Marie Freeman-Thomas, Marchioness of Willingdon

Marie Freeman-Thomas, Marchioness of Willingdon, GBE CI (1875 — 30 January 1960) was born as Marie Adelaide Brassey, a daughter of Thomas Brassey, 1st Earl Brassey.

On 20 July 1892, she married Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon (born 1866 — died 1941), the future Governor General of Canada; they had two children:

Lieutenant Gerard Frederick Freeman-Thomas (3 May 1893 – 14 September 1914), killed, aged 21, in the First World War
Inigo Thomas, 2nd Marquess of Willingdon (25 July 1899 – 19 March 1979)

Honours

She was:

Invested as an Imperial Order of the Crown of India (C.I.) in 1917^[1]
Decorated with the Kaisar-i-Hind Gold Medal
Invested as a Dame of Justice, Venerable Order of Saint John (D.J.St. J.)
Decorated with the Order of Mercy.^[2]
Invested as a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 1917 King's Birthday Honours^[3]
Invested as a Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE) in the 1924 King's Birthday Honours^[4]

Legacy

Marie Canyon on the Cowichan River, Vancouver Island, is named for her, commemorating a 1930 canoe trip from Cowichan Lake down that river to the city of Duncan, British Columbia.

References

^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 29886. p. 6. 29 December 1916. Retrieved 2007-12-20.
^ London Gazette: no. 27555. p. 3277. 22 May 1903. Retrieved 2007-12-20.
^ London Gazette: no. 30413. p. 12680. 4 December 1917. Retrieved 2007-12-20.
^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 32941. p. 4417. 30 May 1924. Retrieved 2007-12-20.

Peerage

Honorary titles
Preceded by The Viscountess Byng of Vimy	Viceregal Consort of Canada 1926 – 1931	Succeeded by The Countess of Bessborough