Before 1504 Before 1504, the ruler of the Isle of Man was generally
styled king of Mann.
16th century •
Thomas Stanley, 2nd Earl of Derby, 1504–1521 •
Edward Stanley, 3rd Earl of Derby, 1521–1572 •
Henry Stanley, 4th Earl of Derby, 1572–1593 •
Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby, 1593–1594
Succession dispute (1594–1607) In 1598, a succession dispute between the daughters of
Ferdinando and their uncle,
William Stanley, 6th Earl of Derby, was heard by the
Privy Council. They decided that the right to the Isle of Man belonged solely to Queen
Elizabeth I, and the
letters patent of 1405 which conferred the lordship of the Isle of Man on the Stanley family were declared null and void as the previous ruler,
Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland, had not been subject to legal
attainder, despite his treason, and the 1405 and 1406 letters patent had therefore not taken effect. The Queen, in consideration of the "many eminent services performed to herself and to her royal predecessors by the honourable and noble House of Stanley", withdrew her right and referred the contending claimants to the decision of the Privy Council as to the best claim of inheritance. The Privy Council decided "the grant being by letters patent under the Great Seal of England, such right would descend according to the Common Law of England to the heirs general, and not to the heirs male", and the island was therefore awarded to Ferdinando's daughters; whereupon William agreed to purchase their several shares and interests.
Interim (1607–1609) Following the resolution of the succession dispute, it was ruled that the daughters of Ferdinando Stanley were the rightful heirs. As the oldest of them would not reach the
age of majority until 1609, two temporary Lords of Mann were appointed by
James I by letters patent, so that the daughters could benefit from the Island's revenues. •
Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton, 1607–1608 •
Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury, 1608–1609 The original letters patent having been declared void, the
Parliament of England in 1609 under
James I passed a private
act of parliament entitled "An Act for assuring and establishing the Isle of Man in the name and blood of William, Earl of Derby", the ''''
(7 Jas. 1. c. 4
) which established the title in law as Lord of Mann''. The lordship was conferred by letters patent dated 7 July 1609 upon William. Subsequent succession was under the terms of this grant.
17th and 18th centuries •
William Stanley, 6th Earl of Derby, 1609–1612 •
Elizabeth de Vere, Countess of Derby, 1612–1627 •
James Stanley, 7th Earl of Derby, 1627–1651 (known as
the Great Stanley) •
Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Lord Fairfax of Cameron, 1651–1660 (appointed by
Oliver Cromwell during the
English Interregnum) •
Charles Stanley, 8th Earl of Derby, 1660–1672 (restored by
King Charles II) •
William Richard George Stanley, 9th Earl of Derby, 1672–1702 •
James Stanley, 10th Earl of Derby, 1702–1736 •
James Murray, 2nd Duke of Atholl, 1736–1764 •
Charlotte, Duchess of Atholl and
John Murray, 3rd Duke of Atholl, 1764–1765 In 1736, on the death of
James Stanley, 10th Earl of Derby, the Duke of Atholl, a maternal grandson of James Stanley, 7th Earl of Derby, succeeded to the sovereignty of the Isle of Man, while a more distant cousin succeeded as
Earl of Derby.
Revestment In 1765,
Charlotte, Duchess of Atholl, 8th Baroness Strange, sold the
suzerainty of the island to the
British government for £70,000 and an annuity of £2,000 (£5,235,000 and £150,000 respectively in modern terms). By the passage of the
Isle of Man Purchase Act 1765, the title of Lord of Mann was
revested into the
British Crown. It has therefore since been used in the Isle of Man to refer to the reigning
British monarch. watch the
coronation of Charles III; a woman waves the
Flag of the Isle of Man. •
George III, 1765–1820 •
George IV, 1820–1830 •
William IV, 1830–1837 •
Victoria, 1837–1901 •
Edward VII, 1901–1910 •
George V, 1910–1936 •
Edward VIII, 1936 •
George VI, 1936–1952 •
Elizabeth II, 1952–2022 •
Charles III, since 2022 In 1828, all remaining property interests and rights of the
Dukes of Atholl on the island were sold to
HM Treasury, a department of the British government, for the sum of £417,144, . This was accomplished by the
Duke of Atholl's Rights, Isle of Man Act 1825 (
6 Geo. 4. c. 34). ==Lieutenant governor==