Georgiana Marcia Rolls, Lady Llangattock, (née Maclean; 28 February 1837 (baptised) – 1 April 1923) was a British socialite, benefactor and an enthusiast for

Horatio Nelson Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte ( – 21 October 1805) was a Royal Navy officer whose leadership, grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics brought about a number of decisive British naval victories during the French ...

and associated naval heroes. She was the wife of

John Rolls, 1st Baron Llangattock John Allan Rolls, 1st Baron Llangattock, (19 February 1837 – 24 September 1912) was a British landowner, Conservative Party politician, socialite, local benefactor and agriculturalist. He lived at The Hendre, a Victorian country house ...

, a

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...

landowner, Member of Parliament and agriculturalist. She and her husband lived at

The Hendre The Hendre, ( a farmer's winter residence; literally meaning old home) in Rockfield, is the only full-scale Victorian country house in the county of Monmouthshire, Wales. The ancestral estate of the Rolls family, it was the childhood home of Ch ...

, a

country house image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...

north of

Monmouth Monmouth ( or ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated on where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. The population in the 2011 census was 10,508, rising from 8 ...

Biography

Georgiana was the daughter of Sir Charles Maclean, 9th Baronet of Morvern and Emily Eleanor (born Marsham). She was born in

Kirkby Overblow Kirkby Overblow is a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is situated between Wetherby and Harrogate and lies to the west of Sicklinghall and the east of Leeds Bradford International Airport. Its parish church is All Sai ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

, and baptised there on 28 February 1837 by her uncle Rev. Jacob Joseph Marsham.''West Yorkshire, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813–1910'' Her mother, who died in April 1838, was the daughter of Rev. Jacob Marsham,

Canon of Windsor The Dean and Canons of Windsor are the ecclesiastical body of St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle. Foundation The college of canons was established in 1348 by letters patent of King Edward III. It was formally constituted on the feast of S ...

and rector at Kirkby Overblow, and granddaughter of

Robert Marsham, 2nd Baron Romney Robert Marsham, 2nd Baron Romney (22 August 1712 – 16 November 1793) was a British peer and patron of the arts. Biography Lord Romney was the son of Robert Marsham, 1st Baron Romney and his wife Elizabeth Shovell, daughter of Admiral Sir Clou ...

. In 1868 she married John Allan Rolls, the only son of

John Etherington Welch Rolls John Etherington Welch Rolls (4 May 1807 – 27 May 1870) was a Sheriff of Monmouthshire, art collector, Deputy Lieutenant and Justice of the Peace. Rolls was President of, and co-founded the Monmouth Show. Life Rolls was born in 1807, a son of ...

and Elizabeth Long. They lived at

and they also had a house South Lodge at Rutland Gate in London. They had four children:

John Maclean Rolls John Maclean Rolls, 2nd Baron Llangattock (25 April 1870 – 31 October 1916) was a British barrister and army Major. Biography Rolls was son of John Rolls, 1st Baron Llangattock, and his wife Georgiana Marcia Maclean. He was born in London, b ...

, Henry Alan Rolls, Eleanor Rolls and

Charles Stewart Rolls Charles Stewart Rolls (27 August 1877 – 12 July 1910) was a British motoring and aviation pioneer. With Henry Royce, he co-founded the Rolls-Royce car manufacturing firm. He was the first Briton to be killed in an aeronautical accident wit ...

(1877–1910) who was co-founder of

Rolls-Royce Limited Rolls-Royce Limited was a British luxury car and later an aero-engine manufacturing business established in 1904 in Manchester by the partnership of Charles Rolls and Henry Royce. Building on Royce's good reputation established with his Crane ( ...

and the first person to fly the English Channel in both directions. Her husband was appointed

High Sheriff of Monmouthshire This is a list of Sheriffs of Monmouthshire, an office which was created in 1536 but not fully settled until 1540. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Government Act 1972, the shrievalty of Monmouthshire was abolished, and replaced ...

and he served as MP for

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...

for five years. During this time, The Rolls Hall was built and given to the town of

to celebrate the Queen's jubilee. Lady Llangattock was known for her love of collecting though John Harris has recently described her collection of furniture bought from other Welsh grand houses as "Jacobogus". She became Lady Llangattock when her husband became Lord Llangattock in 1892. She and her husband attended the coronation of

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and ...

in 1902. She was an enthusiast for Admiral Nelson and she took part in celebrations at

The Kymin The Kymin (), is a hill overlooking Monmouth, in Monmouthshire, Wales. It is located approximately one mile east of Monmouth, on the eastern side of the River Wye and adjacent to the border with the Forest of Dean and England. The summit of the ...

where the centenary of his death was commemorated on 21 October 1905. Her husband's peerage and rank enabled them to invite the Duke and Duchess of York (later

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. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

and Queen Mary) in 1900 to stay with them at the Hendre. Her youngest son, Charles Rolls, took the royal couple on what might have been their first car ride. Charles was the first British person to die in a flying accident when his plane crashed in 1910. Lady Llangattock was well known for her philanthropic and social interests, and for promoting the role of women in society. She was in 1902 elected president of the Monmouthshire branch of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Families' Association. In December 1910 she instigated a meeting in Monmouth which set up a branch of the

British Red Cross Society The British Red Cross Society () is the United Kingdom body of the worldwide neutral and impartial humanitarian network the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The society was formed in 1870, and is a registered charity with 1 ...

in the county, and first considered the setting up of

Voluntary Aid Detachment The Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) was a voluntary unit of civilians providing nursing care for military personnel in the United Kingdom and various other countries in the British Empire. The most important periods of operation for these units we ...

s (VAD) in the area. She became the first President of the Monmouthshire branch of the Society. Lord Llangattock died in 1912. Her two other sons were killed in action during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, so she was the last Lady Llangattock, and her daughter

Eleanor Shelley-Rolls Eleanor Georgiana Shelley-Rolls (9 October 1872 – 15 September 1961) was one of the original signatories of the Women's Engineering Society founding documents. Early life Rolls was born in Mayfair, London in 1872. She was the daughter of ...

(9 October 1872 – 15 September 1961) was the heir to the Hendre.

Legacy

The Llangattock Collection, which includes a substantial quantity of letters written by Nelson to his wife, was bequeathed to the town of Monmouth. The letters, bound into five volumes, had been bought at auction in 1914 from the Nelson family by Lady Llangattock at

Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, and it has additional salerooms in New York, Paris, Hong Kong, Milan, Geneva, Shan ...

. The first three volumes contain letters to his wife from his proposal to their separation, and the first volume contains Nelson's wife's wedding ring. The first building which housed the collection, initially a gymnasium on Glendower Street donated to the town of Monmouth by Lady Llangattock, is now known as the Nelson Rooms. The Monmouth Museum has been called ''The Nelson Museum'' as it is based on the Llangattock collections. The museum also houses material about the Rolls family and it contains the 1867 portrait of Lady Llangattock created by H.Groves. The local library at the Rolls Hall also holds a full-length portrait of Lady Llangattock.

Lineage

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rolls, Georgiana 1837 births 1923 deaths

Llangattock Llangattock () is a village, community and electoral ward in the Brecon Beacons National Park in Powys, Wales. It lies in the Usk Valley just across the river from the town of Crickhowell. The Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal passes through th ...

Georgiana Georgiana is a Catalan, English, Greek and Romanian name. It is the feminine form of the male name George and a variation of the female names Georgina and Georgia. It comes from the Greek word (), meaning "farmer". A variant spelling is Georgi ...

Daughters of baronets