Thomas FitzMaurice, 5th Earl of Orkney


Thomas John Hamilton FitzMaurice, 5th Earl of Orkney was a Scottish aristocrat.

Early life

FitzMaurice was the son of John FitzMaurice, Viscount Kirkwall and the former Hon. Anna Maria Blaquiere. Among his siblings were William FitzMaurice, MP for Buckinghamshire. His father served as MP for Heytesbury and Denbigh Boroughs.
His paternal grandparents were Mary FitzMaurice, 4th Countess of Orkney and Thomas Fitzmaurice, MP for Calne and Wycombe. His maternal grandparents were the former Eleanor Dobson and John Blaquiere, 1st Baron de Blaquiere, the Chief Secretary for Ireland. His great-uncle was British Prime Minister under George III, William Petty-FitzMaurice, 1st Marquess of Lansdowne, who succeeded in securing peace and ending the American War of Independence.

Career

On 30 December 1831, he succeeded his grandmother Mary as Earl of Orkney.
From 14 January 1833 to 26 January 1874, he served as a Representative Peer for Scotland.
He served in the Yeomanry Cavalry.

Personal life

On 14 March 1826, he married the Hon. Charlotte Irby, daughter of George Irby, 3rd Baron Boston and Rachel Ives Drake. Together, they were the parents of:
Lord Orkney died on 16 May 1877. He is interred in Latteragh graveyard in County Tipperary, Ireland. He was succeeded in his titles by his eldest son, George.

Descendants

Through his daughter Lady Maria, he was the great-grandfather of Sir Christopher Bullock who was Permanent Under-Secretary for the British Air Ministry.