Penelope Knatchbull, Countess Mountbatten of Burma

Penelope Meredith Mary Knatchbull, Countess Mountbatten of Burma, (née Eastwood; born 16 April 1953), known until 2005 as Lady Romsey, and until 2017 as The Lady Brabourne, is the wife of Norton Knatchbull, 3rd Earl Mountbatten of Burma and a British peeress.[1] Lady Mountbatten has served as High Steward of Romsey since 2010.[2]

The Right Honourable

The Countess Mountbatten of Burma
BornPenelope Meredith Mary Eastwood
(1953-04-16) 16 April 1953
London, England
Spouse(s)Norton Knatchbull, 3rd Earl Mountbatten of Burma
Issue
Nicholas Knatchbull, Lord Brabourne
Lady Alexandra Hooper
The Hon. Leonora Knatchbull

Early life

Lady Mountbatten was born Penelope Meredith Mary Eastwood in London, England, only daughter of Reginald Eastwood (1912–1980), a wealthy businessman whose successes included financing the Angus Steakhouse restaurants,[3] and his wife Marian Hood (b. 1926). She had one younger brother Peter Eastwood (1955–2013). She grew up and was educated in Switzerland. She graduated from the London School of Economics in 1976.[4]

Marriage and children

On 20 October 1979 at Romsey Abbey, she married Norton Knatchbull, Lord Romsey, son and heir of Patricia Knatchbull, 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma and John Knatchbull, 7th Baron Brabourne. The groom's cousin, Charles, Prince of Wales, served as best man.[5] The family seat is Broadlands, Hampshire.

The wedding took place two months after the assassination of her husband's grandfather, Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, by an IRA bomb which also killed three others, his younger brother, The Hon. Nicholas Knatchbull (1964–1979), his grandmother Doreen Knatchbull, Baroness Brabourne and Irish friend Paul Maxwell (1963–1979).[6]

Lady Mountbatten and her husband had three children and two grandchildren:

  • Nicholas Louis Charles Norton Knatchbull, Lord Brabourne (born 15 May 1981), his father's heir apparent.
  • Lady Alexandra Victoria Edwina Diana Hooper (née Knatchbull; born 5 December 1982), married to Thomas Edward Huntly Hooper on 25 June 2016, at Romsey Abbey, Romsey.[7] They have two children:
    • Inigo Norton Sebastian Mountbatten Hooper (born 21 December 2017)
    • Alden Peter Theodore Mountbatten Hooper (born 27 March 2020)[8]
  • The Honourable Leonora Louise Marie Elizabeth Knatchbull (25 June 1986 – 22 October 1991). She died of kidney cancer at the age of five years, and is buried in the grounds of the family home, Broadlands; see Leonora Children's Cancer Fund.

Duties
  • High Steward of Romsey, appointed 2010[9], inaugurated 2 March 2011[10][11]
  • Founder of the Leonora Children's Cancer Fund, now the Edwina Mountbatten and Leonora Children's Foundation
  • President of The Compassionate Friends
  • Patron of Countess Mountbatten's Own Legion of Frontiersmen of the Commonwealth
  • Patron or President of various other local organisations and charities, she shared the running of the Broadlands Estates and family businesses with her husband until she took over the enterprises full time (when he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's)

Titles, styles and honours

Titles and styles
  • 16 April 1953 – 20 October 1979: Miss Penelope Meredith Mary Eastwood
  • 20 October 1979 – 23 September 2005: Lady Romsey
  • 23 September 2005 – 13 June 2017: The Right Honourable The Lady Brabourne
  • 13 June 2017 – present: The Right Honourable The Countess Mountbatten of Burma

Honours

Foreign
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References
    1. "Penelope Meredith Eastwood". The Peerage. 4 December 2007.
    2. Craig, Alison (3 December 2010). "Lady Brabourne to be High Steward of Romsey". Southern Daily Echo.
    3. "CBSi". FindArticles.com. Retrieved 2017-03-28.
    4. Sholdice, David (2 February 1996). "Lady Romsey". The Irish Times. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
    5. Salman, Saad. "Wedding of Lord Romsey, 1979". The Royal Watcher. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
    6. "BBC Archive: The day Lord Mountbatten died". BBC. 20 May 2015. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
    7. Yorke, Harry. "The Queen attends 'society wedding of the year' as Prince Charles gives away Lord Mountbatten's great granddaughter". The Telegraph. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
    8. Cope, Rebecca. "Princess Diana's goddaughter welcomes second child". Tatler. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
    9. Craig, Alison (3 December 2010). "Lady Brabourne to be High Steward of Romsey". Southern Daily Echo.
    10. "Lady Brabourne makes pledge to serve town well". Romsey Advertiser. 4 March 2011.
    11. New High Steward of Romsey. Memorial website to honour Admiral of the Fleet The Rt Hon. Lord Louis Mountbatten. 3 December 2010.
    12. "King Carl Gustav Of Sweden's 50th Birthday Celebrations". Getty Images.
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