Anne Winifred Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster (née Sullivan; 13 April 1915 – 31 August 2003), known as Nancy, was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

born peeress best known for her passion for

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

Early life

Her parents were Brigadier-General Edward Sullivan and his wife Winifred ( Burns). She spent her early life in

Glanmire Glanmire () is a suburban town from Cork city centre, in the civil parish of Rathcooney, County Cork, Ireland. Glanmire is within the administrative area of Cork City Council and the Dáil constituency of Cork North-Central. The greater Gl ...

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns are ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

growing up with two brothers, Adam and George, and practising her riding skills. When the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

broke out, Anne Sullivan volunteered for the

First Aid Nursing Yeomanry The First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (Princess Royal's Volunteer Corps) (FANY (PRVC)) is a British independent all-female registered charity formed in 1907 and active in both nursing and intelligence work during the World Wars. Its members wear a mili ...

and served six years as personnel driver, while her brother, Adam, was killed during the Norway campaign. After the war, she returned home to Ireland to stay with her father, and met

Hugh Grosvenor, 2nd Duke of Westminster Hugh Richard Arthur Grosvenor, 2nd Duke of Westminster, (familiarly " Bendor"; 19 March 1879 – 19 July 1953) was a British landowner and one of the wealthiest men in the world. He was the son of Victor Grosvenor, Earl Grosvenor, son of the ...

, in 1946. The enormously rich Duke, then married to his third wife Loelia but long separated, immediately bought property next to her family's home and asked his agent to ask Miss Sullivan to help with the flowers.

Duchess of Westminster

The 68-year-old Duke soon obtained divorce and Sullivan became his fourth wife on 7 February 1947. The new Duchess of Westminster was far wealthier than her three predecessors. The first of them, Constance Cornwallis-West, was the mother of the Duke's children, all of whom were older than the Duchess herself. The couple spent most of their time at Eaton Hall in

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

and at Lochmore. They went to Norway every year, as the Duchess enjoyed fishing, farming, stalking, hunting and racing. In June 1953, the Duke and Duchess attended the

coronation of Queen Elizabeth II The coronation of Elizabeth II took place on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. She acceded to the throne at the age of 25 upon the death of her father, George VI, on 6 February 1952, being proclaimed queen by her privy and executive ...

. She was widowed the next month and retired to

Eaton Lodge Eaton may refer to: Buildings Canada * Eaton Centre, the name of various shopping malls in Canada due to having been anchored by an Eaton's store * Eaton's / John Maryon Tower, a cancelled skyscraper in Toronto * Eaton Hall (King City), a confer ...

, where she spent the next 50 years of her life. Having inherited 120,000 acres from the 2nd Duke, the Duchess and her stepdaughter, Lady Mary, five years her senior, ranked eighth among the wealthiest landowners in Scotland. Anne, Duchess of Westminster, was a great fan of

, and is notable as the owner of Last Suspect (winner of the

1985 Grand National The 1985 Grand National (officially known as the Seagram Grand National for sponsorship reasons) was the 139th renewal of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 30 March 1985. The rac ...

) and Arkle (winner of the

Cheltenham Gold Cup The Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt horse race run on the New Course at Cheltenham Racecourse in England, over a distance of about 3 miles 2½ furlongs ( ...

(1964, 1965, 1966). Through racing, she became a friend of

Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was the l ...

. The Duchess was elected president of the Chester and West Cheshire branch of the

Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest an ...

and actively took part in its work, while also supporting the establishment of the Clwyd Riding School for the Disabled. She died at Lochmore and was buried in the churchyard of Eccleston Church near Eaton Hall, Cheshire.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Westminster, Anne Grosvenor, Duchess of 1915 births 2003 deaths Anglo-Irish people People from County Cork

Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...

British racehorse owners and breeders 20th-century Scottish landowners 20th-century Scottish businesspeople People educated at Westonbirt School Wives of knights

Early life

Duchess of Westminster

See also

References