Mildred Anne Buxton, Countess Buxton (''née'' Smith; 29 June 1866 – 7 December 1955) was a British social activist and philanthropist.

Biography

Buxton was born in

St George Hanover Square St George Hanover Square was a civil parish created in 1724 in the Liberty of Westminster, Middlesex, which was later part of the metropolitan area of London, England. The creation of the parish accompanied the building of St George's, Hanove ...

, London, the daughter of

Hugh Colin Smith Hugh Colin Smith (31 October 1836 – 8 March 1910) was an English banker who was Governor of the Bank of England from 1897–99. Early life Smith was born in London, the son of John Abel Smith (1802–1871), Member of Parliament for Chichester ...

of Mount Clare. London and Constance Maria Josepha (''née'' Adeane). She was baptised 23 July 1866 Saint Thomas Church in

Portman Square Portman Square is a garden square in Marylebone, central London, surrounded by elegant townhouses. It was specifically for private housing let on long leases having a ground rent by the Portman Estate, which owns the private communal garden ...

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

.''London, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1917'' She married politician Sydney Charles Buxton,

Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies The Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies was a junior Ministerial post in the United Kingdom government, subordinate to the Secretary of State for the Colonies and, from 1948, also to a Minister of State. Under-Secretaries of State for the Col ...

, in 1896, and had three children. She was extremely active in social work when her husband was

Governor-General of South Africa The governor-general of the Union of South Africa ( af, Goewerneur-generaal van Unie van Suid-Afrika, nl, Goeverneur-generaal van de Unie van Zuid-Afrika) was the highest state official in the Union of South Africa between 31 May 1910 and 31 ...

from 1914–20. In 1917, their only son, 2nd Lt. Hon. Denis Buxton, was killed in action during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In Cape Town, she and her husband founded a children's hospital in memory of their only son who was killed in action in France. When they returned from South Africa, the Buxtons settled in

Newtimber Place Newtimber Place is a Grade I listed building in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. The house sits on a D-shaped island in a moat. The oldest part of the house dates from the 16th century. The north wing is apparently the oldest par ...

, a

Grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

country house in Sussex, where Lady Buxton became a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

. Lord Buxton died in 1934, at which point his titles became extinct. In 1935, she donated nearly 150 acres of downland at Newtimber Hill to the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

. As a result of her marriage, she was styled as Viscountess Buxton, effective 11 May 1914, and later as the Countess Buxton, effective 8 November 1920.

Marriage and issue

She married Sydney Charles Buxton, first and last

Earl Buxton Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particula ...

, son of Charles Buxton and Emily Mary Holland, on 7 July 1896 at

Roehampton Roehampton is an area in southwest London, in the Putney SW15 postal district, and takes up a far western strip running north to south of the London Borough of Wandsworth. It contains a number of large council house estates and is home to the U ...

, Surrey. By his first wife, he had two sons (both of whom predeceased him) and a daughter. The Buxtons had three children: a twin daughter and son in 1897 and a daughter in 1910. * 2nd Lt. Hon. Denis Bertram Sydney Buxton (29 November 1897 – 9 October 1917), killed in the First World War * Lady Doreen Maria Josepha Sydney Buxton (29 November 1897 – 28 July 1923), married 24 January 1918 Charles Alfred Euston Fitzroy, a scion of the

dukes of Grafton Duke of Grafton is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1675 by Charles II of England for Henry FitzRoy, his second illegitimate son by the Duchess of Cleveland. The most notable duke of Grafton was Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke ...

. She died aged 25, shortly after the birth of her third child. After her death, her husband remarried. His second wife, Lucy Eleanor Barnes (died 1943), was a first cousin of his first wife through her Buxton mother, in 1924. He succeeded to the dukedom in 1936 when a young cousin, the 9th Duke of Grafton, was killed in a motoring race. * Lady Althea Constance Dorothy Sydney Buxton (2 August 1910 – 25 July 2004), married Ven.

Peter Charles Eliot Peter Charles Eliot (30 October 1910 – 16 December 1995) was an English Anglican priest who served as Archdeacon of Worcester from 1961 to 1975. Eliot was the great-grandson of Edward Eliot, 3rd Earl of St Germans, by his youngest son, ...

, the

Archdeacon of Worcester The Archdeacon of Worcester is a senior clergy position in the Diocese of Worcester in the Church of England. Among the archdeacon's responsibilities is the care of clergy and church buildings within the area of the Archdeaconry of Worcester. Hi ...

Two of their children predeceased them both. Denis, their only son and only heir to the titles, was killed in action in the

Battle of Passchendaele The Third Battle of Ypres (german: link=no, Dritte Flandernschlacht; french: link=no, Troisième Bataille des Flandres; nl, Derde Slag om Ieper), also known as the Battle of Passchendaele (), was a campaign of the First World War, fought by t ...

while serving with the

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the monarchy; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonia ...

in the First World War. His twin sister, Lady Maria, died in 1923.

Honours

She was invested as a Dame Grand Cross,

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(GBE) in 1919, in recognition for her social work.

Death

She died at

on 7 December 1955.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buxton, Mildred Buxton, Countess 1866 births 1955 deaths People from Surrey Dames Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire British countesses English justices of the peace Mildred Wives of knights