Dame Ann Parker Bowles (''née'' de Trafford; 14 July 1918 – 22 January 1987) was a British aristocrat and

Girl Guides Girl Guides (known as Girl Scouts in the United States and some other countries) is a worldwide movement, originally and largely still designed for girls and women only. The movement began in 1909 when girls requested to join the then-grassroot ...

leader.

Background

Ann de Trafford was born in 1918 in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, the eldest daughter of millionaire

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

owner

Sir Humphrey de Trafford, 4th Baronet Sir Humphrey Edmund de Trafford, 4th Baronet (30 November 1891 – 6 October 1971) was a prominent English racehorse owner, and the grandfather of Brigadier Andrew Parker Bowles. He was the son of Sir Humphrey de Trafford, 3rd Baronet, and Violet ...

, and the Hon. Cynthia Hilda Evelyn Cadogan, a daughter of

Henry Cadogan, Viscount Chelsea Henry Arthur Cadogan, Viscount Chelsea, (born Henry Arthur Cadogan; 13 June 1868 – 2 July 1908) was a British Army officer, civil servant and politician. This Viscount Chelsea (the title is a courtesy title) was a Conservative Member of the H ...

. The

de Trafford Baronets The de Trafford Baronetcy, of Trafford Park in the County Palatine of Lancaster is a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. Background The creation of Trafford: In April 1016, King Cnut Sweynson of Norway and his army swept North-Wes ...

descend from a pre-

Conquest Conquest is the act of military subjugation of an enemy by force of arms. Military history provides many examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of vast areas of the Indian subcontinent, t ...

-founded line of recusant (a term coined to describe the minority of English people who remained

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

during and after the

English Reformation The English Reformation took place in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away from the authority of the pope and the Catholic Church. These events were part of the wider European Protestant Reformation, a religious and poli ...

in a time of religious persecution)

lords of the manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seigno ...

who were wealthy in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

and restored to hereditary title in the mid-19th century. Ann (later Dame Ann) continued to adhere to the religion of her family, Roman Catholicism.

Honours

Ann de Trafford was a Commissioner of the Commonwealth Girl Guides Association. For these and other services to the Commonwealth she was invested as

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(CBE) in 1972,Ann Parker Bowles gazetted as CBE
thegazette.co.uk; accessed 2 April 2016. and, five years later, as a

Dame Commander of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

(DCVO) in 1977.Profile and children
thepeerage.com; retrieved 26 October 2013.

Marriage and children

On 14 February 1939 she married Derek Henry Parker Bowles, son of Eustace Parker Bowles (born Eustace Parker) and Wilma Mary Garnault Bowles, only daughter of Sir Henry Ferryman Bowles, 1st Baronet. They had four children: * Brigadier Andrew Henry Parker Bowles (b. 27 December 1939) * Simon Humphrey Parker Bowles (b. 6 November 1941) * Mary Ann Parker Bowles (b. 9 June 1945) * Richard Eustace Parker Bowles (b. 7 November 1947 – d. 2010) Her eldest son Andrew was the first husband of

Camilla, Queen Consort Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is Queen Consort of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. She became queen consort on 8 September 2022, upon the acc ...

References

External links

British Pathé Online Archive coverage of her wedding
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parkerbowles, Ann 1918 births 1987 deaths British Roman Catholics British socialites Dames Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Daughters of baronets Girlguiding officials Place of birth missing Place of death missing 20th-century Roman Catholics

Ann Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...

De Trafford family 20th-century British businesspeople