The Aga Khan has been given the title 'His Highness' by King Charles III

 Prince Rahim Aga Khan, the Aga Khan V, has dined with the King at Windsor Castle and has been awarded the title 'His Highness', a honour traditionally given by the British monarch to the hereditary Iman of the Shia Ismaili Muslims.

The Aga Khan is the fiftieth hereditary Iman of the Shia Ismaili Muslims. He succeeded his father, Prince Karim, in February, 2025.

In 1957 when his father succeeded as the 49th Iman, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II bestowed upon him the title of His Highness. 

The Aga Khan married in 2013 (div) Kendra Spears, who was thereafter styled Princess Salwa Aga Khan, and they have two sons, Irfan and Sinan.

The Aga Khan, has numerous descents and connections to the British peerage and landed gentry. 

He was born 12 October, 1971, the first son of the late Aga Khan IV (1936-2025), and his first wife the former Sarah Frances Croker-Poole (born 28 January, 1940), whose first husband, Lord James Crichton-Stuart (1935-82), was a younger son of the 5th Marquess of Bute (1907-56). 

The late Aga Khan's mother was the former Hon Joan Barbara Yarde-Buller (1908-1997), eldest daughter of the 3rd Baron Churston, OBE, MVO (1873-1930), of Laleham House, Middlesex, by his wife the actress Jessie Smither (who took to the stage as Denise Orme) (1884-1960).

The Aga Khan V is a great-nephew of Denise Yarde-Buller (1916-2005), Baroness Ebury, wife of the 5th Baron, and of Lydia Yarde-Buller (1917-2006), Duchess of Bedford, wife of the late 13th Duke of Bedford (1917-2002). Another great-aunt was Primrose Yarde-Buller (1918-1970), Countess Cadogan, wife of the 7th Earl Cadogan (1914-1997), owner of the vast Cadogan estates in Central London. 

The Aga Khan is also a descendant of King Edward III.

Edward III > John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster > Joan Beaufort, Countess of Westmorland > Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury > Katherine Neville > Cecily Bonville > Elizabeth Fitzgerald > Elizabeth Grey > Edward Fitzgerald > Thomas Fitzgerald > George, 16th Earl of Kildare > Robert Fitzgerald > Robert, 19th Earl of Kildare > James, 1st Duke of Leinster > William, 2nd Duke of Leinster > Lady Emily Fitzgerald > Admiral Sir Hastings Yelverton > Barbara Yelverton > John, 3rd Baron Churston > Joan Yarde-Buller > HH The Aga Khan IV > The Aga Khan V

The Aga Khan is a ninth cousin of King Charles III. Both descend from Henry Bentinck, 1st Duke of Portland.

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Earl and Countess Spencer divorced

The 14 year marriage of the Earl and Countess Spencer has been dissolved after lengthy court proceedings.

Lord Spencer, the brother of Diana, Princess of Wales, married at Althorp, Northamptonshire, 18 June, 2011, as his third wife, Mrs Karen Anne Gordon (born 30 November, 1972), former wife of film producer Mark Richard Gordon (born 10 Oct, 1956), and daughter of __________Villeneuve.

Earl Spencer,  is Charles Edward Maurice [Spencer], 9th Earl Spencer (b 20 May 1964), only surviving son of the late 8th Earl Spencer, MVO (1924-92), by his 1st wife, the Hon Frances Ruth Burke Roche (1936-2004), scion of the Barons Fermoy.

The Spencers have one daughter, Lady Charlotte Diana Spencer (born 30 July, 2012).

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Lord Mandelson's peerage to be removed by Act of Parliament

We are told that the prime minister is desirous to divest the Lord Mandelson of his life peerage.

The disgraced peer has now left the Labour Party after the latest Epstein Files showed that he used his position in the Cabinet to share insight with the sex offender financier, who died by suicide in 2019.

On 13 October 2008 Mandelson was created Baron Mandelson, of Foy in the County of Herefordshire and of Hartlepool in the County of Durham.

Having already removed him from his role as ambassador to the US after previous links to Epstein emerged, Starmer is now being called on to remove Mandelson's life peerage.

It is over 100 years since a Bill of such a nature has been introduced. The Titles Deprivations Act of 1917 named specific peers who had sided with the enemy in World War 1. A Bill now naming only Mandelson would be an error, in my view.

A more sensible move would be to give His Majesty the right to remove ANY peerage from any disgraced peer, including Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's hereditary dukedom, earldom and barony.

The King, 'fount of all honour' -  is empowered to elevate any of his subjects to the peerage but cannot thereafter take such peerages away. He can strip knighthoods, and orders of chivalry, and so surely the removal of peerages should be added to that list?

Such an act would enable the monarch to strip titles from peers found guilty of serious crimes as in the case of Lord Ahmed, a life peer, jailed for serious sex offences. 

Some organs of the Press are under the false impression that all of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s peerages were removed by the King in October last year. Not so. Andrew was dropped from the Roll of Peers in the House of Lords, but his peerages remain extant. 

In my opinion, the instances where a hereditary peer is stripped of his title - the succession those titles should not be affected, and on the death of the erring peer his successor would inherit, as in the cases where the heir to disclaimed peerage succeed.

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Anne, Baroness Monteagle of Brandon (née Brownlow) 1928-2026

 Anne, Baroness Monteagle of Brandon (née Brownlow), who died 30 January, 2026, aged 97, was the widow of the 6th Baron Monteagle of Brandon.

She was born 21 December, 1928, scion of an Irish landed gentry family, daughter of Colonel Guy James Brownlow (1883-1960), and his wife the former Elinor Hope Georgina Scott, and was descended from the Earls of Meath and the Earls (later Dukes) of Abercorn.

She married 28 May, 1949, Capt Gerald Spring Rice, the 6th Baron Monteagle of Brandon (born 5 July, 1926), of the Irish Guards, son of the 5th Baron Monteagle of Brandon (1887-1946), and his wife the former Emilie Frances de Kosenko (who died in 1981); by whom she had issue, a son, Charles (born 24 Feb, 1953), and three daughters, Elinor (born 23 Apr, 1950), Angela (twin with Angela, who died 11 Dec, 2015), and Fiona (born 10 Apr, 1957).

Her husband, who was part of the guard of honour at the Coronation, 1953, and who took 45 years to make is maiden speech in the House of Lords, died 17 November, 2013, aged 87, and was succeeded by his son in the peerage (cr UK, 1839).

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Robert Vere Spencer Bernard 1944-2026

 Robert Vere Spencer Bernard, who died 6 January, 2026, aged 81, was a scion of the Dukes of Marlborough.

He was born 1 December, 1944, the second son of Dr John Gray Churchill Spencer (1907-1977), and his wife the former Elsie Phyllis Corley (1911-2001). He married 1stly, 1975 (div. 2003), Katherine Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott (1946-2008), daughter of Lieutenant-Colonel Claud Everard Walter Montagu Douglas Scott (1915-1994), and his wife the former Margaret Frances Phillips (1917-2000); and married 2ndly, 1 May, 2003, as her second husband, Mrs Georgianna Sarah Preston (nee Tomkins, born 1955), by whom he had a son, Edmund Robert Spencer Bernard (born 25 Sept, 2001). 

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Erica Mackay Fielding (née Geddes) 1947-2026

 Erica Mackay Fielding (née Geddes), who died 23 January, 2026, aged 78, was descended from the father of the 1st Baron Geddes, and was a kinswoman of Margaret Campbell Geddes, who married Prince Ludwig of Hesse & the Rhine.

She was born 2 May, 1947, daughter of Acland Mackay Geddes (1907-1974), and his wife the former Barbara Sanford, and was a granddaughter of Sir Eric Campbell Geddes, GCB, GBE, MP, PC (1875-1937). She was a cousin (once removed) of Margaret Geddes (1913-97), known as "Peg" Hesse, who was a success in the difficult role of a non- royal foreign bride in an ancient German dynasty, despite her lack of children and the outbreak of the Second World War. Her cheerfulness, efficiency and sense of fun helped. Her house at Wolfsgarten, a Hesse "hunting lodge" the size of a small Oxford college, became an oasis of calm in the turmoil of the war and the Allied occupation.

Erica Geddes married firstly in 1972, Simon Peter Agace (born 1942); and married 2ndly, in 1992 (div 2007), Capt Martin George Rudolf Fielding (born 2 May, 1945), of Middleton Tyas, North Yorkshire, son of Maj George Rudolf Hanbury Fielding, DSO (1915-2005), and his wife the former Beatrice Georgina Pope (who died 15 March, 1995). Her husband was a direct descendent of the great writer Henry Fielding, and a scion of the Earls of Denbigh & Desmond.

She leaves issue from her first marriage, Caroline Mackay Agace (born 1973), Piers Edward M Agace (born  1975), and Dominic Charles M Agace (born 1979).

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The Baron Triesman 1943-2026

 Lord Triesman, a former Labour minister and ex-chairman of the Football Association, died 30 January, 2026, at the age of 82. 

Labour’s leader in the House of Lords, Baroness Smith, led tributes to her former colleague, whom she described as “respected and loved by his colleagues for his courtesy, kindness, wisdom, loyalty and generosity of spirit”. The former prime minister Sir Tony Blair meanwhile said the peer was a “vital part of the New Labour movement”.

David Maxim Triesman, Baron Triesman (born 30 October 1943) was a politician, merchant banker and trade union leader. Triesman was a Labour member of the House of Lords. He previously sat as a Labour peer until resigning the whip in July 2019, then having previously been a minister in the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills and Foreign and Commonwealth Office. He sat non-affiliated in the House of Lords until 2020 when he rejoined Labour. Triesman was chairman of the Football Association from 2008 to 2010.

He was raised to the peerage for life on 9 January 2004, and his title was gazetted in the name, style and title of Baron Triesman, of Tottenham in the London Borough of Haringey.

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Jonathan Geoffrey William Agnew 1941-2026

 Jonathan Geoffrey William Agnew, who died 24 January, 2026, aged 84, was a scion of the Agnew baronets (cr 1895), and a grandson of the 1st Baron Jessel.

He was born 30 July, 1941, the elder son of Sir Geoffrey William Gerald Agnew (1908-1986), the art dealer and chairman of Thomas Agnew & Sons, by his wife the former Hon Doreen Maud Jessel (1909-1990), third daughter of the 1st Baron Jessel (1866-1950), and his wife the former Maud Goldsmid (1874-1965).

He married firstly, 21 Oct, 1966 (div 1985), the Hon Agneta Joanna Middleton Campbell (1944-2002), daughter of the life peer the Baron Campbell of Eskan (1912-1994), by his wife Barbara Noel Roffey; and married secondly, 1990, Marie-Claire Dreesmann, daughter of Bernard Dreesmann. He leaves a son, Caspar, and two daughters, Lara and Katherine, from his first union, and a son, George, and a daughter Clarissa, from his second marriage.

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James Harrison Holt 1936-2026

 James Harrison Holt died 20 January, 2026, aged 89.

He was born in 1936, son of Lieutenant-Colonel Vernon Harrison Holt, MC, DL, JP (1888-1966), by his wife the former Elizabeth Kathleen Reckitt (1904-1991), daughter of Sir Philip Bealby Reckitt, 3rd and last Baronet, OBE (1873-1944); and married 1stly,     25 July, 1964 (div. 1984), Dinah Annabel Legard (born 25 June, 1941), scion of the Legard baronets, daughter of Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Percy Digby Legard (1906-1980), and his wife the former Gertrude Kate Thomson (1907-1969); and married 2ndly, Mary Thomas. He leaves issue from both marriages.

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Wilfred Winston Richard Wynn-Williams (born 2026)

Letitia Mary Wynn-Williams (née Keys, born 1990), wife of  Henry George [Harry] Wynn-Williams [born 1984], gave birth to a son, Wilfred Winston Richard, 12 January, 2026.

Harry Wynn-Williams is a son of Hugo Wynn-Williams born 1955], of Dogmersfield, Hampshire, by his wife the former Mary Vaughan [born 1955], and is a grandson of the late George Wynn-Williams, who married in 1943, Lady Penelope Jowitt [1923-2007], daughter of the 1st [and last] Earl Jowitt, PC [1885-1957], Lord Chancellor in the administration of Clement Attlee, 1945-51.

Letitia is the younger daughter of Mr Richard Keys, of Streat, East Sussex, by his wife the former Helen K. Jackson.

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Mary Vanessa Hoare (died 2026)

 Mary Vanessa Hoare, who died 16 January, 2026, aged 86, was the first and former wife of Sir David Hoare, 9th Baronet.

The former (Mary) Vanessa Cardew, daughter of Peter Gordon Cardew, she married 20 April, 1965 (div 1978), David John Hoare (born 8 Oct, 1935), the second son of Sir Peter William Hoare, 7th Baronet (1898-1973), and his wife the former Laura Ray Esplen (1905-1992), daughter of Sir John Esplen, 1st Baronet (1863-1930). 

Her former husband succeeded his elder brother, Sir Peter Hoare, 8th Bt, in the baronetcy, 26 June, 2004.

Vanessa Hoare leaves a son, Simon Merrick Hoare (born 9 Oct, 1967).

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de la Poer Beresford/Gilday engagement

 The engagement was announced 31 January, 2026,  between Ludovic William de la Poer Beresford (born 4 November, 1998), scion of the Marquesses of Waterford, second son of Valentine Tristram de la Poer Beresford (born 10 October, 1965), of Dorset, and his wife the former Evelyn Hoskin, & Emily Cordelia C. Gilday (born 1999), elder daughter of Ian Robert Joseph Gilday, of London, and his wife the former Siobhan Kristina Clare Simpson-Nairn (born 1964).

Ludovic is a grandson of Lord Patrick de la Poer Beresford (1934-2020), and a great-grandson of the 7th Marquess of Waterford (1901-1934).

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Buxton/Edgedale engagement

 The engagement was announced 31 January, 2026, between Edward Arthur Fowell Buxton (born 25 January, 1996), scion of the Buxton Baronets, eldest son of Nicholas Fowell Buxton (born 17 March, 1966), of Easneye, Hertfordshire, and his wife the former Henrietta Louise Jewson (born 1966), & Alice Lucy R. Edgedale (born 1995), daughter of the late James William Edgedale (born 14 January, 1963), and his wife the former Sarah Louise Jenkinson, of Fernham, Oxfordshire.

Alice Edgedale is a descendant of the 5th Marquess of Northampton:-

the 5th Marquess of Northampton (1851-1913) > Lady Margaret Compton (1886-1970) > Hon Jean Loch (1908-1994) > Mary Ella Newman (b1931) > James Edgedale (1963- ) > Alice Edgedale

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Adrian Reginald Longley, OBE 1925-2025

 Adrian Reginald Longley, OBE, died 16 November, 2025, aged 100.

He was born in 1925, son of Evelyn Longley, of Reigate, co Surrey, by his wife the former Mary Anastasia Thompson; and married 14 December, 1957, Sylvia Margaret Hayter (1926-2011),  second daughter of George Keith Homfray Hayter (1888-1968), and his wife the former Dora Caroline Hanmer (1894-1972), scion of the Hanmer baronets.

He leaves issue, three daughters, Anne, Joanna and Melissa.

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The Baron Wallace of Tankerness (1954-2026)

The Baron Wallace of Tankerness, PC, KC, FRSE, died 29 January, 2026. He was 71.

 James Robert Wallace, Baron Wallace of Tankerness ( born 25 August 1954) was a Scottish politician who served as a Liberal Democrat life peer in the House of Lords from 2007 until his death in 2026. He had previously served as the Deputy First Minister of Scotland from 1999 to 2005, and during that time was twice acting First Minister, in 2000, in the aftermath of Donald Dewar's death and in 2001, following Henry McLeish's resignation. Wallace was Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats from 1992 to 2005 and Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords from 2013 to 2016. He served as a Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament (MP) for Orkney and Shetland from 1983 to 2001 and a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Orkney from 1999 to 2007. Wallace was also Advocate General for Scotland from 2010 to 2015. He was the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland from 1 May 2021 to 23 May 2022.

On 13 September 2007, it was announced that he was to be appointed to the House of Lords. He was subsequently created a life peer on 17 October 2007 taking the title Baron Wallace of Tankerness, of Tankerness in Orkney.

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Jean Constance Toynbee 1920-2026

 Jean Constance Toynbee (nee Asquith), who died 14 January, 2026, aged 105, was a GP in Oxford and rural North Yorkshire, the wife of the artist Lawrence Toynbee, a granddaughter of the prime minister HH Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford & Asquith – and a last exemplar of upper-class upbringing in the interwar era...

She was born 6 November, 1920, second of the four daughters of Brigadier General the Hon Arthur Melland Asquith (1883-1939), and his wife the former Hon Betty Constance Manners (1889-1962), daughter of the 3rd Baron Manners (1852-1927).

She married 20 April, 1945, Lawrence Toynbee (1922-2002), the artist, son of Prof Arnold Joseph Toynbee, CH, FBA (1889-1975), the historian, and his wife the former Rosalind Murray (1890-1967), a granddaughter of the 9th Earl of Carlisle (1843-1911), by whom she had issue, six daughters, Rosalind, Celia, Clare, Rachel, Sarah and Frances.

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Anthony George Leschallas 1933-2026

Anthony George Leschallas, who died 20 January, 2026, aged 92, was a descendant of the Earls of Romney.

He was born in 1933, the elder son of George Ronald Pigé Leschallas (1909-1991), and his wife the former Vere Frances Bulock-Marsham (1913-2006); and married in 1954, Marie-Louise Yvonne Renner (who died 5 March, 2018), daughter of Martin Julia Renner and his wife Sophie Charlotte Kleinwort (1888-1974), scion of the eponymous merchant banking dynasty, and had issue, two sons, Anthony (1955-2019),  and William (born 1963), and two daughters, Marie-Louise (born 1957), and Joanna (born 1960).

Anthony's younger brother, James (born 1943), married Rosemary Elizabeth Elphinstone (b 1947), a cousin of King via their Strathmore descent.

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