Frances Villiers, Countess of Jersey (''née'' Twysden; 25 February 1753 – 23 July 1821) was a British

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 ...

, one of the more notorious of the many mistresses of

King George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten ye ...

when he was

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rule ...

, "a scintillating society woman, a heady mix of charm, beauty, and sarcasm".Martin J. Levy, 'Villiers , Frances, countess of Jersey (1753–1821)', ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, May 2008

Early life

She was born Frances Twysden, in London, second and posthumous daughter of The Rt Rev. Dr

Philip Twysden Philip Twysden (1713–1752), was an Anglican clergyman who served in the Church of Ireland as Lord Bishop of Raphoe from 1747 to 1752. The circumstances of his death later became the subject of scandalous rumour. Early life and family He w ...

(c. 1714–1752),

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the sec ...

Lord Bishop of Raphoe (1746–1752) and his second wife Frances Carter (later wife of General James Johnston), daughter of Thomas Carter of Castlemartin,

Master of the Rolls in Ireland The Master of the Rolls in Ireland was a senior judicial office in the Irish Chancery under English and British rule, and was equivalent to the Master of the Rolls in the English Chancery. Originally called the Keeper of the Rolls, he was respons ...

. Her father was the third son of Sir William Twysden, 5th Baronet of Roydon Hall,

East Peckham East Peckham is a village and civil parish in Kent, England on the River Medway. The parish covers the main village as well as Hale Street and Beltring. History The Domesday entry for East and West Peckham reads:- :'' The Archbishop himself h ...

, Kent, by his wife and second cousin Jane Twisden. A scandal surrounded the death of her father on 2 November 1752; he was allegedly shot while attempting to rob a stagecoach near London. In March 1770, barely a month past her 17th birthday, Frances married George Villiers, the 4th Earl of Jersey (1735–1805), a 34-year-old

peer Peer may refer to: Sociology * Peer, an equal in age, education or social class; see Peer group * Peer, a member of the peerage; related to the term "peer of the realm" Computing * Peer, one of several functional units in the same layer of a ne ...

who had succeeded to his father's

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted noble ranks. Peerages include: Australia * Australian peers Belgium * Be ...

in August 1769. The year before, the 4th

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant " chieftain", particu ...

had been appointed a

Gentleman of the Bedchamber Gentleman of the Bedchamber was a title in the royal household of the Kingdom of England from the 11th century, later used also in the Kingdom of Great Britain. A Lord of the Bedchamber was a courtier in the Royal Households of the United Kingdo ...

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 B ...

. Her husband was appointed

Master of Horse Master of the Horse is an official position in several European nations. It was more common when most countries in Europe were monarchies, and is of varying prominence today. (Ancient Rome) The original Master of the Horse ( la, Magister Equitu ...

to the

in 1795.

Royal affairs

The future George IV began an affair with Lady Jersey, then a 40-year-old grandmother and mother of ten, in 1793. She was also romantically involved with other members of the English

aristocracy Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word' ...

, including the 5th Earl of Carlisle. It was not until 1794 that she lured the Prince of Wales away from

Maria Fitzherbert Maria Anne Fitzherbert (''née'' Smythe, previously Weld; 26 July 1756 – 27 March 1837) was a longtime companion of George, Prince of Wales (later King George IV of the United Kingdom). In 1785, they secretly contracted a marriage that was ...

, with whom he had undergone a form of marriage in a clandestine

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...

ceremony that all parties to it knew was invalid under the

Royal Marriages Act 1772 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 t ...

. Having encouraged the Prince of Wales to marry his

first cousin Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, ...

Caroline of Brunswick Caroline of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (Caroline Amelia Elizabeth; 17 May 1768 – 7 August 1821) was Queen of the United Kingdom and Hanover from 29 January 1820 until her death in 1821, being the estranged wife of King George IV. She was Pri ...

in 1794, to whom she was appointed

, Lady Jersey nevertheless made Caroline's life uncomfortable. In the long term, this made little difference, since the Prince and Princess of Wales had very little regard for each other, and after the birth of their child Princess Charlotte of Wales, they lived apart during their twenty-five year marriage. This left an emotional void for the Prince of Wales that Frances and other mistresses continued to fill, as did Mrs. Fitzherbert. Since Lady Jersey enjoyed the favour 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 ...

, even the displeasure of

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 ...

was not enough to threaten her position, and she continued to run the Prince of Wales' life and household for some time. In about 1803, her previously undisputed place as senior mistress to the Prince of Wales was challenged by his infatuation with Lady Hertford. In 1807, he replaced Lady Jersey, and she lost her position as Lady of the Bedchamber, and would come to have no active involvement with the royal court. According to ''Archaeologia Cantiana'',

The home of the Bishop's daughter Frances, Lady Jersey, a favourite of George IV, became a society gambling rendezvous, at which the reputations of her cousins were in no way enhanced.

Though it may be said the death of her husband—who had narrowly avoided imprisonment in 1802—in 1805 left her without the means to support her rank,Catalogue note for the portrait by Thomas Beach, R.A.
/ref> her son increased her jointure to £3,500 per annum and settled her debts many times. Nonetheless, "her attempts to economize appear to have been unavailing". She died on 25 July 1821 in

Cheltenham Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...

and was buried at

Middleton Stoney Middleton Stoney is a village and civil parish about west of Bicester, Oxfordshire. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 331. The parish measures about north–south and about east–west, and in 1959 its area was . Its eas ...

in the Villiers family vault.

Children

*Lady Charlotte Anne Villiers (1771–1808), married Lord William Russell in 1789, and had issue. *Lady Anne Barbara Frances Villiers (1772–1832), married

William Henry Lambton William Henry Lambton (1764–1797) was a British member of Parliament (MP) who represented the City of Durham in the House of Commons. He was the son of Major-General John Lambton, who preceded him as the MP for Durham, and the brother of Ra ...

and had issue, including

John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham John George Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, (12 April 1792 – 28 July 1840), also known as "Radical Jack" and commonly referred to in Canadian history texts simply as Lord Durham, was a British Whig statesman, colonial administrator, Governor G ...

; married secondly Hon. Charles Wyndham, son of Charles, 2nd Earl of Egremont. *

George Child Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey George Child Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey, GCH, PC (19 August 1773 – 3 October 1859), previously George Villiers and styled Viscount Villiers until 1805, was a British courtier and Conservative politician from the Villiers family. He added ...

(1773–1859), married Sarah Sophia Fane daughter of

John Fane, 10th Earl of Westmorland John Fane, 10th Earl of Westmorland, (1 June 175915 December 1841), styled Lord Burghersh between 1771 and 1774, was a British Tory politician of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, who served in most of the cabinets of the period, primari ...

and Sarah Anne Child, only child of Robert Child, the principal shareholder in the banking firm

Child & Co Child & Co. is a private bank. Founded in 1664, it is the oldest bank in the United Kingdom, and the third oldest bank in the world. Formerly independent, it is now owned by the NatWest Group. The Royal Bank of Scotland incorporating Child & Co ...

. * Lady Caroline Elizabeth Villiers (1774–1835), married firstly

Henry Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey Henry William Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey (17 May 1768 – 29 April 1854), styled Lord Paget between 1784 and 1812 and known as the Earl of Uxbridge between 1812 and 1815, was a British Army officer and politician. After serving as a member ...

and had issue. She divorced him in the Scottish courts in 1809 and married secondly,

George Campbell, 6th Duke of Argyll George William Campbell, 6th Duke of Argyll, (22 September 1768 – 22 October 1839), styled Earl of Campbell from 1768 to 1770 and Marquess of Lorne from 1770 to 1806, was a Scottish Whig politician and nobleman. Background Argyll was the e ...

. *Lady Georgiana Villiers, d. young. *Lady Sarah Villiers (b. 1779), married Charles Nathaniel Bayley in 1799. *Hon. William Augustus Henry Villiers (1780–1813), died unmarried in America, having assumed the surname of Mansel in 1802, pursuant to the will of Louisa Barbara, Lady Vernon daughter of Barbara Villiers and Bussy, 4th Lord Mansell. *Lady Elizabeth Villiers, d. unmarried 1810. *Lady Frances Elizabeth Villiers (1786–1866), married

John Ponsonby, 1st Viscount Ponsonby John Ponsonby, 1st Viscount Ponsonby, GCB (c. 1770 – 22 February 1855) was a longtime British diplomat and politician. He was considered an exceptionally handsome man – reportedly he was almost lynched as an aristocrat in a Paris street by ...

, in 1803. *Lady Harriet Villiers (1788–1870), married Richard Bagot,

Bishop of Oxford The Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. The current bishop is Steven Croft, following the confirmation of his elect ...

in 1806, and had issue.

Screen portrayal

Lady Jersey was played by

Caroline Blakiston Caroline Georgiana Blakiston (born 13 February 1933) is an English actress. She is best known in her native United Kingdom for her role in the television comedy series ''Brass'', to international audiences as Mon Mothma in the ''Star Wars'' fil ...

in the TV series ''Prince Regent'' in 1979.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jersey, Frances Villiers, Countess Of 1753 births 1821 deaths

Frances Frances is a French and English given name of Latin origin. In Latin the meaning of the name Frances is 'from France' or 'free one.' The male version of the name in English is Francis. The original Franciscus, meaning "Frenchman", comes from the F ...

Mistresses of George IV of the United Kingdom English countesses Frances Villiers, Countess of Jersey Women of the Regency era Ladies of the Bedchamber Court of George III of the United Kingdom

Early life

Royal affairs

Children

Screen portrayal

See also

Notes