Viola Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster
Viola Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster (10 June 1912 – 3 May 1987),[1] was the wife of Robert Grosvenor, 5th Duke of Westminster.
Born Viola Maud Lyttelton, she was the daughter of Sir John Cavendish Lyttelton, 9th Viscount Cobham[2] and Violet Yolande Leonard and a direct descendant of Henry VII.[3]
She married Robert Grosvenor, 5th Duke of Westminster, son of Captain Hugh William Grosvenor and Lady Mabel Florence Mary Crichton, on 3 December 1946.[4] The family had a home at Ely Lodge, just west of Enniskillen, County Fermanagh.[5]
As the Hon. Viola Maud Lyttelton she gained the rank of Flying Officer in the service of the Women's Auxiliary Air Force, during the Second World War, where she was mentioned in despatches.[6]
Her marriage to the Duke of Westminster produced three children:
- Lady Leonora Mary Grosvenor (born 1 February 1949); formerly married to Patrick Anson, 5th Earl of Lichfield (3 children), has not remarried
- Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, 6th Duke of Westminster (born 22 December 1951)
- Lady Jane Meriel Grosvenor (born 8 February 1953); married firstly to Guy Innes-Ker, 10th Duke of Roxburghe (3 children, including Charles Innes-Ker, Marquess of Bowmont and Cessford) and then to Edward William Dawnay, who is a great-grandson of the 1st Duke of Westminster
From 1979 until her death in 1987 she was Lord Lieutenant of Fermanagh.[7] She famously ordered workmen to drill holes in the ceiling of Florence Court, the stately home in County Fermanagh, to drain water away during a serious fire which almost destroyed it in 1955.[8]
The Duchess died in a car accident near Dungannon, County Tyrone on 3 May 1987, aged 74.[9]
References
- ↑ "Who's Who". Ukwhoswho.com. Retrieved 30 November 2011. (subscription required (help)).
- ↑ Lundy, Darryl. "The Peerage website". The Peerage.
- ↑ "Descendents of William the Conqueror". William1.co.uk. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
- ↑ Lundy, Darryl. "The Peerage website, ibid.". The Peerage.
- ↑ Grosvenor estate
- ↑ Lundy, Darryl. "The Peerage website, ibid.". The Peerage.
- ↑ "Girl Guide leaders site". Female Governors 1920-1990. Guide2womenleaders.com. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
- ↑ "History of Florence Court, County Fermanagh". Ireland's Eye. Irelandseye.com. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
- ↑ "2-Car Crash In Ulster Kills British Duchess, Pair In Other Auto". Toledo Blade (Toledo, Ohio: Google News Archive Search). 4 May 1987. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
| Honorary titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by The Duke of Westminster |
Lord Lieutenant of Fermanagh 1979–1987 |
Succeeded by The Earl Erne |