Biography
Hester Grenville, 1st Baroness Chatham was born 8 November 1720 in England, United Kingdom to Richard Grenville (1678-1727) and Hester Temple, 1st Countess Temple (c1685-1752) and died 2 April 1803 of unspecified causes. She married William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham (1708-1778) 16 October 1754 .
Hester Pitt, Countess of Chatham (8 November 1720 – 9 April 1803), 1st Baroness Chatham in her own right, was the wife of William Pitt (the Elder), 1st Earl of Chatham, who was Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1766 to 1768.[1]
Early life
Born Miss Hester Grenville on 8 November 1720 in London, she was the only daughter of Richard Grenville and Hester Grenville, 1st Countess Temple and was baptised in St. James's church on 6 December that year.[1] She spent her childhood with her brothers at Stowe House and Wotton House, riding horses and developing an interest in politics.
Marriage
A spinster until her thirty-fourth year, Lady Hester married the politician, William Pitt, whom she had known for over twenty years as a friend of her brothers, on 16 November 1754 at her home in Argyle Street, London.[1] They spent their ten-day honeymoon at West Wickham, Kent. The marriage was a happy one and the couple moved to a house in Hayes, Kent in 1756. They had five children:
Children
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Hester Pitt (1755-1780) | 18 October 1755 | 20 July 1780 | Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl Stanhope (1753-1816) |
| John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chatham (1756-1835) | 10 September 1756 Chatham, Kent, England, United Kingdom | 24 September 1835 Charles Street, Berkeley Square, London, England, United Kingdom | Mary Elizabeth Townshend (1762-1821) |
| Harriet Pitt (1758-1786) | |||
| William Pitt (1759-1806) | 28 May 1759 Hayes, Kent, England, United Kingdom | 23 January 1806 London, England, United Kingdom | |
| James Charles Pitt (1761-1780) | |||
- Lady Hester (1755-1780), married Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl Stanhope.
- John, styled Viscount Pitt, later 2nd Earl of Chatham (1756-1835)
- Lady Harriet (1758-1786), married Edward James Eliot.
- Rt. Hon. William (1759-1806)
- Hon. James Charles Pitt (1761-1781)
On 4 December 1761, she was created Baroness Chatham, of Chatham, in the County of Kent, with remainder to her sons by William Pitt. He was later created Earl of Chatham in 1766.
Titles from birth to death
- 8 November 1720–13 September 1749: Miss Hester Grenville
- 13 September 1749–18 October 1749: The Hon. Miss Hester Grenville
- 18 October 1749–16 November 1754: The Lady Hester Grenville
- 16 November 1754–4 December 1761: The Lady Hester Pitt
- 4 December 1761–4 August 1766: The Right Honourable The Baroness Chatham
- 4 August 1766–11 May 1778: The Right Honourable The Countess of Chatham
- 11 May 1778–9 April 1803: The Right Honourable The Dowager Countess of Chatham
References
- ^ a b c Cokayne et al., The Complete Peerage, volume III, p.143
Sources
- Larsen, Ruth M. - Pitt (née Grenville), Hester, countess of Chatham and suo jure Baroness Chatham (1720–1803), political wife - Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
| Peerage of Great Britain | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by New creation |
Baroness Chatham 1761–1803 |
Succeeded by John Pitt |
Footnotes (including sources)
| This page uses content from the English language Wikipedia. The original content was at Hester Pitt, Countess of Chatham. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with this Familypedia wiki, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons License. |
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