William Leveson Gower, 4th Earl Granville

Updated on Jan 16, 2024

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Monarch George VI Preceded by The Duke of Abercorn Preceded by Sir Montagu Butler Succeeded by The Lord Wakehurst		Succeeded by Sir Geoffrey Bromet Name William 4th Monarch George VI Died June 25, 1953

Spouse Rose Leveson-Gower, Countess Granville (m. 1916) Parents Granville Leveson-Gower, 2nd Earl Granville, Castila Rosalind Campbell Grandparents Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Earl Granville, Harriet Leveson-Gower, Countess Granville Great-grandparents Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire Similar People Queen Elizabeth The Quee, Claude Bowes‑Lyon - 14th Earl, Granville Leveson‑Gower - 2nd Earl, Cecilia Bowes‑Lyon - Countess, Fergus Bowes‑Lyon

Vice-Admiral William Spencer Leveson-Gower, 4th Earl Granville, (11 July 1880 – 25 June 1953), styled The Honourable William Leveson-Gower until 1939, was a British naval commander and governor from the Leveson-Gower family.

Background

Leveson-Gower was the younger son of Granville Leveson-Gower, 2nd Earl Granville, by his second wife Castila Rosalind Campbell.

Career

After Wixenford School, William Leveson-Gower joined the Royal Navy in 1894. He was promoted to Sub Lieutenant in 1900, and lieutenant on 26 June 1902, when he was re-appointed to the torpedo cruiser HMS Scout. In August 1902 he was posted to the HMS Hood, serving on the Mediterranean Station.

Promotion to commander followed in 1913. He served in First World War and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order in 1919.

He was appointed Chief of Staff to the Commander-in-Chief, The Nore in 1924, aide-de-camp to the King in 1929 and Commander-in-Chief, Coast of Scotland in 1931. He was made a Companion of the Bath in 1930 and retired in 1935.

Leveson-Gower became Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man in 1937. In 1939 he succeeded his elder brother in the earldom. Granville was appointed a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (KCVO) in 1945 and became Governor of Northern Ireland in 1945, serving until 1952. He was made a Knight of the Garter that same year.

Family

In 1916, Lord Granville married Lady Rose Constance Bowes-Lyon, the second surviving daughter of the 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, and elder sister of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. They had two children, five grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren:

Lady Mary Cecilia Leveson-Gower (12 December 1917 – 13 February 2014) she married Sir Samuel Clayton on 7 July 1956. They have two children and have one grandson:

Gilbert Falkingham Clayton (4 September 1958) he married Rosalind Mullen in 1994. They have one son:

Samuel Wittewronge Kit Clayton (February 2002)

Rose Cecilia Clayton (25 January 1960) she married William Wordie Stancer on 9 July 1993.

Granville James Leveson-Gower, 5th Earl Granville (6 December 1918 – 31 October 1996) he married Doon Aileen Plunket on 9 October 1958. They have three children and nine grandchildren:

Granville George Fergus Leveson-Gower, 6th Earl Granville (10 September 1959) he married Anne Topping on 23 May 1997. They have three children:

Lady Rose Alice Leveson-Gower (16 April 1998)

George James Leveson-Gower, Lord Leveson (22 July 1999)

Lady Violet May Leveson-Gower (5 August 2002)

Lady Marcia Rose Aileen Leveson-Gower (10 February 1961 – 3 August 2005) she married Jonathan Charles Bulmer in 1986. They have four children:

Hesper Rose Constance Bulmer (1990)

James Alexander Howard Bulmer (1992)

Hector Charles Marcus Bulmer (1993)

Lara Bulmer (29 August 1995)

Hon. Niall James Leveson-Gower (24 August 1963) he married Amanda Blaxell in 1996. They have one set of twins:

Charlie Leveson-Gower (14 February 2000)

Honor Leveson-Gower (14 February 2000)

Lord Granville died in June 1953, aged 72. He was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium. The Countess Granville died in 1967.

References

William Leveson-Gower, 4th Earl Granville Wikipedia

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Contents

Background

Career

Family

References