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George II of Great Britain |
(1683-1760)
King of Great Britain & Ireland
1727-1760
Son of George I of Great Britain & Sophia Dorothea of Brunswick.
Husband of Caroline of Ansbach, mar 1705.
George II's personal appearance & personal qualities.
"When George II was cross -- which was often -- his face turned crimson, his eyes bulged and he began to stamp, snatching off his wig and kicking it around the room. Short, stout, vain, pernickety and very irascible, he was not an attractive man. . . ." (Independent)
George the royal prowler.
"They were more than a little ashamed, however, of his lingering libido. The elderly king liked to prowl the darker alleys of Ranelagh, London's somewhat tawdry pleasure garden, looking for young women to seduce. He went disguised (fooling no one) to masquerade and balls, and pursued actresses at the theater. He was particularly drawn to one actress, Liss Chudleigh, who portrayed Iphigenia in a scanty costume, and made a fool of himself over her." (Royal Panoply: 252)
George II's lovers were:
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Mary Bellenden |
1. Mary Bellenden (1685-1736)
Lover in 1714-1715.
Maid of Honour to the Princess of Wales (bef 1720)
Keeper of the Palace of Somerset House.
Wife of John Campbell, 4th Duke of Argyll mar 1720
". . . Nevertheless, there is reasonable evidence to suggest that Mary Bellenden was pursued by the prince during 1717 but refused him. . . Bellenden's resistance seems to have been explained in part by her love for another and by the realization that being a prince's mistress was not necessarily good for her long-term prospects. Subsequently, she secretly married Colonel John Campbell, one of the prince's bedchamber grooms in 1720. George was apparently angered when he discovered what she had done but had by this point transferred his attentions to Henrietta Howard instead. . . . " (Thompson, 2011, p. 66)
Physical appearance & personal qualities.
Lover in 1714-1715.
Maid of Honour to the Princess of Wales (bef 1720)
Keeper of the Palace of Somerset House.
Wife of John Campbell, 4th Duke of Argyll mar 1720
". . . Nevertheless, there is reasonable evidence to suggest that Mary Bellenden was pursued by the prince during 1717 but refused him. . . Bellenden's resistance seems to have been explained in part by her love for another and by the realization that being a prince's mistress was not necessarily good for her long-term prospects. Subsequently, she secretly married Colonel John Campbell, one of the prince's bedchamber grooms in 1720. George was apparently angered when he discovered what she had done but had by this point transferred his attentions to Henrietta Howard instead. . . . " (Thompson, 2011, p. 66)
Physical appearance & personal qualities.
". . . This lady was the beautiful and lively Mary Bellenden, daughter of lord Bellenden, maid of honour to queen Caroline, when princess of Wales, and a great friend of Mrs. Howard. Gay alludes to her, in his ballad entitled Damon and Cupid, as one of the reigning beauties. . . She was highly favoured by Queen Caroline, and universally admired as an accomplished pattern of good sense, and exemplary conduct. (Coxe, 1816, pp. 277-278)
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Henrietta Howard |
2. Henrietta Hobart (1689-1767)
Countess of Suffolk
Lover in 1715-1734.
Lady of the Bedchamber
Mistress of the Robes to Queen Caroline
Daughter of Sir Henry Hobart.
Wife of:
1. Henry Howard, 9th Earl of Suffolk mar 1706
2. Hon. George Berkeley mar 1735.
Physical appearance & personal qualities.
" . . . To the right of Queen Caroline stands another of her majesty's household, to whom the most deferential attention is paid by all present; nevertheless, she is queen of the court, but not queen of the royal master of that court. It is Lady Suffolk, the mistress of King George II, and long mistress of the robes to Queen Caroline. She is now past the bloom of youth, but her attractions are not in their wane; but endured until she had attained her seventy-ninth year. Of a middle height, well made, extremely fair, with very fine light hair, she attracts regard from her sweet, fresh face, which had in it a comeliness independent of regularity of feature. According to her invariable custom, she is dressed with simplicity; her silky tresses are drawn somewhat back from her snowy forehead, and fall in long tresses on her shoulders, not less transparently white. She wears a gown of rich silk, opening in front to display a chemisette of the most delicate cambric, which is scarcely less delicate than her skin. Her slender arms are without bracelets, and her taper fingers without rings. As she stands behind the queen, holding her majesty's fan and gloves, she is obliged, from her deafness, to lean her fair face with its sunny hair first to the right side, then to the left, with the helpless air of one exceedingly dead---for she had been afflicted with that infirmity for some years: yet one cannot say whether her appealing looks, which seem to say, 'Enlighten me if you please,'---and the sort of softened manner in which she accepts civilities which she scarcely comprehends do not enhance the wonderful charm which drew every one who knew her towards this frail, but passionless woman." (George Villiers: 172)
Lady of the double job?.
"In 1734, an uneasy love triangle existed at Kensington Palace. George II was Britain's king -- his fat and shrewd wife Caroline was queen. Mrs' Henrietta Howard was one of six 'women of the bedchamber' who worked for the queen. Calm and conscientious, Henrietta seemed the perfect servant. But resentment seethed within her. During her 20 years as the queen's bedchamber woman, she'd also had unglamorous, unenviable and unpaid extra duties as the king's acknowledged lover." (Daily Mail)
The king's mistress, his queen's servant.
"In the little German state of Hanover, she hoped to become intimate with its ruling family. Queen Anne, the last of the Stuarts, had no surviving children, and on her death it seemed likely that the electors of Hanover, her nearest Protestant relatives would be invited to rule Britain. The gamble paid off. Caroline, the elector George's daughter-in-law, offered Henrietta a job as a personal servant. Soon afterwards Caroline's husband, the future George II, indicated that he would like her services sexually. Caroline accepted Henrietta as her husband's mistress: she rightly feared that a woman less discreet and sensible than Henrietta would cause more trouble. Nor did the court as a whole see cause for scandal. George's German grandmother thought Henrietta would at the very least improve his English." (Daily Mail)
" . . . Historians debate as to when Henrietta became George's mistress, some speculate that the affair began back in Hanover; others date it to after the rupture between George and his father, King George I. Given that Henrietta had to share rooms with her husband at St. James' Palace, the more likely date is around 1718 or 1719 after she moved to Leicester House." (Scandalous Woman)
Stickler for time with his ladylove.
" . . . We probably remember accounts of his daily calls on his mistress Lady Suffolk, which too place precisely at 7:00 P.M. If by any chance he came a few minutes early, the king would pace up and down outside the door of her apartment, his own watch in his hand. It is a ridiculous picture, and both Lady Suffolk and the rest of the court were bored by it all, but the rigid schedule was the key to the king's life. . . ." (England's Rise to Greatness, 1660-1763: 329)
Insatiable royal sexual appetite.
" . . . King George had a vigorous if not quite insatiable sexual appetite and spent a good deal of time with his various mistresses, Madame Walmoden in Hanover and a series of court ladies in England, including Queen Caroline's Mistress of the Robes. For Lady Suffolk, who (like the queen) was cultivated and well-read, George built a mansion, Marble Hill, at Twickenham. There she entertained Pope, Swift and lesser literary figures. In time the king tired of Lady Suffolk, but Queen Caroline, who tolerated the liaison because she knew her own influence over the king, contrived to perpetuate it." (Royal Panoply: Brief Lives of the English Monarchs: 247)
Henrietta's physical appearance & personal traits.
" . . . She was not an astounding beauty, but she radiated charm and intelligence. Her build was slim, she had 'the finest light brown hair' and she was 'always well dressed with taste and simplicity'. Yet she suffered all her life from headaches and deafness. . . ." (Daily Mail)
". . . Henrietta Hobart, daughter of Sir Henry Hobart, married first to the Hon. Charles Howard, afterwards Earl of Suffolk, and secondly to the Hon. George Berkeley. She is best known as Mrs. Howard, lady of the bed-chamber to the princess, afterwards Queen Caroline. No doubt was ever entertained that Mrs. Howard was Pope's 'Chloe,' and the publication of her correspondence, in 1824, showed how truly the poet had delineated her character. . . Mrs. Howard's good sense, amiability and sweetness of temper and manners, made her a universal favourite; and it was her singular good fortune to be at once distinguished by her mistress, and beloved by her companions. She was also unfortunately distinguished by the prince, afterwards George II, in consequence of which her husband, Mr. Howard, affected great indignation, but was silenced and consented to a separation for a consideration of 1200 pounds a year. . . In 1732, on Mr. Howard succeeding to the earldom of Suffolk, the new countess became mistress of the robes, and three years afterwards she retired from Court. Her health had always been precarious, and she laboured under the infirmity of deafness, but the principal cause of her retirement was that she had entirely lost the royal favour. . . . " (The Poetical Works of Alexander Pope: 40)
Affair's benefits to Henrietta and family.
" . . . Lord Hervey says that Mrs. Howard had 2000 pounds a-year from the King while he was prince, and 3000 pounds after his accession to the throne, 'besides several little dabs of money both before and after he came to the crown.' The final 'dab' was 12,000 pounds towards the completion of the villa of Marble-Hill near Twickenham..' . . . . " (The Poetical Works of Alexander Pope: 41)
"After the death of Queen Anne in 1714, Henrietta Howard---both servant and mistress---accompanied the newly royal family on its journey to England. She was in high favour with both George and Caroline, now Prince and Princess of Wales. . . Her husband had also found a job at court. But he still constantly harassed Henrietta, pretending to be jealous of her position as the prince's mistress, and attempting to get blackmail money by threatening to reveal her royal relationship." (Daily Mail)
"Henrietta's luck began to change when she was appointed a Woman of the Bedchamber to Princess Caroline and her husband a Groom of the Bedchamber to King George I. Henrietta was paid 300 pounds a year for her new position, and she and her husband had rooms at St. James' Palace. . . ." (Scandalous Woman)
"When, to everyone's relief, Howard suddenly died and Henrietta was finally allowed to retire from court, she was paid off by her royal lover (his gift included 'a sett of Guilt Plate') and she built Marble Hill, an exquisite Palladian villa in Twickenham, near the home of her friend Alexander Pope. He, and many other friends and admirers vied with each other to offer help and advice on its structure and decoration." (Independent)
"Unlike other royal mistresses, Henrietta didn't receive a fancy title nor did she make out like a bandit. For her pains, Henrietta received a boost in her salary. She did end up with one memento from George II that still stands today, her small villa at Marble Hill. The King made sure that her husband wasn't able to touch any of the gifts that he gave her. Later on, George II gave her 1,200 pounds a year, money she used to pay off her husband to leave her alone. . . ." (Scandalous Woman)
Henrietta's personal & family background.
"Henrietta was born into the Hobart family of Norfolk. . . (H)er family's main home was Blickling Hall near Norwich. Despite the grandeur of their country mansion, the Hobarts' finances were precarious, and became even more so after Henrietta's father was killed in a duel in 1698. Left orphaned by the death of her mother shortly afterwards, Henrietta at the age of sixteen assumed that marriage to the thirty-year-old Charles Howard would provide her with some measure of security." (Courtiers: The Secret History of the Georgian Court: 138)
Henrietta's spouses and children.
Henrietta married 1) in 1706 Henry Howard, later 9th Earl of Suffolk; and 2) in 1735, Hon. George Berkeley. " . . . Having made an unwise marriage to Charles Howard, a notorious gambler, drinker and bully, she soon found herself starving and on the run from creditors, having assumed the unassuming name of Mrs. Smith. . . ." (Independent)
Lover in 1715-1734.
Mistress of the Robes to Queen Caroline
Daughter of Sir Henry Hobart.
Wife of:
1. Henry Howard, 9th Earl of Suffolk mar 1706
2. Hon. George Berkeley mar 1735.
Physical appearance & personal qualities.
" . . . To the right of Queen Caroline stands another of her majesty's household, to whom the most deferential attention is paid by all present; nevertheless, she is queen of the court, but not queen of the royal master of that court. It is Lady Suffolk, the mistress of King George II, and long mistress of the robes to Queen Caroline. She is now past the bloom of youth, but her attractions are not in their wane; but endured until she had attained her seventy-ninth year. Of a middle height, well made, extremely fair, with very fine light hair, she attracts regard from her sweet, fresh face, which had in it a comeliness independent of regularity of feature. According to her invariable custom, she is dressed with simplicity; her silky tresses are drawn somewhat back from her snowy forehead, and fall in long tresses on her shoulders, not less transparently white. She wears a gown of rich silk, opening in front to display a chemisette of the most delicate cambric, which is scarcely less delicate than her skin. Her slender arms are without bracelets, and her taper fingers without rings. As she stands behind the queen, holding her majesty's fan and gloves, she is obliged, from her deafness, to lean her fair face with its sunny hair first to the right side, then to the left, with the helpless air of one exceedingly dead---for she had been afflicted with that infirmity for some years: yet one cannot say whether her appealing looks, which seem to say, 'Enlighten me if you please,'---and the sort of softened manner in which she accepts civilities which she scarcely comprehends do not enhance the wonderful charm which drew every one who knew her towards this frail, but passionless woman." (George Villiers: 172)
Lady of the double job?.
"In 1734, an uneasy love triangle existed at Kensington Palace. George II was Britain's king -- his fat and shrewd wife Caroline was queen. Mrs' Henrietta Howard was one of six 'women of the bedchamber' who worked for the queen. Calm and conscientious, Henrietta seemed the perfect servant. But resentment seethed within her. During her 20 years as the queen's bedchamber woman, she'd also had unglamorous, unenviable and unpaid extra duties as the king's acknowledged lover." (Daily Mail)
The king's mistress, his queen's servant.
"In the little German state of Hanover, she hoped to become intimate with its ruling family. Queen Anne, the last of the Stuarts, had no surviving children, and on her death it seemed likely that the electors of Hanover, her nearest Protestant relatives would be invited to rule Britain. The gamble paid off. Caroline, the elector George's daughter-in-law, offered Henrietta a job as a personal servant. Soon afterwards Caroline's husband, the future George II, indicated that he would like her services sexually. Caroline accepted Henrietta as her husband's mistress: she rightly feared that a woman less discreet and sensible than Henrietta would cause more trouble. Nor did the court as a whole see cause for scandal. George's German grandmother thought Henrietta would at the very least improve his English." (Daily Mail)
" . . . Historians debate as to when Henrietta became George's mistress, some speculate that the affair began back in Hanover; others date it to after the rupture between George and his father, King George I. Given that Henrietta had to share rooms with her husband at St. James' Palace, the more likely date is around 1718 or 1719 after she moved to Leicester House." (Scandalous Woman)
Stickler for time with his ladylove.
" . . . We probably remember accounts of his daily calls on his mistress Lady Suffolk, which too place precisely at 7:00 P.M. If by any chance he came a few minutes early, the king would pace up and down outside the door of her apartment, his own watch in his hand. It is a ridiculous picture, and both Lady Suffolk and the rest of the court were bored by it all, but the rigid schedule was the key to the king's life. . . ." (England's Rise to Greatness, 1660-1763: 329)
Insatiable royal sexual appetite.
" . . . King George had a vigorous if not quite insatiable sexual appetite and spent a good deal of time with his various mistresses, Madame Walmoden in Hanover and a series of court ladies in England, including Queen Caroline's Mistress of the Robes. For Lady Suffolk, who (like the queen) was cultivated and well-read, George built a mansion, Marble Hill, at Twickenham. There she entertained Pope, Swift and lesser literary figures. In time the king tired of Lady Suffolk, but Queen Caroline, who tolerated the liaison because she knew her own influence over the king, contrived to perpetuate it." (Royal Panoply: Brief Lives of the English Monarchs: 247)
Henrietta's physical appearance & personal traits.
" . . . She was not an astounding beauty, but she radiated charm and intelligence. Her build was slim, she had 'the finest light brown hair' and she was 'always well dressed with taste and simplicity'. Yet she suffered all her life from headaches and deafness. . . ." (Daily Mail)
". . . Henrietta Hobart, daughter of Sir Henry Hobart, married first to the Hon. Charles Howard, afterwards Earl of Suffolk, and secondly to the Hon. George Berkeley. She is best known as Mrs. Howard, lady of the bed-chamber to the princess, afterwards Queen Caroline. No doubt was ever entertained that Mrs. Howard was Pope's 'Chloe,' and the publication of her correspondence, in 1824, showed how truly the poet had delineated her character. . . Mrs. Howard's good sense, amiability and sweetness of temper and manners, made her a universal favourite; and it was her singular good fortune to be at once distinguished by her mistress, and beloved by her companions. She was also unfortunately distinguished by the prince, afterwards George II, in consequence of which her husband, Mr. Howard, affected great indignation, but was silenced and consented to a separation for a consideration of 1200 pounds a year. . . In 1732, on Mr. Howard succeeding to the earldom of Suffolk, the new countess became mistress of the robes, and three years afterwards she retired from Court. Her health had always been precarious, and she laboured under the infirmity of deafness, but the principal cause of her retirement was that she had entirely lost the royal favour. . . . " (The Poetical Works of Alexander Pope: 40)
Affair's benefits to Henrietta and family.
" . . . Lord Hervey says that Mrs. Howard had 2000 pounds a-year from the King while he was prince, and 3000 pounds after his accession to the throne, 'besides several little dabs of money both before and after he came to the crown.' The final 'dab' was 12,000 pounds towards the completion of the villa of Marble-Hill near Twickenham..' . . . . " (The Poetical Works of Alexander Pope: 41)
"After the death of Queen Anne in 1714, Henrietta Howard---both servant and mistress---accompanied the newly royal family on its journey to England. She was in high favour with both George and Caroline, now Prince and Princess of Wales. . . Her husband had also found a job at court. But he still constantly harassed Henrietta, pretending to be jealous of her position as the prince's mistress, and attempting to get blackmail money by threatening to reveal her royal relationship." (Daily Mail)
"Henrietta's luck began to change when she was appointed a Woman of the Bedchamber to Princess Caroline and her husband a Groom of the Bedchamber to King George I. Henrietta was paid 300 pounds a year for her new position, and she and her husband had rooms at St. James' Palace. . . ." (Scandalous Woman)
Marble Hill House,George II's gift to Henrietta Howard
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| Marble Hill House |
"Unlike other royal mistresses, Henrietta didn't receive a fancy title nor did she make out like a bandit. For her pains, Henrietta received a boost in her salary. She did end up with one memento from George II that still stands today, her small villa at Marble Hill. The King made sure that her husband wasn't able to touch any of the gifts that he gave her. Later on, George II gave her 1,200 pounds a year, money she used to pay off her husband to leave her alone. . . ." (Scandalous Woman)
Henrietta's personal & family background.
"Henrietta was born into the Hobart family of Norfolk. . . (H)er family's main home was Blickling Hall near Norwich. Despite the grandeur of their country mansion, the Hobarts' finances were precarious, and became even more so after Henrietta's father was killed in a duel in 1698. Left orphaned by the death of her mother shortly afterwards, Henrietta at the age of sixteen assumed that marriage to the thirty-year-old Charles Howard would provide her with some measure of security." (Courtiers: The Secret History of the Georgian Court: 138)
Henrietta's spouses and children.
Henrietta married 1) in 1706 Henry Howard, later 9th Earl of Suffolk; and 2) in 1735, Hon. George Berkeley. " . . . Having made an unwise marriage to Charles Howard, a notorious gambler, drinker and bully, she soon found herself starving and on the run from creditors, having assumed the unassuming name of Mrs. Smith. . . ." (Independent)
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Catherine, Lady Walpole |
3. Catherine Shorter (1682-1737)
Lady Walpole
Lover in 1720.
Lover in 1720.
Wife of Sir Robert Walpole, future Prime Minister, mar 1700
A son's tribute to his mother's personal qualities.
"To the memory of Catherine Lady Walpole, eldest daughter of John Shorter, Esqr. of Bybrook in Kent and first wife of Sir Robert Walpole, afterwards Earl of Orford, Horace her youngest son consecrates this monument. She had beauty and wit without vice or vanity, and cultivated the Arts without affectation. She was devout, tho' without bigotry to any sect, and was without prejudice to any party tho' the wife of a minister, whose power she esteemed but when she could employ it to the benefit the miserable or to reward the meritorious. She loved a private life, tho' born to shine in public; and was an ornament to courts, untainted by them. She died Aug. 20, 1737." (Westminster Abbey)
Catherine, Lady Walpole's personal & family background.
"Her father was a timber merchant and her mother was Lady Elizabeth Philipps. Her grandfather, Sir John had been Lord Mayor of London. On 30 July 1700 she married Robert, who became Prime Minister. Their sons were Robert, Earl of Orford, Edward who died unmarried, and Horace. Their daughters were Mary who married George Cholmondeley, Viscount Malpas, and Catherine who died unmarried. The couple were very extravagant and ran up large debts and eventually they led separate lives. She was buried at Houghton in Norfolk. Her husband had several illegitimate children." (Westminster Abbey)
4. Mary Dunckerley
Lover in 1723-1724.
4. Mary Dunckerley
Lover in 1723-1724.
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Giovanna Farussi |
5. Giovanna Farussi (1707-1776)
Lover in 1726?.
Italian actress, opera singer & composer
Wife of Gaetano Casanova, mar 1724
Mother of Giacomo Casanova.
" . . . After her debut at Teatro San Samuele in Venice, she performed in 1726-1728 at Kings Theatre in London, where she made a success. King George II of Great Britain was rumoured to have been the father of her son Francesco (born 1727) - it is unknown whether this was true, or whether the rumour was encouraged for publicity's sake. . . .(Wikipedia)
Italian actress, opera singer & composer
Wife of Gaetano Casanova, mar 1724
Mother of Giacomo Casanova.
" . . . After her debut at Teatro San Samuele in Venice, she performed in 1726-1728 at Kings Theatre in London, where she made a success. King George II of Great Britain was rumoured to have been the father of her son Francesco (born 1727) - it is unknown whether this was true, or whether the rumour was encouraged for publicity's sake. . . .(Wikipedia)
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Amalia Sophia Marianne Grafin von Wallmoden |
6. Amalia von Wendt (1704-1765)
Countess of Yarmouth
Lover in 1735-1760.
Baroness & Countess of Yarmouth 1740
Lover in 1735-1760.
Baroness & Countess of Yarmouth 1740
Grafin von Wallmoden
Daughter of Johann Franz Dietrich von Wendt, General in the Hanoverian Service & Friederike Charlotte von dem Busshe.
Wife of Gottlieb Adam von Wallmoden, Governor (Oberhauptmann) of Kalenberg, mar 1727
First encounter -- 1735.
Madam von Wallmoden first caught the King's eye in 1735 during a visit to Hanover. Surprisingly, the King then wrote to his wife, the Queen, describing his conquest in some detail. The result of this intimacy with her had been brought by the King. . . ." (Royal Bastards)
When she became mistress -- 1737.
"Amelia Sophia de Walmoden, a Hanoverian nobleman, became the mistress of George the Second during one of his journeys to his German dominions. . . The King sent for her to England as soon as a decent period had elapsed from the death of his Queen, and shortly afterwards, by letters patent, dated 4th of April, 1740, created her Baroness and Countess of Yarmouth." (Memoirs of the Court of England., Volume 3: 420)
Acknowledged as royal mistress.
" . . . Amalia Sophie Marianne von Walmoden, George II's mistress, who became his acknowledged mistress after the death of Queen Caroline in 1737, being made Countess of Yarmouth, was an influential political figure because of her access to George, whose favours to her were not ignored by the populace...." (The Hanoverians: 42)
"After Caroline died in 1737, George settled down into a domestic relationship with his already established mistress, Amalia Sophie Marianne von Walmoden. He had met her in Hanover, to which Caroline did not accompany him: she remained with the children in Britain and acted as regent. Madame Walmoden's second son, John, born in 1736, who was reputed to be the King's child, rose to be a Field Marshal in the Hanoverian army. After Caroline died, George made Madame Walmoden Countess of Yarmouth, and her role became similar to that of Melusine von der Schulenburg under his father. She became an influential political force because of her access to him. As George's confidante, she was alleged to have recommended at least three peerage creations in return for bribes, and was used as a way to convey ideas to George. . . ." (The Hanoverians: 106)
Amelia's physical appearance.
Daughter of Johann Franz Dietrich von Wendt, General in the Hanoverian Service & Friederike Charlotte von dem Busshe.
Wife of Gottlieb Adam von Wallmoden, Governor (Oberhauptmann) of Kalenberg, mar 1727
First encounter -- 1735.
Madam von Wallmoden first caught the King's eye in 1735 during a visit to Hanover. Surprisingly, the King then wrote to his wife, the Queen, describing his conquest in some detail. The result of this intimacy with her had been brought by the King. . . ." (Royal Bastards)
When she became mistress -- 1737.
"Amelia Sophia de Walmoden, a Hanoverian nobleman, became the mistress of George the Second during one of his journeys to his German dominions. . . The King sent for her to England as soon as a decent period had elapsed from the death of his Queen, and shortly afterwards, by letters patent, dated 4th of April, 1740, created her Baroness and Countess of Yarmouth." (Memoirs of the Court of England., Volume 3: 420)
Acknowledged as royal mistress.
" . . . Amalia Sophie Marianne von Walmoden, George II's mistress, who became his acknowledged mistress after the death of Queen Caroline in 1737, being made Countess of Yarmouth, was an influential political figure because of her access to George, whose favours to her were not ignored by the populace...." (The Hanoverians: 42)
"After Caroline died in 1737, George settled down into a domestic relationship with his already established mistress, Amalia Sophie Marianne von Walmoden. He had met her in Hanover, to which Caroline did not accompany him: she remained with the children in Britain and acted as regent. Madame Walmoden's second son, John, born in 1736, who was reputed to be the King's child, rose to be a Field Marshal in the Hanoverian army. After Caroline died, George made Madame Walmoden Countess of Yarmouth, and her role became similar to that of Melusine von der Schulenburg under his father. She became an influential political force because of her access to him. As George's confidante, she was alleged to have recommended at least three peerage creations in return for bribes, and was used as a way to convey ideas to George. . . ." (The Hanoverians: 106)
Amelia's physical appearance.
"In the mean time the King had grown tired of Lady Deloraine and during a visit to his beloved Hanover had fallen in love with Amelia Sophia von Wallmoden, the grand daughter of his father's first mistress Maria Catherine von Meysenburg and her husband General Johann von dem Busshe. 'A young woman of the first fashion at Hanover,' according to Lord Hervey. Amelia was twenty-nine years old and a married woman with two young children. The King brought her to London on the death of Queen Caroline in December 1737 and installed her with her husband in St. James's Palace. In her entourage she brought her youngest child, Johann Ludwig, an infant of just one year who was almost certainly the fruit of her affair with the King. Amelia was not a great beauty. Viscount Townshend described as as 'a brunette with fine black eyes, very well shaped, not tall or low, has no fine features but very agreeable in the main'. The King certainly found her very agreeable and shortly after her arrival she was divorced by her husband and in recompense created Countess of Yarmouth." (Royal Sex)
" . . . The character of Madame de Walmoden was quiet and inoffensive; and though she did not hesitate to advance her own interests at court, her name is seldom mentioned by her contemporaries without some tribute to her good-nature and obliging disposition." (Memoirs of the Court of England., Vol 3: 421)
Affair's benefits.
He had known her in Hanover, and shortly after the death of Queen Caroline she was brought to England, and created Countess of Yarmouth—'the last instance,' says Stanhope, 'in our annals of a British peerage bestowed on a royal mistress.' Her character was quiet and inoffensive, and though she did not at first possess, she gradually gained considerable influence over the king. She was summoned when George was found dead, and by a codicil to that king's will was bequeathed £10,000." (The Dictionary of English History:1092)
" . . . Another of the king's mistresses was Amelia Sophia de Wallmoden, who in 1740 was created countess of Yarmouth for life---the last instance of this scandalous abuse of the royal prerogative, and prostitution of the honours of the state." (The English Cyclopædia, Vol 3: 68)
" . . . She was installed at St James's Palace and was created Countess of Yarmouth on 24 March 1740. . . . " (Royal Bastards)
Personal & family background.
" . . . Amalie Sophie Marianne von Wallmoden (was) the daughter of Johann Franz Dietrich von Wendt, a general in the Hanoverian Service by his wife Friederike Charlotte von dem Busshe, first cousin of Sophia Charlotte von Kielmansegge, George I's illegitimate sister. . . . " (Royal Bastards:n.d.)
" . . . At some point during the 1735 trip George began a relationship with Amalie Sophie Marianne von Wallmoden. Born in 1704, Wallmoden came from the upper strata of Hanoverian society and her family had already enjoyed several intimate connections with the Guelphs. It is likely that her grandmother, Maria von Meysenburg, had been Georg Ludwig's close companion and possibly mistress in the 1670s. Wallmoden's father's correspondence with George's uncle, Ernst August, has been seen by some as suggestive of a more than platonic relationship. George seems to have entered into his new relationship with gusto. His regular correspondence with Caroline was said by Hervey to include minute details of the new relationship -- what Wallmoden looked like, what she did, where they went, what George had bought for her and how much it had all cost. On his eventual return to London, George to talk frequently about the delights of his time in Hanover and forced Caroline and Hervey to look at pictures of various scenes of Hanoverian court life, while George regarded them with further details of his adventure with Wallmoden. Such was the strength of George's passion for his new mistress that he was reluctant to leave Hanover to go back to London as normal to celebrate his birthday -- he did not depart until the start of November, whereas he had made his return journey in late September on his previous two visits." (George II: Elector and King: 113)
Affair's benefits.
He had known her in Hanover, and shortly after the death of Queen Caroline she was brought to England, and created Countess of Yarmouth—'the last instance,' says Stanhope, 'in our annals of a British peerage bestowed on a royal mistress.' Her character was quiet and inoffensive, and though she did not at first possess, she gradually gained considerable influence over the king. She was summoned when George was found dead, and by a codicil to that king's will was bequeathed £10,000." (The Dictionary of English History:1092)
" . . . Another of the king's mistresses was Amelia Sophia de Wallmoden, who in 1740 was created countess of Yarmouth for life---the last instance of this scandalous abuse of the royal prerogative, and prostitution of the honours of the state." (The English Cyclopædia, Vol 3: 68)
" . . . She was installed at St James's Palace and was created Countess of Yarmouth on 24 March 1740. . . . " (Royal Bastards)
Personal & family background.
" . . . Amalie Sophie Marianne von Wallmoden (was) the daughter of Johann Franz Dietrich von Wendt, a general in the Hanoverian Service by his wife Friederike Charlotte von dem Busshe, first cousin of Sophia Charlotte von Kielmansegge, George I's illegitimate sister. . . . " (Royal Bastards:n.d.)
" . . . At some point during the 1735 trip George began a relationship with Amalie Sophie Marianne von Wallmoden. Born in 1704, Wallmoden came from the upper strata of Hanoverian society and her family had already enjoyed several intimate connections with the Guelphs. It is likely that her grandmother, Maria von Meysenburg, had been Georg Ludwig's close companion and possibly mistress in the 1670s. Wallmoden's father's correspondence with George's uncle, Ernst August, has been seen by some as suggestive of a more than platonic relationship. George seems to have entered into his new relationship with gusto. His regular correspondence with Caroline was said by Hervey to include minute details of the new relationship -- what Wallmoden looked like, what she did, where they went, what George had bought for her and how much it had all cost. On his eventual return to London, George to talk frequently about the delights of his time in Hanover and forced Caroline and Hervey to look at pictures of various scenes of Hanoverian court life, while George regarded them with further details of his adventure with Wallmoden. Such was the strength of George's passion for his new mistress that he was reluctant to leave Hanover to go back to London as normal to celebrate his birthday -- he did not depart until the start of November, whereas he had made his return journey in late September on his previous two visits." (George II: Elector and King: 113)
8. Mary Howard (1703-1744)
Countess of Deloraine
Lover in 1737-1738.
British courtier & royal mistress.
Wife of:
1. Henry Scott, 1st Earl of Deloraine (1676-1730) mar 1726
2. William Wyndham (d.1743).
"In 1737, it became generally known that Mary Deloraine had become his mistress. She showed off about it so much that 'the most incredulous now began to cease doubting of His Majesty's tasting all the pleasures with Lady Deloraine which she was capable of bestowing.'. . . ." (Courtiers: The Secret History of the Georgian Court: 271)
". . . Lady Mary Deloraine had become George's mistress during the summer of 1737, although he does not seem to have been particularly enthused by her, noting that she stank rather too frequently of Spanish wine." (George II: King & Elector:127)
"In 1735 George II boasted to Lord Hervey that he had seduced Lady Deloraine the winter before, prompting Hervey to note that the king had made 'the governess of his two youngest daughters his whore and the guardian-director of his son's youth and morals his cuckold'. . . . " (ODNB)
". . . May Howard, Countess of Deloraine . . . was the young widow of Henry Scott, second son of the Duke of Monmouth and Anne, Duchess of Buccleuch, and who had been created Earl of Deloraine in 1706. Delia was governess---apparently a very unfit one---to the young princesses, daughters of George II, and was a favourite with the king, with whom she generally played cards in the evenings in the princesses' apartments.
Royal mistress with a weak head, a pretty face, a lying tongue, and a false heart: Sir Robert Walpole considered Lady Deloraine as a dangerous person about the court, for she possessed, according to the shrewd minister, a weak head, a pretty face, a lying tongue, and a false heart. Lord Hervey, in his Court Ballad written in 1742, sarcastically styles her 'virtuous, and sober, and wise Deloraine;' and in his Memoirs, under date of 1735, he describes her as 'one of the vainest as well as one of the simplest women that ever lived; but to this wretched head,' he adds, 'there was certainly joined one of the prettiest faces that ever was formed; which, though she was now five-and-thirty, had a bloom upon it, too, that not one woman in ten thousand has at fifteen.' . . . . " (The Poetical Works of Alexander Pope:135-136)
Mary Howard's personal & family background: ". . . Mary was the daughter of Charles Howard, a naval officer, and his wife, Elizabeth Batten. Her father was a grandson of Thomas Howard, first earl of Berkshire, and a great-grandson of Thomas Howard, first earl of Suffolk . . . ." (ODNB)
" . . . Born Mary Howard, daughter of Captain Charles Howard, she had first been a maid of honour to Queen Caroline (then the Princess of Wales), but had lost her position when she married Henry Scott, Earl of Deloraine, in 1726. He was lord of the bedchamber to George II (then the Prince of Wales), continuing on after the accession. He died in 1730, leaving a pretty widow and two young daughters. Mary now came back into royal service as governess of the princesses and appears in that role in Hogarth's conversation piece 'The Indian Emperor, or The Conquest of Mexico'. The performance being commemorated had taken place in 1732, although Hogarth did not finish the painting until 1735." (Kirby and His World)
3) Henrietta Dowd.
"He kept one mistress, Henrietta Dowd, for twenty years, and when he finally dropped her, his wife begged him to reconsider, for fear he would go on the tear with a string of feisty new lovers, which he duly did, hanging a portrait of one of them at the base of his bed." (The Daily Beast)
9) Karoline von Braunschweig, Princess of Ansbach
Lover in 1720.
10) Luise von der Schulenburg, Grafin von Delitz.
Lover in 1737-1738.
British courtier & royal mistress.
Wife of:
1. Henry Scott, 1st Earl of Deloraine (1676-1730) mar 1726
2. William Wyndham (d.1743).
"In 1737, it became generally known that Mary Deloraine had become his mistress. She showed off about it so much that 'the most incredulous now began to cease doubting of His Majesty's tasting all the pleasures with Lady Deloraine which she was capable of bestowing.'. . . ." (Courtiers: The Secret History of the Georgian Court: 271)
". . . Lady Mary Deloraine had become George's mistress during the summer of 1737, although he does not seem to have been particularly enthused by her, noting that she stank rather too frequently of Spanish wine." (George II: King & Elector:127)
"In 1735 George II boasted to Lord Hervey that he had seduced Lady Deloraine the winter before, prompting Hervey to note that the king had made 'the governess of his two youngest daughters his whore and the guardian-director of his son's youth and morals his cuckold'. . . . " (ODNB)
". . . May Howard, Countess of Deloraine . . . was the young widow of Henry Scott, second son of the Duke of Monmouth and Anne, Duchess of Buccleuch, and who had been created Earl of Deloraine in 1706. Delia was governess---apparently a very unfit one---to the young princesses, daughters of George II, and was a favourite with the king, with whom she generally played cards in the evenings in the princesses' apartments.
Royal mistress with a weak head, a pretty face, a lying tongue, and a false heart: Sir Robert Walpole considered Lady Deloraine as a dangerous person about the court, for she possessed, according to the shrewd minister, a weak head, a pretty face, a lying tongue, and a false heart. Lord Hervey, in his Court Ballad written in 1742, sarcastically styles her 'virtuous, and sober, and wise Deloraine;' and in his Memoirs, under date of 1735, he describes her as 'one of the vainest as well as one of the simplest women that ever lived; but to this wretched head,' he adds, 'there was certainly joined one of the prettiest faces that ever was formed; which, though she was now five-and-thirty, had a bloom upon it, too, that not one woman in ten thousand has at fifteen.' . . . . " (The Poetical Works of Alexander Pope:135-136)
Mary Howard's personal & family background: ". . . Mary was the daughter of Charles Howard, a naval officer, and his wife, Elizabeth Batten. Her father was a grandson of Thomas Howard, first earl of Berkshire, and a great-grandson of Thomas Howard, first earl of Suffolk . . . ." (ODNB)
" . . . Born Mary Howard, daughter of Captain Charles Howard, she had first been a maid of honour to Queen Caroline (then the Princess of Wales), but had lost her position when she married Henry Scott, Earl of Deloraine, in 1726. He was lord of the bedchamber to George II (then the Prince of Wales), continuing on after the accession. He died in 1730, leaving a pretty widow and two young daughters. Mary now came back into royal service as governess of the princesses and appears in that role in Hogarth's conversation piece 'The Indian Emperor, or The Conquest of Mexico'. The performance being commemorated had taken place in 1732, although Hogarth did not finish the painting until 1735." (Kirby and His World)
3) Henrietta Dowd.
"He kept one mistress, Henrietta Dowd, for twenty years, and when he finally dropped her, his wife begged him to reconsider, for fear he would go on the tear with a string of feisty new lovers, which he duly did, hanging a portrait of one of them at the base of his bed." (The Daily Beast)
9) Karoline von Braunschweig, Princess of Ansbach
Lover in 1720.
10) Luise von der Schulenburg, Grafin von Delitz.
.jpg) |
| Charlotte, Baroness Sundon |
Baroness Sundon
Lover in 1730s.
Lady of the bedchamber to Queen Caroline
Lover in 1730s.
Lady of the bedchamber to Queen Caroline
Daughter of John Dyve, Clerk of the Privy Council, & Frances Wolseley.
 |
William Clayton 1st Baron Sundon |
Wife of: William Clayton (1672?-1752), British politician, 1st Baron Sundon of Ardagh 1735, Paymaster of the King's Private Pensions, Lord of Treasury, Auditor-General to Prince of Wales mar 1714
12) Amalie von Wendt (1704-1765)
Countess of Yarmouth
Lover in 1735-1760.
Hanoverian courtier & royal mistress
Daughter of Johann Franz Dietrich von Wendt, Hanoverian general & Friderike Charlotte von dem Busche
Wife of Gottlieb Adam von Wallmoden
"Amelia Sophia de Walmoden, a Hanoverian nobleman, became the mistress of George the Second during one of his journeys to his German dominions... The King sent for her to England as soon as a decent period had elapsed from the death of his Queen, and shortly afterwards, by letters patent, dated 4th of April, 1740, created her Baroness and Countess of Yarmouth." (Jesse, 1843, p. 420)
"...The character of Madame de Walmoden was quiet and inoffensive; and though she did not hesitate to advance her own interests at court, her name is seldom mentioned by her contemporaries without some tribute to her good-nature and obliging disposition." (Jesse, 1843, p. 421)
" . . . He had known her in Hanover, and shortly after the death of Queen Caroline she was brought to England, and created Countess of Yarmouth—'the last instance,' says Stanhope, 'in our annals of a British peerage bestowed on a royal mistress.' Her character was quiet and inoffensive, and though she did not at first possess, she gradually gained considerable influence over the king. She was summoned when George was found dead, and by a codicil to that king's will was bequeathed £10,000." (The Dictionary of English History: 1092)
First encounter: "George II was first attracted to the Countess Wallmoden in 1735, during a visit to Hanover, where she lived with her husband. In 1736, she bore a son, called Johann Ludwig von Wallmoden, said to be the unacknowledged illegitimate child of the king. By 1738, George II's visits to Hanover to see his mistress were so numerous as to invite satire by Samuel Johnson in the poem 'London'. The king ended the necessity of those visits after the death of his wife Caroline of Ansbach in November 1737, sending for the Countess Wallmoden to join him in England, but it did not put an end to Johnson's disapproval. In 1739, Johnson wrote scathingly of the king's relationship with Wallmoden, 'his tortured sons shall die before his face / While he lies melting in a lewd embrace'." (Wikipedia)
.JPG/543px-Amalie_Sophie_von_Wallmoden_(1).JPG) |
Amalie, Countess of Yarmouth @Herrenhausen Palace Museum |
Countess of Yarmouth
Lover in 1735-1760.
Hanoverian courtier & royal mistress
Daughter of Johann Franz Dietrich von Wendt, Hanoverian general & Friderike Charlotte von dem Busche
Wife of Gottlieb Adam von Wallmoden
"Amelia Sophia de Walmoden, a Hanoverian nobleman, became the mistress of George the Second during one of his journeys to his German dominions... The King sent for her to England as soon as a decent period had elapsed from the death of his Queen, and shortly afterwards, by letters patent, dated 4th of April, 1740, created her Baroness and Countess of Yarmouth." (Jesse, 1843, p. 420)
"...The character of Madame de Walmoden was quiet and inoffensive; and though she did not hesitate to advance her own interests at court, her name is seldom mentioned by her contemporaries without some tribute to her good-nature and obliging disposition." (Jesse, 1843, p. 421)
" . . . He had known her in Hanover, and shortly after the death of Queen Caroline she was brought to England, and created Countess of Yarmouth—'the last instance,' says Stanhope, 'in our annals of a British peerage bestowed on a royal mistress.' Her character was quiet and inoffensive, and though she did not at first possess, she gradually gained considerable influence over the king. She was summoned when George was found dead, and by a codicil to that king's will was bequeathed £10,000." (The Dictionary of English History: 1092)
First encounter: "George II was first attracted to the Countess Wallmoden in 1735, during a visit to Hanover, where she lived with her husband. In 1736, she bore a son, called Johann Ludwig von Wallmoden, said to be the unacknowledged illegitimate child of the king. By 1738, George II's visits to Hanover to see his mistress were so numerous as to invite satire by Samuel Johnson in the poem 'London'. The king ended the necessity of those visits after the death of his wife Caroline of Ansbach in November 1737, sending for the Countess Wallmoden to join him in England, but it did not put an end to Johnson's disapproval. In 1739, Johnson wrote scathingly of the king's relationship with Wallmoden, 'his tortured sons shall die before his face / While he lies melting in a lewd embrace'." (Wikipedia)
13. Sally Salisbury.
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