Elizabeth Hester Douglas-Home, Baroness Home of the Hirsel (; 6 November 1909 – 3 September 1990) was the wife of British politician and prime minister
Alec Douglas-Home.
Biography
She was born Elizabeth Hester Alington, the second daughter of the Very Rev
Cyril Alington—headmaster of
Shrewsbury School
Shrewsbury School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13 –18) in Shrewsbury.
Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by Royal Charter, it was originally a boarding school for boys; girls have been admitted into ...
and
Eton College
Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...
successively, as well as
chaplain to
King George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936.
Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...
—and his wife, Hester Margaret Lyttelton, daughter of
George Lyttelton, 4th Baron Lyttelton
George William Lyttelton, 4th Baron Lyttelton, 4th Baron Westcote, (31 March 1817 – 19 April 1876) was an English aristocrat and Conservative politician from the Lyttelton family. He was chairman of the Canterbury Association, which encourag ...
. Elizabeth was the first woman to become a fellow (governor) of Eton.
She married
Alec Douglas-Home on 3 October 1936. Thanks to her husband acquiring and renouncing various titles, she had, according to ''
The Guinness Book of Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
'', more names successively in her lifetime than any other once-married,
British-only woman.
The couple had four children:
* Lady (Lavinia) Caroline Douglas-Home DL (b. 11 Oct 1937), who served as a Lady-in-Waiting to various members of the Royal Family
* Lady Meriel Kathleen Douglas-Home (b. 27 Nov 1939), m. Adrian Darby, Bursar of
Keble College
Keble College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its main buildings are on Parks Road, opposite the University Museum and the University Parks. The college is bordered to the north by Keble Road, to ...
, Oxford
* Lady Diana Lucy Douglas-Home (b. 18 Dec 1940), m. James Wolfe Murray
*
David Alexander Cospatrick Douglas-Home, 15th Earl of Home (20 Nov 1943-22 Aug 2022).
She died on 3 September 1990 at the age of 80.
Her husband outlived her by just over five years. They had been married for 53 years.
References
Bibliography
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Douglas-Home, Elizabeth
1909 births
1990 deaths
Spouses of prime ministers of the United Kingdom
Home of the Hirsel
Home
Spouses of life peers
Wives of knights