Charles Wellesley, 9th Duke of Wellington

British peer and politician (born 1945)

His Grace

The Duke of Wellington

GE OBE DL

Wellington in 2015

Member of the House of Lords

Lord Temporal

as an elected hereditary peer
17 September 2015
By-election| 17 September 2015
Preceded by| The 3rd Baron Luke
Member of the European Parliament
for Surrey West
Surrey (1979–1984)
In office
1979–1989
Preceded by| Constituency established
Succeeded by| Tom Spencer
Personal details
Born|

Arthur Charles Valerian Wellesley

(1945-08-19) 19 August 1945 (age 79)
H.R.H. Princess Christian Hospital, Windsor, Berkshire, England
Spouse|

Princess Antonia of Prussia

(m. 1977)​

Children| 5, including
Lady Mary Wellesley
Lady Charlotte Santo Domingo
Parent(s)| Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington
Diana McConnel
Education| Eton College
Alma mater| Christ Church, Oxford

Arthur Charles Valerian Wellesley, 9th Duke of Wellington, 9th Prince of Waterloo, 10th Duke of Ciudad Rodrigo, 9th Duke of Victoria, GE, OBE, DL (born 19 August 1945), styled Earl of Mornington between 1945 and 1972 and Marquess of Douro between 1972 and 2014, is a British peer and politician. He served as Conservative Member of the European Parliament for Surrey (1979–1984) and Surrey West (1984–1989) and has sat as a hereditary peer in the House of Lords since 2015.

## Early life

[edit]

Wellington was born on 19 August 1945 at H.R.H. Princess Christian Hospital in Windsor, Berkshire, the first son of Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington and Diana McConnel. He grew up in London and at Stratfield Saye House, his family's estate in Hampshire, and was educated at Ludgrove School, Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford.[1][2]

## Politics

[edit]

Wellington stood as Conservative Party candidate for Islington North in 1974, losing to Labour's incumbent Michael O'Halloran. He was a member of Basingstoke Borough Council from 1978 to 1979. He subsequently served as Conservative MEP for Surrey from 1979 to 1984, and as Conservative MEP for Surrey West from 1984 to 1989.

In September 2015, he was elected to a seat in the House of Lords as a Conservative in a by-election following the retirement of Lord Luke.[3] On 4 September 2019, he quit the Conservative Party. He sat as a "non-affiliated" member of the House of Lords from September 2019 to September 2020. Since September 2020 he has sat as a crossbench peer.[4]

In 2021, he put forward an amendment to the Environment Bill to attempt to reduce pollution from the dumping of sewage in rivers. The initial amendment was rejected by MPs, which led to a backlash on social media. The Environment Secretary George Eustice proposed making measures a legal duty, but Wellington put forward the amendment again to attempt to ensure changes came into force.[5]

## Courtier

[edit]

He carried Queen Mary's Crown in the royal procession at the coronation of Charles III and Camilla.[6] With the Duchess, he was invited to ride in the King's procession at Royal Ascot 2023.[7]

## Charity

[edit]

Wellington has worked for a number of non-profit or charitable organisations. He was a patron of British Art at the Tate Gallery (1987–90), a member of the Royal College of Art between (1992–97), Chair of British-Spanish Tertulias (1993–98) and Trustee of the Phoenix Trust from 1996 to 2001). He was appointed OBE in 1999 for services to British-Spanish business relations. He was appointed a Deputy Lord-Lieutenant of Hampshire in 1999. In 2003 he was given a four-year appointment as a Commissioner for English Heritage.

On 1 October 2007, he became Chairman of the Governing Council of King's College London, an institution of which his wife Princess Antonia is an alumna, and of which his ancestor Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, was instrumental in the foundation.

## Marriage

[edit]

He married Princess Antonia of Prussia on 3 February 1977 at St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, London. Notable guests at the wedding included Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, Prince of Wales (later King Charles III), Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, and the Duke and Duchess of Kent.[8] The couple are friends of King Charles III and Queen Camilla.[9]

They have five children:

* Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Douro (born 31 January 1978); was married firstly (4 June 2005 – August 2020) to former model, now make-up artist Jemma Kidd (born 20 September 1974), fashion stylist and great-granddaughter of Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook; they have issue two sons and a daughter. He then married Hayley Whitehead [10] with whom he has a son.
* Lady Honor Victoria Wellesley (born 25 October 1979); married 3 July 2004 (as his second wife) the Honourable Orlando Montagu, younger son of the John Montagu, 11th Earl of Sandwich, and had issue.
* Lady Mary Luise Wellesley (born 16 December 1986), a goddaughter of Diana, Princess of Wales.[11]
* Lady Charlotte Anne Wellesley (born 8 October 1990); who attended Oxford University reading archaeology and anthropology. Her day job is at photographer Mario Testino's studio in London, where she is a producer. On 15 July 2015, her engagement was announced to Colombian billionaire Alejandro Santo Domingo, uncle of Tatiana Santo Domingo, wife of Andrea Casiraghi. They married in the duke's family estate Dehesa Baja in Spain, on 28 May 2016, after the ceremony at the sixteenth-century Church of the Incarnation in Illora, near Granada.[12][13]
* Lord Frederick Charles Wellesley (born 30 September 1992), a godson of King Charles III. He attended Eton College. Gained a commission into the Household Cavalry (Blues and Royals) from The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in December 2016. His engagement to Katherine Lambert was announced on 25 February 2021. They married on 2 July 2022[14]

## Titles and styles

[edit]

Apart from his British titles, the Duke of Wellington also holds the hereditary titles of 9th Prince of Waterloo ("Prins van Waterloo") of both the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Kingdom of Belgium, and 9th Duke of Victoria ("Duque da Vitória") of the Kingdom of Portugal with its subsidiary titles Marquis of Torres Vedras ("Marquês de Torres Vedras") and Count of Vimeiro ("Conde de Vimeiro"). These were granted to the first Duke as victory titles for his distinguished services as victorious commanding general in the Peninsular War (in Spain and Portugal), and at the Battle of Waterloo (in what is now Belgium).

Wellington is also the 10th Duke of Ciudad Rodrigo ("Duque de Ciudad Rodrigo") of the Kingdom of Spain, which on 10 March 2010 was ceded to him by his father. In accordance with Spanish procedure, Wellington (then styled as Marquess of Douro) made a formal claim to the title with the Spanish Ministry of Justice.[15] King Juan Carlos I of Spain, through his minister, granted the succession to the dukedom of Ciudad Rodrigo to Wellington in May 2010.[16]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Barber, Richard (2004). The Story of Ludgrove. Oxford: Guidon Publishing. p. 259\. ISBN 0-9543617-2-5.
2. ^ ‘WELLINGTON’, Who's Who 2017, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2017
3. ^ Conservative hereditary peers’by-election, September 2015:result
4. ^ "The Duke of Wellington". UK Parliament. Retrieved 9 September 2019.
5. ^ "New legal duty promised over sewage as Lords forces issue". BBC News. 26 October 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
6. ^ "Coronation order of service in full". BBC News. 5 May 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
7. ^ "Ascot Racecourse on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
8. ^ "British Nobility Turns Out for Traditional Blue-Blooded Wedding". The New York Times. 4 February 1977.
9. ^ "Among friends: Inside the new King and Queen Consort's inner circle". Tatler. 21 June 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
10. ^ A high society surprise! Arthur Mornington, the future Duke of Wellington, welcomed a baby with his wife Hayley Whitehead
11. ^ Maung, Carole Aye (5 September 1997). "Our Auntie Diana". The Mirror. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
12. ^ "Behind-the-scenes at Lady Charlotte Wellesley and Alejandro Santo Domingo wedding". HELLO!. 31 May 2016.
13. ^ Odiamar, Danielle (29 May 2016). "Lady Charlotte Wellesley Marries Alejandro Santo Domingo Surrounded by Royal Guests". Harper's BAZAAR.
14. ^ "Capt F.C. Wellesley and Capt K.E. Lambert". Telegraph. 25 February 2021.
15. ^ "Anuncio de la Subsecretaría (División de Tramitación de Derechos de Gracia y otros Derechos), sobre solicitud de sucesión por cesión en el título de Duque de Ciudad Rodrigo, con Grandeza de España". www.boe.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 November 2018.
16. ^ "Orden JUS/1527/2010, de 21 de mayo, por la que se manda expedir, sin perjuicio de tercero de mejor derecho, Real Carta de Sucesión en el título de Duque de Ciudad Rodrigo, con Grandeza de España, a favor de Lord Charles Wellesley". www.boe.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 November 2018.

## External links

[edit]

*   * Profile at Parliament of the United Kingdom
* Contributions in Parliament at Hansard
* Voting record at PublicWhip.org
* Record in Parliament at TheyWorkForYou.com
* Duke of Wellington's Regiment – West Riding

Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom

Preceded by

The Duke of Leinster

|  Duke
The Duke of Wellington  | Succeeded by

The Duke of Sutherland

Peerage of the United Kingdom
Preceded by

Valerian Wellesley

|  Duke of Wellington
2014–present  | Incumbent
Peerage of Ireland
Preceded by

Valerian Wellesley

|  Earl of Mornington
2014–present  | Incumbent
Dutch nobility
Preceded by

Valerian Wellesley

|  Prince of Waterloo
2014–present  | Incumbent
Spanish nobility
Preceded by

Valerian Wellesley

|  Duke of Ciudad Rodrigo
2010–present  | Incumbent
Portuguese nobility
Preceded by

Valerian Wellesley

|  Duke of Victoria
2014–present  | Incumbent
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by

The Lord Luke

|  Elected hereditary peer to the House of Lords
under the House of Lords Act 1999
2015–present  | Incumbent
Academic offices
Preceded by

The Baroness Rawlings

|  Chairman of King's College London
2007–2016  | Succeeded by

The Lord Geidt

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Charles Wellesley, 9th Duke of Wellington.

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Current dukes in the peerages of Britain and Ireland

Sorted in order of precedence

Royal dukes|

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England |

* Edward Fitzalan-Howard, 18th Duke of Norfolk
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* Alexander Douglas-Hamilton, 16th Duke of Hamilton
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Great Britain |

* Alexander Douglas-Hamilton, 13th Duke of Brandon
* Alexander Montagu, 13th Duke of Manchester
* Ralph Percy, 12th Duke of Northumberland

Ireland |

* Maurice FitzGerald, 9th Duke of Leinster
* James Hamilton, 5th Duke of Abercorn

United Kingdom |

* Charles Wellesley, 9th Duke of Wellington
* Francis Egerton, 7th Duke of Sutherland
* Hugh Grosvenor, 7th Duke of Westminster
* Charles Gordon-Lennox, 6th Duke of Gordon
* Torquhil Campbell, 6th Duke of Argyll
* David Carnegie, 4th Duke of Fife

Italics indicate the duke also holds a previously listed dukedom of greater precedence

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King's College London

University of London

Academic
faculties|

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