Elizabeth Spencer, Duchess of Marlborough
Elizabeth Spencer, Duchess of Marlborough (c. 1713 – 7 October 1761), formerly the Hon. Elizabeth Trevor, was the wife of Charles Spencer, 3rd Duke of Marlborough.
Her Grace The Duchess of Marlborough | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | Hon. Elizabeth Trevor c. 1713 |
| Died | 7 October 1761 (aged 47–48) |
| Spouse(s) | |
| Children | Lady Diana Spencer Elizabeth Herbert, Countess of Pembroke and Montgomery George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough Lord Charles Spencer Lord Robert Spencer |
| Parents | Thomas Trevor, 2nd Baron Trevor |
Early life
She was the daughter of Thomas Trevor, 2nd Baron Trevor of Bromham, Bedfordshire. Her paternal grandparents were the former Elizabeth Searle and Thomas Trevor, 1st Baron Trevor, a Chief Justice of the Common Pleas and Lord President of the Council.[1]
Personal life
She married Charles Spencer, then Earl of Sunderland on 23 May 1732,[2] becoming Countess of Sunderland. The Earl's grandmother, Sarah, Dowager Duchess of Marlborough, disapproved of the marriage because Elizabeth's grandfather, the 1st Baron Trevor, had been a political opponent.[3] The dowager commented that "she has very bad teeth, which I think is an objection alone in a wife, and they will be sure to grow worse with time." Elizabeth became a duchess in the following year when her husband inherited the dukedom.[4] Together, they had five children:[5]
- Lady Diana Spencer (1734–1808), who married Frederick St John, 2nd Viscount Bolingbroke. After his death, she married Topham Beauclerk, and had children from both marriages.[6]
- Elizabeth Herbert, Countess of Pembroke and Montgomery (1737–1831), who married Henry Herbert, 10th Earl of Pembroke, and had children.[6]
- George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough (1739–1817).[6]
- Lord Charles Spencer (1740–1820), who married Hon. Mary Beauclerk, and had children.[6]
- Lord Robert Spencer (1747–1831), who married Henrietta Bouverie.[6]
She also acted as godmother to George John Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer in 1758.
The couple lived at a lodge in the "Little Park" at Windsor, by the permission of Sarah Churchill, but the dowager was unhappy with the alterations made by the new duke, and forced them to move out in 1737, replacing them with Charles's younger brother John and his new wife.[7]
Legacy
Her portrait, by Jean-Baptiste Van Loo, hangs in Blenheim Palace.[4]
References
- "Hampden, Viscount (GB, 1776 - 1824)". www.cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910-1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume VIII, page 499.
- Laetitia Pilkington (1997). Memoirs of Laetitia Pilkington. University of Georgia Press. pp. 521–. ISBN 978-0-8203-1719-9.
- "THE COUNTESS OF SUNDERLAND, ELIZABETH TREVOR, LATER 3RD DUCHESS OF MARLBOROUGH" (PDF). Blenheim Palace. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
- Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 106th edition, 2 volumes. Crans, Switzerland: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 1999. Page 1868
- "Marlborough, Duke of (E, 1702)". www.cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Heraldic Media Limited. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- Jane Roberts (1997). Royal Landscape: The Gardens and Parks of Windsor. Yale University Press. pp. 157–. ISBN 978-0-300-07079-8.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Elizabeth Spencer, Duchess of Marlborough. |
- Portrait of Elizabeth, Duchess of Marlborough, c. 1730, attributed to Maria Verelst