The Duke of Marlborough, Savior of Blenheim Palace, Has Died at Age 88 By James Reginato October 18, 2014 Standing six feet and five inches tall, John George Vanderbilt Henry. And as Consuelo grew up, an enormous problem began developing. See more ideas about vanderbilt, charles spencer, marlborough. Alva, having satisfied her own social ambitions as a Vanderbilt, is able now to turn her laser focus on marrying Consuelo into the highest European society. CONSUELO VANDERBILT BALSAN (1877-1964) - THE PAWN. She was a woman of rare beauty and elegance, and all of six feet against Sunny's five feet seven inches. Thats because she was far from faithful herselfand one of her first lovers was scandalous. Catching Up With Morgan Englund. Later, Consuelos summers are spent at Newport in the colossal Marble House, a grandiose mansion, also designed by William Morris Hunt, and completed in 1892. When Consuelo married into the Spencer-Churchill family, she inadvertently changed the course of history. Consuelo Vanderbilt was a willowy beauty of 17 when the 26-year-old Frenchman and future aviation pioneer, Jacques Balsan, first saw her and fell in love. Charles was such a rake that he would often send Consuelo love letters with missives to his other girlfriends attached, along with a request that she kindly forward them along. Consuelo Vanderbilt Earl was born on month day 1903, at birth place, to William and Graham. But the Duke of Marlborough was really a snake in the grass. Morgan Englund . That year, she and her husband could finally take no more and publicly separatedand if her mothers American divorce set society atwitter, Consuelos split from a British peer caused even more of a scandal. Records in Florida show that in 1932 Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan built a home in Manalapan, just south of Palm Beach. And while Consuelo managed to escape Prince Franciss proposal, she wouldnt be so lucky with the next one. Historys most fascinating stories and darkest secrets, delivered to your inbox daily. With no alternative, Consuelo masters the difficulties of managing a household with scores of servants, dinners for royalty, elaborate hunting parties and balls. CONSUELO VANDERBILT BALSAN (1877-1964) - THE PAWN Consuelo Vanderbilt was a willowy beauty of 17 when the 26-year-old Frenchman and future aviation pioneer, Jacques Balsan, first saw her and fell in love. Certain of what her mother was going to say, the mild-mannered Consuelo finally put her foot down and stated her intention to marry Winthrop Rutherfurd. Consuelos family was already hiding shadowy secrets. July 5, 2017 11:41AM. Her father soon started to spend the family fortune, enthusiastically supported by Consuelo's mother, Alva, who was determined to take the family to the top of New York societyforcing a heartbroken Consuelo into a marriage she did not want with the underfunded . But Gladys had a reputation as something of a wild child, and things escalated fast. Her mother was Suffragette Her mother died at the age of 80 (Consuelo was 55 years old). Her mother leaked the news to the press right away. This leads to the uncomfortable truth: The true urgency for the divorce was a betrayal of the first order. Consuelo begged to see her, but her mothers emissary instead insisted, referring to last nights fight, I warn you there will be catastrophe if you persist. She died on December 6, 1964 in Southampton, Long Island, New York, USA. From petty paybacks to insane acts of karma, these bitter people somehow found the most ingenious ways. [12] Still she refused. Many recognize the wedding for what it is: an especially prominent example of dollars for dukes, a craze among rich Americans for forging marital ties with titled but impecunious peers of the realm. The marriage of the young, beautiful and fabulously wealthy American heiress Consuelo Vanderbilt to 'Sunny', 9th Duke of Marlborough, in 1895 was a classic of the era. Dancy Mason is the Editor-in-Chief at Factinate. As soon as the engagement hit the papers, the press crudely characterized Consuelo as yet another million dollar duchess, American heiresses who traded their wealth for a European title. [26], Records in Florida show that in 1932 Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan built a home in Manalapan, Florida, just south of Palm Beach. When the infamous Vanderbilt divorce officially went through, high society couldnt help gossiping about what was going on. His nickname, Sunny, was not given because it reflected his personality. Yet like so many of Consuelos romances, her dalliance with her old lover was going to go up in flames. By this point, Consuelo had given up on ever fully escaping her marriage, so she had to fall back on merely hurting her husband any way she knew how. He was a frequent visitor at her chteau, in Saint-Georges-Motel, a small commune near Dreux about 50 miles from Paris, in the 1920s and 1930s, where he completed his last painting before the war. Consuelo Vanderbilt had no interest in the duke, being secretly engaged to an American, Winthrop Rutherfurd. No, it made absolutely no sense. Rate the pronunciation difficulty of consuelo. Without Consuelos money his income would have been insufficient to maintain Blenheim Palace, let alone undertake the renovations he had in mind. Why was this beauty unfortunate? In fact, she and Balsan went way back. It was at one of these events that Consuelo happened to run into Winthrop at long last, and they shared a single dance together. This was the very definition of a mercenary marriage both Consuelo and the Duke were in love with other people. Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, Extravagant Facts About Barbara Hutton, The Poor Little Rich Girl, These Stories Of Unforgettable Close Calls Made Our Jaws Drop, Grandiose Facts About Marie Antoinette, The Doomed Queen, Bloody Facts About Ivan the Terrible, The Mad Tsar Of Russia, These Eerie Supernatural Experiences Sent A Chill Down Our Spines, Catherine The Great Was a Mighty EmpressUntil Her Brutal Downfall. The result of this effort is the Foch Hospital, located in Suresnes, a suburb of Paris, France. Everyone expected an engagement at any moment. Picking her own wardrobe was also seen as the height of rebellion; when Consuelo once complained about the clothes her mother had chosen for her, Alva snapped back, Ido the thinking, you do as you are told. It wasnt long before Gladys had completely supplanted Consuelo at Blenheim, and she and the duke struck up a torrid affair that lasted over a decade. says: Hugo Vickers. Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan, the former Duchess of Marlborough, died today at her estate here. . Much has been written about this ill-starred match, but there are no kind words in any account for the Duke, who has been described as surly, critical, suspicious and without intellectual qualities.. He claimed that not only had he married her for her money, but he was also fully in love with another woman and had no intention of developing any kind of romance between the two of themexcept, that is, to produce an heir. After five months, her fianc Winthrop still hadnt shown up. She was also in love with an American suitor when her mother chose instead for her to marry an English Duke. Although Catherine's successor Queen Anne Boleyn suffered an infamously dark fate, Aragon's own life was somehow even more tragic. Her first marriage produced two sons, John Spencer-Churchill, the 10th duke, and Lord Ivor Spencer-Churchill. For one, William had long kept a mistress, Nellie Neustretter, and Alva was fed up. The Duke was away fighting in the Boer War and this touching portrait illustrates an intimacy between Helleuand his sitter. eugeniagaravani. Duchess Marlborough Consuelo Vanderbilt was born 2 March 1877 in New York City, New York, United States to William Kissam Vanderbilt (1849-1920) and Alva Erskine Smith (1853-1933) and died 6 December 1964 Southampton, Suffolk County, New York, United States of unspecified causes. She lends her support to causes relating to child welfare and womens higher education, and comes out strongly for womens suffrage. Many believed Ivor was actually Winthrop Rutherfurds son, given that the boy had very little resemblance to either the duke or his older brother. Oh, and there was one more truly damning detail. Just months before the duke proposed, Consuelos mother Alva had filed for divorce from her father William Vanderbiltand the reasons were utterly scandalous. Paid Notice: Deaths EARL, CONSUELO VANDERBILT Published: February 27, 2011 EARL--Consuelo Vanderbilt, a great-great-granddaughter of Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt, died on February 21, 2011, at the age of 107. By the time John Singer Sargent painted his famous portrait of their family in 1905 (below), the cracks had already long begun to show. Consuelo Vanderbilt was a willowy beauty of 17 when the 26-year-old Frenchman and future aviation pioneer, Jacques Balsan, first saw her and fell in love. Alva invites Marlborough to visit Marble House, expecting him to propose to Consuelo. Still, there was something her mother didnt know. Years later, I was using her phone when I made an utterly chilling discovery. Passing through Paris on the way home from India in the spring of 1894, Consuelo made her European debut at a ball thrown by the Duc and Duchesse de Gramont. July 27, 2021. except that we dont have the nasal bridge so tall. No clan is left untouched, and even families that seem happy and normal on. She was the only daughter of railroad millionaire William Kissam Vanderbilt and his wife, southern belle and suffragist Alva Erskine Smith. She met Winthrop Rutherfurd for a bicycle ride along with her mother and some other friends in Riverside Park in Manhattan, but when they drew back from the rest of the crowd, Winthrop quickly and clandestinely proposed to Consueloand she accepted. Privacy Policy, The former director of the Fricks personal collection is to be offered as a highlight of the Old Masters sale in New York, The legends of the sky god who lost an eye, the unborn child who was sewn into his fathers thigh, and more, The story of American heiress Consuelo Vanderbilts celebrity wedding in 1895 and a very personal portrait that she kept until her death, Paul Csar Helleu (French, 1859-1927), Consuelo Vanderbilt, Duchess of Marlborough, circa 1900. Inside, the cream of New York society (minus most of the Vanderbilts) watches the weeping bride approach the altar like a lamb to the slaughter. In the end, not even the day of Consuelos engagement to a duke was worthy of a fairy tale. On the glittering surface, Consuelo Vanderbilt looked like she had it all. The party is said to have cost her indulgent husband $3 million. Suburb of Paris, France first lovers was scandalous a reputation as something of a wild child, Alva. 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