Simon Abney-Hastings, 15th Earl of Loudoun

The Right Honourable The Earl of Loudoun
Coat of arms of the Earl of Loudoun
Born	Simon Michael Abney-Hastings (1974-10-29) 29 October 1974
Title	Earl of Loudoun
Tenure	2012 - Present
Nationality	Australian
Locality	Wangaratta, Victoria
Predecessor	Michael Abney-Hastings, 14th Earl of Loudoun
Heir	The Hon. Marcus Abney-Hastings
Parents	Michael Abney-Hastings, 14th Earl of Loudoun

Simon Michael Abney-Hastings, 15th Earl of Loudoun (born in 1974), is an Australian who is the current holder of the ancient Scottish noble title of Earl of Loudoun.

Biography

The Earl of Loudoun is the son of Michael Abney-Hastings, 14th Earl of Loudoun, whom he succeeded in 2012. Resides in Wangaratta, Victoria.^[1]

The heir presumptive to the title is the present holder's brother, the Hon. Marcus William Abney-Hastings (b. 1981).

Ancestry

Grandson of Barbara Huddleston Abney-Hastings, 13th Countess of Loudoun. On his Grandmother's side, he is directly descended from, and heir-general of George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence( Brother of Richard III ). His other notable ancestors include Mary Tudor, Queen of France, Catherine Pole, Lady Mary Boleyn, King James IV of Scotland, William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley and Alice Spencer, Countess of Derby.[citation needed]

Claim to the Throne of England

In 2004, Britain's Real Monarch—a documentary broadcast on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom—repeated the claim that the Earl's father, as the senior descendant of George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence, was the rightful King of England. This argument involves the disputed claim that Edward IV of England was illegitimate.^[2] The Earl, following his father's death, would have become the rightful monarch of England under this alternative path of succession, rather than Elizabeth II.

Titles and styles

• 1974 – 2002: The Honourable Simon Abney-Hastings
• 2002 – 2012: Lord Mauchline
• Since 2012: The Right Honourable The Earl of Loudoun

References