Constance Lewes

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File:Constance Edwina Cornwallis-West, later Duchess of Westminster.jpg
The Duchess of Westminster in 1902
File:Constance Edwina, Duchess of Westminster.jpg
The Duchess in 1906
The Duchess in 1907
Medal record
Sailing
Representing  Great Britain
Olympic Games Olympic rings without rims.svg
Bronze medal – third place 1908 London 8 Metre

Constance Edwina Lewis, CBE (formerly Grosvenor, née Cornwallis-West; 16 May 1877 – 21 January 1970), also known as Shelagh, was an English socialite and peeress.[1]

Duchess of Westminster

Constance Edwina Cornwallis-West was the youngest child of William and Mary Cornwallis-West. She was very close to her sister, Daisy, Princess of Pless. At a party at Blenheim Palace, Mary asked the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) to convince Hugh Grosvenor, 2nd Duke of Westminster, to marry her daughter. The pair were married on 16 February 1901 and moved into Grosvenor House on Park Lane, a mansion that the Duke had inherited from his grandfather.[2] Later they lived together at Eaton Hall, Cheshire.[2] The Duke was one of the richest men in the world.[3]

They had three children:

  • Lady Ursula Mary Olivia Grosvenor (21 February 1902 – 1978), whose descendants are the only descendants of the Duchess and of the Duke
  • Edward George Hugh Grosvenor, Earl Grosvenor (1904 – February 1909)
  • Lady Mary Constance Grosvenor (27 June 1910 – 7 June 2000)

The Duchess was one of only two women to compete in sailing at the 1908 Summer Olympics as owner and extra crewmember of the 8-metre bronze medal-winning yacht Sorais.[4] She distributed the diplomas of special merit to the competitors of the other Olympic sports on 25 July 1908.

The marriage was happy at first and the couple shared many interests, including yachting and motor racing. However, her parents' expectation of personal financial gain through the marriage and her own long absence from home affected her marriage to the conservative Duke. In 1909, the couple's only son and heir apparent to the dukedom died following an operation for appendicitis while the Duchess was away. The Duke accused her of neglecting the child, and the Duchess did not attend the boy's funeral.[2] It was rumoured that the Duchess was having a secret liaison with the Duke of Alba,[2] whilst her husband had what he described as his own "nocturnal adventures".[2] Nonetheless, the couple appeared together at social events until the birth of their youngest child, Lady Mary. In 1913, the Duke requested separation but, with the outbreak of the First World War, the couple turned their attention to war service – the Duke joined his regiment and the Duchess sponsored a military hospital in Le Touquet, housed in a local casino.[3][5]

File:BeautifulDuchessGets.PNG
"Beautiful Duchess Gets Divorce" (July 12, 1919)[6]

Later life

File:St Mary's Church Eccleston, Old Churchyard - plaque commemorating Constance Edwina (née Cornwallis-West, 1876−1970).JPG
St Mary's Church, Eccleston, Old Churchyard – plaque commemorating Constance Edwina (née Cornwallis-West, 1877−1970)

In 1918, the Duchess was invested as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for her service in the war. The couple were divorced – on the grounds of the Duke's adultery and desertion – the following year, with the decree being made absolute 19 December 1919.[3] The couple remained on friendly terms after 1919, hosting their daughters' debut balls together. Because their subsequent interactions were amicable, it has been surmised that both parties collaborated to achieve the divorce because each wanted to end the marriage and to remarry.[7]

On 14 January 1920, the former Duchess of Westminster secretly married her private secretary and agent, Captain John Fitzpatrick Lewis, then in his thirties, at Lyndhurst, Hampshire. She had met Lewis early in the war, while he was being treated at her hospital in Le Touquet.[8][9] They had no children. The former duchess died aged 92.

Dennis Wheatley dedicated his 1961 thriller Vendetta in Spain to her.

Ancestry

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 16. John West, 2nd Earl De La Warr
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 8. Frederick West
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 17. Mary Wynyard
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4. Frederick Richard West
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 18. Richard Myddelton
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 9. Maria Myddelton
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 19. Elizabeth Rushout
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 2. William Cornwallis-West
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 20. Thomas Whitby
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 10. John Whitby
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 21. Mabella Turton
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 5. Theresa Whitby
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 22. Thomas Symonds
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 11. Mary Anne Symonds
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 23. Elizabeth Mallett
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1. Constance Lewis
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 24. Joseph FitzPatrick
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 12. Frederick FitzPatrick
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 25. Mary Persse
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 6. Frederick FitzPatrick
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 26. Thomas Stone
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 13. Edwina Stone
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 27.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 3. Mary FitzPatrick
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 28. Thomas Taylour, 1st Marquess of Headfort
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 14. Thomas Taylour, 2nd Marquess of Headfort
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 29. Mary Quin
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 7. Lady Olivia Taylour
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 30. Sir John Stevenson
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 15. Olivia Stevenson
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 31. Anne Morton
 
 
 
 
 
 

See also

References

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  7. ↑ Lady Mary's debutante ball 1928 was jointly hosted by the Duke (now married to Loelia Ponsonby and Mrs John Fitzpatrick Lewis (Constance).Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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