Hugh Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster

His Grace  The Duke of Westminster  KG, PC, JP
Master of the Horse
In office 3 May 1880 – 9 June 1885
Monarch	Victoria
Prime Minister	William Gladstone
Preceded by	The Earl of Bradford
Succeeded by	The Earl of Bradford
Born	13 October 1825 (1825-10-13)
Died	22 December 1899 (1899-12-23)
Nationality	British
Political party	Liberal
Spouse(s)	(1) Lady Constance Leveson-Gower (d. 1880) (2) Hon. Katherine Cavendish (1857-1941)
Alma mater	University of Oxford

Hugh Lupus Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster KG, PC, JP (13 October 1825 – 22 December 1899), styled Viscount Belgrave between 1831 and 1845 and Earl Grosvenor between 1845 and 1869 and known as The Marquess of Westminster between 1869 and 1874, was a British politician and race horse owner.

Background and education

Westminster was the eldest son of Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Marquess of Westminster and Lady Elizabeth Mary, daughter of George Leveson-Gower, 1st Duke of Sutherland. Richard Grosvenor, 1st Baron Stalbridge, was his youngest brother.^[1] He was educated at Eton and the University of Oxford.^[2]

Political career

The Duke of Westminster.

Westminster represented Chester as a Liberal in the House of Commons between 1847 and 1869,^[3] when he succeeded as third Marquess of Westminster on the death of his father. He was made a Knight of the Garter in 1870^[4] and on 27 February 1874 he was created Duke of Westminster, in the County of Middlesex,^[5] the most recent person neither born into nor related by marriage to the British Royal Family to be advanced to the highest degree of the peerage.^[6] He was a member of William Gladstone's second administration as Master of the Horse between 1880 and 1885^[7] and was sworn of the Privy Council in 1880.^[8] He was also Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire between 1883 and 1899 and of London between 1889 and 1899.^[9] On 21 February 1891 he was appointed an honorary colonel of the Cheshire Yeomanry.^[2]

Property

By the time of Westminster's elevation to a dukedom in 1874 the family's London property in Mayfair, Belgravia and Pimlico had made it the richest family in the United Kingdom. His main country seat, Eaton Hall in Cheshire, was reconstructed at great expense.^[2][6]

Thoroughbred horse racing

Westminster inherited Eaton Stud and was highly successful as a Thoroughbred breeder as well as on the track. A major name in racing, among his most famous horses was the Epsom Derby winner Bend Or, the undefeated Triple Crown champion, Ormonde and a second Triple Crown champion, Flying Fox.^{[citation needed]}

It is believed that the character "Colonel Ross" in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's short story Silver Blaze is modeled on Westminster.^{[citation needed]}

Family

The duke as Marquess of Westminster by Carlo Pellegrini, 1870.

Westminster married, firstly, his first cousin Lady Constance Gertrude, daughter of George Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, 2nd Duke of Sutherland and Lady Harriet Elizabeth Georgiana Howard, on 28 April 1852. They had five sons and three daughters:

• Lady Elizabeth Harriet Grosvenor (d. 25 March 1928), married James Butler, 3rd Marquess of Ormonde.
• Lady Beatrice Constance Grosvenor (d. 12 January 1911), married her step-mother's nephew Charles Cavendish, 3rd Baron Chesham in 1877.
• Victor Alexander Grosvenor, Earl Grosvenor (28 April 1853 – 22 January 1884)
• Lieutenant-Colonel Lord Arthur Hugh Grosvenor (31 May 1860 – 29 April 1929), married Helen, daughter of Sir Robert Sheffield, 5th Baronet.
• Lord Henry George Grosvenor (23 June 1861 – 27 December 1914), married (1) Dora Mina, daughter of James Erskine-Wemyss, and was the father of William Grosvenor, 3rd Duke of Westminster; (2) Rosamund Angharad, daughter of Edward Lloyd.
• Lord Robert Edward Grosvenor (19 March 1869 – 16 June 1888), died unmarried.
• Lady Margaret Evelyn Grosvenor (9 April 1873 – 27 March 1929), married Adolphus Cambridge, 1st Marquess of Cambridge.
• Captain Lord Gerald Richard Grosvenor (14 July 1874 – 10 October 1940), died unmarried.

He married, secondly, Hon. Katherine Caroline Cavendish, daughter of William Cavendish, 2nd Baron Chesham and Henrietta Frances Lascelles, on 29 June 1882. They had two sons and two daughters:

• Lady Mary Cavendish Grosvenor (12 May 1883 – 14 January 1959), married (1) Henry Crichton, Viscount Crichton (1872-1914), and was the mother of John Crichton, 5th Earl Erne; (2) Colonel the Hon. Algernon Francis Stanley (1874-1962).
• Captain Lord Hugh William Grosvenor (6 April 1884 – 30 October 1914), married Lady Mabel Florence Mary, daughter of John Crichton, 4th Earl Erne, and was the father of Gerald Grosvenor, 4th Duke of Westminster and Robert Grosvenor, 5th Duke of Westminster; killed in action in the First World War.
• Lady Helen Frances Grosvenor (5 February 1888 – 21 October 1970), married Brigadier-General Lord Henry Seymour (1878-1939) and was the mother of Hugh Seymour, 8th Marquess of Hertford.
• Lord Edward Arthur Grosvenor (27 October 1892 – 26 August 1929), married Lady Dorothy Margaret, daughter of Valentine Browne, 5th Earl of Kenmare.

Westminster died in December 1899, aged 74, and was succeeded in the dukedom by his grandson, Victor. The Duchess of Westminster died in December 1941.^[1]

References