Constance Finch-Hatton, Countess of Winchilsea explained

Constance Henrietta Finch-Hatton, Countess of Winchilsea and Nottingham (née Paget; 22 January 1823^{[1] [2] [3]}  - 5 March 1878) was the first wife of George Finch-Hatton, 11th Earl of Winchilsea.^[4]

Constance was born in St George Hanover Square, the daughter of Henry Paget, 2nd Marquess of Anglesey, and his wife, the former Eleanora Campbell, niece of the 6th and 7th Dukes of Argyll. A portrait of her as a child, with her brother, Henry, and sister, Eleanora, was painted by Francis William Wilkin.^[5]

She married the earl on 6 August 1846, before he inherited the earldom, when he was known as Viscount Maidstone. Their children were:^[6]

• Lady Mabel Emily Finch-Hatton (1849–1872), who married William George Eden, 4th Baron Auckland (1829–1890) and had no children
• Lady Constance Eleanora Caroline Finch-Hatton (1851–1910), who married Hon. Frederick Charles Howard (1840–1893), the son of Henry Howard, 2nd Earl of Effingham, and had children
• George Finch-Hatton, Viscount Maidstone (1852–1879),^[7] who married Louisa Augusta Jenkinson and predeceased his father, aged 27, without children
• Lady Hilda Jane Sophia Finch-Hatton (1856–1893), who married Henry Vincent Higgins and had no children

Finch-Hatton became Earl of Winchilsea and Nottingham on the death of his father, George Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea, in 1857, at which point his wife became a countess. However, within a few years the earl was in financial difficulties, and they were forced to vacate the family home at Eastwell Park, Kent.^[8] She died in their London home at Victoria Street, Westminster,^[9] aged about 47.

Notes and References

1. England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1837-1915
2. 1851 England Census
3. 1861 England Census
4. Book: Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knighthood. Burke's Peerage & Gentry . Mosley . Charles . Charles Mosley (genealogist) . 107 . 2003 . 4217 . 0-9711966-2-1.
5. Web site: Constance (née Paget), Countess of Winchilsea; Lady Eleanora Graham (née Paget); Henry Paget, 3rd Marquess of Anglesey. National Portrait Gallery. 31 March 2018.
6. G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910-1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume I, page 336.
7. News: Viscount Maidstone. The Cornishman. 31. 13 February 1879. 6.
8. The Duke of Richmond and Another v. Calisher. In The Times, Wednesday 2 February 1870, p. 11.
9. Book: The Illustrated London News. 1878. Illustrated London News & Sketch Limited.