“ WESTMINSTER, MARQUESSES AND DUKES OF. The title of marquess of Westminster was bestowed in 1831 upon Robert Grosvenor, 2nd Earl Grosvenor (1767–1845) , whose grandson, Hugh Lupus Grosvenor (1825–1899) , was created duke of Westminster in 1874. The family of Grosvenor is of great antiquity in Cheshire, the existence of a knightly house of this name (Le Grosvenur) in the palatine county being proved by deeds as early as the 12th century (see The Ancestor, vi. 19) . ”

“ Bird (see “The Grosvenor Myth” in The Ancestor, vol. i . April 1902) . The ancestors of the dukes of Westminster, the Grosvenors of Eaton, near Chester, were cadets of the knightly house mentioned above, and rose to wealth and eminence through a series of fortunate marriages. Their baronetcy dates from 1622. Sir Thomas Grosvenor, the 3rd baronet (1656–1700) , in 1676 married Mary (d. 1730) , heiress of Alexander Davies (d. 1665) , a scrivener. ”

“ The legend of its descent from a nephew of Hugh Lupus, earl of Chester, perpetuated in the name of the first duke, and the still more extravagant story, repeated by the old genealogists and modern “peerages,” of its ancestors, the “grand huntsmen” (gros veneurs) of the dukes of Normandy, have been exploded by the researches of Mr W. H. B . ”