Helen Percy, Duchess of Northumberland, GCVO CBE JP (née Lady Helen Magdalen Gordon-Lennox; 13 December 1886 – 13 June 1965) was a British aristocrat and courtier. She was Mistress of the Robes to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother from 1937–64.[1]
The Duchess of Northumberland | |
|---|---|
 Lady Helen Gordon-Lennox, c. 1900 | |
| Born | Lady Helen Magdalan Gordon-Lennox 13 December 1886 Belgravia, London |
| Died | 13 June 1965 (aged 78) Alnwick, Northumberland, England |
| Spouse(s) | |
| Issue | 6, including Henry, Hugh and Elizabeth |
| Father | Charles Gordon-Lennox, 7th Duke of Richmond |
| Mother | Isabel Sophie Craven |
Early life
editShe was the second daughter of Charles Gordon-Lennox, Earl of March and Kinrara (later the 7th Duke of Richmond), and his second wife, Isabel Sophie Craven, herself the second daughter of William George Craven (a grandson of William Craven, 1st Earl of Craven) and Lady Mary Yorke (second daughter of Charles Yorke, 4th Earl of Hardwicke). From her father's first marriage to Amy Mary Ricardo, she had three half-brothers and two half-sisters,[2] including Charles Gordon-Lennox, 8th Duke of Richmond,[3] Lady Evelyn Gordon-Lennox (wife of Sir John Cotterell, 4th Baronet),[4] Lady Violet Gordon-Lennox (wife of Henry Brassey, 1st Baron Brassey, of Apethorpe),[4] Lord Esmé Charles Gordon-Lennox,[5] and Lord Bernard Charles Gordon-Lennox.[4]
Career
editShe was Mistress of the Robes to Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, from 1937 to 1964 and was appointed a Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order in 1938.[6]
Personal life
editShe was married on 18 October 1911 to Earl Percy, who succeeded his father as 8th Duke of Northumberland in 1918, whereupon she became known as the Duchess of Northumberland. The couple had six children:
- Henry George Alan Percy, 9th Duke of Northumberland (1912–1940), who was killed in action on 21 May 1940.[5]
- Hugh Algernon Percy, 10th Duke of Northumberland (1914–1988).[5]
- Lady Elizabeth Ivy Percy (1916–2008), who married Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, 14th Duke of Hamilton, in 1937.[5]
- Lady Diana Evelyn Percy (1917–1978), who married John Egerton, 6th Duke of Sutherland, in 1939 in Westminster Abbey.[5]
- Lord Richard Charles Percy (1921–1989), who married Sarah Jane Elizabeth Norton, daughter of Petre Norton, in 1966. After her death, he married Hon. Clayre Campbell, daughter of Alastair Campbell, 4th Baron Stratheden and Campbell, in 1979.[5]
- Lord Geoffrey William Percy (1925–1984), who married Mary Elizabeth Lea, daughter of Ralph Lea, in 1955.[5]
References
edit- ^ "Obituary: Dowager Duchess of Northumberland". The Times. The Times Digital Archive. 13 June 1965. p. 12.
- ^ Dod's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage of Great Britain and Ireland, Including All the Titled Classes. 1904. p. 1064. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ "DUKE OF RICHMOND DEAD AT AGE OF 64; Title, Inherited From Son of Charles II, One of Three of Rank Held by Him". The New York Times. 8 May 1935. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ a b c marquis de Ruvigny et Raineval, Melville Henry Massue (1914). The Titled Nobility of Europe: An International Peerage, Or "Who's Who," of the Sovereigns, Princes, and Nobles of Europe. Burke's Peerage. p. 1224. ISBN 978-0-85011-028-9. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Morris, Susan (20 April 2020). Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage 2019. eBook Partnership. p. 4129. ISBN 978-1-9997670-5-1. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ Profile of Helen Percy, Duchess of Northumberland