassador to the Netherlands and asMaster-General of the Ordnance. In 1716, he was raised to the Peerage of Great Britain asBaron Cadogan, of Reading in the County of Berkshire, with normal remainder to the heirs male of his body. In 1718, he was further honoured when he was madeBaron Cadogan, ofOakley in the County of Buckingham, with remainder, failing heirs male of his own, to his younger brother Charles Cadogan and the heirs male of his body, andViscount Caversham, in the County of Oxford, andEarl Cadogan, in the County of Denbigh, with remainder to the heirs male of his body. These titles were also in the Peerage of Great Britain.[3]
Lord Cadogan had two daughters but no sons, so on his death in 1726, three titles—the barony of 1716, the viscountcy, and earldom—became extinct. However, he was succeeded in the barony of 1718 according to the special remainder by his brother Charles, the second Baron. He was a General of the Horse and also representedReading andNewport, Isle of Wight, in theHouse of Commons. Cadogan married Elizabeth, second daughter and heiress of the prominent physician and collectorSir Hans Sloane.[3] Through this marriage the Sloane estates incentral London came into the Cadogan family, and these have been the basis of the family wealth ever since.
His son, the third Baron, sat asMember of Parliament forCambridge and served asMaster of the Mint. In 1800 the earldom of Cadogan held by his uncle was revived when he was createdViscount Chelsea, in the County of Middlesex, andEarl Cadogan. These titles were in the Peerage of Great Britain. His youngest son, the third Earl (who succeeded his half-brother in 1832), was anadmiral in theRoyal Navy. In 1831, one year before he succeeded in the earldom, he was raised to thePeerage of the United Kingdom in his own right asBaron Oakley, of Caversham in the County of Oxford. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the fourth Earl. He was aConservative politician and served underLord Derby andBenjamin Disraeli as whip,Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard from 1866 to 1868.[3]
His eldest son, the fifth Earl, was also a noted Conservative politician. He held office under Disraeli and laterLord Salisbury asUnder-Secretary of State for War,Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies,Lord Privy Seal andLord Lieutenant of Ireland (with a seat in the cabinet). His second sonHenry Cadogan, Viscount Chelsea, heir apparent to the earldom from 1878 to 1908, representedBury St Edmunds in Parliament as a Conservative, but died in 1908, seven years before his father. His only son Edward, Viscount Chelsea, died in 1910 at the age of seven. Lord Cadogan was therefore succeeded by his third but eldest surviving son, the sixth Earl. As of 2023, the titles are held by the latter's great grandson, the ninth Earl, who succeeded his father in 2023.[3]
Several other members of the Cadogan family have gained distinction.Lady Sarah Cadogan, daughter of the first Earl of the first creation, marriedCharles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond, and was the mother of the famous Lennox sisters (and also the grandmother ofCharles James Fox). Sir George Cadogan, second son of the third Earl, was a general in the army. Two further members represented seats in the House of Commons.[n 1]Sir Alexander Cadogan, eighth and youngest son of the fifth Earl, was the most senior civil servant to a troubled government department (Permanent Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs) between 1938 and 1946, that ofWorld War II and his personal notes reflect his part in shaping the policies which aided the survival of Britain and itsBritish Empire's resources in Asia during that war.[3]
The Earls Cadogan are wealthy landowners, having planned and developed and still owningCadogan Estates, which covers much ofChelsea and parts of the much smaller area ofKnightsbridge, and second only to theDuke of Westminster as Central London's richest landlords (whose surname, Grosvenor, is also closely associated with some of the most ornate London architecture).
The family seat wasCulford Park, nearCulford,Suffolk.
The rampant lion in the Earl Cadogan coat of arms is shown in the badge ofChelsea F.C.
In horse racing the family who own horses use the colour Eton blue, which is similar to the turquoise of Cambridge University, registeredc. 1889.[4]
Theheir apparent is the present holder's eldest son George Edward Charles Diether Cadogan, Viscount Chelsea (b. 1995).[3]
