Diane (Beauclerk-Lennox) de Beauclerk-Lennox (abt. 1727 - abt. 1764)

Ancestors

Problems/Questions Profile manager: John Atkinson [send private message]

Biography

Life Sketch

Diane Beauclerk-Lennox or de Beauclerk-Lennox, was supposedly the illegitimate daughter of Charles Beauclerk, 2nd Duke of St Albans, and his cousin and mistress Renee Lennox.

She is stated to have had a colouful career, becoming both famous on the European stage as an opera singer and infamous as the mistress of successively: Sir Simon Harcourt, 1st Earl Harcourt; Charles de Bourbon, Comte de Charloais; Unnamed Maltese Grand Master of the Order of St John; Alessandro Mompalo (sometimes Mompalao Cuzkeri), Barone di Frigunuini; Conte de Candolo of Genoa; and Count Antoine Levin de Gosberg-Bavievre. According to the following genealogy of her descendants she had children with most of these men.

However although there are numerous mentions of her on Internet sites including a full biography here and the genealogy referred to above, there are major doubts that she ever existed.

The genealogy of her maternal grandmother found here contains many historical persons, but is extremely doubtful in the last few generations. As well all of the research seems to be the work on one person, and in none of the websites mentioned is there any primary documents or even good secondary sources used as evidence.

Consequently it seems most probable that the existence of all three women is questionable.

Sources