Rawdon, John, 1st Earl of Moira (1720 -1793)

John Rawdon was born 17 March 1720, the second but eldest surviving son of Sir John Rawdon, 3rd Baronet of Moira and Member of Parliament for County Down, and Dorothy, second daughter of Sir Richard Levinge, Baronet. He succeeded his father in the Baronetcy in 1723. He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin where he was admitted 6 September 1736, and was created LL.D. in 1753. He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society 12 April 1744. He was raised to the peerage as Baron Rawdon of County Downe 9 April 1750, and created Earl of Moira in the peerage of Ireland 30 January 1762. He married three times, firstly, 10 November 1741, Helena Perceval, youngest daughter of John, 1st Earl of Egmont. She died of consumption 11 June 1746. He married secondly, 23 December 1746, Anne, daughter of Trevor, Viscount Hillsborough, who died 1 August 1751; and thirdly, Elizabeth Hastings, Baroness Hungerford. in her own right, daughter of Theophilus, 9th Earl of Huntingdon. He died 20 June 1793 and was succeeded by his son by his third wife, Francis Rawdon, who took the additional name Hastings and was created Marquess of Hastings on 7 December 1816.