Who was Viscount Melbourne and what peerage did the title belong to?
Viscount Melbourne was a title in the Peerage of Ireland, held by the Lamb family. It was created in 1781 for Peniston Lamb, the second Baronet, of Kilmore in the County of Cavan.
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Viscount Melbourne was a title in the Peerage of Ireland, held by the Lamb family. It was created in 1781 for Peniston Lamb, the second Baronet, of Kilmore in the County of Cavan.
Yes. William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, served as Prime Minister in 1834 and again from 1835 to 1841, and was Queen Victoria's first Prime Minister. Victoria relied heavily on his wisdom and experience in her early years on the throne.
All five Lamb family titles became extinct in 1853 upon the death of Frederick James Lamb, the 3rd Viscount Melbourne, who died without an heir.
Melbourne Hall in Derbyshire came into the Lamb family through the marriage of Matthew Lamb to Charlotte, daughter of Thomas Coke. The hall passed to the Lambs as part of that marriage.
Frederick James Lamb, the 3rd Viscount Melbourne, was a prominent diplomat. In 1839, nine years before he inherited the viscountcy, he was raised to the Peerage of the United Kingdom as Baron Beauvale of Beauvale in the County of Nottingham.
His paternity was genuinely in doubt. Because his mother had numerous lovers, contemporaries considered it very doubtful that William Lamb was in fact the son of Peniston Lamb, 1st Viscount Melbourne.