Barony of Ampthill | |
Creation Date: | 11 Mar 1881 |
Heir Presumptive: | Anthony John Mark Russell |
Remainder To: | the 1st Baron's heirs male of the body lawfully begotten. |
Baron Ampthill, of Ampthill in the County of Bedfordshire, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 11 March 1881 for the diplomat Lord Odo Russell. He was the third son of Major-General Lord George Russell, second son of John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford.
His son, the second Baron, served as Governor of Madras from 1899 to 1906 and was interim Viceroy of India in 1904. His grandson, the fourth Baron, was one of the ninety elected hereditary peers that remained in the House of Lords after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999, and sat as a cross-bencher. the title is held by the latter's son, the fifth Baron, who succeeded his father in 2011.
The heraldic blazon for the coat of arms of the barony is: Argent, a lion rampant gules, on a chief sable three escallops argent, a mullet or for difference.
The heir presumptive is the present holder's brother, Anthony John Mark Russell (b. 1952).
The 5th Baron is 4th cousin once removed of the 15th Duke of Bedford and is currently 16th in the line of succession to the dukedom.