Caroline Campbell, Duchess of Argyll


Caroline Campbell, Duchess of Argyll, formerly Lady Caroline Elizabeth Villiers and Caroline Paget, Lady Paget, was the wife of Henry Paget, future Marquess of Anglesey, until their divorce in 1810, and subsequently the wife of George Campbell, 6th Duke of Argyll, a friend of her first husband.
The daughter of George Villiers, 4th Earl of Jersey, and his wife Frances, Caroline was married, on 5 July 1795, in London, to Lord Paget, who at that time was MP for Carnarvon. He was the son of the Earl of Uxbridge. Her mother was one of the mistresses of King George IV.
They had eight children:
A portrait of Caroline with her son Henry, by John Hoppner, is held at her former marital home of Plas Newydd, now in the care of the National Trust.
In 1810, prior to Paget's elevation to the peerage, the couple were divorced as a result of his affair with Lady Charlotte Wellesley, whose husband, Henry Wellesley, 1st Baron Cowley, was the brother of the Duke of Wellington. Charlotte's brother Henry Cadogan challenged Paget to a duel, but neither was hurt.
Caroline then sued her husband for divorce in the Scottish courts. A divorce was granted in November 1810. Her second marriage, to the Duke of Argyll, took place at Canongate, Edinburgh, only three weeks later. It was the duke's only marriage, and there were no children. The duchess is supposed to have told Paget's brother that she had never previously known "the superlative degree of bliss which she was now enjoying".
The duchess died in Dumbarton, Scotland, aged 60, and was buried at Kensal Green Cemetery, London.