Monday, July 11, 2011

The earl of Harewood has died


credit:  York Press
The Earl of Harewood died today at his home, Harewood House, near Leeds.  He was 88 years old.








http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/9133487.Lord_Harewood_dies__aged_88/

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/jul/11/the-earl-of-harewood

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/8631002/The-Earl-of-Harewood.html

Lord Harewood was the elder of two sons of Princess Mary, Princess Royal, and the 6th Earl of Harewood.  He was a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II.  

He is survived by his widow, Patricia, and four sons, David, who succeeds as the 8th Earl of Harewood,  James, Jeremy and Mark, and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.   Lord Harewood was one of the most cooperative, most helpful of all the descendants of Queen Victoria.

http://royalbooknews.blogspot.com/2011/07/tongs-and-bones.html

4 comments:

Hopewell said...

Certainly he was among the most interesting of Queen Victoria's descendants. His memoir is very interesting reading. I wonder if the Queen will attend his funeral.

Bea said...

Marlene,
He was an interesting man, I am curious why he didn't seem to be that close to the Queen of all her cousins he is closest in age. When there are big celebrations you see all the extended families of the Kents and Gloucester but not the Lascelles. Do you know if there was any bad blood between them or they just weren't close? Bea

Marlene Eilers Koenig said...

I do not think the Lascelles kids were all that close to Elizabeth and Margaret, although they played together as children. Mary was closer to the Duke of Windsor than to George VI. George and Gerald had their own interests (music for the former). The Harewoods were present for major royal events up until the 60s, when his marriage broke up. In 1964, he became a father for the fourth time - but the mother was an Austrian divorcee, Patricia Tuckwell. It was not public information until sometime in 1965 after the death of Mary - it has been alleged that her death was the result of the news - Harewood told her not long before. He was finally able to get a divorce and got permission to remarry and he and Patricia flew to the US where they were married. Their son was legitimated, allowed to use the courtesy title Hon., but has no rights to the throne nor the earldom. Because of this - the illegitimate son, the remarriage, Lord Harewood became a pariah. He was not invited to the Duke of Windsor's funeral nor Princess Anne's wedding. But as Margaret's marriage ended and other things, Lord and Lady Harewood were invited to Charles and Andrew's weddings. He may have been invited to William's wedding - but did not attend. His children do not have the ties to RF, however.

Bea said...

Thanks Marlene. The Lascelles sound like they could make an interesting book. Bea