Viscount Bearsted

Viscount Bearsted, of Maidstone in the County of Kent, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1925 for the businessman Marcus Samuel, 1st Baron Bearsted, the joint-founder of the Shell Transport and Trading Company. He had already been created a Baronet in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom in 1903 and Baron Bearsted, of Maidstone in the County of Kent, in 1921, also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The titles descended from father to son until the death of his grandson, the third Viscount, in 1986. The late Viscount was succeeded by his younger brother, the fourth Viscount. As of 2012 the titles are held by the latter's son, the fifth Viscount, who succeeded in 1996.