Helen Azalea "Poppy" Baring (8 November 1901 – 1980) was one of the

Bright Young Things __NOTOC__ The Bright Young Things, or Bright Young People, was a nickname given by the tabloid press to a group of Bohemianism, Bohemian young Aristocracy (class), aristocrats and socialites in 1920s London. They threw flamboyant costume party, f ...

of the 1920s. She had been the prospective bride of two princes, both times judged not suitable to the match.

Biography

Baring was born on 8 November 1901, the daughter of Sir Godfrey Baring, 1st Baronet of Nubia House, Cowes, Isle of Wight and Eva Hermione Mackintosh.Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003 She was the sixth generation in direct descent from United States Senator

William Bingham William Bingham (March 8, 1752February 7, 1804) was an American statesman from Philadelphia. He was a delegate for Pennsylvania to the Continental Congress from 1786 to 1788 and served in the United States Senate from 1795 to 1801. Bingham was o ...

, once America's richest man, and his wife Anne Willing Bingham. Their daughter married Baring in the first great international social match between an American bride and an English groom. In 1921

Albert, Duke of York 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 his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Indi ...

(the future king

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. ...

), fell in love with Baring, but she had the reputation of being "fast" and fun-loving. He proposed marriage, she accepted, but Queen Mary made it clear that the match was impossible. Six years later, Baring had an affair with

Prince George, Duke of Kent Prince George, Duke of Kent, (George Edward Alexander Edmund; 20 December 1902 – 25 August 1942) was a member of the British royal family, the fourth son of King George V and Queen Mary. He was a younger brother of kings Edward VIII and Geo ...

, but this time it was the King, George V, who objected to their romance because Poppy was not "suitable". Nevertheless, Poppy Baring was Prince George's mistress for many years. Her close friend was Lois Sturt. In October 1925, Baring assisted at the small, and apparently secret, wedding ceremony of

Francis Hastings, 16th Earl of Huntingdon Francis John Clarence Westenra Plantagenet Hastings, 16th Earl of Huntingdon (30 January 1901 – 24 August 1990), Courtesy title, styled ''Viscount Hastings'' until 1939, was a British artist, academic, and later a Labour Party (UK), Labour pa ...

, to Christina Casati, daughter of

Luisa Casati Luisa, Marchesa Casati Stampa di Soncino (born Luisa Adele Rosa Maria Amman; 23 January 1881 – 1 June 1957), was an Italian heiress, muse, and patroness of the arts in early 20th-century Europe. Early life Luisa Adele Rosa Maria Amman was born ...

. After the marriage, Baring and

Napier Sturt, 3rd Baron Alington Captain Napier George Henry Sturt, 3rd Baron Alington (1 November 1896 – 17 September 1940) was a British peer, the son of Humphrey Sturt, 2nd Baron Alington. He was born in November 1896 in the St. Marylebone district of London. He succeeded ...

(Lois' brother) accompanied the grooms to Dover. Poppy Baring, 1925

In 1927 Baring established a

dress shop A boutique () is a small shop that deals in fashionable clothing or accessories. The word is French for "shop", which derives ultimately from the Ancient Greek ἀποθήκη (''apothēkē'') "storehouse". The term ''boutique'' and also ''de ...

named "Poppy's" in Down Street where she sold the latest fashions. On 17 December 1928 she married William Piers "Peter" Thursby, an Eton cricketer, son of Reverend Harvey William Gustavus Thursby and Margaret Emily Mount. Raymund de Trafford was also a close friend of Baring, and went to stay with her soon after his release from prison in 1942. She died in 1980.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baring, Poppy 1901 births 1980 deaths 20th-century English businesspeople 20th-century English women 20th-century English people

Poppy A poppy is a flowering plant in the subfamily Papaveroideae of the family Papaveraceae. Poppies are herbaceous plants, often grown for their colourful flowers. One species of poppy, ''Papaver somniferum'', is the source of the narcotic drug opi ...

Daughters of baronets English people of American descent English socialites Mistresses of British royalty People from Cowes