There have been three baronetcies created for persons with the surname Chichester, one in the Baronetage of England and two in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. Only the 1641 creation is extant.
The Chichester Baronetcy, of Raleigh in the County of Devon, was created in the Baronetage of England on 4 August 1641 for John Chichester (1623–1667).[3]
John Chichester (1623–1667) was MP for Barnstaple, Devon. Raleigh was a manor held by the Chichester family in the parish of Pilton, near Barnstaple. He was the son of Sir Robert Chichester, knight, (1579–1627) of Raleigh (whose monument with effigies exists in Pilton Church) by his second wife Ursula Hill. Sir Robert was the son of Sir John Chichester by his wife Ann Denys, daughter of Sir Robert Denys (d.1592), MP, of Holcombe Burnell, Devon. Sir John was the eldest surviving son[4] of Sir John Chichester (d.1569), knight, of Raleigh, whose elaborate monument (without effigy) exists in Pilton Church, who was also father of Arthur Chichester, 1st Baron Chichester of Belfast (1563-1624/5), and of Edward Chichester, 1st Viscount Chichester (1568–1648), of Eggesford, Devon, ancestor of the Marquesses of Donegall (see this title for more information on this branch of the family).
The first Baronet's eldest son, John Chichester, the second Baronet, died childless at an early age and was succeeded by his younger brother, Arthur Chichester, the third Baronet. He too represented Barnstaple in the House of Commons. On his death in 1718 the title passed to his son, John, the fourth Baronet. He too sat as MP for Barnstaple. His son, John, the fifth Baronet, and his son, John, the sixth Baronet, both served as High Sheriff of Devon (from 1753 to 1754 and from 1788 to 1789 respectively). The latter died unmarried in 1808 and was succeeded by his first cousin once removed, Arthur, the seventh Baronet whose seat was Youlston Park, Shirwell, Devon. He was the grandson of Reverend William Chichester, younger son of the fourth Baronet. He was High Sheriff of Devon between 1816 and 1817. His son, Arthur, the eighth Baronet, was a Deputy Lieutenant and Justice of the Peace for Devon. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Edward, the ninth Baronet. He was a Rear-Admiral in the Royal Navy, Naval Aide-de-Camp to Queen Victoria and King Edward VII and Admiral Superintendent of the Naval Establishment in Gibraltar. As of 2008 the title is held by his great-grandson (the baronetcy having descended from father to son), James, the twelfth Baronet, who succeeded in 2007. The aviator and world-circumnavigating sailor Sir Francis Chichester was the son of Reverend Charles Chichester, seventh son of the eighth Baronet.
The heir apparent is Edward John Chandos-Pole Chichester (born 1991)
The Chichester Baronetcy, of Green Castle in the County of Donegal, was created in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom on 13 September 1821 for Arthur Chichester, MP for Carrickfergus and Belfast. The title became extinct on his death in 1847.
The Chichester Baronetcy, of Arlington Court in the County of Devon, was created in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom on 7 September 1840 for John Chichester, of Arlington, Liberal Member of Parliament for Barnstaple 1831–1840. The title became extinct on the death of the second Baronet in 1881. His widow later married her late husband's distant cousin and neighbour, Sir Arthur Chichester, 8th Baronet of Youlston Park, Shirwell, Devon. The 2nd baronet's unmarried daughter and heiress, Rosalie C. Chichester (d. 1949), bequeathed the Arlington family seat to the nation in 1949.