Elizabeth Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (formerly Elizabeth Christiana Hervey, later Lady Elizabeth Foster), (13 May 1759 - 30 March 1824), is best known as an early woman novelist, and as the close friend of Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire
. Elizabeth supplanted the Duchess, gaining the Duke's affections and later marrying him.
Lady Elizabeth was the daughter of Frederick Hervey, 4th Earl of Bristol
, and was familiarly known as "Bess". She was born in a small house in Horringer
, St Edmundsbury
, Suffolk
, England
.
In 1776, she married Irishman John Thomas Foster
(born 1747). He was a first cousin of the brothers John Foster
, last Speaker of the (united) Irish House of Commons, and Bishop (William) Foster
. When her father became the Earl of Bristol in 1779, she became Lady Elizabeth Foster. The Fosters had three children; two sons, Frederick (3 October 1777 - 1853) and Augustus John Foster (December 1780 - 1848), and a daughter, Elizabeth, who was born prematurely on 17 November 1778 and lived only 8 days. The couple lived (after 1779) with her parents at Ickworth House
, the ancestral Bristol home. The marriage was not a success, and the couple separated within five years, plausibly after Foster had a relationship with a servant. Foster retained custody of their sons, and did not allow the boys to see Bess for 14 years.
In May 1782, Bess met the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire in Bath, and quickly became Georgiana's closest friend. From this time, she lived in a ménage à trois
with Georgiana and her husband, William, the 5th Duke of Devonshire
, for about twenty-five years. She bore two children by the Duke: a daughter, Caroline St. Jules, and a son, Augustus (later Augustus Clifford, 1st Baronet), who were raised at Devonshire House
with the Duke's legitimate children by Georgiana. With Georgiana's blessing, Lady Elizabeth married the Duke in 1809, three years after Georgiana's death, during which time she had continued to live in his household.
Bess is also said to have had affairs with several other men, including Cardinal Ercole Consalvi, John Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset
, Count Axel von Fersen, Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond
, and Valentine Richard Quin, 1st Earl of Dunraven. There is some evidence that Quin fathered an illegitimate son by her, who became the noted physician, Frederic Hervey Foster Quin
. Quin joined the Duchess as her travelling physician in Rome in December 1820, and afterwards attended her in that city during her fatal illness in March 1824.
Lady Elizabeth Foster is the great-great-great-grandmother of Vogue
magazine's Anna Wintour
.
With William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire
(prior to their marriage):
, with whom she corresponded from about 1804.
She was the author of seven novels over the course of her lifetime: Melissa and Marcia, or the Sisters. A Novel; Louisa; The History of Ned Evans; The Church of St. Siffrid; The Mourtray Family. A Novel; Julia (which was never published); and Amabel; or, Memoirs of a Woman of Fashion. This last novel was the only one published with her name attached during her lifetime, and it was not on the cover, but on the dedication page. The rest of her novels were published anonymously.
Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire
Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire , formerly Lady Georgiana Spencer, was the first wife of the 5th Duke of Devonshire, and mother of the 6th Duke of Devonshire. Her father, the 1st Earl Spencer, was a great-grandson of the 1st Duke of Marlborough. Her niece was Lady Caroline Lamb...
. Elizabeth supplanted the Duchess, gaining the Duke's affections and later marrying him.
Life
Frederick Hervey, 4th Earl of Bristol
Frederick Augustus Hervey, 4th Earl of Bristol, PC , known as The Earl-Bishop, was Bishop of Cloyne from 1767 to 1768 and Bishop of Derry from 1768 to 1803.- Life :...
, and was familiarly known as "Bess". She was born in a small house in Horringer
Horringer
Horringer is a village and civil parish in the St Edmundsbury district of Suffolk in eastern England. Located on the A143 around two miles south-west of Bury St Edmunds, in 2005 its population was 890.-Demography:...
, St Edmundsbury
St Edmundsbury (borough)
St Edmundsbury is a local government district and borough in Suffolk, England. It is named after its main town, Bury St Edmunds. The second town in the district is Haverhill....
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
In 1776, she married Irishman John Thomas Foster
John Thomas Foster
John Thomas Foster , of Dunleer, was an Irish politician.He was the son of Rev Thomas Foster, Rector of Dunleer and Dorothy née Burgh. Foster was elected member to the Irish House of Commons for Dunleer in 1776 and held this seat until 1783...
(born 1747). He was a first cousin of the brothers John Foster
John Foster, 1st Baron Oriel
John Foster, 1st Baron Oriel was an Irish peer and politician.He was the son of Anthony Foster of Louth, an Irish judge . He was elected Member of Parliament to the Irish House of Commons for Dunleer in 1761, a seat he held until 1769...
, last Speaker of the (united) Irish House of Commons, and Bishop (William) Foster
William Foster (bishop)
William Foster, D.D. was a Church of Ireland bishop.The younger son of Anthony Foster he was chaplain to the Irish House of Commons . Then successively Bishop of Cork and Ross , Bishop of Kilmore and Bishop of Clogher.-Family:He married Catharina-Letitia daughter of Rev. Dr...
. When her father became the Earl of Bristol in 1779, she became Lady Elizabeth Foster. The Fosters had three children; two sons, Frederick (3 October 1777 - 1853) and Augustus John Foster (December 1780 - 1848), and a daughter, Elizabeth, who was born prematurely on 17 November 1778 and lived only 8 days. The couple lived (after 1779) with her parents at Ickworth House
Ickworth House
Ickworth House is a country house outside Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, England. It is a neoclassical structure topped by a giant rotunda in a park extending to 1800 acres. It is in the care of the National Trust, and, as part of the Ickworth House, Park & Garden property, is open to the...
, the ancestral Bristol home. The marriage was not a success, and the couple separated within five years, plausibly after Foster had a relationship with a servant. Foster retained custody of their sons, and did not allow the boys to see Bess for 14 years.
In May 1782, Bess met the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire in Bath, and quickly became Georgiana's closest friend. From this time, she lived in a ménage à trois
Ménage à trois
Ménage à trois is a French term which originally described a domestic arrangement in which three people having sexual relations occupy the same household – the phrase literally translates as "household of three"...
with Georgiana and her husband, William, the 5th Duke of Devonshire
William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire
William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire, KG was a British aristocrat and politician. He was the eldest son of the William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire by his wife the heiress Lady Charlotte Boyle, suo jure Baroness Clifford of Lanesborough, who brought in considerable money and estates to...
, for about twenty-five years. She bore two children by the Duke: a daughter, Caroline St. Jules, and a son, Augustus (later Augustus Clifford, 1st Baronet), who were raised at Devonshire House
Devonshire House
Devonshire House in Piccadilly was the London residence of the Dukes of Devonshire in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was built for William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire in the Palladian style, to designs by William Kent...
with the Duke's legitimate children by Georgiana. With Georgiana's blessing, Lady Elizabeth married the Duke in 1809, three years after Georgiana's death, during which time she had continued to live in his household.
Bess is also said to have had affairs with several other men, including Cardinal Ercole Consalvi, John Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset
John Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset
John Frederick Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset was the only son of Lord John Philip Sackville, second son of Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset. He succeeded to the dukedom in 1769 on the death of his uncle, Charles Sackville, 2nd Duke of Dorset...
, Count Axel von Fersen, Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond
Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond
Field Marshal Charles Lennox, 3rd Duke of Richmond, 3rd Duke of Lennox, 3rd Duke of Aubigny, KG, PC, FRS , styled Earl of March until 1750, was a British politician and office holder noteworthy for his advanced views on the issue of parliamentary reform...
, and Valentine Richard Quin, 1st Earl of Dunraven. There is some evidence that Quin fathered an illegitimate son by her, who became the noted physician, Frederic Hervey Foster Quin
Frederic Hervey Foster Quin
Frederic Hervey Foster Quin was the first homeopathic physician in England.-Life:Quin was born in London on 12 Feb. 1799, and passed his early years at a school at Putney, kept by a son of Mrs. Sarah Trimmer, the author. In 1817 he was sent to Edinburgh University, where he graduated M.D. on 1...
. Quin joined the Duchess as her travelling physician in Rome in December 1820, and afterwards attended her in that city during her fatal illness in March 1824.
Lady Elizabeth Foster is the great-great-great-grandmother of Vogue
Vogue (magazine)
Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly in 18 national and one regional edition by Condé Nast.-History:In 1892 Arthur Turnure founded Vogue as a weekly publication in the United States. When he died in 1909, Condé Montrose Nast picked up the magazine and slowly began...
magazine's Anna Wintour
Anna Wintour
Anna Wintour, OBE is the British-born editor-in-chief of American Vogue, a position she has held since 1988. With her trademark pageboy bob haircut and sunglasses, Wintour has become an institution throughout the fashion world, widely praised for her eye for fashion trends and her support for...
.
Children
With John Thomas Foster:- Frederick (3 October 1777 - 1853)
- Elizabeth (17 November 1778 - 25 November 1778)
- Augustus (December 1780 - 1848)
With William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire
William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire
William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire, KG was a British aristocrat and politician. He was the eldest son of the William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire by his wife the heiress Lady Charlotte Boyle, suo jure Baroness Clifford of Lanesborough, who brought in considerable money and estates to...
(prior to their marriage):
- Caroline Rosalie Adelaide (1785–1830), who later as Caroline St Jules married George Lamb
- Sir Augustus CliffordSir Augustus Clifford, 1st BaronetAdmiral Sir Augustus William James Clifford, 1st Baronet, CB, MP was a British Royal Navy officer, court official, and usher of the Black Rod.-Naval career:...
(1788–1877)
Titles
- Miss Elizabeth Hervey (1759–1776)
- Mrs John Foster (1776–1779)
- The Lady Elizabeth Foster (1779–1809)
- Her Grace The Duchess of Devonshire (1809–1824)
Literary career
Lady Elizabeth was a friend of the French author Madame de StaëlAnne Louise Germaine de Staël
Anne Louise Germaine de Staël-Holstein , commonly known as Madame de Staël, was a French-speaking Swiss author living in Paris and abroad. She influenced literary tastes in Europe at the turn of the 19th century.- Childhood :...
, with whom she corresponded from about 1804.
She was the author of seven novels over the course of her lifetime: Melissa and Marcia, or the Sisters. A Novel; Louisa; The History of Ned Evans; The Church of St. Siffrid; The Mourtray Family. A Novel; Julia (which was never published); and Amabel; or, Memoirs of a Woman of Fashion. This last novel was the only one published with her name attached during her lifetime, and it was not on the cover, but on the dedication page. The rest of her novels were published anonymously.