Anne Grenville, Baroness Grenville (, September 1772 – June 1864) was an English noblewoman and author, and a member of the

Pitt family The Pitt family were an English aristocratic family whose members included the Earls of Chatham, the Earls of Londonderry and the Barons Camelford. The family produced two British Prime Ministers: William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, and his so ...

, which at the time dominated British politics.

Biography

Anne Pitt was the daughter of

Thomas Pitt, 1st Baron Camelford Thomas Pitt, 1st Baron Camelford (3 March 1737 – 19 January 1793) was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1761 until 1784 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Camelford. He was an art connoisseur. Early life Pitt ...

and his wife, Anne Wilkinson. Her granduncle was

William Pitt the Elder William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, (15 November 170811 May 1778) was a British statesman of the Whig group who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1766 to 1768. Historians call him Chatham or William Pitt the Elder to distinguish ...

. She married then-

Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...

William Wyndham Grenville, Baron Grenville, on 18 July 1792. The Grenville family was already associated with the Pitts family, through

Pitt the Elder William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, (15 November 170811 May 1778) was a British statesman of the Whig group who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1766 to 1768. Historians call him Chatham or William Pitt the Elder to distinguish ...

's marriage to Hester Grenville, William Grenville's aunt. Both Anne Pitt and

William Pitt the Younger William Pitt the Younger (28 May 175923 January 1806) was a British statesman, the youngest and last prime minister of Great Britain (before the Acts of Union 1800) and then first prime minister of the United Kingdom (of Great Britain and Ire ...

were his cousins. The union was supported by her father, Baron Camelford and Grenville's uncle, The Marquess of Buckingham, a dominant figure in the Grenville family who provided a £20,000 dowery. Grenville went on to be

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

from 1806 to 1807. In 1804, Anne Pitt inherited the considerable wealth of her brother "the half-mad Lord",

Thomas Pitt, 2nd Baron Camelford Thomas Pitt, 2nd Baron Camelford (19 February 1775 – 10 March 1804) was a British peer, naval officer and wastrel, best known for wiktionary:bedevil, bedevilling George Vancouver during and after the latter's Vancouver Expedition, great voyage ...

, who had been killed in a duel. The inheritance amounted to £500,000 in value, including the Boconnoc House and estates in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

, and Camelford House in London. Grenville died in 1834, and Anne survived him until June 1864. Two archives of her correspondence exist in the British Library and in the Hampshire Archives.

References

1772 births 1864 deaths Daughters of barons British baronesses

Anne 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 ...

Spouses of prime ministers of the United Kingdom {{UK-noble-stub