Who is the British socialite who had a rumored affair with Prince William?
Rose Hanbury's alleged connection to the prince made her famous,
but her family was tied to the royals long before those rumors.
Rose Hanbury isn't the first in her family to have a connection to the royal family.
Her grandmother, Lady Elizabeth Lambert, was a childhood friend of the late Queen
Elizabeth II. Lambert's father was close friends with King George VI.
Lambert was one of the eight bridesmaids who escorted Elizabeth on her wedding day to Prince
Philip in 1947. When it was Lambert's turn to get married to Mark Longman,
Elizabeth, Margaret, and the Queen Mother all attended the nuptials.
The friendship between the two women spanned through their years as mothers
as well. Elizabeth became the godmother to Lambert's eldest daughter, Caroline Longman,
and had their daughters continue the tradition of meeting at Buckingham Palace.
Rose Hanbury attended Stowe School, one of the most reputable schools
in England. Many of its students continue their education at Oxford
and Cambridge University. Rose continued her schooling at The Open University in England.
Rose then became a model for the agency Storm,
signing with them at age 23. While Rose's modeling career didn't reach the echelons
that fellow Storm alumnus Kate Moss did, the two women had an interesting connection later in life:
Rose's illustrious home, Houghton Hall, which she shares with her husband David Rocksavage,
the Marquess of Cholmondeley. Their home was used as a location for one of Moss' photoshoots.
Rose and her sister, Marina Hanbury, both famous socialites,
became the talk of the town when they were photographed wearing pink bikinis in Italy
with the former Prime Minister of England, Tony Blair. This wasn't her only brush with politics,
though. Rose became a researcher for the Conservative Member of Parliament, Michael Gove,
but had to quit her job because of severe morning sickness when she became pregnant with twins.
After Rose was taken to the Queen Charlotte's Hospital in London, Marina told "The Daily Mail:"
"Rose is absolutely fine now. It was one of those complications you
get with twins. Hopefully, she will be allowed home today or tomorrow."
Rose Hanbury's husband, David Rocksavage, has two homes. The first, Cholmondeley Castle,
is located in Cheshire, England. The castle itself was built in the 19th century,
but the land has been in the Cholmondeley family since around 1100 A.D. The gardens
are open to the public, so tourists can take in the famous Rose Garden,
the Temple Garden, and a carefully cultivated path called the Lavinia Walk.
"We've got the subtle. We've got the fantastic. We've got lots of color, lots of texture."
While the castle is a jaw-dropping piece of English history, Hanbury and her family
live in the second property, Houghton Hall in Norfolk. It is frequently called a Palladian
hall due to its classical architecture, influenced by the Italian architect,
Andrea Palladio. This home also has a lot of history. It was built for Sir Robert Walpole,
the first Prime Minister of Great Britain. The home itself is absolutely outrageous.
It boasts 106 rooms and houses a museum-worthy collection of both classical and modern art. The
home is as expansive as it is opulent and, like Cholmondeley Castle, curious visitors can book
tours to explore the grounds and even parts of the interior from April until October each year.
Houghton Hall actually has its own Instagram page,
with several candid shots of Hanbury, her husband, and their children,
so it's safe to assume that Hanbury has a hand in the social media presence of her famous home.
It's also very close to Prince William and Princess Catherine,
when they take up residency at their Norfolk home, Anmer Hall.
Rose Hanbury's husband is a man with many titles. His name is David George
Philip Cholmondeley and he's the 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley. At birth,
he was the Viscount Malpas and later became the Earl of Rocksavage.
In 1990, Cholmondeley became the Lord Great Chamberlain. However, after Queen Elizabeth
II died, the role was handed on to Lord Rupert Carrington. Cholmondeley was also a filmmaker
in his day, working both as a director and an actor. He directed "Other Voices,
Other Rooms" in 1995 and "Shadows in the Sun" in 2009. In 2012, he produced the film "Una noche."
Cholmondeley met Hanbury in Italy in 2003 at a party,
but he had a reputation for bachelorhood, and no one expected them to settle down. However,
they did away with these expectations in 2009. They announced that they were engaged;
the next day, they announced that they were pregnant. One day after that,
they got married at the Chelsea register office. Afterward, they moved to Houghton Hall.
The couple now has three children. When the couple announced that they were pregnant and
got married the day after, Hanbury was pregnant with twin boys. Their sons are
Alexander, Earl of Rocksavage and heir apparent, and Oliver, Lord Cholmondeley.
There was an interesting way in which they decided who the heir would be,
which is no small decision, since he inherits the title as well as a multi-million dollar
estate. According to "The Telegraph," since the sons were born almost exactly at the same
time via C-section, they chose the heavier of the twins. A friend told the tabloid,
"They have decided that the eighth marquess will be the boy who weighed more at birth.
There was only eight ounces in it, but they will be a very significant eight ounces."
"England needs an heir."
They later welcomed a daughter, Lady Iris. On Hanbury's Instagram account for their home,
Houghton Hall, she also shares photos of her kids. She shared
a photo of Iris in the garden with the caption:
"Iris enjoying the best smell in [the] world – wisteria."
In another photo, Hanbury shared a photo of
one of her sons walking toward their estate. She captioned it,
"Homeward bound." Just because she's rich and
famous now doesn't mean that Rose Hanbury doesn't get involved in collabs and projects. On May 4,
2022, Hanbury shared a series of photos on Instagram announcing her collaboration with
interior design brand, Cabana, linked with her home, Houghton Hall. She captioned the photo,
"A night to remember: a candlelit dinner in the Marble Parlour at
Houghton Hall to celebrate the launch of the #cabanaxhoughton tableware collection."
The photos showed an exquisitely laid table with long, taper candles,
and elaborate flower arrangements.
While they're beautiful, the tableware doesn't come cheap. One water glass costs $210,
a tablecloth costs $495, and a rather ornate piece called the
Houghton Hall Silver Swan Vessel costs $1,995. Aside from her modeling career and her marriage,
Hanbury is known for something else, and it's a tale as old as time. While there's no confirmation
that Rose Hanbury had an affair with Prince William, she's certainly been punished for it.
In 2019, "The Sun" published a piece claiming that there was a feud between Princess Catherine
and Hanbury, dubbing the latter Catherine's, quote, "rural rival." This rumor began because
both families lived in Norfolk, with Hanbury at Houghton Hall and Catherine and William in
their country home, Anmer Hall. They were less than three miles apart, and "The Sun"
reported that Catherine wanted William to put distance between himself and Hanbury.
The scandal was hard on Hanbury, who suddenly became the talk of the area and,
quite quickly, the rest of the world. Some turned on Hanbury,
leaving her lonely and isolated. "The Daily Mail" reported,
"The most loyal friends are sticking by her but others, they haven't."
Her reputation and her social standing were hit hard by these rumors, to the
point where they allegedly disrupted even her marriage. Shortly after,
in June 2019, when Hanbury attended a state dinner at Buckingham Palace in
honor of former President Donald Trump, she wasn't wearing her wedding ring.
"Mr. President—"
While it's the royal way to never complain or explain, the rumors about Rose Hanbury
and Prince William's affair reached such a fever pitch that both sides claimed to
consider legal action, according to the "The Daily Mail." At the time, however,
sources claimed that both families stalled on the idea because none of the outlets
reporting on the alleged affair had anything substantive with which to back up their stories.
The problem was, of course, that the rumors besmirched both the marriages of
Prince William and Princess Catherine and that of Hanbury and her husband. Not only
were Catherine and Hanbury friends before the scandal, but William and Cholmondeley
were also reportedly friends, and the situation became increasingly awkward.
At last, and somewhat surprisingly, the royals did take action, turning to the
London law firm Harbottle and Lewis, who sent a letter to a British publication calling the
rumors false, highly damaging, and a breach of privacy. Nevertheless,
this hasn't stopped countless publications from covering the story.
The rumored affair certainly made life harder for Hanbury,
but that hasn't stopped her from participating in royal events. Before the gossip broke,
she was a familiar face at Buckingham Palace. Then, of course, there was the state dinner for
former President Donald Trump in June 2019, where Hanbury was present without her wedding ring.
In March 2022, Hanbury and her husband attended the memorial service for the
late Prince Philip at Westminster Abbey. She wore a black pillbox hat and a long,
black coat dress to honor the late prince. In September 2022, when Queen Elizabeth II died,
Hanbury also attended her funeral, arriving before the procession of the immediate family.
Rose Hanbury is involved in several charitable organizations. In fact, she and Princess Catherine
are patrons of the same organization: East Anglia's Children's Hospices, or EACH. Catherine
is the royal patron, while Hanbury is listed among the regular patrons. Hanbury joined EACH as a
patron in 2018, and she was photographed visiting build sites for the hospice's new location.
In fact, it was this patronage that linked Catherine and Hanbury in 2016,
when the latter hosted a charity gala dinner at her home, Houghton Hall,
to raise money for EACH. Catherine and Prince William attended, and were greeted by Hanbury
and David Cholmondeley. The event was glamorous, with five Michelin-star chefs cooking dinner for
the guests. Both women, regardless of their relationship, continue to support the hospice.