Lady Elizabeth Clyde (born Elizabeth Wellesley, 26 December 1918 – 25 November 2013) was an English

socialite A socialite is a person from a wealthy and (possibly) aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having traditio ...

. She was the daughter of

Gerald Wellesley, 7th Duke of Wellington Gerald Wellesley, 7th Duke of Wellington, (21 August 1885 – 4 January 1972), styled Lord Gerald Wellesley between 1900 and 1943, was an Anglo-Irish diplomat, soldier, and architect. Background and education Wellesley was the third son of Lor ...

, and Dorothy Violet Ashton, and thus a great-great-granddaughter of

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister o ...

Early life

Elizabeth Wellesley was born on

Boxing Day Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide (26 December). Though it originated as a holiday to give gifts to the poor, today Boxing Day is primarily known as a shopping holiday. It ...

1918 to

Gerald Gerald is a male Germanic given name meaning "rule of the spear" from the prefix ''ger-'' ("spear") and suffix ''-wald'' ("rule"). Variants include the English given name Jerrold, the feminine nickname Jeri and the Welsh language Gerallt and Iri ...

and

Dorothy Wellesley Dorothy Violet Wellesley, Duchess of Wellington ( Ashton; 30 July 1889 – 11 July 1956), styled Lady Gerald Wellesley between 1914 and 1943, was an England, English author, poet, literary editor and socialite. Background She was born in Wh ...

(née Ashton) in London. She was christened in the Chapel Royal, St. James Palace with the special permission of King George V. Soon after her birth, the family purchased two homes: 43 Portland Place in London, and Sherfield Court in Hampshire.

Personal life

Clyde announced her engagement to Major Thomas Clyde of the Royal Horse Guards, son of William Pancoast Clyde, Jr., on 24 October 1939. They married on 18 November 1939 at St. Peter's Church, Vere Street, in London, with her brother as best man. A reception followed at her father's home at

Chester Terrace Chester Terrace is one of the neo-classical terraces in Regent's Park, London. The terrace has the longest unbroken facade in Regent's Park, of about . It takes its name from one of the titles of George IV before he became king, Earl of Cheste ...

, featuring a wedding cake designed by

Rex Whistler Reginald John "Rex" Whistler (24 June 190518 July 1944) was a British artist, who painted murals and society portraits, and designed theatrical costumes. He was killed in action in Normandy in World War II. Whistler was the brother of poet and ...

and made by

Fortnum & Mason Fortnum & Mason (colloquially often shortened to just Fortnum's) is an upmarket department store in Piccadilly, London, with additional stores at The Royal Exchange, St Pancras railway station, Heathrow Airport in London and K11 Musea In Hong ...

. The family lived at Dorney, Buckinghamshire. Her children are: *

Jeremy Clyde Michael Jeremy Thomas Clyde (born 22 March 1941) is an English actor and musician. During the 1960s, he was one-half of the folk duo Chad & Jeremy (with Chad Stuart), who had little success in the UK, but were an object of interest to American ...

(born 22 March 1941), actor and musician * Robin Clyde (19 April 1943 – 13 February 1950) * William Jonathan Clyde (born 27 May 1949) Clyde filed for divorce in 1959 on grounds of adultery, and was granted custody of the couple's youngest son. She and Thomas remained "close and supportive friends" until his death in 1999. She retired to

Bramley, Hampshire Bramley is a village and parish in Hampshire, England. In the 2001 census it had a population of 3,348. It has a village shop, bakery, estate agency, pub – The Bramley Inn (opened in 1897 as The Six Bells) – and a railway station. Also, ...

.''

Life Magazine ''Life'' was an American magazine published weekly from 1883 to 1972, as an intermittent "special" until 1978, and as a monthly from 1978 until 2000. During its golden age from 1936 to 1972, ''Life'' was a wide-ranging weekly general-interest ma ...

'', 30 March 1953, p. 12

/ref>

References

1918 births 2013 deaths Daughters of British dukes English socialites Elizabeth Clyde People from Buckinghamshire People from Bramley, Hampshire {{UK-noble-stub pt:Lady Elizabeth Clyde