Lady Theodora Guest; Theodora Grosvenor; Lady Theodora Grosvenor (July 7, 1840 – March 24, 1924) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

author,

anti-suffragist Anti-suffragism was a political movement composed of both men and women that began in the late 19th century in order to campaign against women's suffrage in countries such as Australia, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom and the United States. To ...

, collector and benefactor. In 1913 she sold the 15th century Braque Triptych to the Louvre.

Life

Guest was born in 1840 in

Grosvenor Square Grosvenor Square ( ) is a large garden square in the Mayfair district of Westminster, Greater London. It is the centrepiece of the Mayfair property of the Duke of Westminster, and takes its name from the duke's surname "Grosvenor". It was deve ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. Her parents were

Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Marquess of Westminster Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Marquess of Westminster (27 January 1795 – 31 October 1869), styled The Honourable Richard Grosvenor from 1795 to 1802, Viscount Belgrave from 1802 to 1831 and Earl Grosvenor from 1831 to 1845, was an English polit ...

and Lady Elizabeth (born Leveson-Gower). They were very rich and also very generous benefactors. They had thirteen children, ten of whom survived to be adults. Her brother Hugh Lupus Grosvenor succeeded her father as 3rd Marquess; he was later created

Duke of Westminster Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ...

. Her brother Lord Richard Grosvenor became Baron Stalbridge. Her magazine writing lead on to ''Motcombe Past and Present'' in 1867 and her enthusiastic Christianity and study was demonstrated in her 1873 book ''Simple Thoughts on Bible Truths''. During this time her father died and left her estates in Dorset and Wiltshire. He had also left her with the obligation to shoulder the responsibility of this endowment and in 1872 she founded the Hunt Servants Benefit Society. Grand canal Venice by Theodora Guest

Her mother bought land in 1874 and had Barcote Manor built for her at Buckland, but Guest married and went to live in Somerset after the birth of their child in 1879. Her husband was Thomas Merthyr Guest, their only daughter was Elizabeth Augusta and they lived at Inwood House at

Henstridge Henstridge is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated east of Sherborne in the South Somerset district, near the border with Dorset. The parish includes the hamlet of Yenston. In 2011, the village had a population of 1,814. ...

. In 1895 she published ''A Round Trip to North America'' which recounted her journey the year before accompanied by her husband, a friend and her maid "Byatt". The book contained photographs which Guest had taken. Guest's husband died in 1904 and after this she funded the building of

Templecombe Templecombe is a village in Somerset, England, situated on the A357 road five miles south of Wincanton, east of Yeovil, and west of Salisbury. It is in the Blackmore Vale. Templecombe is the main settlement in the civil parish of Abbas an ...

's "Merthyr Guest

Cottage hospital A cottage hospital is a mostly obsolete type of small hospital, most commonly found in the United Kingdom. The original concept was a small rural building having several beds.The Cottage Hospitals 1859–1990, Dr. Meyrick Emrys-Roberts, Tern Publ ...

" and paid towards its upkeep for several years. It opened in 1906 and it would treat children for free. It had over 100 in-patients in 1947 and operated until 1974. In 1908 she published the reasons why she would not be joining the

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

s and became a recognised

. In 1913 she sold the 15th century Braque Triptych to the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

for $130,000. It was said to be their most important purchase for decades and created a record price for the artist

Rogier van der Weyden Rogier van der Weyden (; 1399 or 140018 June 1464), initially known as Roger de le Pasture (), was an Early Netherlandish painting, early Netherlandish painter whose surviving works consist mainly of religious triptychs, altarpieces, and commis ...

. The painting had been in her drawing room and over forty years before it had belonged to her father. Guest was also a gardener and a collector of porcelain and enamels. She died at Inwood House in

in 1924.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guest, Theodora 1840 births 1924 deaths People from London 19th-century English women writers Daughters of British marquesses British anti-suffragists