George Francis Child-Villiers, 9th Earl of Jersey (15 February 1910 – 9 August 1998), was an
English peer and banker from the
Villiers family
Villiers ( ) is an aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. Over time, various members of the Villiers family were made knights, baronets, and peers. Peerages held by the Villiers family include the dukedoms of Buckingham (1623–1687) and Clevel ...
. Lord Jersey gave one of the family seats,
Osterley Park
Osterley Park and House is a Georgian country estate in west London, that straddles the London boroughs of Ealing and Hounslow. Originally dating from the 1570s, the estate contains a number of Grade I and II listed buildings, with the park l ...
, to the British nation in the late 1940s.
Early life
He was the son of
George Child-Villiers, 8th Earl of Jersey
George Henry Robert Child Villiers, 8th Earl of Jersey DL (2 June 1873 – 31 December 1923), was a British peer and Conservative politician from the Villiers family.
Villiers was the son of Victor Child Villiers, 7th Earl of Jersey, and the Ho ...
, and the former Lady Cynthia Almina Constance Mary Needham. He had three younger siblings, Lady Joan Child Villiers (wife of David
Colville),
Edward Mansel Child Villiers (who married Barbara Mary Frampton and, secondly, to Princess Maria Gloria Pignatelli Aragona Cortez, only daughter of Prince Antonia Pignatelli Aragona Cortez,
Duke of Terranova
Duke of Terranova ( es, Duque de Terranova) is a hereditary title in the Peerage of Spain, accompanied by the dignity of Grandee and granted in 1502 by Ferdinand II to "El Gran Capitán" (Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba), a general who negotiat ...
), and Lady Ann Child Villiers (the wife of Maj. Alexander Henry Elliot).
His paternal grandparents were
Victor Child Villiers, 7th Earl of Jersey
Victor Albert George Child Villiers, 7th Earl of Jersey, (20 March 1845 – 31 May 1915) was a British banker, Conservative politician and colonial administrator from the Villiers family. He served as Governor of New South Wales between 1891 and ...
, and the Hon.
Margaret Elizabeth (daughter of
William Leigh, 2nd Baron Leigh
William Henry Leigh, 2nd Baron Leigh, (17 January 1824 – 21 October 1905) was a British politician.
Life
He was the eldest of three sons born to Chandos Leigh, 1st Baron Leigh and his wife Margarette Willes. He was Lord of the Manor of Hunni ...
). Among his extended Villiers family were aunts Lady Margaret Child Villiers (wife of
Walter Rice, 7th Baron Dynevor
Walter FitzUryan Rice, 7th Baron Dynevor (17 August 1873 – 8 June 1956) was a British military officer, civil servant and Conservative politician. He was the only son and heir of the 6th Baron Dynevor.
Early life and family
He was educated at ...
), Lady Mary Julia Child Villiers (wife of
Thomas Pakenham, 5th Earl of Longford
Thomas Pakenham, 5th Earl of Longford, KP, MVO (19 October 1864 – 21 August 1915), known as Lord Silchester until 1887, was an Irish peer and soldier.
Biography
Born in Dublin, Longford was the eldest son of William Pakenham, 4th Earl of Lo ...
) and Lady Beatrice Child Villiers (wife of
Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany
Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany (; 24 July 1878 – 25 October 1957, usually Lord Dunsany) was an Anglo-Irish writer and dramatist. Over 90 volumes of fiction, essays, poems and plays appeared in his lifetime.Lanham, ...
). His maternal grandparents were
Francis Needham, 3rd Earl of Kilmorey
Francis Charles Needham, 3rd Earl of Kilmorey (2 August 1842 – 28 July 1915), styled Viscount Newry from 1851 to 1880, was an Anglo-Irish peer and Conservative Member of Parliament.
Background and education
Kilmorey was the eldest son of Fr ...
, and Ellen Constance Baldock (a daughter of
Edward Holmes Baldock
Edward Holmes Baldock (1812 – 15 August 1875) was a British Conservative Party politician. He was the son of Edward Holmes Baldock (dealer) (1777–1845), the prominent London dealer in French 18th-century furniture and reproductions.
He wa ...
, a
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
MP for
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
).
He was educated at
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, C ...
before attending
Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...
.
Career
Upon the death of his father at
Middleton Park in December 1923, he succeeded as the 9th
Earl of Jersey
Earl of the Island of Jersey, usually shortened to Earl of Jersey, is a title in the Peerage of England held by a branch of the Villiers family, which since 1819 has been the Child-Villiers family.
History
It was created in 1697 for the sta ...
and inherited nearly 20,000 acres of land in England.
Lord Jersey was a clerk with
Glyn, Mills & Co. in 1932 and served as chairman of
Wallace Brothers
The Wallace brothers were the six sons of Edinburgh architect Lewis Wallace. In varying combinations, the brothers established themselves as one of the leading nineteenth century East India merchants, trading in cotton, tea, coffee and other commo ...
Sassoon Bank (taken over by the
Standard Chartered Bank
Standard Chartered plc is a multinational bank with operations in consumer, corporate and institutional banking, and treasury services. Despite being headquartered in the United Kingdom, it does not conduct retail banking in the UK, and around ...
in 1976).
He fought in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, gaining the rank of Major in the Royal Artillery of the
Territorial Army.
[Mosley, Charles, editor. ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes''. ]Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...
, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003. pg. 2097.
The 9th Earl was responsible for the remodelling of the family seat,
Middleton Park in Oxfordshire, and employed
Edwin Lutyens
Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens ( ; 29 March 1869 – 1 January 1944) was an English architect known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era. He designed many English country houses, war memori ...
as an architect. When he tried to give Middleton to the National Trust, they refused on the grounds that the house had been remodelled by Lutyens – whose houses they now seek particularly. The 9th Earl gave
Osterley Park
Osterley Park and House is a Georgian country estate in west London, that straddles the London boroughs of Ealing and Hounslow. Originally dating from the 1570s, the estate contains a number of Grade I and II listed buildings, with the park l ...
in Hounslow to the nation in the late 1940s; he said of that house, "it took a trained staff of 12 to bring me a boiled egg in the morning, and the egg was always cold by the time it got to me!"
Claim to the throne of England
Under one
legitimist
The Legitimists (french: Légitimistes) are royalists who adhere to the rights of dynastic succession to the French crown of the descendants of the eldest branch of the Bourbon dynasty, which was overthrown in the 1830 July Revolution. They re ...
theory, Villiers was the rightful king of England, as the ultimate heir to
Anne Stanley, Countess of Castlehaven
Anne Stanley (May 1580 – c. 8 October 1647) was an English noblewoman. She was the eldest daughter of the Earl of Derby and, through her two marriages, became Baroness Chandos and later Countess of Castlehaven. She was a distant relative o ...
. Due to disputes over legal standing (some of these theorists contend that because the person on the throne since 1603 has not been the rightful monarch, no laws have changed since then, including divorce laws), both his grandson (the 10th Earl) and his eldest daughter (Lady Caroline) are considered his legal heir by different parties.
Personal life
Lord Jersey was married three times and twice divorced. He married his first wife, Patricia Richards (1914–2017) at
St Margaret's, Westminster
The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey, is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Palace of Westminster a ...
on 12 January 1932. She was the only child of Kenneth Richards, of
Cowcumbala, New South Wales,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
.
Before the Countess obtained a divorce from him in London in 1937,
they were the parents of one child:
* Lady Caroline Child-Villiers (b. 1934), who married
Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 6th Earl of Minto
Gilbert Edward George Lariston Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 6th Earl of Minto, (; 19 June 1928 – 7 September 2005) (nicknamed "Gibbie"), styled Viscount Melgund until 1975, was a Scottish peer.
Background and life
Lord Minto was the son of Vic ...
in 1952. They divorced in 1965 and she married Hon. John Douglas Stuart (second son of
James Stuart, 1st Viscount Stuart), in 1969. They also divorced and she married Hon. James Donald Diarmid Ogilvy (son of
David Ogilvy, 12th Earl of Airlie
Colonel David Lyulph Gore Wolseley Ogilvy, 12th and 7th Earl of Airlie (18 July 189328 December 1968) was a Scottish peer, soldier, and courtier.
He was the eldest son of David Ogilvy, 11th Earl of Airlie, and his wife, the former Lady Mabel ...
) in 1980.
A week after his divorce was finalized, Lord Jersey married American actress
Virginia Cherrill
Virginia Cherrill (April 12, 1908 – November 14, 1996) was an American actress best known for her role as the blind flower girl in Charlie Chaplin's ''City Lights'' (1931).
Early life
Virginia Cherrill was born on a farm in rural Carthag ...
on 30 July 1937 at the
Chelsea Register Office
Kensington and Chelsea Register Office is an office for the registration of births, deaths, marriages and civil partnerships located in Chelsea Old Town Hall in Chelsea, London. It has hosted the weddings of many notable people.
According to '' ...
. She was the ex-wife of actor
Cary Grant
Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...
and daughter of James E. Cherrill.
They divorced in 1946 without having had children together.
She later married Florian Martini, a World War II flying ace, before her death in 1996.
His third and last wife was Bianca Luciana Adriana Mottironi (d. 2005), whom he married on 16 October 1947.
She was the eldest daughter of furniture maker Enrico Mottironi of Via Goffredo Casalis in
Turin
Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. They had three children:
*
George Henry Child Villiers, Viscount Villiers
George Henry Child-Villiers, Viscount Villiers (29 August 1948 – 19 March 1998) was the first son of George Child-Villiers, 9th Earl of Jersey, and his third wife, Bianca Luciana Adriana Mottironi. He was a member of the Villiers family.
He was ...
(1948–1998), who married on 22 December 1969 Verna P. Stott; divorced 1973, with children. Married on 9 January 1974 Sacha Jane Hooper Valpy; divorced 1988, with children. Married in 1992 Stephanie Louisa Penman, with children.
* Lady Isabel Bianca Rosa Child-Villiers (b. 1950), married Peter Edward Harrison in 1974.
* Hon. Charles Victor Child-Villiers (1952–1991), married Brigitte Elisabeth Germaine Marchand, in 1975. They divorced in 1989,
Brigitte Elisabeth Germaine Marchand
/ref> before he lost his hearing suddenly and died in 1991, aged just 39.
Lord Jersey moved to Radier Manor in Jersey, where he lived with his third wife until his death on 9 August 1998. As his eldest son George
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...
died of a heart attack on 19 March 1998, several months before the Earls's death, he was succeeded by his grandson, William
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
, succeeded as the 10th Earl. His widow, the dowager Countess of Jersey, died in March 2005.
Notes and references
Sources
* Obituaries for the Dowager Countess of Jersey. ''The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' 16 March 2005, and ''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' 16 March 2005
Official notice of the Royal Warrant
dated 5 June 2000, published 18 September 2000 in the London Gazette
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...
for the elevation in rank, style, and precedence of the 10th Earl's three sisters, but not his half-brother.
External links
*
* Michael Rhodes
"Dowager Countess of Jersey, widow of the 9th Earl"
Usenet group uk.people.dead, 17 March 2005.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jersey, George Child Villiers, 9th Earl Of
1910 births
1998 deaths
20th-century English nobility
9
George Child Villiers, 9th Earl of Jersey
George Francis Child-Villiers, 9th Earl of Jersey (15 February 1910 – 9 August 1998), was an English peer and banker from the Villiers family. Lord Jersey gave one of the family seats, Osterley Park, to the British nation in the late 1940s ...
Earls in the Jacobite peerage
Viscounts Grandison