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His Grace
The Duke of Wellington
GE OBE DL
His Grace The Duke of Wellington GE OBE DL
	Wellington in 2015
Member of the House of Lords
	Lord Temporal
	as an elected hereditary peer ; 17 September 2015
By-election	17 September 2015
Preceded by	The 3rd Baron Luke
Member of the European Parliament; for Surrey West; Surrey (1979–1984)
	In office; 1979–1989
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	Tom Spencer
Personal details
Born	Arthur Charles Valerian Wellesley; 19 August 1945 (age 79); H.R.H. Princess Christian Hospital, Windsor, Berkshire, England
Spouse	Princess Antonia of Prussia (m. 1977)
Children	5, including: ; Lady Mary Wellesley ; Lady Charlotte Santo Domingo
Parent(s)	Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington; Diana McConnel
Education	Eton College
Alma mater	Christ Church, Oxford

Arthur Charles Valerian Wellesley, 9th Duke of Wellington, 9th Prince of Waterloo, 10th Duke of Ciudad Rodrigo, 9th Duke of Victoria, GE, OBE, DL (born 19 August 1945), styled Earl of Mornington between 1945 and 1972 and Marquess of Douro between 1972 and 2014, is a British peer and politician. He served as Conservative Member of the European Parliament for Surrey (1979–1984) and Surrey West (1984–1989) and has sat as a hereditary peer in the House of Lords since 2015.

Early life

Wellington was born on 19 August 1945 at H.R.H. Princess Christian Hospital in Windsor, Berkshire, the first son of Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington and Diana McConnel. He grew up in London and at Stratfield Saye House, his family's estate in Hampshire, and was educated at Ludgrove School, Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford.^[1]^[2]

Politics

Wellington stood as Conservative Party candidate for Islington North in 1974, losing to Labour's incumbent Michael O'Halloran. He was a member of Basingstoke Borough Council from 1978 to 1979. He subsequently served as Conservative MEP for Surrey from 1979 to 1984, and as Conservative MEP for Surrey West from 1984 to 1989.

In September 2015, he was elected to a seat in the House of Lords as a Conservative in a by-election following the retirement of Lord Luke.^[3] On 4 September 2019, he quit the Conservative Party. He sat as a "non-affiliated" member of the House of Lords from September 2019 to September 2020. Since September 2020 he has sat as a crossbench peer.^[4]

In 2021, he put forward an amendment to the Environment Bill to attempt to reduce pollution from the dumping of sewage in rivers. The initial amendment was rejected by MPs, which led to a backlash on social media. The Environment Secretary George Eustice proposed making measures a legal duty, but Wellington put forward the amendment again to attempt to ensure changes came into force.^[5]

Courtier

He carried Queen Mary's Crown in the royal procession at the coronation of Charles III and Camilla.^[6] With the Duchess, he was invited to ride in the King's procession at Royal Ascot 2023.^[7]

Charity

Wellington has worked for a number of non-profit or charitable organisations. He was a patron of British Art at the Tate Gallery (1987–90), a member of the Royal College of Art between (1992–97), Chair of British-Spanish Tertulias (1993–98) and Trustee of the Phoenix Trust from 1996 to 2001). He was appointed OBE in 1999 for services to British-Spanish business relations. He was appointed a Deputy Lord-Lieutenant of Hampshire in 1999. In 2003 he was given a four-year appointment as a Commissioner for English Heritage.

On 1 October 2007, he became Chairman of the Governing Council of King's College London, an institution of which his wife Princess Antonia is an alumna, and of which his ancestor Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, was instrumental in the foundation.

Marriage

He married Princess Antonia of Prussia on 3 February 1977 at St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, London. Notable guests at the wedding included Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, Prince of Wales (later King Charles III), Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, and the Duke and Duchess of Kent.^[8] The couple are friends of King Charles III and Queen Camilla.^[9]

They have five children:

Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Douro (born 31 January 1978); was married (4 June 2005 – August 2020) to former model, now make-up artist Jemma Kidd (born 20 September 1974), fashion stylist and great-granddaughter of Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook; they have issue two sons and a daughter
Lady Honor Victoria Wellesley (born 25 October 1979); married 3 July 2004 (as his second wife) the Honourable Orlando Montagu, younger son of the John Montagu, 11th Earl of Sandwich, and had issue.
Lady Mary Luise Wellesley (born 16 December 1986), a goddaughter of Diana, Princess of Wales.^[10]
Lady Charlotte Anne Wellesley (born 8 October 1990); who attended Oxford University reading archaeology and anthropology. Her day job is at photographer Mario Testino's studio in London, where she is a producer. On 15 July 2015, her engagement was announced to Colombian billionaire Alejandro Santo Domingo, uncle of Tatiana Santo Domingo, wife of Andrea Casiraghi. They married in the duke's family estate Dehesa Baja in Spain, on 28 May 2016, after the ceremony at the sixteenth-century Church of the Incarnation in Illora, near Granada.^[11]^[12]
Lord Frederick Charles Wellesley (born 30 September 1992), a godson of King Charles III. He attended Eton College. Gained a commission into the Household Cavalry (Blues and Royals) from The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in December 2016. His engagement to Katherine Lambert was announced on 25 February 2021. They married on 2 July 2022^[13]

Titles and styles

Apart from his British titles, the Duke of Wellington also holds the hereditary titles of 9th Prince of Waterloo ("Prins van Waterloo") of both the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Kingdom of Belgium, and 9th Duke of Victoria ("Duque da Vitória") of the Kingdom of Portugal with its subsidiary titles Marquis of Torres Vedras ("Marquês de Torres Vedras") and Count of Vimeiro ("Conde de Vimeiro"). These were granted to the first Duke as victory titles for his distinguished services as victorious commanding general in the Peninsular War (in Spain and Portugal), and at the Battle of Waterloo (in what is now Belgium).

Wellington is also the 10th Duke of Ciudad Rodrigo ("Duque de Ciudad Rodrigo") of the Kingdom of Spain, which on 10 March 2010 was ceded to him by his father. In accordance with Spanish procedure, Wellington (then styled as Marquess of Douro) made a formal claim to the title with the Spanish Ministry of Justice.^[14] King Juan Carlos I of Spain, through his minister, granted the succession to the dukedom of Ciudad Rodrigo to Wellington in May 2010.^[15]

Country	Appointment	Post-nominal letters	Other
United Kingdom	Officer of the Order of the British Empire	OBE
United Kingdom	King Charles III Coronation Medal
Portugal	Order of Merit		Rank of orders inconclusive^{[note 1]}
Portugal	Order of Liberty		Rank of orders inconclusive^{[note 1]}

Notes

^ The orders that HG wears have been identified, but his rank within both orders is only known to be at least that of an Officer (Oficial).^[16]

References

^ Barber, Richard (2004). The Story of Ludgrove. Oxford: Guidon Publishing. p. 259. ISBN 0-9543617-2-5.
^ ‘WELLINGTON’, Who's Who 2017, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2017
^ Conservative hereditary peers’by-election, September 2015:result
^ "The Duke of Wellington". UK Parliament. Retrieved 9 September 2019.
^ "New legal duty promised over sewage as Lords forces issue". BBC News. 26 October 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
^ "Coronation order of service in full". BBC News. 5 May 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
^ "Ascot Racecourse on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
^ "British Nobility Turns Out for Traditional Blue-Blooded Wedding". The New York Times. 4 February 1977.
^ "Among friends: Inside the new King and Queen Consort's inner circle". Tatler. 21 June 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
^ Maung, Carole Aye (5 September 1997). "Our Auntie Diana". The Mirror. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
^ "Behind-the-scenes at Lady Charlotte Wellesley and Alejandro Santo Domingo wedding". HELLO!. 31 May 2016.
^ Odiamar, Danielle (29 May 2016). "Lady Charlotte Wellesley Marries Alejandro Santo Domingo Surrounded by Royal Guests". Harper's BAZAAR.
^ "Capt F.C. Wellesley and Capt K.E. Lambert". Telegraph. 25 February 2021.
^ "Anuncio de la Subsecretaría (División de Tramitación de Derechos de Gracia y otros Derechos), sobre solicitud de sucesión por cesión en el título de Duque de Ciudad Rodrigo, con Grandeza de España". www.boe.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 November 2018.
^ "Orden JUS/1527/2010, de 21 de mayo, por la que se manda expedir, sin perjuicio de tercero de mejor derecho, Real Carta de Sucesión en el título de Duque de Ciudad Rodrigo, con Grandeza de España, a favor de Lord Charles Wellesley". www.boe.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 November 2018.
^ Bickerstaff, Isaac (8 November 2019). "Tatler Dynasties: Meet the Wellingtons". Tatler. Retrieved 8 November 2024.

External links

Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
Preceded by The Duke of Leinster	Duke The Duke of Wellington	Succeeded by The Duke of Sutherland
Peerage of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Valerian Wellesley	Duke of Wellington 2014–present	Incumbent
Peerage of Ireland
Preceded by Valerian Wellesley	Earl of Mornington 2014–present	Incumbent
Dutch nobility
Preceded by Valerian Wellesley	Prince of Waterloo 2014–present	Incumbent
Spanish nobility
Preceded by Valerian Wellesley	Duke of Ciudad Rodrigo 2010–present	Incumbent
Portuguese nobility
Preceded by Valerian Wellesley	Duke of Victoria 2014–present	Incumbent
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by The Lord Luke	Elected hereditary peer to the House of Lords under the House of Lords Act 1999 2015–present	Incumbent
Academic offices
Preceded by The Baroness Rawlings	Chairman of King's College London 2007–2016	Succeeded by The Lord Geidt