Georgiana Spencer, Countess Spencer

Margaret Georgiana Spencer, Countess Spencer (née Poyntz), was born on 8 May 1737 at St James's Palace in London. She was the fourth surviving child of Stephen Poyntz, a diplomat, and Anna Maria Mordaunt. Her paternal lineage included a successful linen draper and a descendant of the Poyntz family, an old landowning noble family. Her mother served as a maid of honour to Queen Caroline and was the daughter of Brigadier-General the Hon. Lewis Mordaunt. Georgiana had three brothers and one sister. Her father died when she was thirteen years old, leaving the family, which was never wealthy, in comfortable circumstances.

In 1754, at age seventeen, Georgiana Poyntz married John Spencer, who was twenty years old at the time. Spencer inherited substantial wealth from his great-grandmother, Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough. The marriage was considered a love match; Georgiana expressed her affection for him openly, describing him as "handsomer than an angel." Spencer delayed their public acknowledgment of the marriage until after his twenty-first birthday, traveling abroad to seek his family's approval. They married secretly on 20 December 1755 at Althorp, the Spencer family estate in Northamptonshire. The ceremony took place during a ball and was attended by five hundred guests. The marriage was publicly announced five days later, and the couple was presented at court the following year.

The couple's notable children included Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, born in 1757, and George John Spencer, the future 2nd Earl Spencer, born in 1758. They also had a daughter, Henrietta, born in 1761, and two infants who died in infancy. The family primarily resided at Althorp but moved to a newly constructed residence in London, Spencer House, in 1764. Designed to house their extensive collection of antiquities, the residence took seven years and cost approximately £50,000 to build.

John Spencer entered Parliament in 1756 as the Member of Parliament for Warwick, representing the Whig party. In 1761, he was granted a viscountcy, and when the Duke of Newcastle's Whig government fell from power in 1762, Spencer's loyalty was rewarded with an earldom in 1765. The Spencers were patrons of arts and letters, often hosting theatrical and musical performances at Spencer House.

Lady Georgiana Spencer was recognized for her education and intelligence; she was fluent in French and Italian, had some knowledge of Greek, and was accomplished in botany. Her correspondence with Mrs Howe is known as the largest private collection of letters in the British Library. She was actively involved in philanthropy, being a founding member of the Ladies Society, which systematically investigated the characters and circumstances of those requesting assistance and collaborated with notable philanthropists such as Jonas Hanway.

Lord Spencer died on 31 October 1783 in Bath, at age 48. His death left his family with significant debts, although he had expanded their estates and patronized prominent architects and Italian paintings during his lifetime. Lady Spencer ceased her gambling habits during her widowhood and cautioned her daughters about incurring large debts. She was especially involved in the upbringing of her daughter Caroline and was known to have stayed with her for ten days after Caroline’s birth in 1785 to help care for her. Lady Georgiana Spencer died on 18 March 1814 at St. Albans and was buried at Brington, Northamptonshire.