Social Victorians/People/Ilchester

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Also Known As[edit | edit source]

  • Family name: Fox-Strangways
  • Fox-Strangeways, though this is a misspelling
  • Earl of Ilchester
    • Henry Fox-Strangways, 5th Earl of Ilchester (10 January 1865[1] – 6 December 1905)
    • Giles Stephen Holland Fox-Strangways, 6th Earl of Ilchester (6 December 1905 – 29 October 1959)
  • Lady Ilchester
    • Countess Mary Eleanor Anne Dawson Fox-Strangways (8 February 1872[2] – 1905)
  • Lord Stavordale
    • Giles Fox-Strangways, Lord Stavordale (1874–1905)

Acquaintances, Friends and Enemies[edit | edit source]

Timeline[edit | edit source]

1872 February 8, Henry Fox-Strangeways and Lady Mary Dawson married.[2]

1874, Henry Fox-Strangeways inherited the Holland House estate in London from a distant cousin in the Holland barony.[3]

1897 July 2, Friday, Giles Fox-Strangways, Lord Stavordale and Lady Muriel Fox-Strangways, who were brother and sister, attended the Duchess of Devonshire's fancy-dress ball at Devonshire House.

1902 January 25, Giles Fox-Strangways and Lady Helen Vane-Tempest-Stewart married.[4]

Black-and-white photograph of a man dressed in an historical costume and leaning on a gate
Giles Fox-Strangways, Lord Stavordale in costume as Petrarch. ©National Portrait Gallery, London.

Costume at the Duchess of Devonshire's 2 July 1897 Fancy-dress Ball[edit | edit source]

Giles Fox-Strangways, Lord Stavordale[edit | edit source]

At the Duchess of Devonshire's fancy-dress ball, Giles Fox-Strangways, Lord Stavordale (at 78) was dressed as Petrarch in the Italian procession:

  • "Young Petrarch. Violet tunic and long mantle with a red velvet hood, crowned with a wreath of golden laurel."[5]:p. 8, Col. 1b
  • He was in the Italian procession as Petrarch, escorting Lady Alice Montagu as Laura.[5][6]

Lafayette Lafayette's portrait of "Giles Stephen Holland Fox-Strangways, 6th Earl of Ilchester when Lord Stavordale as Petrarch" in costume is photogravure #90 in the album presented to the Duchess of Devonshire and now in the National Portrait Gallery.[7] The printing on the portrait says, "Lord Stavordale as Petrarch."[8]

The costume worn by Lady Alice Montagu as Laura is similar to this costume worn by Giles, Lord Stavordale in that it seems general to the early 14th century and does not seem to reference a particular work of art. And because Petrarch and Laura have been the subjects of so much art, which does not reference a particular woman or man, they are not historical figures but abstract or idealized images of distance and devotion.

Lady Muriel Fox Strangways[edit | edit source]

Black-and-white photograph of a standing woman richly dressed in an historical costume with long gloves, an open fan and feathers in her hair
Lady Muriel Fox-Srangways as Lady Sarah Lennox, one of the bridesmaids of Queen Charlotte A.D. 1761. ©National Portrait Gallery, London.
Old portrait of two women, one Black and one white, putting garlands of flowers on a statue representing marriage
Lady Elizabeth Keppel by Joshua Reynolds, 1761

Lady Muriel Fox Strangways (at 403) was present, called Lady M. Fox-Strangways[6] or Lady M. Fox-Strangeways[9][10] by the newspapers.

  • Lady Muriel Fox-Strangways, "as Lady Sarah Lennox, one of Queen Charlotte's bridesmaids, wore a bodice of white satin covered with silver. The sleeves were of old lace, and the dress was embroidered to match the bodice."[11]:p. 3, Col. 4a
  • Lady Muriel Fox-Strangways, "as 'Lady Sarah Lennox,' one of Queen Charlotte's bridesmaids, wore a bodice of white satin covered with silver. The sleeves were of old lace, and the dress was embroidered to match the bodice."[12]:p. 6, Col. 1a [13]:p. 6, Col. 1a
  • "An interesting feature of the dress worn by Lady Muriel Fox-Strangeways [sic] was that it was the same bodice as her ancestress — Lady Sarah Lennox — wore when she acted as bridesmaid to Queen Charlotte."[14]:p. 5, Col. 1

Henry Van der Weyde's portrait of "Lady Muriel Augusta Digby (née Fox-Srangways [sic]) as Lady Sarah Lennox, one of the bridesmaids of Queen Charlotte A.D. 1761" in costume is photogravure #210 in the album presented to the Duchess of Devonshire and now in the National Portrait Gallery.[7] The printing on the portrait says, "Lady Muriel Fox Strangeways [sic] as Lady Sarah Lennox one of the bridesmaids of Queen Charlotte A.D. 1761."[15]

The Joshua Reynolds portrait (right) is not of Lady Sarah Lennox (14 February 1745 – August 1826)[16] but of Lady Elizabeth Keppel (1739–1768),[17] who was also one of the ten bridesmaids for Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz in her 1761 wedding to King George III. It does, however, show what Lady Keppel, in any event, wore as bridesmaid. This 1761 portrait is not a painting of the wedding, but Lady Keppel wore her bridesmaid dress for the sitting. Lady Keppel's attendant in this painting was one of Reynolds' subjects on her own; we do not know her name or her relationship to Lady Keppel. Between the preservation of Lady Sarah Lennox's bodice in her family and this Reynolds portrait of Lady Keppel, the two dresses seem to be similar enough that this portrait could have played a role in the construction of Lady Fox-Strangways' costume. They Reynolds portrait is currently in the Reynolds Room of Woburn Abbey, home of the Duke and Duchess of Bedford.[18]

Demographics[edit | edit source]

  • Nationality: British[3]

Family[edit | edit source]

  • Henry Edward Fox-Strangways, 5th Earl of Ilchester (13 February 1847 – 6 December 1905)[19]
  • Lady Mary Eleanor Anne Dawson (1852 – 25 October 1935)[2]
  1. Giles Stephen Holland Fox-Strangways, 6th Earl of Ilchester (31 May 1874 – 29 October 1959)
  2. Lady Muriel Augusta Fox-Strangways (23 November 1876 – 7 January 1920)
  3. Hon. Denzil Vesey Fox-Strangways (26 February 1879 – 7 March 1901)


  • Giles Stephen Holland Fox-Strangways, 6th Earl of Ilchester (31 May 1874 – 29 October 1959)[20]
  • Lady Helen Mary Theresa Vane-Tempest-Stewart Fox-Strangways (8 September 1876 — 14 January 1956)[21]
  1. Lady Mary Theresa Fox-Strangways (23 January 1903 – 26 January 1948)
  2. Edward Henry Charles James Fox-Strangways, 7th Earl of Ilchester (1 October 1905 – 21 August 1964)
  3. Hon. John Denzil Fox-Strangways (21 March 1908 – 28 June 1961)
  4. Lady Mabel Edith Fox-Strangway (17 February 1918 – )


  • Lady Muriel Augusta Fox-Strangways (23 November 1876 – 7 January 1920)[4]
  • Major George Hugh Digby (21 September 1867 – 20 October 1914)[22]

Questions and Notes[edit | edit source]

  1. Major George Hugh Digby died in an accident in 1914 and not, apparently, in World War I.

Footnotes[edit | edit source]

  1. "William Fox-Strangways, 4th Earl of Ilchester". Wikipedia. 2021-05-31. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=William_Fox-Strangways,_4th_Earl_of_Ilchester&oldid=1026123496.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Fox-Strangways,_4th_Earl_of_Ilchester.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Lady Mary Eleanor Anne Dawson." "Person Page". www.thepeerage.com. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  3. 3.0 3.1 "Henry Fox-Strangways, 5th Earl of Ilchester". Wikipedia. 2020-06-05. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Henry_Fox-Strangways,_5th_Earl_of_Ilchester&oldid=960964614. 
  4. 4.0 4.1 "Lady Muriel Augusta Fox-Strangways." "Person Page". www.thepeerage.com. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  5. 5.0 5.1 "Fancy Dress Ball at Devonshire House." Morning Post Saturday 3 July 1897: 7 [of 12], Col. 4a–8 Col. 2b. British Newspaper Archive https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000174/18970703/054/0007.
  6. 6.0 6.1 "Ball at Devonshire House." The Times Saturday 3 July 1897: 12, Cols. 1a–4c The Times Digital Archive. Web. 28 Nov. 2015.
  7. 7.0 7.1 "Devonshire House Fancy Dress Ball (1897): photogravures by Walker & Boutall after various photographers." 1899. National Portrait Gallery https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait-list.php?set=515.
  8. "Giles Stephen Holland Fox-Strangways, 6th Earl of Ilchester when Lord Stavordale as Petrarch." Diamond Jubilee Fancy Dress Ball. National Portrait Gallery https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw158448/Giles-Stephen-Holland-Fox-Strangways-6th-Earl-of-Ilchester-when-Lord-Stavordale-as-Petrarch.
  9. "The Duchess of Devonshire's Great Ball. Remarkable Social Function. Crowds of Mimic Kings & Queens. Panorama of Historical Costume. An Array of Priceless Jewels." Western Gazette 9 July 1897: 2 [of 8], Col. 7a–c. British Newspaper Archive https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000407/18970709/009/0002.
  10. “Fancy Dress Ball at Devonshire House. A Brilliant Spectacle.” Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal 10 July 1897, Saturday: 6 [of 8], Cols. 5a–6a. British Newspaper Archive http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001084/18970710/136/0006.
  11. “The Ball at Devonshire House. Magnificent Spectacle. Description of the Dresses.” London Evening Standard 3 July 1897 Saturday: 3 [of 12], Cols. 1a–5b [of 7]. British Newspaper Archive https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000183/18970703/015/0004.
  12. "Duchess of Devonshire's Fancy Ball. A Brilliant Spectacle. Some of the Dresses." London Daily News Saturday 3 July 1897: 5 [of 10], Col. 6a–6, Col. 1b. British Newspaper Archive https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000051/18970703/024/0005 and https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/BL/0000051/18970703/024/0006.
  13. "The Duchess of Devonshire's Fancy Dress Ball. Special Telegram." Belfast News-Letter Saturday 03 July 1897: 5 [of 8], Col. 9c [of 9]–6, Col. 1a. British Newspaper Archive https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/BL/0000038/18970703/015/0005.
  14. “The Duchess’s Costume Ball.” Westminster Gazette 03 July 1897 Saturday: 5 [of 8], Cols. 1a–3b [of 3]. British Newspaper Archive https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0002947/18970703/035/0005.
  15. "Muriel Fox Strangeways as Lady Sarah Lennox." Devonshire House Fancy Dress Ball Album. National Portrait Gallery https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw158573/Lady-Muriel-Augusta-Digby-ne-Fox-Srangways-as-Lady-Sarah-Lennox-one-of-the-bridesmaids-of-Queen-Charlotte-AD-1761.
  16. "Lady Sarah Lennox". Wikipedia. 2021-10-14. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lady_Sarah_Lennox&oldid=1049825453.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_Sarah_Lennox.
  17. "Anne van Keppel, Countess of Albemarle". Wikipedia. 2021-07-25. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Anne_van_Keppel,_Countess_of_Albemarle&oldid=1035340166.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_van_Keppel,_Countess_of_Albemarle.
  18. Reynolds, Joshua (1761), Portrait of Lady Elizabeth Keppel (1739-1768), retrieved 2021-12-22. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lady_Elizabeth_Russell_(Keppel)_(1739-1768.jpg_(1761_door_Joshua_Reynolds).jpg.
  19. "Henry Edward Fox-Strangways, 5th Earl of Ilchester." "Person Page". www.thepeerage.com. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  20. "Giles Fox-Strangways, 6th Earl of Ilchester". Wikipedia. 2020-09-13. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Giles_Fox-Strangways,_6th_Earl_of_Ilchester&oldid=978198919. 
  21. "Lady Helen Mary Theresa Vane-Tempest-Stewart." "Person Page". www.thepeerage.com. Retrieved 2020-10-17.
  22. "Major George Hugh Digby." "Person Page". www.thepeerage.com. Retrieved 2020-10-17.