Elizabeth, Marchioness of Ormonde
Elizabeth Butler, Marchioness of Ormonde (; 11 October 1856 – 25 March 1928), was a British aristocrat who was the eldest daughter of Hugh Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster and Lady Constance Gertrude Sutherland-Leveson-Gower (daughter of George Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, 2nd Duke of Sutherland). In 1876 she married James Butler, 3rd Marquess of Ormonde and became the Marchioness of Ormonde until her husband's death in 1919. She was the last Marchioness of Ormonde to live at the Butler Family's ancestral seat Kilkenny Castle. Marriage Elizabeth became engaged to James, Marquess of Ormonde in 1875, and the pair were married at Aldford Church, Chester, on 2 February 1876. The Duke of Westminster settled a £15,000 Dowry on Elizabeth. They had two daughters: Lady Beatrice Butler (1876–1952), married with Lt.-Gen. Sir Reginald Pole-Carew, , had issue. Lady Constance Mary Butler (1879–1949), died unmarried. Marchioness of Ormonde Lord and Lady Ormonde resided at the family seat Kilkenny Castle for the duration of their marriage. They entertained King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra at the castle in 1904. Lord Ormonde had succeeded The King as Commodore of the Royal Yacht Squadron upon the former's ascension to the Throne in 1901. Other royal visitors Elizabeth hosted at Kilkenny Castle included The Duke and Duchess of York (the future King George V and Queen Mary in April 1899, and Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn in early 1877. Lord and Lady Ormonde leased 32 Upper Brook St in London as their London home from the Duke of Westminster from 1881 to 1921 (Lady Ormonde continued to lease the property after Lord Ormonde's death in 1919). It was later reported that the property was gifted to Elizabeth by her father. Elizabeth's father died in 1899; his will provided for an additional £20,000 to Elizabeth's marriage settlement, increasing the total to £35,000. The 1901 Census of Ireland records that the Ormondes' Household at Kilkenny included a Butler, Housekeeper, Cook, three Ladies Maids, a Lodge Keeper, two Footmen, one "Odd Man", three Housemaids, two Dairy Maids, one Still Room Maid, one Scullery Maid, one Kitchen Maid, a Hospital Nurse and a Professional Nurse. In 1910 Lord and Lady Ormonde leased Solent Lodge on the Isle of Wight. The house was later purchased by Lord Ormonde, who bequeathed it to Elizabeth upon his death. During the First World War, Elizabeth served as the President of the Kilkenny County Branches of the British Red Cross Society and Soldiers' and Sailors' Families' Association. Royal links Lord and Lady Ormonde maintained close links with the British Royal Family. Elizabeth's maternal grandmother Harriet, Duchess of Sutherland was a favourite of Queen Victoria, serving as Mistress of the Robes on four occasions spanning fifteen years between 1837 and 1861. In 1894 Elizabeth's sister Lady Margaret Grosvenor married Prince Adolphus of Teck, brother of Queen Mary. On her husband's side of the family, Elizabeth's mother-in-law Frances, Marchioness of Ormonde had served as a lady-in-waiting to the widowed Queen Adelaide from 1844 to 1849, and her late father-in-law