Thelma Furness, Viscountess Furness ( Morgan, 23 August 1904 – 29 January 1970), was a mistress of

King Edward VIII Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January ...

while he was

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

. She was supplanted in his affections by

Wallis Simpson Wallis, Duchess of Windsor (born Bessie Wallis Warfield, later Spencer and then Simpson; June 19, 1896 – April 24, 1986) was an American socialite and the wife of Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor (former King Edward VIII). Their intentio ...

, for whose sake Edward abdicated, becoming the

Duke of Windsor Duke of Windsor was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 8 March 1937 for the former monarch Edward VIII, following his Abdication of Edward VIII, abdication on 11 December 1936. The Duchy, dukedom takes its name from ...

. She was the maternal aunt of the writer, fashion designer, and socialite

Gloria Vanderbilt Gloria Laura Vanderbilt (February 20, 1924 – June 17, 2019) was an American artist, author, actress, fashion designer, heiress, and socialite. During the 1930s, she was the subject of a high-profile child custody trial in which her mother, ...

. During most of Furness's relationship with the Prince of Wales, she was married to

British nobleman A Peerage is a form of crown distinction, with Peerages in the United Kingdom comprising both hereditary and lifetime titled appointments of various ranks, which form both a constituent part of the legislative process and the British ho ...

Marmaduke Furness, 1st Viscount Furness. They married in 1926 and divorced in 1933, the year before Thelma's relationship with the Prince of Wales ended. Furness's first name was pronounced in Spanish fashion as "TEL-ma".

Early life

Born in

Lucerne Lucerne ( ) or Luzern ()Other languages: ; ; ; . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking portion of the country. Lucerne is the capital of the canton of Lucerne and part of the Lucerne (district), di ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, Thelma Morgan was a daughter of Harry Hays Morgan Sr. (1860–1933), an American diplomat who was U.S.

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

and in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

, and his half-

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

an, half-Irish-American wife, Laura Delphine Kilpatrick (1869–1956). Married in 1893, they were divorced in 1927. Morgan's maternal grandfather was a Union general,

Hugh Judson Kilpatrick Hugh Judson Kilpatrick (January 14, 1836 – December 4, 1881) was an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War, achieving the rank of Major general (United States), major general. He was later the United States Ambassador, Minister ...

(1836–1881), who was also U.S. minister to

, and through her maternal grandmother Luisa Fernandez de Valdivieso (1836–1926), who was a niece of Crescente Errázuriz Valdivieso, Archbishop of Santiago, she reportedly was a descendant of

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

's Royal House of Navarre. Thelma Morgan had two sisters: Gloria (her identical twin, the mother of

, the fashion designer, artist and mother of news anchor

Anderson Cooper Anderson Hays Cooper (born June 3, 1967) is an American broadcast journalist and political commentator who anchors the CNN news broadcast show ''Anderson Cooper 360°''. In addition to his duties at CNN, Cooper serves as a correspondent for ''6 ...

) and Laura Consuelo Morgan (aka Tamar), who was married to three men in succession: Count Jean de Maupas du Juglart (a

French nobleman The French nobility () was an aristocratic social class in France from the Middle Ages until its abolition on 23 June 1790 during the French Revolution. From 1808 to 1815 during the First Empire the Emperor Napoléon bestowed titles that we ...

); Benjamin Thaw Jr. of Pittsburgh; and Alfons B. Landa, president of Colonial Airlines and vice-chairman of the finance committee of the

Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the principal executive leadership board of the United States's Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party. According to the party charter, it has "general responsibility for the affairs of the ...

in 1948. Thelma Morgan also had a brother, Harry Hays Morgan Jr., who became a diplomat and then a minor Hollywood actor in such films as ''

Abie's Irish Rose ''Abie's Irish Rose'' is a popular comedy by Anne Nichols, which premiered in 1922. Initially a Broadway theatre, Broadway Play (theatre), play, it has become familiar through repeated stage productions, films and radio programs. The basic premi ...

'' (1946) and ''

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc ( ; ; – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the Coronation of the French monarch, coronation of Charles VII o ...

'' (1948). Her half-siblings, from her father's first marriage to Mary E. Edgerton, were Constance Morgan (1887–1892) and Gladys "Margaret" Morgan (1889–1958).

Film career

For a very brief time, Furness was a motion picture producer and actress, after founding Thelma Morgan Pictures in 1923. As she told ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' magazine, "I am incorporating the Thelma Morgan Pictures, Inc., with $100,000 capital and will produce big, sane, and sound 'specials.' I will be my own star. Hitherto, my chief experience has been in Junior League shows." Her first starring role, in 1923, was the lead in a film ''Aphrodite'', produced by her own company and filmed at

Vitagraph Studios Vitagraph Studios, also known as the Vitagraph Company of America, was a United States motion picture studio. It was founded by J. Stuart Blackton and Albert E. Smith in 1897 in Brooklyn, New York, as the American Vitagraph Company. By 1907 ...

. Furness described her leading role in ''Aphrodite'' to ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' as that of "an American girl, brought up under the sinister influence of an old Egyptian woman." She also had small parts in the films '' Enemies of Women'' (1923), a

William Randolph Hearst William Randolph Hearst (; April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American newspaper publisher and politician who developed the nation's largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications. His extravagant methods of yellow jou ...

production whose cast included

Lionel Barrymore Lionel Barrymore (born Lionel Herbert Blyth; April 28, 1878 – November 15, 1954) was an American actor of stage, screen and radio as well as a film director. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in '' A Free Soul'' (1931) ...

and

Clara Bow Clara Gordon Bow (; July 29, 1905 – September 27, 1965) was an American actress who rose to stardom during the silent film era of the 1920s and successfully made the transition to "talkies" in 1929. Her appearance as a plucky shopgirl in the ...

, '' So This Is Marriage?'' (1924), and ''Any Woman'' (1925).

Marriages and relationships

Morgan's first husband was James Vail Converse (1893–1947), a grandson of Theodore N. Vail, former president of the

American Telephone and Telegraph Company AT&T Corporation, an abbreviation for its former name, the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, was an American telecommunications company that provided voice, video, data, and Internet telecommunications and professional services to busi ...

(AT&T). They were married in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, on 16 February 1922 when she was 17 years old; Converse was about a decade older and had been married before. They divorced in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, California, on 10 April 1925. By this marriage she had one stepson, James Vail Converse Jr. (born 18 January 1918), her husband's son from his first marriage to Nadine Melbourne. After the divorce, Morgan was rumored to be engaged to the American actor Richard Bennett, the matinée-idol father of Hollywood film stars

Constance Bennett Constance Campbell Bennett (October 22, 1904 – July 24, 1965) was an American stage, film, radio, and television actress and producer. She was a major Cinema of the United States, Hollywood star during the 1920s and 1930s; during the early 193 ...

, Joan Bennett, and Barbara Bennett. Morgan's second husband was Marmaduke Furness, 1st Viscount Furness (1883–1940), the chairman of Furness Shipping Company. She was his second wife. They were married on 27 June 1926, and divorced in 1933. They had one son, William Anthony Furness, 2nd Viscount Furness, and as the former wife of a British nobleman she was known as Thelma, Viscountess Furness. By this marriage she also had a stepson, Christopher Furness, and a stepdaughter, Averill Furness. Thelma Furness and the Prince 1932

Furness first met the

at a ball at Londonderry House in 1926 but they did not meet again until the Leicestershire Agricultural Show at

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

on 14 June 1929. Edward asked her to dine and they met regularly until she joined him on

safari A safari (; originally ) is an overland journey to observe wildlife, wild animals, especially in East Africa. The so-called big five game, "Big Five" game animals of Africa – lion, African leopard, leopard, rhinoceros, African elephant, elep ...

East Africa East Africa, also known as Eastern Africa or the East of Africa, is a region at the eastern edge of the Africa, African continent, distinguished by its unique geographical, historical, and cultural landscape. Defined in varying scopes, the regi ...

early in 1930, when a closer relationship developed. On Edward's return to Britain in April 1930 she was his regular weekend companion at the newly acquired Fort Belvedere until January 1934. She also entertained him at her London home, in Elsworthy Road,

Primrose Hill Primrose Hill is a Grade II listed public park located north of Regent's Park in London, England, first opened to the public in 1842.Mills, A., ''Dictionary of London Place Names'', (2001) It was named after the natural hill in the centre of t ...

, and the Furness country house, Burrough Court, in Leicestershire. On 10 January 1931 at her country house Burrough Court, near

Melton Mowbray Melton Mowbray () is a market town in the Borough of Melton, Melton district in Leicestershire, England, north-east of Leicester and south-east of Nottingham. It lies on the River Eye, Leicestershire, River Eye, known below Melton as the Rive ...

, Furness introduced the prince to her close friend

and, while visiting her sister Gloria in America between January and March 1934, she was supplanted in the Prince's affection by Simpson. Reacting to Edward's coldness later that year she threw herself into a short-lived affair with

Prince Aly Khan Prince Aly Salomone Khan (13 June 1911 – 12 May 1960), known as Aly Khan, was an Ismaili sayyid, socialite and ambassador for Pakistan. He was the son of the Aga Khan III, and the father of Aga Khan IV. A socialite, racehorse owner and jocke ...

. She had openly flirted with Khan during her voyage back to the UK in March 1934 which was reported to the Prince of Wales and widely reported in the British and American press including the social gossip magazine ''

Tatler ''Tatler'' (stylised in all caps) is a British magazine published by Condé Nast Publications. It focuses on fashion and lifestyle, as well as coverage of high society and politics. It is targeted towards the British upper and upper-middle c ...

''. While Furness was in the US with Aly Khan, Wallis Simpson stayed in her Mayfair home, 22 Farm Street, and entertained the Prince of Wales there. Furness' identical twin sister was

Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt (born Maria Mercedes Morgan; 23 August 1904 13 February 1965) was an American socialite. Vanderbilt was the mother of fashion designer and artist Gloria Vanderbilt and maternal grandmother of television journalist Anders ...

, who was married to Reginald Vanderbilt and had a daughter,

. This makes her a maternal great-aunt of

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

anchor

Final years

Furness and her sister Gloria wrote a

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based on the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autob ...

called ''Double Exposure'' (1959). Furness died in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

on 29 January 1970. As her niece,

, recalled, "She dropped dead on Seventy-third and Lexington on her way to see the doctor. In her bag was this miniature teddy bear that the Prince of Wales had given her, years before, when she came to be with my mother at the custody trial, and it was worn down to the nub". Furness was buried next to her twin sister, Gloria, in Holy Cross Cemetery in

Culver City, California Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. It is mostly surrounded by Los Angeles, but also shares a border with the unincorporated area of Ladera Heights, Californi ...

.''Royal Mistresses of the House of Hanover-Windsor''
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References

External links