Cynthia Jane Fellowes, Baroness Fellowes (''née'' Spencer; born 11 February 1957), is one of the two older sisters of
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...
, the other being
Lady Sarah McCorquodale.
Early life and education
Lady Fellowes is the second daughter of
Edward John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer (1924–1992), and the Hon.
Frances Ruth Burke Roche (1936–2004). Her parents married in 1954 but divorced in 1969. She has always used her middle name of Jane (just as her elder sister also uses one of her middle names). One of Jane's godparents is
Prince Edward, Duke of Kent. She was a bridesmaid at his 1961
wedding to
Katharine Worsley
Katharine, Duchess of Kent, (born Katharine Lucy Mary Worsley, 22 February 1933) is a member of the British royal family. She is married to Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, a grandson of King George V.
The Duchess of Kent converted to Roman Cath ...
.
Like her sisters, Lady Fellowes was educated at
West Heath boarding school near
Sevenoaks in Kent. Sources say she was an excellent student, achieving the status of school
Prefect and passing a good number of
A-level
The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...
exams. To paraphrase
Andrew Morton, Lady Fellowes acquired a "hatful" of
O-level and A-level exams.
Marriage and children
On 20 April 1978, Jane married her distant relation
Robert Fellowes (b. 1941), then assistant private secretary to the Queen. During the ceremony at
Westminster Abbey, Jane's sister Diana was a bridesmaid.
On 12 July 1999, Robert Fellowes was granted a
life peerage as Baron Fellowes, of
Shotesham in the County of Norfolk, after first being knighted as Sir Robert Fellowes.
Lord and Lady Fellowes have three children and four grandchildren:
*The Honourable Laura Jane Fellowes (19 July 1980); married Nicholas Peter Pettman on 30 May 2009. The couple has two sons.
*The Honourable Alexander Robert Fellowes (23 March 1983); married Alexandra Finlay on 20 September 2013. They have two children:
**Robert George Fellowes (10 April 2015)
**Rose Jane Fellowes (10 August 2016)
*The Honourable Eleanor Ruth Fellowes (20 August 1985)
These children are maternal first cousins of
Prince William and
Prince Harry and also paternal second cousins of
Sarah, Duchess of York. Laura is godmother to Prince William's daughter,
Princess Charlotte.
Relationship with Diana, Princess of Wales
After Diana's death, conflicting views about the two sisters' relationship were voiced. Diana's butler
Paul Burrell stated that the relationship was strained because of Lord Fellowes's position as secretary to the Queen, and that by the time of Diana's death they had not spoken in a number of years. On the other hand, Diana's childhood nanny, Mary Clarke, author of memoirs about her experience raising Diana, stated that the relations between Lady Fellowes and Diana were not as bitter as Burrell and others have said or assumed. It is not clear when their relationship deteriorated (if it did), but the sisters were neighbours on the
Kensington Palace
Kensington Palace is a royal residence set in Kensington Gardens, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. It has been a residence of the British royal family since the 17th century, and is currently the official L ...
estate, with Diana living at numbers 8 and 9, and Lady Fellowes living at a house called the Old Barracks.
Lady Fellowes and her sister
Lady Sarah McCorquodale flew to Paris with their former brother-in-law
Prince Charles
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...
to escort the Princess's body back for the
public funeral. Witnesses reported that Lady Fellowes was very upset and needed to be assisted into a chair after seeing Diana's body at the hospital in Paris. Lady Sarah and Lady Fellowes played a part in the public funeral ceremony.
Since Diana's death, Lord and Lady Fellowes have led a largely private life, along with their three children. Lady Fellowes attended
the wedding of
Prince William and
Catherine Middleton on 29 April 2011.
She also attended
the wedding of
Prince Harry and
Meghan Markle on 19 May 2018, at which she delivered a reading.
References
Bibliography
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*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fellowes, Jane
1957 births
Living people
Jane Fellowes
Spouses of life peers
Daughters of British earls
British baronesses
Wives of knights