James Robert Bruce Ogilvy (born 29 February 1964) is a British landscape designer, and the founder and editor of '' Luxury Briefing''. He is a relative of the British royal family as the elder child and only son of

Sir Angus Ogilvy Sir Angus James Bruce Ogilvy (14 September 1928 – 26 December 2004) was a British businessman. He is best known as the husband of Princess Alexandra of Kent, a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. Ogilvy is also remembered for his role in a bu ...

and

Princess Alexandra of Kent Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy (Alexandra Helen Elizabeth Olga Christabel; born 25 December 1936) is a member of the British royal family. Queen Elizabeth II and Alexandra were first cousins through their fathers, King George V ...

. His mother was a first cousin of Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states durin ...

, both being granddaughters of

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother ...

. As a result, he is a second cousin of

King Charles III 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 a ...

Early life and family

Ogilvy was born in

Thatched House Lodge Thatched House Lodge is a Grade II-listed building, dating from the 17th century, in Richmond Park in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in London, England. It was the home of British prime minister Sir Robert Walpole and, since 1963 ...

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of London's Royal Parks, and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I in the 17th century as a deer park ...

, Surrey. He was the first of four children born to royalty within a space of nine weeks in 1964, the others being Prince Edward, Lady Helen Windsor and

Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones Lady Sarah Frances Elizabeth Chatto (née Armstrong-Jones; born 1 May 1964) is the only daughter of Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon. She and her brother, David Armstrong-Jones, 2nd Earl of Snowdon, are the onl ...

. Ogilvy was baptised by

Arthur Michael Ramsey Arthur Michael Ramsey, Baron Ramsey of Canterbury, (14 November 1904 – 23 April 1988) was an English Anglican bishop and life peer. He served as the 100th Archbishop of Canterbury. He was appointed on 31 May 1961 and held the office until 1 ...

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Just ...

, with

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

among his seven godparents. When he was born, he was 13th in the

line of succession to the British throne Succession to the British throne is determined by descent, gender, legitimacy and religion. Under common law, the Crown is inherited by a sovereign's children or by a childless sovereign's nearest collateral line. The Bill of Rights 1689 a ...

. As of September 2022, he is 57th.

Education and professional life

His education began in the "palace school" with his cousins Prince Edward, Lady Helen Windsor and

. Subsequently, Ogilvy attended Gibbs

pre-prep A preparatory school (or, shortened: prep school) in the United Kingdom is a fee-charging independent primary school that caters for children up to approximately the age of 13. The term "preparatory school" is used as it ''prepares'' the child ...

and

Heatherdown Preparatory School Heatherdown School, formally called Heatherdown Preparatory School, was an independent preparatory school for boys, near Ascot, in the English county of Berkshire. Set in of grounds, it typically taught between eighty and ninety boys between t ...

(with Prince Edward). After that, Ogilvy and Prince Edward went separate ways, the prince to

Gordonstoun Gordonstoun School is a co-educational independent school for boarding and day pupils in Moray, Scotland. It is named after the estate owned by Sir Robert Gordon in the 17th century; the school now uses this estate as its campus. It is locate ...

and

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, and Ogilvy to

Eton College Eton College () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI of England, Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. i ...

and the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

. From St. Andrews, he earned a Scottish Master of Arts degree in

History of art The history of art focuses on objects made by humans for any number of spiritual, narrative, philosophical, symbolic, conceptual, documentary, decorative, and even functional and other purposes, but with a primary emphasis on its aesthetics, ae ...

. He then attended the full-time MBA course at Cranfield from 1990 to 1991, obtaining the MBA qualification. He worked for Barclays de Zoete Wedd (BZW) and then a

shipping agency A shipping agency or shipping agent is the designated person or agency held responsible for handling shipments and cargo, and the general interests of its customers, at ports and harbors worldwide, on behalf of ship owners, managers, and cha ...

in Edinburgh. He is the publisher and founder of '' Luxury Briefing'', a magazine launched in 1996, and has served on numerous boards of directors. Ogilvy is also a professional photographer and landscape designer.

Personal life

He married Julia Caroline Rawlinson, daughter of Charles Frederick Melville Rawlinson, of

Arkesden Arkesden is a village and civil parish in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England. The village is south-west from Saffron Walden, approximately from Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, and north-west from the county town of Chelmsford. The ...

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

, a merchant banker, on 30 July 1988 at St Mary's Church in

Saffron Walden Saffron Walden is a market town in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England, north of Bishop's Stortford, south of Cambridge and north of London. It retains a rural appearance and some buildings of the medieval period. The population was 15, ...

. The couple have two children: * Flora Alexandra Vesterberg (born 15 December 1994 in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, Scotland) who studied History of Art at the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

and has a masters degree from the

Courtauld Institute The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. It is among the most prestigious specialist c ...

of Art: she runs a contemporary art agency. She married Swedish financier Timothy Vesterberg at the

Chapel Royal, St James's Palace The Chapel Royal is an establishment in the Royal Household serving the spiritual needs of the sovereign and the British Royal Family. Historically it was a body of priests and singers that travelled with the monarch. The term is now also appl ...

on 26 September 2020 and renewed their vows the following year. * Alexander Charles Ogilvy (born 12 November 1996 in

, Scotland) who attended

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

. He is also a godfather of

Princess Eugenie Princess Eugenie, Mrs Jack Brooksbank ( ; Eugenie Victoria Helena; born 23 March 1990) is a member of the British royal family. She is the younger daughter of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and Sarah, Duchess of York. She is a niece of King Ch ...

, the younger daughter of his second cousin,

Prince Andrew, Duke of York Prince Andrew, Duke of York, (Andrew Albert Christian Edward; born 19 February 1960) is a member of the British royal family. He is the younger brother of King Charles III and the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Princ ...

, and

Sarah, Duchess of York Sarah, Duchess of York (born Sarah Margaret Ferguson; 15 October 1959), also known by the nickname Fergie, is a member of the British royal family. She is the former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, the younger brother of King Charles III ...

. In 1997, while on holiday in Florida with his wife and children, he swam out into the ocean and was bitten by a shark. Ogilvy had several leg wounds and required 30 stitches.

Ancestry

His maternal grandparents were

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 ...

, the fourth son of

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

; and

Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent (27 August 1968), born Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark ( el, Μαρίνα), was a Greek princess by birth and a British princess by marriage. She was a daughter of Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark a ...

. Princess Marina was the daughter of

Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark ( el, Νικόλαος; 22 January 1872 – 8 February 1938), of the Glücksburg branch of the House of Oldenburg, was the fourth child and third son of King George I of Greece, and of Queen Olga. He was kn ...

and

Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna of Russia Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna of Russia (29 January 1882 – 13 March 1957), sometimes known as Helen, Helena, Helene, Ellen, Yelena, Hélène, or Eleni, was the only daughter and youngest child of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia a ...

(later known as Princess Nicholas of Greece and Denmark). He has a younger sister, Marina Ogilvy.

Honours

UK Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon

6 February 1977:

Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du jubilé d'argent de la reine Elizabeth II) is a commemorative medal created in 1977 to mark the 25th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The medal is p ...

UK Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal ribbon

6 February 2002:

Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du jubilé d'or de la Reine Elizabeth II) or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2002 to mark the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

6 February 2012:

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

UK Queen EII Platinum Jubilee Medal ribbon

6 February 2022:

Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de platine de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Medal is a commemorative medal created to mark the 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accessi ...

References

External links

James Robert Bruce Ogilvy
in The Peerage
James Robert Bruce Ogilvy
in the National Portrait Gallery
Luxury Briefing
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ogilvy, James 1964 births Living people Alumni of the University of St Andrews British magazine publishers (people) People educated at Heatherdown School People educated at Eton College Shark attack victims House of Windsor