Her Majesty's Historic Lineage

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22725, 11 May 1937, Page 7 (Supplement)

Her Majesty's Historic Lineage

THE lady who is to be crowned Queen of the British Empire numbers many illustrious figures among her forebears. Conjure up a routine of illustrious figures of the past, including Queen Philippa of Hainault, Mary Queen of Scots, the royal Bruce family of Scotland, and Margaret Countess of Salisbury. Increase this company by adding notable members of such historic families as the Montagues, Chesterfields, Nevilles, and Hastings. Then you will have a group of distinguished personages whom Queen Elizabeth can number among her forebears. Probably the strangest fact of Her Majesty's lineage is that she can trace her ancestry back to a figure who was also an ancestor of her husband, King George VI. Indeed, Queen Elizabeth's family history presents such a complicated array of notabilities that to single out the most outstanding is difficult. Before her marriage, she was, of course, Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, youngest daughter of the fourteenth Earl of Strathmore. The House of Strathmore dates back to the 14th century, when a Sir John Lyon of Forteviot served as Chamberlain of Scotland. This Sir John occupied his post so admirably in the eyes of Robert 11. of Scotland, that he was made Thane of Glamis, f thus founding the now famous castle which was the girlhood home of the present Queen of England. Further, this same Sir John was granted the hand of King Robert's daughter in marriage. Thus, at the very beginning of her family history, Queen Elizabeth is a descendant of the old Scottish Royal Family. The tenants of Glamis distinguished themselves further in ensuing generations. One member, a grandson of the founder of this House of Strathmore, became a peer in 1445, and adopted the title of Lord Glamis.

To trace this family down towards the present time, it is necessary to know that, in 1606, the Lord Glamis of that time became Earl of Kinghorne, and x that his successor changed the family name again, adopting the title Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne. The connection between Queen Elizabeth and the old Scottish Royal House is now plainly evident.

By Arthur Nettleton

Further back in European history, there was the notorious figure, Pedro the Cruel, of Castile. His daughter married Edmund de Langley, fifth son of the English sovereign, Edward the Third, and Queen Philippa. Queen Philippa, it is interesting to know, has been called "one of the best Queens who ever sat upon the Throne of England." How do the present British King and Queen trace their ancestry to the same figure 1 ? The facts already given help to supply the answer, for Edmund de Langley was created first Duke of York, and it was he who founded the line that eventually led to the development of the present British Royal Family.

He also founded the House of Clarence —and a later member of the family on that side became Countess of Strathmore by marriage.

The marriage of the Duke of York and Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, now King George the Sixth and Queen Elizabeth the Second, in 1923, thus .united two Houses that could each be traced back to this Edmund, though the line had been separated for more than a score generations.

Among Her Majesty's forbears, a prominent place must be given to Mary Eleanor Bowes, who figured in a remarkable 18th century plot. It was this ancestress who brought to the Strathmores the name of Bowes, and, by attaching it also to that of Sir John Lyon, already mentioned as the founder of the House, produced the hyphenated 'name of Bowes-Lyon—-the name by which Queen Elizabeth was known before her marriage. Eleanor Bowes was the daughter of a member of Parliament, plain George Bowes, of County Durham, and when she married the ninth Earl of Strathmore, in the middle of the 18th century, her husband assumed his wife's surname, under an Act of Parliament. But the Earl pre-deceased liis wife, and she married again, this time to an impecunious officer. Time quickly revealed his true purpose, for he similarly assumed her maiden name, but with the object of securing the fortune which her first husband had left. Becoming wise to his plans, she forestalled him by executing a deed which settled the estates entirely upon herself. Her bankrupt husband was furious at this counter-move, and sought "to alter her decision

by cruelty. Though these tactics succeeded, his wife started divorce proceedings and refused to acknowledge him in any way. The climax came when, as she attempted to escape from her husband's custody, she was kidnapped and imprisoned by a gang, at her husband's instigation. The remarkable affair ended in a prison sentence for him, and a cancellation of the deed by which he had forced her to make over her fortune to him.

Coming down to great non-royal families to which Queen Elizabeth is related, the most noteworthy is probably the famous Bentinek family. Indeed, her relationship to this family is quite distinct in her modern ancestry. Her grandfather on her mother's side was the Rev. C. W. F. Cavendish-Bentinck. He was descended from a Duke of Portland who made a name for himself as a statesman in the days of King George 111. The same branch of Her Majesty's family tree links her with close confidants of Prince William of Orange, notabilities in the Dutch aristocracy, and others who attended Royalty in the past, and who in several instances received earldoms for their services. Queen Elizabeth is further related to Margaret, Countess of Salisbury, whose tragic and cruel execution was engineered on the instructions of Henry VIII. Up and down Great Britain are castles and mansions founded or at one time tenanted by forebears of the present British Queen. Streatlam Castle, Durham, has a history in which the name of the thirteenth Earl of Strathmore figures prominently. Bramber Castle, Sussex, though in ruins to-day, was the seat of the Da Braose family—the royal Bruces of Scotland, to whom, as already indicated, Her Majesty can trace one,line of her descent. The Strathmore crest still incorporates emblems representing in heraldic form the connection between the Strathmores and the Bruces. Some important offices held by former members of Her Majesty's parental line have been mentioned, but others can be detailed. Thus, several of her ancestors have been Privy Councillors. The eighth Lord Glamis, the one who became the first Earl of Kinghorne, served James the VI. in this capacity; his son became a Privy Councillor of Scotland.