Emily FitzGerald, Duchess of Leinster, known before 1747 as Lady Emily Lennox, from 1747 to 1761 as The Countess of Kildare and from 1761 to 1766 as The Marchioness of Kildare, was the second of the famous Lennox sisters, daughters of Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond.
Early life
Lady Emily married James FitzGerald, 20th Earl of Kildare, on 7 February 1747. After their wedding in London, the couple returned to Fitzgerald's native Ireland, first residing at Leinster House then Carton House. Their marriage was reportedly a happy one, despite Lord Kildare's infidelities. The couple had nineteen children:
Lady Louisa FitzGerald she died at the age of four.
Lord George Simon FitzGerald. Recognized as son of Lord Kildare, but in fact was the biological child of the Fitzgerald children's tutor, William Ogilvie.
Lord Kildare was created successively Marquess of Kildare and Duke of Leinster in recognition of his contribution to the political life of his country. It was partly the Duke's influence that led to a rift between the Duchess and her eldest sister, Caroline Fox, 1st Baroness Holland.
Later life
After the death of Lord Kildare on 19 November 1773, Emily married her children's tutor, William Ogilvie on 26 August 1774. Emily had begun an affair some years earlier in Frescati House. Despite her remarriage she continued to be known as The Dowager Duchess of Leinster. Ogilvie was nine years her junior, and was the natural father of her youngest son from her first marriage. They lived for part of their marriage at Ardglass Castle in Ardglass, County Down, where Ogilvie worked to develop the village. A further three children were born to them after their marriage:
Cecilia Margaret Ogilvie she married Charles Lock on 12 July 1795. They had three daughters.
Charlotte Ogilvie.
Emily Charlotte "Mimie" Ogilvie she married Charles George Beauclerk on 29 April 1799. They had thirteen children.
Emily was treated generously in her first husband's will. He left her a jointure of 4,000 annually, and a life interest in Leinster House and Carton together with all their contents. She had brought the usual ducal daughter's dowry of £10,000, so the jointure and other payments would cripple her son the 2nd Duke of Leinster financially. The 1st Duke also made over-generous provisions for his younger sons and all his daughters. Emily, Duchess of Leinster and her second husband, also received the usual annuity of £400 annually for each of the minor children who lived with her. Thus, Emily and William Ogilvie were probably financially better off than the 2nd Duke, who existed on less than £7,000 annually out of which he had to run two large houses, play a role in Irish politics, and also provide lavish dowries of £10,000 each for three sisters who married. He also had to pay huge annuities to the next youngest brothers Lord Lecale and Lord Henry Fitzgerald, and to pay the youngest brothers £10,000 each at their majority. Since Emily lived to 1814, all these generous testamentary provisions, along with the huge building costs incurred by the 1st Duke, crippled the Leinsters for generations. Fourteen of her children predeceased her. One of her sons, Lord Edward FitzGerald, was a major figure in the republican movement, and was killed during the Irish Rebellion of 1798. She died on 27 March 1814 in Grosvenor Square, London.
Popular culture
In 1999, a six-part BBC miniseries based on the lives of Emily Lennox and her sisters aired in the U.K. It was called Aristocrats.
