A circular cylinder in an infinite fluid rotates rigidly about a fixed axis which is parallel to, but does not coincide with, its geometric axis. It is found that, depending on the relative magnitude of the Reynolds number R and eccentricity ε, the flow may have two, one or no boundary layers. General solutions for R [Lt ] are obtained. It is found that owing to eccentricity there exist both a flow periodic in the circumferential direction and a non-periodic flow which is a function only of the radial distance from the centre of the cylinder. The non-periodic flow is caused by the nonlinear Reynolds stress and contributes to the torque experienced by the cylinder. The high Reynolds number case, \[ 1 \Lt R \Lt\epsilon^{-\frac{3}{2}}, \] is solved by matched asymptotic expansions. The stream function can be represented by Hankel functions of order 1/3 and a slight decrease in torque is found. In the low Reynolds number case, R [Lt ] 1, the torque is increased owing to eccentricity when R < 0·145 and decreased when R > 0·145. A physical explanation is presented.