Earl of Derby is a title in the Peerage of England. The title was first adopted by Robert de Ferrers, 1st Earl of Derby, under a creation of 1139. It continued with the Ferrers family until the 6th Earl forfeited his property toward the end of the reign of Henry III and died in 1279. Most of the Ferrers property and the Derby title were then held by the family of Henry III. The title merged in the Crown upon Henry IV's accession to the throne in 1399.
Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby
James Stanley, 7th Earl of Derby. Remembered in the Isle of Man as: Yn Stanlagh Mooar (the Great Stanley).
Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby
Edward Henry Stanley, 15th Earl of Derby
Henry IV, also known as Henry Bolingbroke, was King of England from 1399 to 1413. Henry was the son of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, himself the son of Edward III.
Illuminated miniature, c. 1402
Henry of Bolingbroke, flanked by the lords spiritual and temporal, claims the throne in 1399. From a contemporary manuscript, British Library, Harleian Collection
The coronation of Henry IV of England, from a 15th-century manuscript of Jean Froissart's Chronicles
Silver half-groat of Henry IV, York Museums Trust
