Isabella Molyneux, Countess of Sefton, formerly Viscountess Molyneux, (née Lady Isabella Stanhope; c. 1748 – 29 January 1819) was a British peeress and society figure.

Biography

Lady Isabella Stanhope was the second child of William Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Harrington and Lady Caroline FitzRoy, a daughter of

Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton (25 October 1683 – 6 May 1757) was a British peer and politician. Early life He was the only child and heir of Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton (1663–1690) (an illegitimate son of King Charles II ...

. She was an older sister of

Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Harrington General Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Harrington (17 March 17535 September 1829), styled Viscount Petersham until 1779, was a British Army officer and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1774 and 1779 when he succeeded to the pe ...

. According to the memoirs of Elizabeth Craven, Baroness Craven, Lady Isabella refused the hand of the Duke of Fitz-James. On 27 November 1768 she married Charles Molyneux, 8th Viscount Molyneux, the future 1st Earl of Sefton in the

Peerage of Ireland The peerage of Ireland consists of those Peerage, titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lordship of Ireland, Lord or Monarchy of Ireland, King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great B ...

. On 18 September 1772 Lady Sefton gave birth to a son, the future 2nd Earl of Sefton. She was painted by notable painters including Catherine Read and

Thomas Gainsborough Thomas Gainsborough (; 14 May 1727 (baptised) – 2 August 1788) was an English portrait and landscape painter, draughtsman, and printmaker. Along with his rival Sir Joshua Reynolds, he is considered one of the most important British artists o ...

, and engraved by the artist

James Watson James Dewey Watson (born April 6, 1928) is an American molecular biology, molecular biologist, geneticist, and zoologist. In 1953, he co-authored with Francis Crick the academic paper in ''Nature (journal), Nature'' proposing the Nucleic acid ...

. A portrait of her by Gainsborough was unveiled at the inaugural exhibit of the Royal Academy of Art. A poem written in 1768 by Temple Luttrell, son of

Simon Luttrell, 1st Earl of Carhampton Simon Luttrell, 1st Earl of Carhampton ( – 14 January 1787) was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1754 to 1780. Biography He was the second son of Henry Luttrell, of Luttrellstown (whose family had he ...

, titled ''Ode to Lady Isabella Stanshope on Her Birthday'', was dedicated to her.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sefton, Isabella Molyneux, Countess of 1740s births 1819 deaths 18th-century British women 19th-century British women Irish countesses English socialites Daughters of British earls

Isabella Isabella may refer to: People and fictional characters * Isabella (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Isabella (surname), including a list of people Places United States * Isabella, Alabama, an unincorpo ...