Henrietta Frances Spencer

George Romney : Henrietta Frances Spencer, later Countess of Bessborough, oil on canvas, around 1800

Lady Henrietta Frances Spencer (born June 16, 1761 in Wimbledon , † November 11, 1821 in Florence ) was a British noblewoman and the mistress of the Prince of Wales and later King George IV.

Life

Henrietta Frances Spencer was the second daughter of five children of the politician John Spencer, 1st Earl Spencer (1734–1783) and his wife Margaret Georgiana Poyntz (1737–1814), and was thus the great-great-granddaughter of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough , victor in the Battle of Höchstädt in the War of the Spanish Succession .

Her childhood revolved around perfect behavior and social representation. She and her siblings were taught exclusively at home by governesses and tutors with the help of the grandfather's library . With her older sister, Georgiana , Lady Henrietta Frances was not only one of the most admired beauties, she was also considered a trendsetter of her time.

On November 27, 1780, Lady Henrietta Frances married the Irish aristocrat Frederick Ponsonby, 3rd Earl of Bessborough (1758-1844), only son of William Ponsonby, 2nd Earl of Bessborough and Lady Caroline Cavendish in St. James Church in London . The marriage, which according to all reports was turbulent but also harmonious, had four children:

• Hon. John William (1781–1847), later 4th Earl of Bessborough ⚭ 1805 Lady Maria Fane (1787–1834)
• Hon. Sir Frederick Cavendish (1783–1837), Major-General ⚭ 1825 Lady Emily Charlotte Bathurst († 1877)
• Lady Caroline (1785–1828) ⚭ 1805 William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne (1779–1848)
• Hon. William Francis Spencer (1787–1855) ⚭ 1814 Lady Barbara Ashley-Cooper († 1844)

In addition, Lady Henrietta Frances was very interested in political life and was involved in the election campaign for the Whigs . The most important political figures met for talks in their London townhouse, including Charles James Fox , Richard Brinsley Sheridan , Lord Byron and Charles Gray, 2nd Earl Gray . She was also very familiar with the then Prince of Wales , later King George IV and William Pitt the Younger . Together with William Pitt, she campaigned for the emancipation of Catholics in Ireland, which the king did not approve - Pitt resigned as Prime Minister in 1802. Her other friends included Princess Caroline of Braunschweig and the French Queen Marie-Antoinette .

From a long-term love affair with the aristocrat and politician Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Earl Granville (1773-1846), Henrietta Frances had an illegitimate daughter, Lady Harriet Emma Arundel Stewart († 1852). Granville Leveson-Gower later married her niece, Lady Harriet Elizabeth Cavendish (1785-1862), daughter of William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire .

In addition to her social and political commitment, Lady Henrietta Frances wrote several poems. Henrietta Frances Ponsonby, Countess of Bessborough, died in Florence during a trip to Italy and was buried in the Cavendish Vault in Derby .

literature

• Amanda Foreman : The Duchess of Devonshire. The life of a passionate woman. Unabridged pocket edition. Piper, Munich et al. 2009, ISBN 978-3-492-25423-6 .
• Janet Gleeson: Privilege and Scandal. The Remarkable Life of Harriet Spencer, Sister of Georgiana. 1st US edition. Crown Publishers, New York NY 2007, ISBN 978-0-307-38197-2 .
• Charles Spencer, Earl Spencer: The Spencers. A Personal History of an English Family. 1st US edition. St. Martin's Press, New York NY et al. 2000, ISBN 0-312-26649-9 .
• Amanda Vickery: The Gentleman's Daughter. Women's Lives in Georgian England. Yale University Press, New Haven CT et al. 1999, ISBN 0-300-10222-4 .