DEATH OF DUCHESS OF RUTLAND

Southland Times, Issue 23394, 29 December 1937, Page 7

DEATH OF DUCHESS OF RUTLAND

ARTIST AND SCULPTOR (Received December 28, 6.30 p.m.) LONDON, December 27. Violet, Duchess of Rutland, died today. She was 81 years old. Marion Margaret Lindsay was a descendant of the Earls of Crawford: her father was Colonel, the Hon. Charles Lindsay, third son of the 24th earl. She was bom at Haigh Hall, the Crawford’s seat in Lancashire, in March 1856. Her mother was a niece of Lord Kilmalne. Spending much of her time in the country, she took part in all open-air pursuits considered proper for girls of that period and became a fine horsewoman. She grew up to be a woman of striking beauty and, being also a bright conversationalist and a good pianist, was welcome at all social gatherings, whether in country or town. Her chief interest, however, was in painting and sculpture and from the age of 16 she practised portraiture by sketching herself before a mirror. In 1882 she married the Marquis of Granby, eldest .son of the seventh Duke of Rutland. They had a son and three daughters. Though she devoted much of her time to her children and her social duties, the marchioness continued her artistic work, painting portraits, making pencil sketches and executing pieces of sculpture. In 1899 a collection of her pictures and sketches was reproduced in book form under the title of "Portraits of Men and Women.” On the death of the duke in 1906 her husband succeeded to the title and to the estates of 62,000 acres, including Belvoir Castle, renowned for its picture gallery, and Haddon Hall, famous for the romance of Dorothy Vernon’s elopement. As the duchess she was for years a leading figure in the highest circles, entertaining distinguished people of the day at Belvoir Castle or in the duke's fine town house in the West End of London. In 1925 the duke died. Her daughters having married, the duchess took a house in London and, while occasionally entertaining, continued her painting and sculpture. Her works had meanwhile been exhibited at the Royal Academy, the Grosvenor and New Galleries, London, the chief provincial cities, Paris and several American cities. Among them were portraits of Queen Alexandra, Princess Pierre Troubetskoy, Paderewski, Lord Haldane, Sir J. Martin-Harvey, Rudyard Kipling and Lady Diana Duff Cooper, her beautiful youngest daughter. Her sculptures include busts of her children and a recumbent figure of the late Lord Haddon, for his tomb. SIR DOUGLAS HAZEN (Received December 28, 6.30 p.m.) FREDRICTON (New Brunswick), December 27. Sir Douglas Hazen, a former Premier of New Brunswick and Minister of Marine during the Great War, died today. He was 77 years old, and had been 40 years in public life. POLISH AMBASSADOR TO HOLY SEE VATICAN CITY, December 27. Dr Wladislaw Skrzynski, Polish Ambassador to the Holy See, died from a heart attack while motoring. Dr Skrzynski, who was 64 years old, was educated at Lwow University and Cracow University. He was a member of the Austrian diplomatic service from 1897 till 1918, and when the new Polish Government was formed in 1919 he became Foreign Minister. In the same year he was appointed Minister at Madrid, where he remained until 1921, when he was transferred to represent Poland at the Holy See. In 1925 his status was raised to that of Polish Ambassador to the Holy See, and in that capacity Jie signed the important Polish-Vatican Concordat.