Elizabeth Laura Waldegrave, Countess Waldegrave (25 March 1760 – 29 January 1816), was a British noblewoman,

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the official r ...

and society beauty. She served at court as a

Lady of the Bedchamber Lady of the Bedchamber is the title of a lady-in-waiting holding the official position of personal attendant on a British queen regnant or queen consort. The position is traditionally held by the wife of a peer. They are ranked between the Mis ...

Charlotte, Princess Royal Charlotte, Princess Royal (Charlotte Augusta Matilda; 29 September 1766 – 5 October 1828), was Queen of Württemberg as the wife of King Frederick I. She was the eldest daughter and fourth child of King George III of the United Kingdom and hi ...

, eldest daughter of King

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

. She married her cousin,

George Waldegrave, 4th Earl Waldegrave George Waldegrave, 4th Earl Waldegrave, Viscount Chewton, PC, ADC (23 November 1751 – 22 October 1789) was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1774 to 1780. The eldest son of the 3rd Earl of Waldegrave, he was educated a ...

, in 1782.

Family

Lady Elizabeth Laura was born on 25 March 1760, the eldest daughter of statesman

James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave, (4 March 171513 April 1763) was a British politician who is sometimes regarded as one of the shortest-serving British prime ministers in history. His brief tenure as First Lord of the Treasury is lent a mo ...

, and

Maria Walpole Maria, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh (née Maria Walpole; 10 July 1736 – 22 August 1807) was Countess Waldegrave from 1759 to 1766 as the wife and then widow of James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave, and a member of the British royal f ...

, the illegitimate child of Sir

Edward Walpole Sir Edward Walpole KB PC (Ire) (1706 – 12 January 1784) was a British politician, and a younger son of Sir Robert Walpole, Prime Minister from 1721 to 1742. Early life The second son of Sir Robert Walpole, he was educated at Eton (1718) an ...

by his mistress,

Dorothy Clement Dorothy Clement (c. 1715 – c. 1739) as daughter of a Darlington postmaster, she was the mistress of Edward Walpole and mother of his four children, including Maria Walpole, who became Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh upon her marriage t ...

. She had two younger sisters, Lady Charlotte Maria, later wife of the 4th Duke of Grafton, and Lady Anna Horatia, who would marry

Lord Hugh Seymour Vice-Admiral Lord Hugh Seymour (29 April 1759 – 11 September 1801) was a senior British Royal Navy officer of the late 18th century who was the fifth son of Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford, and became known for being both a p ...

. When Elizabeth was three years of age, her father died of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

. As he had no sons, the title

Earl Waldegrave Earl Waldegrave is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1729 for James Waldegrave, 2nd Baron Waldegrave. History The Waldegrave family descends from Sir Richard Waldegrave, Speaker of the House of Commons from 1381 to ...

passed to his brother,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

. Elizabeth and her sisters subsequently took up residence with their mother at Ragman's Castle, a house in

Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...

. On 6 September 1766, her mother married secondly, and in secret,

Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh, (25 November 1743 – 25 August 1805), was a grandson of King George II and a younger brother of George III of the United Kingdom. Life Youth Prince William Henry was born at Leicester ...

, a member of the British Royal Family as the younger brother of King

. It was this marriage, made without the King's consent, which had led to the passing of the

Royal Marriages Act The Royal Marriages Act 1772 (12 Geo 3 c. 11) was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which prescribed the conditions under which members of the British royal family could contract a valid marriage, in order to guard against marriages th ...

in 1772. Elizabeth acquired three half-siblings, Princess Sophia, Princess Carolina (1774–1775), and Prince William Frederick by her mother's second marriage to the

Royal duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranke ...

. She and her sisters then lived at

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original cast ...

and Sophia Lodge in

Clewer Clewer (also known as Clewer Village) is an ecclesiastical parish and an area of Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in the county of Berkshire, England. Clewer makes up three Ward (electoral subdivision), wards of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maid ...

, both in

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

Countess Waldegrave

Lady Elizabeth's mother commissioned

Joshua Reynolds Sir Joshua Reynolds (16 July 1723 – 23 February 1792) was an English painter, specialising in portraits. John Russell said he was one of the major European painters of the 18th century. He promoted the "Grand Style" in painting which depend ...

to paint '' The Ladies Waldegrave'', a group portrait of Elizabeth and her two full-sisters, in the hopes of attracting suitors for them. Elizabeth's miniature was painted by

Samuel Shelley Samuel Shelley (1750/56–1808) was an English miniaturist and watercolour painter. Largely self-educated, Samuel Shelley was a leading miniaturist, i.e., painter of portrait miniatures, of his time, ranking with Cosway, Smart, and Crosse. In ...

, and

John Hoppner John Hoppner (4 April 175823 January 1810) was an English portrait painter, much influenced by Reynolds, who achieved fame as a brilliant colourist. Early life Hoppner was born in Whitechapel, London, the son of German parents – his mothe ...

did a half-length portrait of her. The year after Reynolds' painting was exhibited at the Royal Academy, Lady Elizabeth married her cousin, George Waldegrave, Viscount Chewton on 5 May 1782 at

Gloucester House Gloucester House or Gloucester Lodge is a former royal residence on the esplanade in the seaside resort of Weymouth on the south coast of England. It was the summer residence of Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh (1743–1 ...

Grosvenor Square Grosvenor Square is a large garden square in the Mayfair district of London. It is the centrepiece of the Mayfair property of the Duke of Westminster, and takes its name from the duke's surname "Grosvenor". It was developed for fashionable re ...

Piccadilly Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road that connects central London to Hammersmith, Earl's Court, ...

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 was 22 years old. The Viscount served as a Colonel of the 87th Regiment of Foot. On 22 October 1784, he succeeded as 4th Earl Waldegrave and henceforth she was styled Countess Waldegrave. In the years following her marriage, Elizabeth gave birth to six children: * Lady Maria Wilhelmina Waldegrave (1783- 20 February 1805), married Nathaniel Micklethwaite, by whom she had a son, Nathaniel Waldegrave John Branthwayt. *

George Waldegrave, 5th Earl Waldegrave George Waldegrave, 5th Earl Waldegrave (13 July 1784–29 June 1794) was the son of the 4th Earl Waldegrave and his wife, Elizabeth Waldegrave, Countess Waldegrave. Upon his father's death in 1789, he inherited his titles at the age of five b ...

(13 July 1784- 29 June 1794), died at the age of nine by drowning in the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

. * Lieutenant-Colonel

John Waldegrave, 6th Earl Waldegrave Lieutenant-Colonel John James Waldegrave, 6th Earl Waldegrave (31 July 17851835) was a British peer and soldier. Waldegrave was the second son of the 4th Earl Waldegrave and was educated at Eton. Upon his father's death in 1789, Waldegrave's eld ...

(31 July 1785- 28 September 1846), married Anne King, by whom he had issue. * Lieutenant Edward William Waldegrave (29 August 1787- 22 January 1809), drowned at sea * Vice-Admiral

William Waldegrave, 8th Earl Waldegrave Vice-Admiral William Waldegrave, 8th Earl Waldegrave, CB (27 October 1788 – 24 October 1859) was a British naval commander and politician. Waldegrave was the son of George Waldegrave, 4th Earl Waldegrave and his wife, the former Lady Elizab ...

(27 October 1788- 24 October 1859), married firstly Elizabeth Whitbread, by whom he had issue; secondly Sarah Whitear * Lady Charlotte Waldegrave (2 December 1789 - 3 January 1790), born posthumously.

Later life

She went to court on an unrecorded date where she served

as a Lady of the Bedchamber. When George III was incapacitated by mental illness in 1788 and 1789, she was one of the ladies who remained at the side of

Queen Charlotte Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (Sophia Charlotte; 19 May 1744 – 17 November 1818) was Queen of Great Britain and of Ireland as the wife of King George III from their marriage on 8 September 1761 until the union of the two kingdoms ...

offering her loyal support. Novelist

Frances Burney Frances Burney (13 June 1752 – 6 January 1840), also known as Fanny Burney and later Madame d'Arblay, was an English satirical novelist, diarist and playwright. In 1786–1790 she held the post as "Keeper of the Robes" to Charlotte of Mecklen ...

refers to Elizabeth, Countess Waldegrave in her diary. Elizabeth became a widow on 22 October 1789, at the age of twenty-nine. Her eldest son, George, succeeded his father as Earl Waldegrave. The boy drowned five years later while swimming in the

near

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

, and the title then passed to his younger brother, John. Elizabeth lost another son, Edward, when he was drowned in a shipwreck off the coast of Falmouth as he was sailing home from Spain in 1809. He had served as a lieutenant in the 7th Regiment

Dragoons Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat ...

. She died at the Gothic villa of Strawberry Hill in Twickenham (which had been inherited by her son the 6th Earl in 1797), on 29 January 1816 at the age of 55 and was buried beside her husband in

Great Packington Great Packington is a hamlet, civil parish and country park in the North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire, England.

.Women of History-W

Ancestry

References

External links

Stirnet: Waldegrave1
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waldegrave, Elizabeth Waldegrave, Countess 1760 births 1816 deaths British countesses Daughters of British earls Ladies of the Bedchamber Waldegrave family People from Twickenham People from Windsor, Berkshire