Henrietta Godolphin, 2nd Duchess of Marlborough
Henrietta Godolphin, 2nd Duchess of Marlborough, Princess of Mindelheim, Princess of Mellenburg, Princess of the Holy Roman Empire, Countess of Godolphin (19 July 1681 – 24 October 1733) was the daughter of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, general of the army, and Sarah Jennings, Duchess of Marlborough, close friend and business manager of Queen Anne.
She was born Henrietta Churchill, and became The Hon.
Henrietta Churchill when her father was made a Scottish Lord of Parliament in 1682 and Lady Henrietta Churchill in 1689, when her father was created Earl of Marlborough.
She married The Hon.
Francis Godolphin in 1698, becoming Lady Henrietta Godolphin.
She became Viscountess Rialton in 1706 when her father-in-law was created Earl of Godolphin, and Countess of Godolphin in 1712 when her husband succeeded as 2nd Earl of Godolphin.
An act of English parliament in 1706 allowed the 1st Duke's daughters to inherit his English titles.
Following his death in 1722, Lady Godolphin became "suo jure" Duchess of Marlborough.
She bore five children during her marriage to Lord Godolphin:
The Duchess died in 1733, aged 52, in Harrow, Middlesex, and she was buried on 9 November 1733 in Westminster Abbey.
Her titles passed to her nephew, the 5th Earl of Sunderland.
John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough
General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough,
1st Prince of Mindelheim, 1st Count of Nellenburg, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722 O.S.), was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reigns of five monarchs.
From a gentry family, he served first as a page at the court of the House of Stuart under James, Duke of York, through the 1670s and early 1680s, earning military and political advancement through his courage and diplomatic skill.
Churchill's role in defeating the Monmouth Rebellion in 1685 helped secure James on the throne, but he was a key player in the military conspiracy that led to James being deposed during the Glorious Revolution.
Rewarded by William III with the title Earl of Marlborough, persistent charges of Jacobitism led to his fall from office and temporary imprisonment in the Tower of London.
William recognised his abilities by appointing him as his deputy in Flanders before the War of the Spanish Succession in 1701 but it was not until the accession of Queen Anne in 1702 he secured his fame and fortune.
Marriage to Sarah Jennings and her relationship with Anne ensured Marlborough's rise, first to the Captain-Generalcy of British forces, then to a dukedom.
As de facto leader of Allied forces in the Low Countries, his victories at Blenheim (1704), Ramillies (1706), Oudenarde (1708), and Malplaquet (1709), ensured his place in history as one of Europe's great generals.
His wife's stormy relationship with the Queen, and her subsequent dismissal from court, was central to his own fall.
Incurring Anne's disfavour, and caught between Tory and Whig factions, Marlborough was forced from office and went into self-imposed exile.
He returned to favour with the accession of George I to the British throne in 1714, but a stroke in 1716 ended his active career.
Marlborough's leadership of the Allied armies fighting Louis XIV from 1701 to 1710 consolidated Britain's emergence as a front-rank power, while his ability to maintain unity in the fractious coalition demonstrated his diplomatic skills.
He is often remembered by military historians as much for his organisational and logistic skills as tactical abilities.
However, he was also instrumental in moving from the siege warfare that dominated the Nine Years' War, arguing one battle was worth ten sieges.
Robert Spencer, 4th Earl of Sunderland
Robert Spencer, 4th Earl of Sunderland( 24 October 1701 – 15 September 1729) was a British peer from the Spencer family, the son of the Whig politician, Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl of Sunderland.
His mother was Lady Anne Churchill, the daughter of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough.
Known as Lord Spencer between 1702 and 1722, he succeeded to the Earldom after his father's death in 1722, but died in 1729 with no children.
Therefore, his brother, Charles, became 5th Earl of Sunderland, and subsequently 3rd Duke of Marlborough after the death of his aunt, Henrietta Godolphin(" née" Churchill), 2nd Duchess of Marlborough.
Caroline Spencer, Duchess of Marlborough
Caroline Spencer, Duchess of Marlborough( 13 January 1743 – 26 November 1811), formerly Lady Caroline Russell, was the wife of George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough.
Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough
Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, Princess of Mindelheim, Countess of Nellenburg( née Jenyns, spelled Jennings in most modern references; 5 June 1660( Old Style) – 18 October 1744), was an English courtier who rose to be one of the most influential women of her time through her close friendship with Anne, Queen of Great Britain.
Sarah's friendship and influence with Princess Anne were widely known, and leading public figures often turned their attentions to her in the hope that she would influence Anne to comply with requests.
As a result, by the time Anne became Queen, Sarah ’s knowledge of government and intimacy with the queen had made her a powerful friend and a dangerous enemy.
Sarah enjoyed a" long and devoted" relationship with her husband of more than 40 years, John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough.
She acted as Anne's agent after Anne's father, King James II, was deposed during the Glorious Revolution; and she promoted her interests during the rule of James's successors, King William III and Queen Mary II.
When Anne came to the throne after William's death in 1702, the Duke of Marlborough, together with Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin, rose to head the government, partly owing to his wife's friendship with the queen.
While the Duke was out of the country commanding troops in the War of the Spanish Succession, Sarah kept him informed of court intrigue, while he sent her requests and political advice, which she would then convey to the queen.
Sarah tirelessly campaigned on behalf of the Whigs, while also devoting much of her time to building projects such as Blenheim Palace.
A strong- willed woman, she strained her relationship with the Queen whenever they disagreed on political, court, or church appointments.
After her final break with Anne in 1711, Sarah and her husband were dismissed from the court, but she had her revenge under the Hanoverians following Anne's death.
She later had famous disagreements with many important people, including her daughter Henrietta Godolphin, 2nd Duchess of Marlborough; the architect of Blenheim Palace, John Vanbrugh; Prime Minister Robert Walpole; King George II; and his wife, Queen Caroline.
The money she inherited from the Marlborough trust left her one of the richest women in Europe.
She died in 1744, aged 84.
Mary Osborne, Duchess of Leeds
Mary Osborne, Duchess of Leeds( 1723 – 3 August 1764), born Lady Mary Godolphin, was a daughter of Henrietta Godolphin," née" Churchill, 2nd Duchess of Marlborough, and Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin, making her granddaughter to the powerful government trio during the reign of Queen Anne of Great Britain: the famous general and politician John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, and his wife Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough, through her mother; and Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin, through her father.
Lady Mary was considered to be the illegitimate child of the famous playwright William Congreve, with whom Henrietta, Duchess of Marlborough, was having a long- term relationship.
She was, however, recognised by Francis as his own daughter, and was raised by him with the other Godolphin children.
Despite this, gossip spread rapidly about Lady Mary's paternity, and her maternal grandmother did not recognise her until 1740, when the two reconciled their differences.
It was at this time that Sarah, Dowager Duchess of Marlborough, arranged Lady Mary's marriage to Thomas Osborne, 4th Duke of Leeds; they were married on 26 June 1740.
They had one surviving child, Francis Godolphin Osborne( styled Marquess of Carmarthen, later 5th Duke of Leeds and Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs), who was born on 29 January 1751.
Mary, Duchess of Leeds, died in 1764, aged 41.
Carmen Martínez-Bordiú
María del Carmen Martínez- Bordiú y Franco, 2nd Duchess of Franco, Grandee of Spain( born 26 February 1951 in Madrid, Spain) is a Spanish aristocrat and social figure.
With the inheritance of hereditary noble titles being to changed to absolute primogeniture under Spanish law in 2006, she preceded her younger brother and with the death of her mother in 2017 Carmen became the 2nd duchess of Franco.
The succession of the title was officially confirmed in July 2018.
Harriet Pelham-Holles, Duchess of Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Henrietta" Harriet" Pelham- Holles, Duchess of Newcastle- upon- Tyne( 1701 – 17 July 1776) was the wife of the British statesman and Prime Minister Thomas Pelham- Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle- upon- Tyne.
She was the daughter of Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin and Lady Henrietta Churchill, 2nd Duchess of Marlborough and the granddaughter of Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin and John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough.
Until her marriage she was known as Lady Harriet Godolphin.
Like her husband, she was a devoted Whig and supporter of the Hanoverian succession.
They married on 2 April 1717.
During the 1720s, they became famous for throwing sumptuous parties, a tradition that continued for several decades.
These were attended even by her husband's political opponents.
John Churchill, Marquess of Blandford
John Churchill, Marquess of Blandford( 13 February 1686 20 February 1703)( sometimes called Charles Churchill) was a British nobleman.
He was the heir apparent to the Dukedom of Marlborough as the only surviving son of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, an accomplished general, and Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, a close friend of Queen Anne.
Blandford died childless in 1703, and upon his father's death in 1722, the dukedom passed to his eldest sister, Lady Henrietta Godolphin( née Churchill).
Isabel Dato, 2nd Duchess of Dato
Isabel Dato y Barrenechea, 2nd Duchess of Dato, was a Spanish noblewoman.

Question: Why did Henrietta Godolphin, 2Nd Duchess Of Marlborough's father die?
Answer: stroke