I received an email from Sally E. Svenson, author of a new book about Lily, Duchess of Marlborough. She writes, "Lily Price Hamersley of New York was an anomaly in the traditional money-exchange-for-titles phenomenon of the late nineteenth century. She orchestrated her own marriage to the eighth Duke of Marlborough, settled no money directly on him, and estranged herself from her American family by marrying the duke – a divorced man.
"Mistress of Blenheim Palace for only four years (1888-1892) before her husband's unexpected death, Lily was the sister-in-law of Jennie Churchill, fond aunt of Winston, and stepmother of Consuelo Vanderbilt's first husband."
You can read more about Lily and an excerpt from the book at the author's website. Thank you to Sally Svenson for telling us about her book!
Lily, Duchess of Marlborough (1854-1909): A Portrait With Husbands is currently available from Amazon.com.