Alexander Maier-Dlamini, the fake "Marquess of Annaville"

[William Stotesbury-Leeson]

Hello!  I would just like to say "thank you" first for letting me join this group.  I have meticulously studied, researched, and cataloged the British Peerage for 25 years, and I am happy to have found a group of like-minded people.  If I may impose, there is a developing story happening that I am actively trying to stop, and I would genuinely appreciate any thoughts or opinions that you have to offer.

Back in March, the Independent published an opinion article headlined "I am a black British member of the aristocracy.  I love the royal family--but I know what Meghan said was true." written by Alexander Maier-Dlamini, who claimed himself to be the 11th Marquess of Annaville, "the last of the Irish peerages."  This "Marquessate of Annavile" has never been created in the peerage, nor has it ever been mentioned in Burke's, Debrett's, G. E. Cokayne's The Complete Peerage, Whitaker's Almanack, or in a range of other peerage references (such as Lodge's Peerage, et al.) spanning a length of some 200 years.  To put it another way:  if the Marquessate of Annaville does exist, then it is truly the best-kept secret in nearly 1,000 years of post-Conquest aristocratic history.  After complaints from myself and numerous others, the Independent soon pulled the story from their website, and on 12 May, issued a correction (which you can read here:  Clarification: Marquess of Annaville | The Independent)

During the recent Scottish independence vote, it came to my attention that Mr. Maier-Dlamini was continuing to style himself as a Marquess since his Independent fiasco.  Since March, he started up an interest group called the Voice of Union, which has published at least two articles under the names of the Lord Annaville and Lord Zigmund Annavile (whom he claims is his brother) Tories and Unionists DOMINATE Election 2021 — Voice of Union  The Union Lacks Equality — Voice of Union.  More interesting is that he posted on Twitter on 9 May that he, as Marquess of Annaville, was giving his endorsement to Vote Unionist Scotland, and that he became their Director of Communications and Spokesman.  He deleted the tweet after I brought it to his attention, but I luckily was able to save a copy of it, which I will post at the end of this.  Last week, I publicly called out Mr. Maier-Dlamini for his ludicrous pretentions on his Voice of Union Facebook page (my comments were deleted yesterday) and on the Vote Unionist Scotland Facebook page (which are still there among the comments for their posting of 28 May--Vote Unionist Scotland | Facebook.

Anyhow, I apologize for my lengthy post, but, as I said, I would genuinely appreciate some of your thoughts and insights on this;  I am seriously thinking of getting in touch with the UK media on this, but I haven't yet decided how to proceed with this.  I know that it is not actually illegal to impersonate a Peer of the Realm, provided that you do not profit from your deception.  For me, this is simply a matter of personal honour--I cannot and will not allow Mr. Maier-Dlamini's blatant falsehoods to stand unchallenged, not in good conscious.

Thanks again for your time.

[www.maltagenealogy.com]

if the so-called Marquess is reading this.. A good test for you is to register your arms and grievances to the new Chief Herald of Malta. If you do succeed, please do let us know.

https://heritagemalta.org/heraldry-in-malta-home-page/

[www.maltagenealogy.com]

Further more, I cannot locate your title on Leigh Rayment website ?

https://www.maltagenealogy.com/LeighRayment/peers.htm

On Thursday, June 3, 2021 at 9:12:19 AM UTC+10 William Stotesbury-Leeson wrote:

[William Stotesbury-Leeson]

Thank you for replying.  I do not have a title to locate, nor do I pretend to have one.  I'm just your average plebe who has a deep interest in the British aristocracy.

While I am in no need for my coat of arms, I am glad that you got in touch with me.  Out of curiosity, are you associated with the group who has kept the late Leigh Rayment's website up?  If so, then thank you--I'm glad to see that his invaluable research has not been lost.  If you would like, I think I have something which I would like to discuss with you, if I may, and not at all related with Mr. Maier-Dlamini.  Please contact me at silvers...@hotmail.com at your earliest convenience.

[S. S.]

It would appear after a perusal of this individual's Twitter page his partner is also a self-proclaimed Marquess. I wonder if his falsehoods have not already been caught in St. Lucia where he has an affiliation with in regards to inheriting colonial land. Rather funny considering his title claims to be a part of the Irish peerage, when such a title never existed. 

[William Stotesbury-Leeson]

To www.maltagenealogy.com:  My apologies, as I seem not to be allowed to post my email address.  You can reach me at silver shilling (ignore the space) at hotmail.com.  Again, do please get in touch;  we should talk.

[S. S.]

To Stotesbury-Leeson: I hope it isn’t too forward of me but I may have some biographical and bibliographical information on the peerage and baronetage that may interest you (seeing you have a hobby in the study of the peerage like myself). If you wish, you may contact me at the following email: honoremgenealogicum (@gmail.com; ignore the space preceding since this Google group does not render email addresses completely). 

[www.maltagenealogy.com]

No problems, sorry I don't really do much else then update Leigh Rayment with approval from his family. 

I tend to only accept emails for corrections, updates.. As I manage my Maltese family tree site and then my day employment.. so busy at best..

[colinp]

Story in the Telegraph -  'The Duke of Nowheresville': Fake marquess struck down by high society bible Debretts (telegraph.co.uk)

[William Stotesbury-Leeson]

Thank you for letting me know about this.  It was a most interesting and informative article.  Please don't forget where you heard about this story first!

[www.maltagenealogy.com]

Black 'Irish Lord' who backed Meghen over claims of royal racism confesses he's a FRAUD. US Student, 22, who proclaimed he was "11th Marquess of Annaville" apologises after lies exposed.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9729757/Black-Irish-Lord-backed-Meghan-claims-royal-racism-confesses-hes-FRAUD.html

[marquess]

How could anyone every be so stupid to think that there's a black member of the hereditary peerage? Apart from Lord Sinha, also marquisates are the rarest honours in the whole peerage system, even a 5 year old should be able to spot a fake.

[malcolm davies]

Agreed Marquess.Obviously those in charge editorially at the Independent have a mental age less than 5.

[john]

I must admit I am surprised at the reaction of some in this group. I thought it was a well known fact that the future 2nd Duke of Sussex, currently Earl of Dumbarton, is of 1/4 black descent. I'm not sure about other hereditary peerages, but I'm sure there are more that are now or will be in the foreseeable future held by people who are black to a significant degree. It is not as simple as one might think to say that there is no such thing as a black hereditary peer.

But regardless of skin colour, it is a poor performance to fall for a fake peer.

[Eleanor Doughty]

Not to mention that the next Marquess of Bath will be mixed race, as his mother is of Nigerian descent (as has been extensively covered in the press)! 

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Eleanor Doughty

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07854 073818

@brushingboots

eleanordoughty.com

[William Stotesbury-Leeson]

I tend to agree.  I took down Maier-Dlamini because he was pretending to be something he wasn't.  His skin colour, sexual preference, and political leanings are completely irrelevant.

On the subject of non-white peers, "Marquess" mentioned that the first non-white (Indian) hereditary peer was Lord Sinha (cr. 1919).  Among the Life Peers, Lord Constantine was the first black peer (cr. 1969), and there have been numerous other non-whites to be so honoured since then.  A list of extant non-white peers can be found here:  www.obv.org.uk/our-communities/profiles/peers  While minorities make up a small proportion of the total number of Lords, I wouldn't say that they are particularly rare these days.

[Ziggy Bernard]

Hello All! Allow me to dig this up and address y'all. I am the Lord Zigmund Annaville himself 😂 or viscount or whatever nonsense hogwash my half-brother decided I was in his headcanon. I just want to say, my biological father (to who my half-brother Alexander is related to me and claimed was the royal to whom we were related) was a miserable father and a pathological liar by nature. He was plagued by mental illness, addiction, and delusions of grandeur that some of us inherited more than others. You can tell from my name on this email address that I've even changed my last name to my maternal grandfather's, as I think, given the topic of this group, we can all understand the weight a name can carry for many. I did this because there were two legacies I could choose to carry forward with my name. That of a good, hardworking, principled man who, despite his flaws, was there for and did all he could to ensure the success and well-being of his family, and that of a man who was entirely unwilling to take accountability for the consequences of his actions. I needn't derive self-worth from self-made noble status, I don't need a title to feel that my opinions carry more weight than those of others, and I don't need to pretend that I have any relationship with the nobility of a nation in which I am not a citizen, but little more than an American adopted trust fund baby with a chip on his shoulder and an inflated sense of self-worth. I have found success and happiness on my own, and though Alexander used my name in his oddly frequent public addresses, the beliefs that it would seem I endorse are not my own; I do not much care about the goings on of the nobility nor British politics, and I'm not sure why he does. I don't feel the need to apologize on Alexander's behalf, though, because if you're at all like me, his getting called out provided a good laugh for you as well. Wishing all the best, just wanted to get that cleared up!

Warmly

Ziggy Bernard, brother of Duke Alexander of Nowheresville

[https:/www.maltagenealogy.com/LeighRayment/]

Since this post I cannot recall if this "Marquis" has registered his arms with Chief of Malta Heraldry ?  Can anyone shed any light please.