Caroline Agar-Ellis, Viscountess Clifden (27 October 1763 – 23 November 1813), formerly Lady Caroline Spencer, was an English noblewoman. She was the eldest daughter of

George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough, (26 January 1739 – 29 January 1817), styled Marquess of Blandford until 1758, was a British courtier, nobleman, and politician from the Spencer family. He served as Lord Chamberlain between 1762 a ...

, and his wife, the former Lady Caroline Russell. In August 1782 she was due to marry George Leveson-Gower, Viscount Trentham, but the wedding was called off and instead she became engaged to George Gordon, Lord Strathavon; this engagement was also broken off. She married Henry Agar-Ellis, 2nd Viscount Clifden (a former suitor of her sister Elizabeth), on 10 March 1792. They had one son, George Agar-Ellis (1797-1833), who later became Baron Dover. Their only daughter, Caroline Anne (1794-1814), died unmarried. A portrait of the future Viscountess with her sister Elizabeth, painted in 1791 by George Romney, was commissioned by their father. It purports to show the sisters in the guise of the muses of Music and Painting (with Caroline representing the visual arts). The painting became known as "the Clifden Romney"; when sold in 1896, it raised the third highest price ever paid for a painting in the UK. It later came into the possession of the American businessman and collector Henry E. Huntington. Viscountess Clifden died at

Blenheim Palace Blenheim Palace ( ) is a country house in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Dukes of Marlborough. Originally called Blenheim Castle, it has been known as Blenheim Palace since the 19th century. One of England's larg ...

, aged 50, and was buried in the family vault of the Dukes of Marlborough, next to her mother.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clifden, Caroline Agar-Ellis, Viscountess 1763 births 1813 deaths Irish viscountesses Spencer family Agar-Robartes family Daughters of British dukes 18th-century English women 18th-century English people 19th-century English women 19th-century English people