The Dukedom was named for
Leeds in
Yorkshire, and did not (as is sometimes claimed) refer to
Leeds Castle in Kent. The
4th Duke married
Mary Godolphin, daughter of
Henrietta Churchill Godolphin, suo jure Duchess of Marlborough, and
The 2nd Earl of Godolphin, and assumed the arms of Godolphin and Churchill. On 8 August 1849,
The 7th Duke of Leeds assumed by royal licence the additional surname and arms of D'Arcy, for the separate baronies of
D'Arcy (1322) and
Conyers that he inherited through his grandmother. Upon the death of the 7th Duke in 1859, the dukedom passed to his cousin,
The 2nd Baron Godolphin, whose father (the second son of
The 5th Duke of Leeds) had been created
Baron Godolphin, of Farnham Royal in the County of Buckingham, in 1832. Eight months later, the 12th Duke died in
Rome, unmarried, at which point the dukedom and the
Barony of Godolphin became extinct. The
heir apparent to the Duke of Leeds was styled
Marquess of Carmarthen; Lord Carmarthen's heir apparent was styled
Earl of Danby; and Lord Danby's heir apparent was styled
Viscount Latimer.
Estates and residences The principal ducal seat was
Kiveton Hall. After Kiveton Hall was demolished in 1811,
Hornby Castle became the main seat of the Dukes of Leeds.
George Osborne, 10th Duke of Leeds Duke died in 1927, and approximately £300,000 in death duties were levied on his £730,000 estate. The combination of estate tax and the 10th Duke's significant gambling debts resulted in his son
John Osborne, 11th Duke of Leeds selling the Hornby Castle estate for £250,000 in early 1930. A demolition sale of much of the house's contents was held in June 1930 and realised £15,000. The traditional burial place of the Dukes of Leeds was
All Hallows Church, Harthill, South Yorkshire. His son
George Osborne, 9th Duke of Leeds leased No. 14
South Audley Street, Mayfair from 1874 until early 1877. By May 1877 the 9th Duke had taken a lease of No. 11
Grosvenor Crescent in
Belgravia, which continued to be the London residences of the Dukes of Leeds until
George Osborne, 10th Duke of Leeds died there in May 1927, although an unsuccessful attempt was made to sell the remaining lease of the house at auction in September 1919. The 10th Duke's widow Katherine, Duchess of Leeds sold much of the house's contents in early 1928, and by 1930 the house was being used as accommodation for members of the
Duke of York's household. ==Osborne Baronets, of Kiveton (1620)==