The Earl of Munster was the last of the male line of FitzClarences that began with King William IV (Duke of Clarence until his accession in 1830) and his mistress, the comic actress Dorothea Jordan (née Bland).

The King's eldest son by Jordan, George FitzClarence, was created Earl of Munster in 1831.

The seventh earl made his way in the world without trading on his lineage, working variously as a publican, a graphic designer on newspapers, and latterly as an expert on medieval stained glass.

On 15 November 1983, he inherited the earldom on the death of his father Edward FitzClarence, 6th Earl of Munster.

He was intensely patriotic, and in 1942, aged 16, he volunteered for the Royal Navy, serving for the remainder of the war as a rating on the carrier HMS Illustrious.

Requiring an income, FitzClarence began to look for work in which he could express his artistic talent and, after training at the Central School of Arts and Crafts in London, in 1950 he became a graphic designer.

He left the Burrell Collection soon after it had opened to the public in 1983, and from 1983 until 1989 worked at the Chapel Studio, a leading firm of stained glass designers and conservators.

They had two daughters before their divorce in 1979:[citation needed] In 1979, Viscount FitzClarence, as he now was, married thirdly Dorothy Alexa Maxwell (d. 13 June 1995).