Princess Antonia, Duchess of Wellington

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Princess Antonia
Duchess of Wellington (more)
Born (1955-04-28) 28 April 1955 (age 68)
London, England
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1977)​
IssueArthur Wellesley, Earl of Mornington
Lady Honor Wellesley
Lady Mary Wellesley
Lady Charlotte Wellesley
Lord Frederick Wellesley
Names
Antonia Elizabeth Brigid Louise Mansfeld
HouseHohenzollern
FatherPrince Friedrich of Prussia
MotherLady Brigid Guinness
OccupationPhilanthropist

Princess Antonia of Prussia, Duchess of Wellington OBE (Antonia Elizabeth Brigid Louise Mansfeld; born 28 April 1955) is a British aristocrat and philanthropist. She serves as the president of The Guinness Partnership,[1] an affordable housing community benefit society in the United Kingdom. A member of the House of Hohenzollern by birth, she is a great-granddaughter of Wilhelm II, German Emperor and a great-great-great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. Through her marriage, she is also the Princess of Waterloo, Duchess of Victoria, and Duchess of Ciudad Rodrigo.

Early life and education[edit]

Princess Antonia Elizabeth Brigid Louise Mansfeld of Prussia was born in London on 28 April 1955, the daughter of Prince Frederick of Prussia and Lady Brigid Guinness.[2][3][4] She is a great-granddaughter of the German Emperor Wilhelm II on her father's side and granddaughter of Rupert Guinness, 2nd Earl of Iveagh on her mother's side who was a member of the Guinness family, a wealthy and politically prominent Irish family that made a fortune from brewing and banking.[5] Antonia has a twin brother, Rupert.[5]

She was educated at Cobham Hall School and King's College London, where she earned a bachelor's degree in English.[citation needed]

Career[edit]

In 2008 Antonia was appointed as a fellow of Eton College, serving as a member of the college's governing body.[6] She is also a fellow of King's College, London. She opened Maggi Hambling's War Requiem & Aftermath, a cultural exhibition at King's College.[7]

In 2007 she was appointed as the President of The Guinness Partnership, an affordable housing charitable society in the United Kingdom, and was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2008 Birthday Honours for services to social housing.[8][9] Prior to serving as president, she had been a member of the Partnership's Board of Trustees since 1976.

In 2009 she became the chairwoman of the Royal Ballet School, serving until December 2019.[10][11] As chairwoman, she helped lead the school's Healthy Dancer Programme and fundraised for the school's academic programs.[12]

In 2023, she attended the Coronation of Charles III and Camilla, where her husband carried Queen Mary's Crown in the royal procession.[13] [14] Later that year, she sat in the royal carriage with King Charles III and Queen Camilla in the King's procession at Royal Ascot.[14]

Personal life[edit]

On 3 February 1977, she married Charles Wellesley, Marquess of Douro at St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge in London. When her husband succeeded his father as the 9th Duke of Wellington, she became the Princess of Waterloo in Belgium and the Netherlands, the Duchess of Victoria in Portugal, the Duchess of Wellington in the United Kingdom, and the Duchess of Ciudad Rodrigo in Spain.

They have five children:[4]

  • Arthur Wellesley, Earl of Mornington (born 31 January 1978); was married (4 June 2005 – August 2020) to former model, now make-up artist Jemma Kidd (born 20 September 1974), fashion stylist and great-granddaughter of Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook. They have three children: Lady Mae Madeleine Wellesley (born 4 January 2010), Arthur Darcy Wellesley, Lord Wellesley (born 4 January 2010) and The Honourable Alfred Wellesley (born 10 December 2014)
  • Lady Honor Victoria Wellesley (born 25 October 1979); married 3 July 2004 (as his second wife) the Honourable Orlando Montagu, younger son of the John Montagu, 11th Earl of Sandwich, and has issue: Walter Frederick Montagu (born 3 December 2005) and Nancy Jemima Montagu (born 18 January 2007).
  • Lady Mary Luise Wellesley (born 16 December 1986)
  • Lady Charlotte Wellesley (born 8 October 1990); who attended Oxford University reading archaeology and anthropology. On 15 July 2015, her engagement was announced to Colombian billionaire Alejandro Santo Domingo, uncle of Tatiana Santo Domingo, wife of Andrea Casiraghi. They married in the duke's family estate Dehesa Baja in Spain, on 28 May 2016, after the ceremony at the sixteenth-century Church of the Incarnation in Illora, near Granada. They have two children, one born in 2017 and one in 2019.
  • Lord Frederick Wellesley (born 30 September 1992) who married Katherine Lambert in 2022.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Chapter 5: Our link with royalty". The Guinness Partnership. 30 January 2015. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  2. ^ Montgomery-Massinberd, Hugh (1972). Burke's Guide to the Royal Family. London, UK: Burke's Peerage, Ltd. p. 301. ISBN 0-220-66222-3.
  3. ^ Eilers, Marlene. Queen Victoria's Descendants. Rosvall Royal Books, Falkoping, Sweden, 1997. pp. 18, 124; ISBN 91-630-5964-9
  4. ^ a b de Badts de Cugnac, Chantal. Coutant de Saisseval, Guy. Le Petit Gotha. Nouvelle Imprimerie Laballery, Paris 2002, pp. 77, 103–105. (French); ISBN 2-9507974-3-1
  5. ^ a b Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh. "Burke's Royal Families of the World: Volume I Europe & Latin America, 1977, pp. 145, 235, 279. ISBN 0-85011-023-8
  6. ^ Eton College website, Governing Body (accessed on 11 June 2019)
  7. ^ "Duchess of Wellington opens Maggi Hambling exhibition at the Cultural Institute at King's | Website archive | King's College London". www.kcl.ac.uk.[permanent dead link]
  8. ^ "King's News Centre – News Centre". King’s College London. 17 August 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Chapter 5: Our link with royalty". The Guinness Partnership. 30 January 2015.
  10. ^ "My favourite painting: The Duchess of Wellington". Country Life. 28 September 2015.
  11. ^ "Christopher Rodrigues CBE appointed as Chairman". 4 November 2019.
  12. ^ "Farewell to our Chairman". 23 December 2019.
  13. ^ "Coronation order of service in full". BBC News. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
  14. ^ a b "The Duke and Duchess of Wellington are given the ultimate Royal Ascot honour by the King and Queen". Tatler. Condé Nast. 21 June 2023. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
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