Baroness Ella van Heemstra, (12 June 190026 August 1984) was a Dutch-British

aristocrat The aristocracy (''from Greek'' ''ἀριστοκρατία'' ''aristokratía'', "rule of the best"; ''Latin: aristocratia'') is historically associated with a "hereditary" or a "ruling" social class. In many states, the aristocracy included the ...

and the mother of actress

Audrey Hepburn Audrey Kathleen Hepburn ( Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress. Recognised as a film and fashion icon, she was ranked by the American Film Institute as the third-greatest female screen legend from the Classical Holly ...

Biography

Ella van Heemstra was a Dutch aristocrat and the third of five daughters of

Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

Aarnoud van Heemstra, who was mayor of

Arnhem Arnhem ( ; ; Central Dutch dialects, Ernems: ''Èrnem'') is a Cities of the Netherlands, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands, near the German border. It is the capita ...

from 1910 to 1920 and served as Governor of

Suriname Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...

between 1921 and 1928. Ella's mother was Elbrig Willemine Henriette, Baroness van Asbeck (1873–1939), who was a granddaughter of jurist Count Dirk van Hogendorp. She spent much of her childhood at

Huis Doorn Huis Doorn (; ) is a manor house and national museum in the town of Doorn in the Netherlands. The residence has early 20th-century interiors from the time when former German Emperor Wilhelm II resided there (1920–1941). Huis Doorn was first b ...

. German Emperor Kaiser Wilhelm purchased Huis Doorn, and moved in on 15 May 1920. This was to be his home until his death in June 1941. Van Heemstra had Dutch and small amounts of English ancestry.

Personal life

Van Heemstra was married and divorced twice, and had three children. Aged 19, Van Heemstra married ''

Jonkheer (female equivalent: ; in the masculine only; ''jonkvrouw'' is used in the feminine, even in French; ) is an honorific in the Low Countries denoting the lowest rank within the nobility. In the Netherlands, this in general concerns a prefix used ...

'' Hendrik Gustaaf Adolf Quarles van Ufford. They divorced in 1925. Van Heemstra had two sons from this marriage, both of whom were born in the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

: * ''

'' Arnoud Robert Alexander Quarles van Ufford (1920–1979), married to Maria Margaretha Monné (1919–2006), with issue: # Michael Allan Quarles van Ufford (born 17 July 1945) # Evelyn Joyce Quarles van Ufford (born 2 August 1947) * ''

'' Ian Edgar Bruce Quarles van Ufford (1924–2010), married to Yvonne Scholtens (1928–2000), with issue: # Audrey Yvonne Quarles van Ufford (born 10 May 1954) # Sandra Claire Quarles van Ufford (born 15 October 1958) # Andrew Ian Quarles van Ufford (born 6 January 1967) Van Heemstra married secondly Joseph Victor Anthony Ruston (later Hepburn-Ruston) on 24 September 1926 at Batavia, Java,

. They were divorced on 24 June 1939 and had one daughter: * Audrey Kathleen Ruston (4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993), commonly known as

Van Heemstra was an early supporter of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime, penning several articles in praise of the fascist leader.

Micky Burn Captain Michael Clive Burn, MC (11 December 1912 – 3 September 2010) was an English journalist, commando, writer and poet. Early life Michael Clive "Micky" Burn, born 11 December 1912 in London, was the eldest of four children, the son of ...

was her lover; they corresponded while he was a prisoner at

Colditz Castle Colditz Castle (or ''Schloss Colditz'' in German) is a Renaissance architecture, Renaissance castle in the town of Colditz near Leipzig, Dresden and Chemnitz in the States of Germany, state of Saxony in Germany. The castle is between the towns o ...

Oflag IV-C Oflag IV-C, generally known as Colditz Castle, was a prominent German Army prisoner-of-war camp for captured Allied officers during World War II. Located in Colditz, Saxony, the camp operated within the medieval Colditz Castle, which overlooks th ...

, after both left fascism, and after his release.

Later life

In the early 1960s she lived in Los Angeles with her friend Leonard Gershe, and then later in San Francisco, where she did volunteer work for soldiers coming back from Vietnam. When she visited Los Angeles she was entertained by friends like

George Cukor George Dewey Cukor ( ; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer, producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO Pictures, RKO when David O. Selzn ...

, Mrs. Mildred Knopf (wife of Edwin H. Knopf) and Veronique Peck. She spent the rest of her life in her daughter's house in

Tolochenaz Tolochenaz () is a municipality in the Swiss canton of Vaud, located in the district of Morges. Geography Tolochenaz lies on the northern shore of Lake Geneva west of Lausanne. Tolochenaz has an area, , of . Of this area, or 34.6% is used for ...

, Switzerland where she died in 1984. Audrey accompanied her mother's body to the Netherlands for funeral.

Filmography

Honours

Ella was named Dame of the

Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (), commonly known as the Order of St John, and also known as St John International, is an order of chivalry constituted in 1888 by royal charter from Queen Victoria and dedica ...

by Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

on 7 September 1971.

Ancestry

References

External links

* 1900 births 1984 deaths Ella Ella Van Hogendorp (family) Dames of the Order of St John Baronesses of the Netherlands Dutch expatriates in England Dutch expatriates in the United States People from Rheden People from Arnhem {{Netherlands-bio-stub