Viscount Molesworth, of Swords in the County of Dublin, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland

Peerage of Ireland

The Peerage of Ireland is the term used for those titles of nobility created by the English and later British monarchs of Ireland in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland. The creation of such titles came to an end in the 19th century. The ranks of the Irish peerage are Duke, Marquess, Earl,...

. It was created in 1716 for Robert Molesworth

Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth

Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth PC came of an old Northamptonshire family. He married Letitia Coote, daughter of Richard Coote, 1st Lord Coote of Coloony and Mary St. George.His father Robert Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth PC (7 September 1656 – 22 May 1725) came of an old...

. He was made Baron Philipstown, of Swords in the County of Dublin, at the same time, also in the Peerage of Ireland. Molesworth had been invested as member of the Irish Privy Council

Privy Council of Ireland

The Privy Council of Ireland was an institution of the Kingdom of Ireland until 31 December 1800 and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1801-1922...

 in 1697, represented Camelford

Camelford (UK Parliament constituency)

Camelford was a rotten borough in Cornwall which returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons in the English and later British Parliament from 1552 to 1832, when it was abolished by the Great Reform Act.-History:...

, Lostwithiel

Lostwithiel (UK Parliament constituency)

Lostwithiel was a rotten borough in Cornwall which returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons in the English and later British Parliament from 1304 to 1832, when it was abolished by the Great Reform Act.-History:...

, East Retford

East Retford (UK Parliament constituency)

East Retford was a parliamentary constituency in Nottinghamshire, which elected two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons for the first time in 1316, and continuously from 1571 until 1885, when the constituency was abolished...

 and Mitchell

Mitchell (UK Parliament constituency)

Mitchell, or St Michael was a rotten borough consisting of the town of Mitchell, Cornwall. From the first Parliament of Edward VI, in 1547, it elected two members to the Unreformed House of Commons.-History:The borough encompassed parts of two parishes, Newlyn East and St Enoder...

 in the British House of Commons

British House of Commons

The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...

 and served as British Ambassador to Denmark. His elder son, the second Viscount, notably served as Ambassador to the Kingdom of Sardinia

Kingdom of Sardinia

The Kingdom of Sardinia consisted of the island of Sardinia first as a part of the Crown of Aragon and subsequently the Spanish Empire , and second as a part of the composite state of the House of Savoy . Its capital was originally Cagliari, in the south of the island, and later Turin, on the...

, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany

Grand Duchy of Tuscany

The Grand Duchy of Tuscany was a central Italian monarchy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1859, replacing the Duchy of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence...

 and the Republic of Venice

Republic of Venice

The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...

. He was succeeded by his younger brother, the third Viscount. He was a Field Marshal

Field Marshal

Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...

 in the Army. On the death of his son, the fourth Viscount, this line of the family failed, and the titles passed to the latter's first cousin, the fifth Viscount. He was the eldest son of the Hon. William Molesworth, third son of the first Viscount. His son, the sixth Viscount, was a Major-General in the Army, who was lost in the wreck of Arniston

Arniston (ship)

The Arniston was an East Indiaman ship that was wrecked on 30 May 1815 during a storm at Waenhuiskrans, near Cape Agulhas, South Africa with the loss of 372 lives and only 6 survivors...

. On his death this line of the family also failed and the titles were inherited by his second cousin, the seventh Viscount. He was the eldest son of Richard, third son of the Hon. William Molesworth, third son of the first Viscount. He was succeeded by his nephew, the eighth Viscount. , the titles are held by the latter's great-grandson, the twelfth Viscount, who succeeded his father in 1997.

Sophie, Countess of Wessex is a descendant of the 1st Viscount.
Actresses Olivia de Havilland and Joan Fontaine are also descendants of the 1st Viscount.

Viscounts Molesworth (1716)

• Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth
  Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth
  Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth PC came of an old Northamptonshire family. He married Letitia Coote, daughter of Richard Coote, 1st Lord Coote of Coloony and Mary St. George.His father Robert Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth PC (7 September 1656 – 22 May 1725) came of an old...
  
   (1656–1725)
• John Molesworth, 2nd Viscount Molesworth (1679–1726)
• Richard Molesworth, 3rd Viscount Molesworth
  Richard Molesworth, 3rd Viscount Molesworth
  Field Marshal Richard Molesworth, 3rd Viscount Molesworth, PC , styled The Honourable Richard Molesworth from 1716 to 1726, was an Anglo-Irish military officer, politician and nobleman.-Military career:...
  
   (1680–1758)
• Richard Nassau Molesworth, 4th Viscount Molesworth (1748–1793)
• Robert Molesworth, 5th Viscount Molesworth (1729–1813)
• William John Molesworth, 6th Viscount Molesworth (1763–1815)
• Richard Pigott Molesworth, 7th Viscount Molesworth (1786–1875)
• Samuel Molesworth, 8th Viscount Molesworth (1829–1906)
• George Bagot Molesworth, 9th Viscount Molesworth (1867–1947)
• Charles Richard Molesworth, 10th Viscount Molesworth (1869–1961)
• Richard Gosset Molesworth, 11th Viscount Molesworth (1907–1997)
• Robert Bysse Kelham Molesworth, 12th Viscount Molesworth (b. 1959)

The heir presumptive

Heir Presumptive

An heir presumptive or heiress presumptive is the person provisionally scheduled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir or heiress apparent or of a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question...

is the present holder's brother the Hon. William John Charles Molesworth (b. 1960)