Marquess of Willingdon was a title in the
Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1936 for the
Liberal politician and colonial governor
Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Earl of Willingdon. He was
Governor-General of Canada from 1926 to 1931 and
Viceroy of India from 1931 to 1936. Freeman-Thomas had already been created
Baron Willingdon, of Ratton in the County of Sussex, in 1910,
Viscount Willingdon, of Ratton in the County of Sussex, in 1924, and on his retirement as Governor General of Canada in 1931 he was made
Viscount Ratendone, of Willingdon in the County of Sussex, and
Earl of Willingdon. These titles were also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. He was succeeded by his only surviving son, the second Marquess. He was a soldier and also served as
Liberal Chief Whip in the
House of Lords from 1948 to 1949. Lord Willingdon was childless and on his death in 1979 the titles became extinct.
Marquesses of Willingdon (1936)
References