George Butler, 5th Marquess of Ormonde

James George Anson Butler, 5th Marquess of Ormonde (18 April 1890 – 21 June 1949) was the son of James Arthur Wellington Foley Butler, 4th Marquess of Ormonde and American heiress Ellen Stager, daughter of Union General Anson Stager.

Biography

Upon the death of his uncle, James Butler, 3rd Marquess of Ormonde, Lord Ossory (as he was known after his uncle's death) inherited the family seat of Kilkenny Castle and several other estates traditionally owned by the Marquess of Ormonde. This was made in an attempt to avoid burdening the Estate with death duties for both the 3rd and 4th Marquesses. His father, the 4th Marquess, was supported by the independent wealth of his American wife, Ellen Stager.

The last member of the family to live there, Lord Ossory (as he was known as the time) and his family left Kilkenny Castle in 1935 and resided in London. The contents of the castle were sold in 1935 and the castle left neglected.[1]

George Butler, 5th Marquess of Ormonde died on 21 June 1949. His estate was valued at £26884.

Marriage and descendants

He married Hon. Sybil Inna Mildred Fellowes, daughter of William Henry Fellowes, 2nd Baron de Ramsey and Lady Rosamond Fellowes, Baroness de Ramsey, on 23 February 1915. They had two children:[2]

  • James Anthony Butler, Viscount Thurles (1916–1940), died serving in Second World War as Driver, Royal Army Service Corps[3]
  • Lady Moyra Rosamond Butler (1920–1959) married (1) Charles Weld-Forester and (2) Count Guy van den Steen de Jehay.
    • Piers Weld-Forester (b. 1946)
    • Gerard van den Steen (b. 1949) (m. Patricia Delloye)
      • Moyra van den Steen
      • Sélgoléne van den Steen
      • Géraldine van den Steen

Lady Ormonde's mother, Lady Rosamond Spencer-Churchill was the daughter of John Spencer-Churchill, 7th Duke of Marlborough, the aunt of Charles Spencer-Churchill, 9th Duke of Marlborough (who was married to the most famous of the American 'Dollar Princesses', Consuelo Vanderbilt) and the sister of Lord Randolph Churchill, father of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Lady Ormonde was therefore the first cousin of Winston Churchill.[4]

Butler fought and was wounded in the First World War. His only son predeceased him during the Second, so he was succeeded by his brother James Butler, 6th Marquess of Ormonde

Lady Moyra married, firstly, Charles Weld-Forester (who was the son on Major Hon. Edric Weld-Forester (who in turn was the son of the 5th Baron Forester of Willey Park) and Lady Victoria Wynn-Carington (who was the daughter of the 1st Marquess of Lincolnshire and a Lady-in-Waiting to Mary of Teck) on 20 April 1940. They had one son, Piers Edric Weld-Forester. The couple were divorced in 1948, and on 3 August of the same year she married Count Guy Jacques van den Steen de Jehay, a Belgian nobleman.

Lord Ormonde's descendants include two grandsons and three great-granddaughters. His elder grandson, Piers Weld-Forester was a prominent figure in London society in the late 60's and early 70's. Described as a 'playboy in the true sense of the word', he was briefly the boyfriend of Princess Anne in 1971 and went on to become a motor-cycle racer.[5] He was killed in a motor-cycle crash in 1977. During his lifetime, Piers was one of the last remaining male members of the Butler Dynasty, along with his great-uncle Arthur Butler, 6th Marquess of Ormonde and first cousin twice-removed Charles Butler, 7th Marquess of Ormonde. Upon the transfer of the family's ancestral home Kilkenny Castle to the local government in 1967, the remainder of the Ormonde Family Trust was wound up and split equally between the 6th Marquess, Charles Butler (later 7th Marquess) and Piers.[6]

References
  1. "Lords of the Castle". Archived from the original on 10 February 2012. Retrieved 11 February 2016.
  2. "The peerage". Retrieved 12 February 2016.
  3. CWGC Casualty record, under name "James Anthony Butler Thurles".
  4. "The peerage for Lady Sybil". Retrieved 12 February 2016.
  5. Barry: The Story of Motorcycling Legend, Barry Sheene By Steve Parrish, Nick Harris, page 1886, 1887
  6. The Chief Butlers of Ireland and the House of Ormonde, by John Kirwan
Peerage of Ireland
Preceded by
James Arthur Butler		 Marquess of Ormonde
1943–1949		 Succeeded by
James Arthur Butler
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