LONSDALE, EARLS OF. This English earldom is held by the ancient family of Lowther, which traces its descent to Sir Hugh Lowther, who flourished in the reign of Edward I. Sir Hugh's descendant Sir Richard Lowther (1529-1607) received Mary queen of Scots on her flight into England in 1568, and in the two following years was concerned with his brother Gerard in attempts to release her from captivity. He was sheriff of Cumberland and lord warden of the west marches. Sir Richard's eldest son, Sir Christopher Lowther (d. 1617), was the ancestor of the later Lowthers, and another son, Sir Gerard Lowther (d. 1624), was judge of the common pleas in Ireland.
One of Sir Christopher's descendants was Sir John Lowther, Bart. (d. 1706), the founder of the trade of Whitehaven, and another was John Lowther (1655-170o), who was created Vis count Lonsdale in 1696. Before this creation John had succeeded his grandfather, another Sir John Lowther (d. 1675), as a baronet, and had been member of parliament for Westmorland from 1675 to 1696. In 1690 he was first lord of the treasury, and he was lord privy seal from March 1699 until his death in July 1700.
James Lowther, 1st earl of Lonsdale (1736-1802), was de scended from Sir Christopher Lowther; through his mother Catherine Pennington, James was a great-grandson of the 1st Vis count Lonsdale. From 1757 to 1784 he was a member of parlia ment, exercising enormous influence on elections in the north of England on account of his great wealth, and usually controlling nine seats in the House of Commons, where his nominees were known as "Sir James's ninepins." In 1784 Lowther was created earl of Lonsdale and in 1797 Viscount Lowther with an extended remainder. The earldom became extinct in 1802. It was revived in 1807 in a collateral branch of the family.
Other prominent members of the Lowther family are James William Lowther, Viscount Ullswater (q.v.), and the Right Hon. James Lowther (1840-1904), who was a well-known Conservative member of parliament from 1865 onwards, and chief secretary for Ireland from 1878 to 1880.