Lady Elizabeth Mary Finch-Hatton (née Lady Elizabeth Mary Murray; 18 May 1760 – 1 June 1825) was a British aristocrat and the subject of a notable painting, once thought to be by

Johann Zoffany Johan Joseph Zoffany (born Johannes Josephus Zaufallij; 13 March 1733 – 11 November 1810) was a German neoclassical painter who was active mainly in England, Italy and India. His works appear in many prominent British collections, includin ...

, now attributed to

David Martin David or Dave Martin may refer to: Entertainment *David Martin (artist) (1737–1797), Scottish painter and engraver *David Stone Martin (1913–1992), American artist *David Martin (poet) (1915–1997), Hungarian-Australian poet and novelist *Dav ...

Biography

Early life

Murray was born on 18 May 1760 in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, Poland-Lithuania. She was the daughter of

David Murray, 2nd Earl of Mansfield David Murray, 2nd Earl of Mansfield, 7th Viscount of Stormont, (9 October 1727 – 1 September 1796), known as the (7th) Viscount of Stormont from 1748 to 1793, was a British politician. He succeeded to both the Mansfield and Stormont lines o ...

, by his first marriage to Countess Henriette Friederike von Bünau. Her maternal grandfather was Count Heinrich von Bünau. Following her mother's death in 1766, she was brought up at

Kenwood House Kenwood House (also known as the Iveagh Bequest) is a former stately home in Hampstead, London, on the northern boundary of Hampstead Heath. The house was originally constructed in the 17th century and served as a residence for the Earls of Mans ...

by her father's uncle

William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, PC, SL (2 March 170520 March 1793) was a British barrister, politician and judge noted for his reform of English law. Born to Scottish nobility, he was educated in Perth, Scotland, before moving to Lond ...

, and his wife, Elizabeth. They soon also took in their great-niece

Dido Elizabeth Belle Dido Elizabeth Belle (June 1761 – July 1804) was a British heiress and a member of the Lindsay family of Evelix. She was born into slavery and illegitimate; her mother, Maria Belle, was an enslaved African woman in the British West Indies. He ...

(1761-1804), the

mixed-race Mixed race people are people of more than one race or ethnicity. A variety of terms have been used both historically and presently for mixed race people in a variety of contexts, including ''multiethnic'', ''polyethnic'', occasionally ''bi-ethn ...

Illegitimate daughter Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce. Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as ''b ...

of Murray's nephew,

Sir John Lindsay Rear Admiral Sir John Lindsay, (1737 – 4 June 1788) was a British naval officer of the 18th century, who achieved the rank of admiral late in his career. Joining the Navy during the Seven Years' War, he served off France, followed by service ...

; he sent the young Dido to his uncle from the West Indies.

Marriage

She married George Finch-Hatton on 10 December 1785. They had three children: * Louisa Anne Hatton (d. 1 March 1875). *

George Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea George William Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea, 5th Earl of Nottingham (19 May 1791 – 8 January 1858) was an English politician known for duelling with the then Prime Minister, Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. Early life Hatton, ...

(19 May 1791 – 8 January 1858). * Reverend Daniel Heneage Finch-Hatton (1795 – Jan 1866). Coincidentally, George Finch-Hatton's father, Edward, and the 1st Earl of Mansfield's wife, Elizabeth, were both children of

Daniel Finch, 7th Earl of Winchilsea Daniel Finch, 2nd Earl of Nottingham, 7th Earl of Winchilsea, PC (2 July 16471 January 1730) was an English Tory statesman who supported the Hanoverian Succession in 1714. Origins He was born on 2 July 1647, the son of Heneage Finch, 1st Earl ...

, and Anne Hatton. Elizabeth Murray was the great-grandmother of

Denys Finch Hatton The Honourable Denys George Finch Hatton MC (24 April 1887 – 14 May 1931) was an English aristocratic big-game hunter and the lover of Baroness Karen Blixen (also known by her pen name, Isak Dinesen), a Danish noblewoman who wrote about him ...

, known as close friend of Danish author

Karen Blixen Baroness Karen Christenze von Blixen-Finecke (born Dinesen; 17 April 1885 – 7 September 1962) was a Danish author who wrote works in Danish and English. She is also known under her pen names Isak Dinesen, used in English-speaking countrie ...

Death

She died on 1 June 1825, aged 65.

In popular culture

''Let Justice Be Done''
by

Mixed Blessings Theatre Group Mixed is the past tense of ''mix''. Mixed may refer to: * Mixed (United Kingdom ethnicity category), an ethnicity category that has been used by the United Kingdom's Office for National Statistics since the 1991 Census * ''Mixed'' (album), a co ...

– a 2008 play featuring the possible influence that Elizabeth Lindsay's cousin Dido Elizabeth Belle might have had on the

Somerset v Stewart ''Somerset v Stewart'' (177298 ER 499(also known as ''Somersett's case'', ''v. XX Sommersett v Steuart and the Mansfield Judgment)'' is a judgment of the English Court of King's Bench in 1772, relating to the right of an enslaved person on En ...

ruling of 1772. *

Sarah Gadon Sarah Lynn Gadon (born April 4, 1987) is a Canadian actress. She began her acting career guest-starring in a number of television series, such as ''Are You Afraid of the Dark?'' (1999), '' Mutant X'' (2002), and ''Dark Oracle'' (2004). She also ...

portrayed Lady Elizabeth in the film '' Belle'' (2013).

References

1760 births 1825 deaths Daughters of British earls Clan Murray People from Hampstead {{UK-noble-stub