Charles James Spencer-Churchill
12th Duke of Marlborough
About
Charles James Spencer-Churchill often known as Jamie Blandford or Jamie Marlborough is the 12th Duke of Marlborough. Jamie, together with the Board of Trustees of the Blenheim Palace Heritage Charitable Foundation, has overall charge of the 11,500-acre Blenheim Palace estate and responsibility for maintaining one of Britain’s grandest country houses for future generations.
Born in Oxford, Jamie was educated at Harrow School and the Royal Agricultural College. He is the eldest surviving son of the 11th Duke of Marlborough and his first wife, Susan Mary Hornby. He’s a distant relative of the war-time Conservative Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill.
The magnificent Blenheim Palace, which is now over 300 years old, is in constant need of attention, as is the extensive collection within its walls. Under Jamies’s leadership, it is expected that works to the value of £40 million will be completed over the next 10 years to conserve this World Heritage Site.
As a privately-owned estate, Blenheim Palace receives very little external funding, so it is to rely on the generosity of its visitors. All funds raised through the admission charges are invested back into these ongoing restoration and conservation projects that keep the Palace, its contents and surroundings as glorious today as they have always been.
