Earl of Wessex rather than a duke. His wife Sophie became "The Countess of Wessex". "The Sunday Telegraph" newspaper reported that he was drawn to the historic title of Earl of Wessex after watching the 1998 film "Shakespeare in Love", in which a character with the title 'Lord Wessex' is played by Colin Firth. The current Earl of Wessex is also Viscount Severn. This subsidiary title is used as a courtesy title by the Earl's son and heir to his title, who was born on 17 December 2007. Earl of Wessex Earl of Wessex is a title that has been created three times
Thomas Weston, 4th Earl of Portland Boteler and widow of the 1st Earl of Newport, but they had no children. When he died, his estates passed to his nieces, the daughters of the 2nd Earl, but his title became extinct. Thomas Weston, 4th Earl of Portland Thomas Weston, 4th Earl of Portland (9 October 1609 – May 1688) was a younger son of the 1st Earl of Portland, by his second wife Frances Walgrave. He was born at Nayland in Suffolk, England. His elder brother Jerome succeeded their father in 1635, and passed the title to his own son, Charles, in 1662. However, the 3rd Earl