Earl of Oxford was one of the oldest titles in the English peerage, and was held for several centuries by the de Vere family. It finally became dormant in 1703 with the death of the 20th Earl. Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, is perhaps the most famous of the line, due to the claims put forward by some that he was the actual author of the works of William Shakespeare (see Shakespearean authorship). The Vere Earls of Oxford were also hereditary holders of the office of Lord Great Chamberlain until the death of the 18th Earl in 1625.
The title of Earl of Oxford and Mortimer was given out in the peerage of Great Britain to Robert Harley in 1711; in the 20th century the title of Earl of Oxford and Asquith was given out in the peerage of the United Kingdom to the former Prime Minister Herbert Henry Asquith, whose descendants still bear that title. These later creations bear the double title because the original creation is dormant but not extinct.
The Earls of Oxford are as follows:
Earls of Oxford (1142)
- Aubrey de Vere, 1st Earl of Oxford (1110-1194)
- Aubrey de Vere, 2nd Earl of Oxford (1172-1214)
- Robert de Vere, 3rd Earl of Oxford (d. 1221)
- Hugh de Vere, 4th Earl of Oxford (1210-1263)
- Robert de Vere, 5th Earl of Oxford (1240-1296) (forfeit 1265, restored soon after)
- Robert de Vere, 6th Earl of Oxford (1257-1331)
- John de Vere, 7th Earl of Oxford (1312-1360)
- Thomas de Vere, 8th Earl of Oxford (1337-1371)
- Robert de Vere, 9th Earl of Oxford (1362-1392) (forfeit 1388)
- Aubrey de Vere, 10th Earl of Oxford (1340-1400) (restored 1393)
- Richard de Vere, 11th Earl of Oxford (1385-1417)
- John de Vere, 12th Earl of Oxford (1408-1462)
- John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford (1442-1513) (forfeit 1475, restored 1485)
- John de Vere, 14th Earl of Oxford (1499-1526)
- John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford (1482-1540)
- John de Vere, 16th Earl of Oxford (1516-1562)
- Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford (1550-1604)
- Henry de Vere, 18th Earl of Oxford (1593-1625)
- Robert de Vere, 19th Earl of Oxford (1575-1632)
- Aubrey de Vere, 20th Earl of Oxford (1627-1703) (dormant 1703)
Earls of Oxford and Mortimer (1711)
Earls of Oxford and Asquith (1925)