The Gerard family can be traced to William FitzGerald of Carew Castle in Pembrokeshire in the 12th century, whose brother Maurice FitzGerald went to Ireland, and is the ancestor of the Dukes of Leinster in the Peerage of Ireland. Within a few generations, the family name changed from FitzGerald to Gerrard and then Gerard in the 14th century. The Gerard family still shares the same arms as the FitzGeralds.
First creation
The title Baron Gerard, of Gerards Bromley, was created in the Peerage of England on 21 July 1603 for Sir Thomas Gerard, son of Sir Gilbert GerardAttorney General between 1559 and 1581 and Master of the Rolls in 1581, who acquired estates at Gerards Bromley and Hilderstone, Staffordshire. The first Baron was Lord President of Wales between 1616 and 1617. The barony passed in direct line of succession until the death of the fifth Baron in 1684 when it passed to his second cousin Charles, and upon his death without a male heir, to his brother Philip Gerard, a Jesuit priest who died childless in 1773 when the barony expired.
A Gerard Baronetcy was created in the Baronetage of England in 1611 for Thomas Gerard, Member of Parliament for Liverpool, Lancashire, and Wigan who was a direct descendant of the family of Bryn. He was succeeded by his son, the second Baronet. He also represented Liverpool in the House of Commons. His son, the third Baronet, was a Royalist during the Civil War and spent a large part of his estate in his support for King Charles I. Thomas Gerard's second son was John Gerard, the Jesuit priest noted for his escape from the Tower of London. The title of Baron Gerard of Bryn in the County Palatine of Lancaster, was created in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1876 for Sir Robert Gerard, 13th Baronet. The title followed the line of the first Baron's eldest son until the death of the latter's grandson, the fourth Baron, in 1992. He was succeeded by his second cousin once removed, the fifth and present holder of the barony. He is the great grandson of Captain the Hon. Robert Joseph Gerard-Dicconson, second son of the first Baron. The family seat was originally Bryn Hall, Ashton-in-Makerfield, but later Garswood Hall, followed by New Hall, a majestic, modernist, building of considerable size. The current baron, Anthony Gerard, 5th Baron Gerard, was educated at Harvard University and lives in New York.
Barons Gerard, of Gerards Bromley, first creation (1603)
Robert Tolver Gerard, 1st Baron Gerard. Gerard was the younger son of John Gerard and his wife Elizabeth. He succeeded his elder brother in the baronetcy in 1854. In 1876 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Gerard, of Bryn in the County Palatine of Lancaster. Lord Gerard married Harriet, daughter of Edward Clifton, in 1849. He died in March 1887, aged 78, and was succeeded in his titles by his son William. Lady Gerard died in 1888.
