Louisa Acheson, Countess of Gosford


Louisa Augusta Beatrice Acheson, Countess of Gosford, was the wife of the 4th Earl of Gosford.

Early life

Lady Gosford was the third of five children born to Countess Louisa van Alten by her first husband, William Montagu, 7th Duke of Manchester. Her older brother, George, became the 8th Duke of Manchester and married Cuban-American heiress Consuelo Yznaga. Her elder sister, Lady Mary Louisa Elizabeth Montagu, married William Douglas-Hamilton, 12th Duke of Hamilton, and her younger siblings were Lord Charles William Augustus Montagu, and Lady Alice Maude Olivia Montagu.
After her father's death in 1890, her mother remarried to Spencer Cavendish, 8th Duke of Devonshire, becoming the Duchess of Devonshire, and was known in society as the "Double Duchess".

Personal life

On 10 August 1876, Lady Louisa was married to Archibald Acheson, 4th Earl of Gosford in Market Hill, County Armagh, Ireland. Lord Gosford was the son of the 3rd Earl of Gosford and Lady Theodosia Brabazon. Together, they were the parents of:
From 1901 to 1925, she served as a Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Alexandra, the wife of King Edward VII.
During the First World War Lady Gosford was president of the Central Workrooms of the British Red Cross Society, and for this work she was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1920 civilian war honours.
Lord Gosford died on 11 April 1922. Lady Gosford lived another twenty two years until her death on 3 March 1944.