Viscount Dillon facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Viscountcy Dillon |
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Blazon
Arms: Quarterly: 1st and 4th, Argent a Lion passant between three Crescents Gules (Dillon); 2nd and 3rd, Argent a Fess between three Crescents Sable (Lee).
Crests: A Demi Lion Gules holding in its paws an Estoile Argent. Supporters: On either side an Angel proper vested Argent winged and crined Or each holding in the exterior hand a Branch of Palm also proper and having a Riband over the shoulder of the second. |
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| Creation date | 16 March 1622 |
| Monarch | King James VI and I |
| Peerage | Peerage of Ireland |
| First holder | Theobald Dillon, 1st Viscount Dillon |
| Present holder | Henry Benedict Charles Dillon, 22nd Viscount Dillon |
| Heir apparent | the Hon. Francis Charles Robert Dillon |
| Status | Extant |
| Motto | DUM SPIRO SPERO (While I breathe I hope) |
The title of Viscount Dillon is a special noble rank in Ireland. It's named after areas called Costello-Gallen in County Mayo. This title is part of the Peerage of Ireland, which is a system of noble ranks in Ireland.
The Viscountcy was first created in 1622 for Theobald Dillon. He was an important leader in a part of Ireland called Connaught. The Dillon family were powerful landowners in Ireland since the 1200s. They were originally from Normandy, France, but settled in Ireland.
Contents
A Family's History and Loyalty
The Dillons played a big part in Irish and European history.
Supporting King James II
The seventh Viscount Dillon, a great-grandson of the first Viscount, supported the Catholic King James II of England. After the Glorious Revolution in 1688, King James II lost his throne. Because of this, the seventh Viscount was declared an outlaw.
He then started 'Dillon's Regiment' in the French Army. This regiment was part of the Irish Brigade, made up of Irish soldiers who left Ireland. They were known as the "Wild Geese". Dillon's Regiment became famous for its bravery, especially at the Battle of Fontenoy in 1745.
Reversing the Outlawry
However, the seventh Viscount's son, Henry, who became the eighth Viscount, managed to get the outlawry reversed in 1694. This meant the family's rights and titles were restored. Henry later served as Lord Lieutenant of County Roscommon, an important government role.
His younger brother, Lieutenant-General Arthur Dillon, was given a French noble title, Count Dillon, in 1711. He was also given the titles "Viscount Dillon" and "Earl of Dillon" by James Francis Edward Stuart, who claimed to be the rightful King of England.
Changes and New Paths
The eleventh Viscount, Henry, was a Colonel in the French Army. But Dillon's Regiment was disbanded in 1793 because of the chaos of the French Revolution.
His son, Charles, the twelfth Viscount, became a Member of Parliament for Westbury in England. He also changed his religion to Anglicanism in 1767. His son, Henry Augustus, the thirteenth Viscount, also served as a Member of Parliament for Harwich and County Mayo.
Later, the nineteenth Viscount was a Brigadier in the Army, a high military rank. As of 2014, the current holder of the title is the twenty-second Viscount, Henry Benedict Charles Dillon. He inherited the title from his father in 1982.
Viscounts Dillon (1622)
Here is a list of the people who have held the title of Viscount Dillon since it was created:
- Theobald Dillon, 1st Viscount Dillon (died 1624)
- Lucas Dillon, 2nd Viscount Dillon (1610–1629)
- Theobald Dillon, 3rd Viscount Dillon (1629–1630)
- Thomas Dillon, 4th Viscount Dillon (1615–1672)
- Thomas Dillon, 5th Viscount Dillon (died 1674)
- Lucas Dillon, 6th Viscount Dillon (died 1682)
- Theobald Dillon, 7th Viscount Dillon (died 1691)
- Henry Dillon, 8th Viscount Dillon (died 1713)
- Richard Dillon, 9th Viscount Dillon (1688–1737)
- Charles Dillon, 10th Viscount Dillon (1701–1741)
- Henry Dillon, 11th Viscount Dillon (1705–1787)
- Charles Dillon, 12th Viscount Dillon (1745–1813)
- Henry Augustus Dillon, 13th Viscount Dillon (1777–1832)
- Charles Henry Dillon, 14th Viscount Dillon (1810–1865)
- Theobald Dominick Geoffrey Dillon, 15th Viscount Dillon (1811–1879)
- Arthur Edmund Denis Dillon, 16th Viscount Dillon (1812–1892)
- Harold Arthur Dillon, 17th Viscount Dillon (1844–1932)
- Arthur Henry Dillon, 18th Viscount Dillon (1875–1934)
- Eric FitzGerald Dillon, 19th Viscount Dillon (1881–1946)
- Michael Eric Dillon, 20th Viscount Dillon (1911–1979)
- Charles Henry Robert Dillon, 21st Viscount Dillon (1945–1982)
- Henry Benedict Charles Dillon, 22nd Viscount Dillon (b. 1973)
The heir apparent (the person next in line to inherit the title) is the current Viscount’s son, Hon. Francis Charles Robert Dillon (b. 2013).
See also
- Earl of Roscommon
- Baron Clonbrock
- Peerage of France
- Jacobite Peerage
