The Saye (also spelt Say) family is an ancient one. According to the
Roman de Rou, a "le sire de Saye" took part in the
Norman conquest in 1087, after which they gained prominence and land. The name Saye possibly refers to
Sai, Normandy. In the 11th century, a William de Say married Agnes, daughter of
Hugh de Grandmesnil, but his connection to the later titleholders is not confirmed. His son
Geoffrey III de Saye, who held the Lordship of West Greenwich inherited from his mother, was one of the 25 feudal barons who stood surety for
Magna Carta in 1215. His son William III de Saye traveled with and fought for
Henry III and is recorded as a witness for the
Treaty of York in 1237. William IV de Saye fought for
Edward I in his
conquest of Wales (1277–1283). However, several authorities, including ''
Burke's Peerage'', agree that the assumption was erroneous, and that the original creation was by letters patent, and thus identify the initial holder as Lordship of Saye and Sele. His son, the second baron, was summoned to Parliament but killed at the
Battle of Barnet in 1471. His son, the
de jure third Baron, was known as Lord Saye and Sele but was never summoned to Parliament. The peerage is therefore considered to have become dormant (unclaimed) on the death of the second Baron. His great-great-great-grandson,
Richard Fiennes, the
de jure seventh baron, claimed the title in 1573. For years, he remained unsuccessful, but in 1603
James I granted him letters patent confirming his right to the title. The patent confirmed that the barony created in 1447 belonged to Richard Fiennes, but on the condition that, for the purposes of
precedence or seniority, it would be considered as having been created in 1603, and also provided that no future Baron Saye and Sele would assert the precedence of 1447. The patent, furthermore, allowed the title to pass to heirs-general, based on the erroneous assumption that the barony was created by writ.
William Fiennes, the eighth Baron, was created
Viscount Saye and Sele, also in the Peerage of England, in 1624. On the death of his son, the second Viscount, the two titles separated. The barony fell into
abeyance between the late Baron's daughters Hon. Elizabeth, wife of John Twisleton, and Hon. Frances, wife of Andrew Ellis. The Viscountcy could only be passed on to male heirs and was inherited by the Baron's nephew, the third Viscount. He was the son of
Nathaniel Fiennes, second son of the first Viscount. When his son, the fourth Viscount, died, this line of the family also failed. He was succeeded by his cousin, the fifth Viscount. He was the son of John Fiennes, third son of the first Viscount. He was in his turn succeeded by another cousin, the sixth Viscount. On his death in 1781, there were no more male heirs left of the first Viscount, and the title became extinct. in Oxfordshire,
family seat of the Barons Saye and Sele By 1715, all of the coheirs to the Barony of Saye and Sele had died save one; Cecil Twisleton,
de jure tenth Baroness Saye and Sele. She was the daughter of the aforementioned Hon. Elizabeth, daughter of the second Viscount Saye and Sele. However, the barony was only formally called out of abeyance in favour of her great-grandson, Thomas Twisleton, who became the thirteenth Baron Saye and Sele. He was a General in the Army. His son, the fourteenth Baron, assumed the additional surnames of Fiennes and Eardley in 1825. He was succeeded by his son, the fifteenth Baron, who in his turn was succeeded by his cousin, the sixteenth Baron. In 1849 he assumed the additional surnames of
Wykeham-Fiennes (the first Viscount Saye and Sele was a descendant of the sister and heiress of
William of Wykeham). His grandson, the eighteenth Baron, served as
Comptroller of the Household from 1912 to 1915 in the
Liberal government of
H. H. Asquith. As of 2024 the title is held by his great-grandson, the twenty-second Baron. In 1965 he relinquished the additional surnames of Twisleton and Wykeham.
Eustace Edward Fiennes, second son of the seventeenth Baron, represented
Banbury in Parliament and also served as Governor of the Leeward Islands. In 1916 he was created a baronet, of Banbury in the County of Oxford. Since 1944 the baronetcy has been held by his grandson, explorer
Ranulph Fiennes. Actors
Ralph Fiennes and
Joseph Fiennes are from a
cadet branch of the family, being descended from Frederick the sixteenth Baron. Through the marriage of the second Viscount to a daughter of
Edward Cecil, 1st Viscount Wimbledon, the family descends from
William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, as well as the
Plantagenet Kings of England. ==List of titleholders==