Suzanne Marie Adèle Beauclerk, Duchess of St Albans (née Fesq; 4 May 1921 – 12 February 2010), known professionally as Suzanne St Albans, was a British writer and painter.
Early life and family
Suzanne Marie Adèle Fesq was born on 4 May 1921 in
Kuala Lampur
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British Malaya
The term "British Malaya" (; ms, Tanah Melayu British) loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Singapore that were brought under British hegemony or control between the late 18th and the mid-20th century. U ...
. She was of French descent on her mother and father's sides. Her father was Emile William Fesq, the owner of Assam Java Plantation in
Selangor
Selangor (; ), also known by its Arabic language, Arabic honorific Darul Ehsan, or "Abode of Sincerity", is one of the 13 Malaysian states. It is on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the east ...
. Her mother, Marie Claire, was a member of the Chassériau family. Her paternal great-grandfather was a wine exporter from
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
who settled in Australia in 1848 after marrying a mulatto woman from
New Orleans
New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
. Her maternal great-grandfather was a rubber planter from Bordeaux who settled in Malaya. She grew up in British Malaya and in
Vence
Vence (; oc, Vença) is a commune set in the hills of the Alpes Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France, north of Nice and Antibes.
Ecclesiastical history
The first known Bishop of Vence is Sever ...
,
Southern France
Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French language, French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi ...
. She attended boarding school in Paris and in
Littlehampton
Littlehampton is a town, seaside resort, and pleasure harbour, and the most populous civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the English Channel on the eastern bank of the mouth of the River Arun. It is south sout ...
.
World War II
During the outbreak of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
the Fesq family were living in the South of France. After the
German invasion German invasion may refer to:
Pre-1900s
* German invasion of Hungary (1063)
World War I
* German invasion of Belgium (1914)
* German invasion of Luxembourg (1914)
World War II
* Invasion of Poland
* German invasion of Belgium (1940)
* G ...
, the family made their way along with other refugees to
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...
before being taken on by the Psychological Warfare Branch of the Foreign Office. She was first stationed in
Algiers
Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques ...
. She was transferred to Italy in 1944 where she worked in Naples, Rome, Florence, Bologna, and Venice. In 1945 she was posted at the British Embassy in Vienna, where she was under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Beauclerk, the future 13th Duke of St Albans.
Painting
While serving in Rome during World War II, she took painting lessons. Back in England she enrolled at
Slade School of Fine Art
The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...
after being denied entry into
Chelsea College of Arts
Chelsea College of Arts is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London based in London, United Kingdom, and is a leading British art and design institution with an international reputation.
It offers further and higher educat ...
. Her work, mostly oil and watercolour paintings, was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1963 and in 1965. She and her husband ran the Upper Grosvenor Gallery in Mayfair from 1967 until 1972.
Bibliography
''Le Théâtre en Classe'' (1966)
''Road to Bordeaux'' (1976)
''Uncertain Wings'' (1977)
''Green Grows the Oil: Desert Oil and Modern Society'' (1982)
''Where Time Stood Still: A Portrait of Oman''.(1982)
''Magic of a Mystic: Stories of Padre Pio'' (1983)
''Paradise and Pestilence: Aspects of Provence'' (1997)
''Mango and mimosa : a memoir of early life''. (2000)
Personal life
She married Charles Beauclerk on 19 March 1947 after he obtained a divorce from his first wife, Nathalie Chatham Walker. Upon her marriage she became the stepmother of Murray Beauclerk, the future 14th Duke of St Albans. On 13 January 1948 she gave birth to their first son, Peter. On 6 February 1949 she gave birth to a second son, James. On 10 February 1950 she gave birth to a third son, John. On 19 July 1951 she gave birth to a daughter, Caroline. On 15 November 1963 she gave birth to a stillborn daughter.
When her husband succeeded to the dukedom in 1964 after the death of his second cousin
Osborne Beauclerk, 12th Duke of St Albans
Osborne de Vere Beauclerk, 12th Duke of St Albans (16 October 1874 – 2 March 1964) was a British peer and Army officer. He was styled ''Lord Osborne Beauclerk'' from 1874 to 1934.
Early life
Lord Osborne Beauclerk was the son of William Be ...
, she became the Duchess of St Albans. She served as Vice President of the
Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association
SSAFA – the Armed Forces charity, the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association, is a UK charity that provides lifelong support to serving men and women and veterans from the British Armed Forces and their families or dependents. Anyo ...
and was a fundraiser for the
Red Cross
The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...
. In 1978 her husband was sued by the Inland Revenue for not paying taxes. They left England and settled at her family's farmhouse in the South of France. She retired to Newbury after her husband's death in 1988, becoming The Dowager Duchess of St Albans as her stepson's wife, Cynthia Theresa Mary Howard, became the new Duchess of St Albans. In her later life she taught lessons in French, Latin, German, and English. She died on 12 February 2010.