Catherine Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (''née'' Hoskins, 1700 – 8 May 1777), was the wife of

William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire, (26 September 1698 – 5 December 1755) was a British nobleman and Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1721 to 1729 when he inherited the Dukedom. Life Cavendish was the son of Wi ...

, and mother of the 4th Duke.

Family background

She was the only child and heiress of John Hoskins of Oxted (1640–16 May 1717), and his wife, the former Catherine Hale (1673–1703), daughter of William Hale MP. Her mother's brother was the judge, Sir

Bernard Hale Sir Bernard Hale (1677–1729) was an English-born barrister and judge who became Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer. Two of his sons became Generals in the British Army.Ball, F. Elrington ''The Judges in Ireland 1221–1921'' London John Murray ...

, and her first cousins were the army generals

Bernard Bernard ('' Bernhard'') is a French and West Germanic masculine given name. It has West Germanic origin and is also a surname. The name is attested from at least the 9th century. West Germanic ''Bernhard'' is composed from the two elements ''be ...

and John Hale.

Marriage and children

She married Cavendish, then an MP and known as the Marquess of Hartington, on 27 March 1718. The Marquess inherited the dukedom in 1729. Their children were: * Lady Caroline Cavendish (1719–1760), who married

William Ponsonby, 2nd Earl of Bessborough William Ponsonby, 2nd Earl of Bessborough (1704 – 11 March 1793) was a British politician and public servant. He was an Irish people, Irish and English people, English peerage, peer and member of the House of Lords (styled Hon. William Ponsonb ...

, and had children. *

William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire (8 May 1720 – 2 October 1764), styled Lord Cavendish before 1729, and Marquess of Hartington between 1729 and 1755, was a British Whig statesman and nobleman who was briefly nominal Prime Minister of ...

(1720–1764), who married Charlotte Boyle, 6th Baroness Clifford, and had children. *

Lord George Augustus Cavendish Lord George Augustus Cavendish ( – 2 May 1794) was a British nobleman, politician, and a member of the House of Cavendish. Cavendish was born in London, the second son of William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire and his wife, the former ...

, MP (died 2 May 1794), who died unmarried. * Lady Elizabeth Cavendish (before 1727–1796), who married John Ponsonby, MP, and had children. *Lady Rachel Cavendish (1727–1805), who married

Horatio Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford Horatio Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford (12 June 1723 – 24 February 1809)L. G. Pine, The New Extinct Peerage 1884-1971: Containing Extinct, Abeyant, Dormant and Suspended Peerages With Genealogies and Arms (London, U.K.: Heraldry Today, 1972), p. 2 ...

, and had children.L. G. Pine, The New Extinct Peerage 1884-1971: Containing Extinct, Abeyant, Dormant and Suspended Peerages With Genealogies and Arms (London, U.K.: Heraldry Today, 1972), page 211 was a British Whig politician. * Field Marshal Lord Frederick Cavendish (c.1729–1803), who died unmarried. *

Lord John Cavendish Lord John Cavendish (22 October 1732 – 18 December 1796) was a British nobleman and politician. Background Cavendish was the youngest son of William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire, and his wife Catherine, daughter of John Hoskins. Prim ...

(c.1734–1796), who died unmarried. In 1733,

Devonshire House Devonshire House in Piccadilly, was the London townhouse of the Dukes of Devonshire during the 18th and 19th centuries. Following a fire in 1733 it was rebuilt by William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire, in the Palladian style, to designs ...

(formerly Berkeley House), their London home, burned down while in the process of refurbishment, possibly because of the builders' carelessness. They employed

William Kent William Kent (c. 1685 – 12 April 1748) was an English architect, landscape architect, painter and furniture designer of the early 18th century. He began his career as a painter, and became Principal Painter in Ordinary or court painter, b ...

to design their new residence, which stood until the 1920s, when much of the contents was transferred to

Chatsworth House Chatsworth House is a stately home in the Derbyshire Dales, north-east of Bakewell and west of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, Chesterfield, England. The seat of the Duke of Devonshire, it has belonged to the House of Cavendish, Cavendish family si ...

, the family seat in Derbyshire.

Later life

The duke died in 1755 and was succeeded by their eldest son,

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

, to whose marriage to the exceptionally wealthy Lady Charlotte Boyle Catherine was bitterly opposed. However, at her husband's death, since Charlotte had died the previous year and the young duke did not remarry, Catherine remained mistress of Chatsworth until her grandson, the 5th Duke, married 17-year-old

Georgiana Spencer Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (née Spencer; ; 7 June 1757 – 30 March 1806), was an English aristocrat, socialite, political organiser, author, and activist. Born into the Spencer family, married into the Cavendish family, she wa ...

in 1774.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Devonshire, Catherine Cavendish, Duchess of 1700 births 1777 deaths

Catherine Katherine (), also spelled Catherine and Catherina, other variations, is a feminine given name. The name and its variants are popular in countries where large Christian populations exist, because of its associations with one of the earliest Ch ...

English duchesses by marriage Parents of prime ministers of Great Britain