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TheStanley family (also known as theAudley-Stanley family) is an English noble family with many notable members, including theEarls of Derby and theBarons Audley, who descend from early holders of estates inAudley andStanley, Staffordshire.[1][2]
Two branches of theAudley family were created Barons Audley, but both male lines became extinct by the 14th century.[3][4] Their estates passed through female heiresses, while the Stanleys rose in prominence during the 15th century, first asBarons Stanley and later as Earls of Derby, a title still held by the family.[5][6]
The use of "Stanley" as a given name became common among political supporters of the family, reflecting their significant influence in English politics and society.[7][8]
The earliest documented members of the related Audley and Stanley families are two apparent brothers, Ligulf de Aldelegha and Adam de Standlega, who during the reigns of kings Stephen and Henry II appear to have divided the Audley, Staffordshire, lands that at the time of the 1086Domesday survey had been the holdings of a man named Gamel, though no familial relationship with their predecessor is known.
The parentage of Ligulf and Adam is unknown, though the English name of the former suggests they had Anglo-Saxon roots. Later descendants, during a period when it became socially prestigious, fabricated a Norman origin for their family, pushing Ligulf and Adam back in time and presenting them as sons of a fictitious Adam, follower ofWilliam the Conqueror and lord of an equally fictitious 'Aldithley in Normandy', despite Ligulf's non-Norman name and the English etymology of 'Aldithley'.[9]
Later, as pre-Norman ancestry came into vogue, the Stanleys invented a maternal descent from a fantastical Anglo-Saxon living a half-century before the conquest, yet improbably bearing the Norman name of 'William' de Stanley. It is uncertain how Stanley, Staffordshire, about 9 miles from Audley and not part of Gamel's Domesday holdings, came to be in the possession of Ligulf's son Adam de Aldelegha, ancestor of the Audleys, before he granted it to his cousin William, son of Adam's uncle Adam de Standlegha, the Stanley ancestor.[10]
The extended Audley family, originally of Audley Castle but who later built (or re-built)Heighley Castle,Madeley, Staffordshire in 1226, had several additional households including Red Castle atHawkstone inShropshire, Buglawton Manor inCongleton, Newhall Tower atNewhall, Cheshire[11] and a home inNantwich.[12] In the early 12th century Adam's grandson William married Joan de Stanley heiress of Stoneleigh,Staffordshire thereby becoming William de Stanley of Stoneleigh. This branch of the Audley thus took the name Stanley andThomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby was a direct descendant.
The main line of the Audley family, who had becomeBaron Audley in 1313, failed in 1391 whenNicholas Audley, 3rd Baron Audley died without a male heir. His sister Joanne married Sir John Tuchet (b 1327) for whose descendantJohn Tuchet (b 1371) the title of 4thBaron Audley was granted in 1408. He was succeeded by his sonJames Touchet, 5th Baron Audley. Later generations of the Tuchets becameEarl of Castlehaven.
Another branch of the Audley family was created byHugh Audley ofStratton Audley, Baron Audley from 1317, whose son became 1stEarl of Gloucester. His daughter and heirMargaret de Audley, 2nd Baroness Audley, was abducted byRalph de Stafford, 1st Earl of Stafford, to become his second wife, which despite some scandal, the king allowed.
Thomas Audley, 1st Baron Audley of Walden KG, PC, KS (c. 1488 – 30 April 1544), son of Geoffrey Audley of Earl's Colne Essex, and presumed to have been a scion of this family, an English barrister and judge who served asLord Chancellor of England from 1533 to 1544, and earlierSpeaker of the House of Commons. He left no sons and his estates passed via his daughterMargaret Audley, Duchess of Norfolk to theHoward family.
The younger branch of the family elevated their status through several beneficial marriages. In the late 13th century, William de Stanleye married one of the coheiresses of Philip de Baumvill.[13] A century later, the family split into two branches, with the elder son William inheriting the Baumvill-derived family seat atStourton, Cheshire and by marriage acquiring near-byHooton, from whom derived the senior branch of the family that came to be referred to as the Stanelys of Hooton.
The younger son,Sir John Stanley, married rich heiress Isabella de Lathom, daughter of Thomas Lathom ofLathom,Lancashire.[14] He subsequently became Lord Lieutenant of Ireland andKing of Mann, a title reflecting the special status of theIsle of Man, which with its successor titleLord of Mann the family would hold with some gaps from 1405 to 1736, when it was sold back to the Crown.
Sir John's grandson,Thomas Stanley, would becomeBaron Stanley in 1456, while John's son becameThomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby in 1485. The senior branch of the Stanley Earls failed with the death ofJames Stanley, 10th Earl of Derby in 1735, having been predeceased by his only son, and the earldom was inherited by a remote kinsman, his patrilineal sixth-cousinEdward Stanley, 5th Baronet Stanley, whose line, descended from a younger brother of the2nd Earl of Derby, had been madeBaronets Stanley of Bickerstaffe in 1623. This line still holds the Derby earldom, with the incumbent,Edward Stanley, being the 19th Earl. The branch of the Stanleys leading to the peers would also spawn numerous junior branches.
The Stanley family, notably theEarls of Derby, have maintained a continuous and influential presence in theConservative Party across several generations. From the 19th century onwards, members of the family have frequently held key political positions, including parliamentary seats and governmental offices, contributing significantly to the party's direction and policies. Their influence within the party has been compared to that of the Cecils, theMarquesses of Salisbury, who have long been regarded as one of the most powerful aristocratic dynasties in British Conservative politics.[15]
Historians have noted that the Stanley family's political legacy is marked not only by their parliamentary service but also by their role as power brokers and patrons within the party, helping to shape Conservative ideology and electoral strategy. Their sustained involvement over multiple generations underscores the family’s enduring status as a cornerstone of Conservative aristocratic influence.[16]
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Audley Family Arms:
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Arms of the Stanley Family descended from the Audley Family:
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