Charlotte Mary Gertrude Strutt, 1st Baroness Rayleigh (29 May 1758 – 13 September 1836), known as Lady Charlotte FitzGerald from 1758 to 1789 and as Lady Charlotte Strutt from 1789 to 1821, was a British peeress. Charlotte was the daughter of

James FitzGerald, 1st Duke of Leinster Lieutenant-General James FitzGerald, 1st Duke of Leinster, PC (Ire) (29 May 1722 – 19 November 1773), styled Lord Offaly until 1743 and known as The Earl of Kildare between 1743 and 1761 and as The Marquess of Kildare between 1761 and 176 ...

, and his wife, Lady Emily, daughter of

Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond, 2nd Duke of Lennox, 2nd Duke of Aubigny, (18 May 17018 August 1750) of Goodwood House near Chichester in Sussex, was a British nobleman and politician. He was the son of Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmo ...

, and the second of the famous

Lennox sisters The Lennox sisters were four eighteenth-century British aristocrats, the daughters of Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond (1701–1750) by his wife Lady Sarah Cadogan (1705–1751). The four sisters were: *Caroline Fox, 1st Baroness Holland (172 ...

Lord Edward FitzGerald Lord Edward FitzGerald (15 October 1763 – 4 June 1798) was an Irish aristocrat who abandoned his prospects as a distinguished veteran of British service in the American War of Independence, and as an Irish Parliamentarian, to embrace the caus ...

and

Charles FitzGerald, 1st Baron Lecale Vice-Admiral Charles James FitzGerald, 1st Baron Lecale PC (Ire) (30 June 1756 – 18 February 1810), styled Lord Charles FitzGerald between 1761 and 1800, was an Irish naval commander and politician. Background FitzGerald was the third son of J ...

, were her brothers. Through her mother she was a descendant of King Charles II. In

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and fr ...

on 23 February 1789 Charlotte married Joseph Strutt, later

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

for

Maldon Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea Salt which is produced ...

and the member of an

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

family that had made their fortune from its milling business. The couple had three children: a son, John (later the second Baron Rayleigh), and two daughters. Her husband was offered a peerage for his services in the Army and Parliament but refused, and instead proposed that the honour be given to his wife. Hence, on 18 July 1821 Charlotte was raised to the peerage as

Baroness Rayleigh Baron Rayleigh, of Terling Place in the County of Essex is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The peerage was created on 18 July 1821 for Lady Charlotte Strutt, wife of Colonel Joseph Strutt, Member of Parliament for Maldon. Strutt ...

, of Terling Place in the County of Essex. Lady Rayleigh died in

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

in September 1836, aged 78, and was succeeded in the barony by her son, John. Joseph Strutt died in 1845.

Notes

References

*Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rayleigh, Charlotte Strutt, 1st Baroness 1758 births 1836 deaths Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Daughters of British dukes

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

Hereditary peeresses created by George IV