Elizabeth Herbert, Countess of Carnarvon
Elizabeth Herbert, Countess of Carnarvon, formerly Lady Elizabeth Alicia Maria Wyndham, was the wife of Henry Herbert, 1st Earl of Carnarvon.
She was the daughter of Charles Wyndham, 2nd Earl of Egremont, and his wife, Alicia. She married the Earl of Carnarvon on 15 July 1771, at St George's, Hanover Square, before he was raised to the peerage; he was then known as Henry Herbert, MP. She became "Lady Porchester of Highclere" in 1780 and a countess from 3 July 1793. In 1795 she was appointed a Lady of the Bedchamber to Caroline of Brunswick, then Princess of Wales and later, nominally, queen; she officially retained the position until Caroline's death, despite the princess's estrangement from her husband and absence from the country.
The earl and countess had six children:
- Lady Frances Herbert, who married Thomas Reynolds-Moreton, 1st Earl of Ducie, and had children
- Henry George Herbert, 2nd Earl of Carnarvon, who succeeded his father in the earldom
- Hon. Charles Herbert, who married Hon. Bridget Augusta Byng, daughter of John Byng, 5th Viscount Torrington, and had one child
- Very Rev. Hon. William Herbert, who married Hon. Letitia Dorothea Allen, daughter of Joshua Allen, 5th Viscount Allen, and had children
- Rev. Hon. George Herbert, who married Frances Head and had children
- Hon. Algernon Herbert, who married Marianne Lempriere and had children
A portrait of the countess and her son was painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds. She died at Petworth, Sussex, England, aged 73.
