Elizabeth Monck née Cavendish, Duchess of Albemarle

Elizabeth Monck, Duchess of Albemarle (22 February 1654 – 11 September 1734), later Elizabeth Montagu, Duchess of Montagu, was the eldest daughter of

Henry Cavendish, 2nd Duke of Newcastle Henry Cavendish, 2nd Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, KG, PC (24 June 1630 – 26 July 1691), styled Lord Cavendish until 1676, and Viscount Mansfield from 1676, was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1660 to 1676, and then ...

, and his wife, Frances Pierrepont (1630–1695; daughter of the Hon. William Pierrepont). Lady Elizabeth Cavendish married

Christopher Monck Christopher Monck, 2nd Duke of Albemarle (14 August 1653 – 6 October 1688) was an English soldier and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1667 to 1670 when he inherited the Dukedom and sat in the House of Lords. Origins Monc ...

(later

Duke of Albemarle The Dukedom of Albemarle () has been created twice in the Peerage of England, each time ending in extinction. Additionally, the title was created a third time by James II in exile and a fourth time by his son the Old Pretender, in the Jacobite ...

) on 30 December 1669 at

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It is the main ...

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 ...

. She went with her husband to

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

when he was appointed

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

in 1687; there Monck amassed a small fortune, which Elizabeth acquired and brought with her back to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

upon his death in the following year (1688). Elizabeth was given the epithet of "the Mad Duchess of Albemarle" -- viz. she declared that she would only marry into royalty and was convinced that the

Kangxi Emperor The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 1654– 20 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, born Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1661 to 1 ...

Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

wished to marry her. Her sister-in-law

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

's stepfather, the

Duke of Montagu The title of Duke of Montagu has been created twice, firstly for the Montagu family of Boughton, Northamptonshire, and secondly for the Brudenell family, Earls of Cardigan. It was first created in the Peerage of England in 1705 for Ralph Mo ...

-- suitably dressed as the

Emperor of China ''Huangdi'' (), translated into English as Emperor, was the superlative title held by monarchs of China who ruled various imperial regimes in Chinese history. In traditional Chinese political theory, the emperor was considered the Son of Heave ...

-- asked for her hand in marriage and they were wed on 8 September 1692 in

Newcastle House Newcastle House is a mansion in Lincoln's Inn Fields in central London, England. It was one of the two largest houses built in London's largest square during its development in the 17th century, the other being Lindsey House. It is the northernmo ...

, London. The comedic play '' The Double Gallant; or, Sick Lady's Cure'' (1707) was in part based on the story Duchess of Albemarle's marriage to the Duke of Montagu. "Richard, Lord Ross" -- one of her rejected suitors -- wrote the following lines of poem regarding the marriage: However, the holder of the title "Lord Ross" at that time was

William Ross, 12th Lord Ross William Ross, 12th Lord Ross (c.1656 – 15 March 1738), was a Scottish nobleman, soldier and politician. Origins Ross was born in about 1656. He was the son and heir of George Ross, 11th Lord Ross, who died in 1682, by Grizel, daughter of Wi ...

. Elizabeth died in 1734 and was buried in

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...

References

Sources

Beaulieu Palace
1654 births 1734 deaths Burials at Westminster Abbey

English duchesses by marriage Daughters of English dukes Wives of knights {{England-duke-stub