Elizabeth Greville, Countess of Warwick: Difference between revisions
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New research and information regarding the Countess of Warwick's life, built upon archival research. Tag: Reverted |
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'''Elizabeth Greville, Countess of Warwick''' (22 August 1720 – 24 February 1800),<ref>England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 </ref> formerly Elizabeth Hamilton, was the wife of [[Francis Greville, 1st Earl of Warwick]], who was restored to the [[Earl of Warwick#1759 creation|earldom of Warwick]] by King [[George III of the United Kingdom]] in 1760.<ref name="Cokayne">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 II, page 336.</ref> |
'''Elizabeth Greville, Countess of Warwick''' (22 August 1720 – 24 February 1800),<ref>England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 </ref> formerly Elizabeth Hamilton, was the wife of [[Francis Greville, 1st Earl of Warwick]], who was restored to the [[Earl of Warwick#1759 creation|earldom of Warwick]] by King [[George III of the United Kingdom]] in 1760.<ref name="Cokayne">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 II, page 336.</ref> |
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She was the daughter of [[Lord Archibald Hamilton]] and his second wife, [[Jane Hamilton (British noblewoman)|Lady Jane Hamilton]], a |
She was the daughter of [[Lord Archibald Hamilton]] and his second wife, [[Jane Hamilton (British noblewoman)|Lady Jane Hamilton]], a confidante and reputedly mistress of [[Frederick, Prince of Wales]].<ref>Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 106th edition, 2 volumes. Crans, Switzerland: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 1999.</ref> It is likely that her upbringing was spent in close proximity to the Prince and his family. Her first recorded portrait, showing her in masquerade dress, was undertaken by the Prince's painter [[Philippe Mercier]].<ref>This painting survives in the collection of Warwick Castle.</ref> |
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Elizabeth married the earl, then untitled, on 15 May 1742 at [[Park Place, Berkshire|Park Place]], [[Remenham|Remenham, Berkshire]]. |
Elizabeth married the earl, then untitled, on 15 May 1742 at [[Park Place, Berkshire|Park Place]], [[Remenham|Remenham, Berkshire]]. Park Place had been in the ownership of her father until 1738, after which it was sold to the aforementioned Frederick, Prince of Wales. Earlier in 1727, her husband inherited the title [[Baron Brooke]], as well as [[Warwick Castle]]. In 1746, he became [[Earl Brooke]], at which point his wife became a countess. |
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The couple had eight children: |
The couple had eight children: |
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* Lady Anne Greville (1760–1783) |
* Lady Anne Greville (1760–1783) |
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==Love Affair== |
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On 20 August 1765 Lady Dalkeith wrote, "Lady Warwick has come to England, was refused admittance at her Lord's House in [[Hill Street, London|Hill Street]], and has taken lodgings in Kensington."<ref name="Cokayne"/> Following the earl's death in 1773, Elizabeth married General [[Robert Clerk]].<ref name="Kearsley1802">{{cite book|author=George Kearsley|title=Kearsley's Complete peerage, of England, Scotland and Ireland|url=https://archive.org/details/kearsleyscomple00keargoog|year=1802|pages=[https://archive.org/details/kearsleyscomple00keargoog/page/n213 117]–}}</ref> |
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By 1760 Elizabeth had embarked on a love affair with [[Robert Clerk|General Robert Clerk]], a distinguished military figure who spent the summer of 1759 in her company at Warwick Castle. A surviving letter from her daughter [[Lady Louisa Greville|Louisa Greville]] suggests that Elizabeth's last daughter Lady Anne Greville, born in 1760 when the Countess was in her fortieth year, was the love child of Elizabeth and Clerk.<ref>Archival material relating to the Countess and her affair is detailed in the following podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tppxB_UlkpY</ref> After the birth of this final daughter, her marriage to the Earl became strained leading to a painful and public separation which was formalised in 1765.<ref>"Separation Indenture". Warwickshire County Record Office, Greville of Warwick Castle. WCRO CR1886 432. 1765.</ref> On 20 August 1765 Lady Dalkeith wrote, "Lady Warwick has come to England, was refused admittance at her Lord's House in [[Hill Street, London|Hill Street]], and has taken lodgings in Kensington."<ref name="Cokayne"/> Clerk and Elizabeth went on to commission a new London townhouse from the architects [[James Adam (architect)|James and Robert Adam]] in Marylebone, a magnificent neoclassical building and interior paid for by monies secured as part of her separation from the Earl of Warwick.<ref>Thom, Colin (2015). "Robert Adam's first Marylebone house: the story of General Robert Clerk, the Countess of Warwick and their mansion in Mansfield Street". The Georgian Group Journal. XXIII: 125–146.</ref> Following the earl's death, Elizabeth married General [[Robert Clerk]] in the English Ambassador's Chapel in Paris in February 1774.<ref name="Kearsley1802">{{cite book|author=George Kearsley|title=Kearsley's Complete peerage, of England, Scotland and Ireland|url=https://archive.org/details/kearsleyscomple00keargoog|year=1802|pages=[https://archive.org/details/kearsleyscomple00keargoog/page/n213 117]–}}</ref> Clerk would later die in what was termed 'a very particular situation' in 1797 whilst visiting a 'young person', presumably his mistress, in Cleveland Street, London. |
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She died at her home in [[Dover Street]], London, in her 80th year. |
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==Later Life and Death== |
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Following Clerk's death she moved briefly to a house on Richmond Green before moving to a property in [[Dover Street]], London, before her death at the age of 80. Rather than being buried in the newly established Greville vault in [[Collegiate Church of St Mary, Warwick|St Mary's Collegiate Church, Warwick]], Elizabeth's remains were interred in the vault of the Earls of Abercorn in the [[Henry VII Chapel]] of [[Westminster Abbey]]. |
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==References== |
==References== |
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Revision as of 14:21, 26 April 2024
The Right Honourable The Countess of Warwick | |
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,_and_her_brother_William_Hamilton_(1730-1803),_by_William_Hoare_of_Bath.jpg) Elizabeth Hamilton, later Countess of Warwick, with her brother Sir William Hamilton | |
| Born | Elizabeth Hamilton 22 August 1720 |
| Died | 24 February 1800 Dover Street, London |
| Noble family | Hamilton |
| Spouse(s) | Francis Greville, 1st Earl of Warwick Robert Clerk |
| Issue | Lady Louisa Augusta Greville Lady Frances Elizabeth Greville Lady Charlotte Mary Greville George Greville, 2nd Earl of Warwick Lady Isabella Greville Charles Francis Greville Robert Fulke Greville Lady Anne Greville |
| Father | Lord Archibald Hamilton |
| Mother | Lady Jane Hamilton |
Elizabeth Greville, Countess of Warwick (22 August 1720 – 24 February 1800),[1] formerly Elizabeth Hamilton, was the wife of Francis Greville, 1st Earl of Warwick, who was restored to the earldom of Warwick by King George III of the United Kingdom in 1760.[2]
She was the daughter of Lord Archibald Hamilton and his second wife, Lady Jane Hamilton, a confidante and reputedly mistress of Frederick, Prince of Wales.[3] It is likely that her upbringing was spent in close proximity to the Prince and his family. Her first recorded portrait, showing her in masquerade dress, was undertaken by the Prince's painter Philippe Mercier.[4]
Elizabeth married the earl, then untitled, on 15 May 1742 at Park Place, Remenham, Berkshire. Park Place had been in the ownership of her father until 1738, after which it was sold to the aforementioned Frederick, Prince of Wales. Earlier in 1727, her husband inherited the title Baron Brooke, as well as Warwick Castle. In 1746, he became Earl Brooke, at which point his wife became a countess.
The couple had eight children:
- Lady Louisa Augusta Greville (1743–c.1779),[5] who married William Churchill and had children[6]
- Lady Frances Elizabeth Greville (1744–1825), who married Sir Henry Harpur, 6th Baronet, and had children
- Lady Charlotte Mary Greville (c.1745–1763), who married John Stewart, 7th Earl of Galloway, and had children
- George Greville, 2nd Earl of Warwick (1746–1816)
- Lady Isabella Greville, who died young
- Hon. Charles Francis Greville (1749–1809), who died unmarried
- Hon. Robert Fulke Greville (1751–1824), who married, as her second husband, Louisa Cathcart, Countess of Mansfield, and had children
- Lady Anne Greville (1760–1783)
Love Affair
By 1760 Elizabeth had embarked on a love affair with General Robert Clerk, a distinguished military figure who spent the summer of 1759 in her company at Warwick Castle. A surviving letter from her daughter Louisa Greville suggests that Elizabeth's last daughter Lady Anne Greville, born in 1760 when the Countess was in her fortieth year, was the love child of Elizabeth and Clerk.[7] After the birth of this final daughter, her marriage to the Earl became strained leading to a painful and public separation which was formalised in 1765.[8] On 20 August 1765 Lady Dalkeith wrote, "Lady Warwick has come to England, was refused admittance at her Lord's House in Hill Street, and has taken lodgings in Kensington."[2] Clerk and Elizabeth went on to commission a new London townhouse from the architects James and Robert Adam in Marylebone, a magnificent neoclassical building and interior paid for by monies secured as part of her separation from the Earl of Warwick.[9] Following the earl's death, Elizabeth married General Robert Clerk in the English Ambassador's Chapel in Paris in February 1774.[10] Clerk would later die in what was termed 'a very particular situation' in 1797 whilst visiting a 'young person', presumably his mistress, in Cleveland Street, London.
Later Life and Death
Following Clerk's death she moved briefly to a house on Richmond Green before moving to a property in Dover Street, London, before her death at the age of 80. Rather than being buried in the newly established Greville vault in St Mary's Collegiate Church, Warwick, Elizabeth's remains were interred in the vault of the Earls of Abercorn in the Henry VII Chapel of Westminster Abbey.
References
- ^ England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975
- ^ a b 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 II, page 336.
- ^ Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 106th edition, 2 volumes. Crans, Switzerland: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 1999.
- ^ This painting survives in the collection of Warwick Castle.
- ^ "Maker: "Lady Louisa Augusta Greville (1743-1779)"". National Trust Collections. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
- ^ Fanny Burney; Stewart Cooke (13 October 2011). The Court Journals and Letters of Frances Burney: Volume II: 1787. OUP Oxford. pp. 89–. ISBN 978-0-19-926280-9.
- ^ Archival material relating to the Countess and her affair is detailed in the following podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tppxB_UlkpY
- ^ "Separation Indenture". Warwickshire County Record Office, Greville of Warwick Castle. WCRO CR1886 432. 1765.
- ^ Thom, Colin (2015). "Robert Adam's first Marylebone house: the story of General Robert Clerk, the Countess of Warwick and their mansion in Mansfield Street". The Georgian Group Journal. XXIII: 125–146.
- ^ George Kearsley (1802). Kearsley's Complete peerage, of England, Scotland and Ireland. pp. 117–.