Henrietta Bentinck, Duchess of Portland (1774 – 24 April 1844), formerly Henrietta Scott, was the wife of
William Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland
William Henry Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland, (24 June 1768 – 27 March 1854), styled Marquess of Titchfield until 1809, was a British politician who served in various positions in the governments of George Canning and Lord ...
.
Henrietta was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, and was the eldest daughter and the heiress of
Major-General John Scott
Major General John Scott (1725–1775) "of Balcomie and Scotstarvit" in Scotland, was a Scottish politician and senior British Army officer. He was nicknamed Pawky Scott (Pawky being in Scots dialect "sly, shrewd or one who tricks you").
...
of
Fife
Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...
and his second wife, the former Margaret Dundas. Prior to her marriage, she was sometimes referred to as "the rich Miss Scott", to differentiate her from her two younger sisters.
Henrietta married the future duke in London on 4 August 1795, when he was styled Marquess of Titchfield. The marquess obtained Royal Licence to take the name and arms of Scott in addition to that of Cavendish-Bentinck. They had nine children:
*
William Henry, Marquess of Titchfield (22 October 1796 – 5 March 1824)
*Lady Margaret Harriet Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1798-1882), who died unmarried
*Lady Caroline Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1799-1828)
*
William Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 5th Duke of Portland
William John Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 5th Duke of Portland (17 September 1800 – 6 December 1879), styled Lord John Bentinck before 1824 and Marquess of Titchfield between 1824 and 1854, was a British Army officer and peer, most remembered for ...
(1800-1879)
*
Lord George Frederick Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1802-1848), who died unmarried
*
Lord Henry William Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1804-1870), who died unmarried
*Lady Charlotte Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1806-1889), who married
John Evelyn Denison, 1st Viscount Ossington
John Evelyn Denison, 1st Viscount Ossington, PC (27 January 1800 – 7 March 1873) was a British statesman who served as Speaker of the House of Commons from 1857 to 1872. He is the eponym of Speaker Denison's rule.
Background and education
D ...
*Lady Lucy Joan Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1807-1899), who married
Charles Ellis, 6th Baron Howard de Walden
Charles Augustus Ellis, 6th Baron Howard de Walden and 2nd Baron Seaford (5 June 1799 – 29 August 1868), was a British diplomat and politician.
Lineage
Ellis was the son of Charles Ellis, 1st Baron Seaford and his wife, the Honourable Elizabe ...
, and had children
*Lady Mary Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1809-1874), who married Lt.-Col. Sir William Topham
[Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003. Page 3184]
The marquess inherited his father's dukedom in 1809, and Henrietta became Duchess of Portland. Their family home was
Welbeck Abbey
Welbeck Abbey in the Dukeries in North Nottinghamshire was the site of a monastery belonging to the Premonstratensian order in England and after the Dissolution of the Monasteries, a country house residence of the Dukes of Portland. It is one ...
, Nottinghamshire, where the duke kept racehorses and carried out extensive irrigation works.
Two of the couple's sons predeceased their parents: the Marquess of Titchfield died of a brain lesion, aged 27, and Lord George Bentinck of a heart attack. The duchess predeceased her husband, who died at Welbeck Abbey in March 1854, aged 85.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Portland, Duchess of, Henrietta Bentinck
1774 births
1844 deaths
British duchesses by marriage