| Dukedom of Bedford | |
|---|---|
 .svg) Argent, a lion rampant gules on a chief sable three escallops of the first (Russell).[1] | |
| Creation date | 11 May 1694 |
| Creation | Sixth |
| Created by | William III and Mary II |
| Peerage | Peerage of England |
| First holder | William Russell, 5th Earl of Bedford |
| Present holder | Andrew Russell, 15th Duke |
| Heir apparent | Henry Russell, Marquess of Tavistock |
| Remainder to | 1st Duke's heirs male of the body lawfully begotten |
| Subsidiary titles | Marquess of Tavistock Earl of Bedford Baron Russell Baron Russell of Thornhaugh Baron Howland |
| Seat(s) | Woburn Abbey |
Duke of Bedford (named after Bedford, England) is a title that has been created six times (for five distinct people) in the Peerage of England. The first creation came in 1414 for Henry IV's third son, John, who later served as regent of France. In 1433 he surrendered the title and it was re-granted to him. The title became extinct on his death in 1435. The third creation came in 1470 in favour of George Neville, nephew of Warwick the Kingmaker. He was deprived of the title by Act of Parliament in 1478. The fourth creation came in 1478 in favour of George, the third son of Edward IV. He died the following year at the age of two. The fifth creation came in 1485 in favour of Jasper Tudor, half-brother of Henry VI and uncle of Henry VII. He had already been created Earl of Pembroke in 1452. However, as he was a Lancastrian, his title was forfeited between 1461 and 1485 during the predominance of the House of York. He regained the earldom in 1485 when his nephew Henry VII came to the throne and was elevated to the dukedom the same year. He had no legitimate children and the titles became extinct on his death in 1495.
John Russell, a close adviser of Henry VIII and Edward VI, was granted the title of Earl of Bedford in 1551, and his descendant William, 5th Earl, was created Duke in 1694, following the Glorious Revolution. The Russell family currently holds the titles of Earl and Duke of Bedford.
The subsidiary titles of the Duke of Bedford, all in the Peerage of England, are Marquess of Tavistock (created 1694), Earl of Bedford (1550), Baron Russell, of Cheneys (1539), Baron Russell of Thornhaugh in the County of Northampton (1603), and Baron Howland, of Streatham in the County of Surrey (1695). The courtesy title of the Duke of Bedford's eldest son and heir is Marquess of Tavistock.
Every Duke from the 5th Duke onwards is descended from Charles II of England. The family seat is Woburn Abbey, Bedfordshire. The private mausoleum and chapel of the Russell Family and the Dukes of Bedford is at St. Michael's Church in Chenies, Buckinghamshire (photo).[2] The family owns The Bedford Estate in central London.
- ^ Debrett's Peerage, 1968, p.131; The chief is present in the arms of the modern coat of arms of the London Borough of Camden, because the dukes of Bedford used to own land in the borough (see Bedford Estate)
- ^ "HERALDRY of the BEDFORD CHAPEL CHENIES". www.middlesex-heraldry.org.uk. Retrieved 10 April 2018.