Lady Helen Cynthia Colville (née Milnes, later Crewe-Milnes; 20 May 1884 – 15 June 1968) was an English courtier and social worker, serving as a

Woman of the Bedchamber In the Royal Household of the United Kingdom the term Woman of the Bedchamber is used to describe a woman (usually a daughter of a peer) attending either a queen regnant or queen consort, in the role of lady-in-waiting. Historically the term 'Ge ...

to Queen Mary, while at the same time devoting her energies to alleviating the suffering of

Shoreditch Shoreditch is a district in the East End of London in England, and forms the southern part of the London Borough of Hackney. Neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets are also perceived as part of the area. In the 16th century, Shoreditch was an impor ...

, one of the poorest areas of the

East End of London The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have uni ...

Family

Colville was the third daughter of Robert Milnes, who succeeded when she was 15 months old as 2nd Baron Houghton (giving her the style "The Honourable"), by his first wife Sibyl, daughter of Sir Frederick Graham (of the

Graham Baronets There have been eight baronetcies created for persons with the surname Graham, two in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia, two in the Baronetage of England, one in the Baronetage of Great Britain and three in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. Th ...

of Netherby) and Lady Jane St Maur. She had an older sister, an older brother, and a twin sister. Her mother died young, and Cynthia and her siblings lived for a time with their unmarried uncle, the 3rd Baron Crewe, before rejoining their father, a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

politician when he was posted to Dublin as

Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the Kingdo ...

(from 1892 to 1895). In 1895, having inherited Lord Crewe's estates on his death the previous year, her father adopted the surname Crewe-Milnes and was created

Earl of Crewe 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", particula ...

, giving her the style of "Lady". In 1899, Lord Crewe re-married to Lady Margaret Etrenne Hannah "Peggy" Primrose (1881–1951), daughter of the

5th Earl of Rosebery Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, 1st Earl of Midlothian, (7 May 1847 – 21 May 1929) was a British Liberal Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from March 1894 to June 1895. Between the death of ...

, Liberal Prime Minister from 1894 to 1895, and his wife Hannah, an heiress to the Rothschild fortune. Cynthia's new stepmother was only 18; Cynthia and her stepmother were but three years apart in age. She married the Honourable George Charles Colville, younger son of the 1st Viscount Colville of Culross and his wife Cecile (née Carrington), on 21 January 1908. Their children were: *David Richard Colville (b. 11 May 1909 – d. 9 February 1987) *Major Philip Robert Colville (b. 7 November 1910 – d. 11 April 1997) * Sir John Rupert Colville (b. 28 January 1915 – d. 19 November 1987), the diarist.

Work

She started her work in

, which was a slum (a "socially derelict square mile", as her son described the area), before

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, focusing on

infant mortality Infant mortality is the death of young children under the age of 1. This death toll is measured by the infant mortality rate (IMR), which is the probability of deaths of children under one year of age per 1000 live births. The under-five morta ...

. The Socialist borough council co-opted her to their public health committee. In September 1950, she was elected the first chairman of the British Epilepsy Association.'Epilepsy Action history wall', Epilepsy Action, 2010
/ref> In February 1952 while serving as

to Queen Mary it fell to Colville to inform Queen Mary of the death of her son

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952. ...

. In 1952 she was appointed a lay justice at

Bow Street Magistrates' Court Bow Street Magistrates' Court became one of the most famous magistrates' court in England. Over its 266-year existence it occupied various buildings on Bow Street in Central London, immediately north-east of Covent Garden. It closed in 2006 and ...

Other

She raised eyebrows when she introduced a commoner,

Thomas Benjamin Frederick Davis Thomas Benjamin Frederick Davis (25 April 1867, in Havre des Pas, Saint Helier, Jersey – October 1942, in Durban, South Africa) was a wealthy businessman, yachtsman and philanthropist. Early life and education Thomas Davis was born at Havre ...

, albeit a

self-made man "Self-made man" is a classic phrase coined on February 2, 1842 by Henry Clay in the United States Senate, to describe individuals whose success lay within the individuals themselves, not with outside conditions. Benjamin Franklin, one of the Foun ...

, into her own stratum of society, persuading the Queen to invite him to dinner on the royal yacht HMY ''Victoria and Albert'' at the

Cowes Week Cowes Week ( ) is one of the longest-running regular regattas in the world. With 40 daily sailing races, up to 1,000 boats, and 8,000 competitors ranging from Olympic and world-class professionals to weekend sailors, it is the largest sailin ...

regatta.

Memorials

In 1948, Shoreditch Council renamed a

housing estate A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex or housing development) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Popular throughout the United States a ...

on Felton Street estate as "the Colville estate" in honour of her long association. In 1963, Lady Cynthia published her autobiography, ''Crowded Life''

Honours and awards

*She was appointed Officer of the

Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of c ...

(OStJ) *She held the office of

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

(JP) for the

County of London The County of London was a county of England from 1889 to 1965, corresponding to the area known today as Inner London. It was created as part of the general introduction of elected county government in England, by way of the Local Government A ...

*She held the office of

to HM Queen Mary between 1923 and 1953 *She was appointed

Dame Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (DCVO) The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

on 11 May 1937 *She was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 1953 *She was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Law (LL.D.) by

Leeds University , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

*She was invested as a Fellow of the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...

(FRCM) She is one of the very few "double dames", having been created a dame in two separate orders: the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

and the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...

Death

She died on 15 June 1968, aged 84, at 4 Mulberry Walk, Chelsea, London, England.

References

Citations

*L. G. Pine, ''The New Extinct Peerage 1884–1971: Containing Extinct, Abeyant, Dormant and Suspended Peerages With Genealogies and Arms'' (London, UK: Heraldry Today, 1972), page 90 *Charles Mosley, editor, ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage'', 107th edition, 3 volumes (Wilmington, Delaware:Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd., 2003), volume 1, page 867

External links

BBC report

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colville, Cynthia 1884 births 1968 deaths Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire Dames Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Officers of the Order of St John People from Chelsea, London Daughters of British marquesses Women of the Bedchamber English twins