Mabell Ogilvy, Countess Of Airlie

Mabell Frances Elizabeth Ogilvy, Countess of Airlie (née Gore), was born on 10 March 1866 and died on 7 April 1956. She was a member of the British aristocracy and served as a courtier and author.

Early Life:

She was the eldest daughter of Arthur Gore, Viscount Sudley, and his wife Edith, daughter of Robert Jocelyn, Viscount Jocelyn. Her mother died in 1871, after which she and her sisters — Cicely and Esther — were raised by their maternal grandmother, Lady Jocelyn. The family was educated by governesses. During visits to White Lodge, the family’s residence, she met and befriended Princess May, later Queen Mary. Her paternal grandfather, Philip Gore, 4th Earl of Arran, died in 1884, and her father inherited his titles, granting her and her sisters the courtesy style of "Lady."

Marriage and Family:

On 19 January 1886, Mabell Gore married David Ogilvy, who was an army officer and later became the 11th Earl of Airlie. The marriage took place at St George's, Hanover Square. They had six children together:

- Lady Kitty Edith Blanche Ogilvy (1887–1969)

- Lady Helen Alice Wyllington Ogilvy (1890–1973)

- Lady Mabell Griselda Esther Sudley Ogilvy (1892–1918)

- David Ogilvy, 12th Earl of Airlie (1893–1968)

- The Honourable Bruce Arthur Ashley Ogilvy (1895–1976)

- The Honourable Patrick Julian Harry Stanley Ogilvy (1896–1917)

Military and Court Service:

During the Second Boer War, her husband served with the 12th Royal Lancers and was killed in action at the Battle of Diamond Hill in 1900. Following his death, she managed Cortachy Castle in Angus for her then-six-year-old son, the new Earl. She contributed to community health by opening Dundee Sanatorium for Consumptives, built on land donated by her late husband, and was awarded the Freedom of the City of Dundee on 26 September 1902.

In December 1901, she became a Lady of the Bedchamber to Princess May, her old friend, who was then the Princess of Wales. When George V ascended the throne in 1910, she continued her service as a Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Mary.

World War I:

During World War I, she supported the Red Cross and was appointed Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE) in 1920 for her role as president of Queen Alexandra’s Army Nursing Board. The war resulted in the loss of close family members: her son-in-law Clement (son of Bertram Freeman-Mitford), her youngest son Patrick, and her daughter Mabell, who died while exercising army horses in 1918.

Later Life:

In 1953, following the death of Queen Mary, her lifelong friend and employer, she was appointed Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO). In 1955, she moved from Airlie Castle to London, residing in Bayswater Road. She died there shortly after her 90th birthday in 1956.

Authorship:

In 1917, after moving to Airlie Castle, she began a career as an author. Her published works include "In Whig Society, 1775–1818" (1921), based on the papers of her great-grandmother Emily Lamb, and "Lady Palmerston and her Times" (1922). She also wrote "With the Guards We Shall Go" (1933), about her great-uncle John Jocelyn during the Crimean War. Her memoirs, based on her observations of the royal family, were published posthumously as "Thatched with Gold: The Memoirs of Mabell, Countess of Airlie" in 1962, after an unfinished manuscript was found.

Family Details:

Her children included Lady Kitty Ogilvy, who married Brigadier General Sir Berkeley Vincent; Lady Helen Nutting, associated with women's rights activism; Lady Mabell Ogilvy, who married Major Clement Freeman-Mitford; David Ogilvy, the 12th Earl of Airlie; and the Honourable Bruce Ogilvy. Her descendants continued to be involved in military, social, and public service roles.

Styles:

Throughout her life, she was known by various titles, starting as The Honourable Mabell Gore, then Lady Mabell Gore, followed by The Right Honourable The Countess of Airlie, and later The Right Honourable Mabell Ogilvy, Countess of Airlie, and finally The Dowager Countess of Airlie.