How American Social Climbers Sold Their Children for Rank

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Distorted anti-american view.

the social doors were firmly closed to the newly rich americans. Until the British aristocracy started going broke and needed money. They came up with the idea to sell the inheritance/title/future to anyone who could pay enough to marry their heir. Only Americans had that kind of cash.

but go ahead and blame it on "social climbing" americans. If someone was offering a life of privilege and position you'd probably take it too.

👍︎︎ 2 👤︎︎ u/Gerry1of1 📅︎︎ Jan 27 2021 🗫︎ replies

I can not begin to express how deeply I feel the pain of the British upper-upper classes and the American super-super rich. Arranged marriages, forsooth! Good thing that didn't happen anywhere else in the world!

Downton Abbey was a work of fiction. In reality, almost all of them — gold-digging lords, pearl-clutching American Virgins, Wicked Stepmothers, et al — deserved each other, if anyone ever deserved anything.

But good on them for taking up the white man's burden.

👍︎︎ 2 👤︎︎ u/SemichiSam 📅︎︎ Jan 28 2021 🗫︎ replies

Pretty much the premise for Downton Abbey, except it shows what happens 20 years down the road... didn't work out too badly, really.

👍︎︎ 1 👤︎︎ u/Thubanstar 📅︎︎ Jan 27 2021 🗫︎ replies
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In the 1870s, wealthy American families came up with a new scheme to leapfrog up the social ladder-- trading their daughter's hand in marriage, along with a lot of money, to British aristocrats, in exchange for a title. Every rich American wanted a Duchess in their family, and the lucky young woman-- who may not have been excited about the marriage-- became known as a "Dollar Princess." Today we're going to take a look at how American social climbers traded their daughters to British Nobles for rank. But before we get started, be sure to subscribe to the Weird History channel, and let us know in the comments below what other strange customs you would like to hear about. OK, here's some dollar, dollar princesses, y'all. Jenny Jerome was one of the first dollar princesses. The Brooklyn-born daughter of a real estate developer, she married Lord Randolph Churchill in 1874. Jenny-- who we're assuming was from the block-- like many women, was fond of dressing up as the Byzantine Empress Theodora, and she brought enormous wealth to her new husband. This was pretty fortunate for him, as he was barely scraping by at the time, living only on a small allowance from his father. Jerome's father, on the other hand, gave them 50,000 pounds and a large allowance reserved just for Jenny. Jerome's marriage was marked by some scandal. When her first child was born seven months after the wedding, many British aristocrats didn't quite buy her claim that a fall had brought on premature labor. In fact, many noted that the baby appeared to be full-term. Whatever the case, that child grew up to be Winston Churchill. After he led the British to victory over the Nazis in World War II, we're assuming all was forgiven. As for Jenny Jerome, her experience soon started a trend of rich American girls marrying impoverished British aristocrats. British aristocrats were known to advertise for American brides-- so much so, in fact, an entire industry sprang up to play matchmaker across the Atlantic. One quarterly publication, The Titled American, promoted the happiness of newly titled brides in order to convince others to follow their footsteps. The publication also ran ads from eligible bachelors-- but of course, only those with a title to sell. One read, "The Marquess of Winchester is 32 years of age, and a Captain of the Coldstream Guards." Instead of swiping right, interested women could reply via a post-- but of course, only those with a fortune to share. Like many brides, Consuelo Vanderbilt, daughter and eldest child of the railroad millionaire William Vanderbilt, cried on her wedding day. But unlike most brides, Consuelos tears were not tears of joy. Her wedding was November 6, 1895. Crowds lined the streets of Manhattan's Fifth Avenue as she traveled to St. Thomas Episcopal Church to marry Charles Spencer Churchill, the ninth Duke of Marlborough. The problem was, she didn't love him. Cue the sad song. In fact, it's said Consuelo refused to get married until it was claimed that her refusal was harming her mother's health. Ooh, that's a top notch guilt trip. I guess if you can't marry for love, marry for guilt? Consuelo finally agreed to the marriage, but later admitted, "I spent the morning of my wedding day in tears and alone. No one came near me." The couple would go on to have two sons, John Albert William Spencer Churchill, Marquess of Blanford, who would eventually become the 10th Duke of Marlborough, and Lord Ivor Spencer Churchill. When the Duke of Marlborough married Consuelo Vanderbilt, everyone knew why-- he was looking for a fortune to repair his palace. Blenheim Palace was falling apart, and Marlborough didn't have enough money to fix it. As soon as the marriage was official, however, the Duke began the repairs using his new wife's money. Vanderbilt, for the record, didn't really love the place. She complained that while their bedroom was being redecorated, she had to spend the first three months of her life there in a cold and cheerless apartment looking North. Everybody knows when you get a castle, get a south-facing one. She described the area as being mostly ugly, depressing rooms, devoid of the beauty and comforts her own home had provided. She also watched as her new husband poured vast amounts of money into their palace, which probably didn't thrill her either. She may have misread that one, because today Blenheim Palace is a World Heritage site-- all thanks to an American fortune. USA. USA. USA. Many of the dollar princesses weren't willing participants in their marriages. The aforementioned Consuelo Vanderbilt, for example, was actually in love with, and secretly engaged to, another man when she wed the Duke of Marlborough. The fellow was a socialite named Winthrop Rutherford, with whom Consuelo planned to elope until her parents locked her in her room. On the morning of her wedding, the young woman had a footman posted at the door of her apartment and gave instructions that not even her governess be admitted. According to Consuelo, "like an automaton, I donned the lovely lingerie with its real lace and the white silk stockings and shoes." However, rather than feeling elated, Vanderbilt was in shock. She later recalled feeling cold and numb as she went down to meet her father and the bridesmaids who were waiting for her. And the marriage wasn't pleasant. After 10 years and multiple affairs on both sides, the Duke and Duchess of Marlborough separated. They later divorced, and their marriage was finally annulled in August of 1926. Not too surprising that one didn't work out-- castle remodeling will test any marriage. Diana, Princess of Wales, also known as "The People's Princess," was the great granddaughter of an American heiress who was shipped off to Britain to marry a Baron. Diana's ancestor was one Frances Ellen Work, born in 1857 to a self-made millionaire in New York City who left behind $15 million when he died, Frances married James Roche, Baron Fermoy, in 1880. Princess Diana's brother, Earl Spencer, has expressed uncertainty over whether the Baron actually fell in love with his mother, or merely with his grandfather's fortune. Adjusted for inflation, the rakish Baron spent two and half million of his wife's money on gambling, so you can draw your own conclusions on that one. In the British television series Downton Abbey, Cora Crawley, the wife of Lord Grantham, is the daughter of a multimillionaire from Ohio. Cora's character, according to series creator Julian Fellowes, was in fact based on the dollar princesses. Fellowes estimates that between 1880 and 1920, as many as 350 wealthy American women married into the cash-poor British aristocracy. In the show, Cora's money saves Downton Abbey. Ironically, the stately English Highclere Castle, where Downton Abbey was shot, was also preserved by the wealth of a dollar princess. Almina Wombwell, illegitimate daughter of millionaire banker Alfred de Rothchild, married George Herbert, the Fifth Earl of Carnarvon, famous for helping to discover King Tut's tomb. She used her dowry to sustain the castle. Mary Leiter, daughter of the entrepreneur and department store co-founder Marshall Field, drew praise for her shapely figure and ability to navigate elite social circles. She made her way into the British nobility in 1895, when she married Lord George Curzon, with whom she later moved to India after he was appointed Viceroy. The truth, however, was that it was Leiter's money that helped Curzon attain the position in the first place. Leiter started her life as a young Chicago girl, but through marriage she was elevated to the position of Vicereine of India, long recognized as the highest position an American woman has ever held in the British empire. In 1902, Mary Leiter celebrated the coronation of the new King Edward VII, by donning a stunning dress designed by the House of Worth, the first couture designers. By then, Leiter was the Vicereine of India, and her gown measured up to her title. Known as "the peacock dress," Leiter's gown wove gold cloth with peacock feathers. She further accessorized with a pearl-topped tiara and an enormous diamond necklace. Leiter's extravagance underscored the true purpose of the dollar princesses-- they brought serious wealth to British aristocrats, many of whom were financially strapped. And once they settled in the British empire, dollar princesses often flexed their affluence. Check out my affluence, I'm flexing it. It's huge! Despite being heiress to the Singer Sewing Machine fortune, Winnaretta Singer was once snubbed in New York by fellow dollar princess Nancy Astor-- that is, until Singer went to Europe looking for a husband, and found herself a French Prince. In 1893, Singer married Prince Edmond de Polignac, and that wasn't even her first royal wedding. In 1887, Singer wed Prince Louis de Scey-Montbeliard, a union that rocketed her to Paris's elite circles. That marriage, like many unions between American heiresses and European Nobles, fell apart, and was annulled in 1892. In this case, however, everyone in Paris believed they knew why the two split-- Singer liked the ladies. Rumor has it that on their wedding night, Singer jumped atop an armoire and yelled "I'm going to kill you if you come near me." Needless to say, the marriage went unconsummated. Luckily, her second marriage, to Prince de Polignac, was much happier-- most likely because he was also a homosexual. Together, they supported the arts in many forms, hosting a well-respected salon for musicians, painters, and other creative luminaries. Nancy Langhorne Shaw was born in Virginia, but she said goodbye to her past when she married William Waldorf Astor and the pair moved into Cliveden House. Although William Astor was born in the US, he moved to London as a child and grew up surrounded by the English aristocracy. After adopting the title "Lady Astor," this dollar princess became a fixture of the British social scene. She eventually translated her status into a seat in parliament. In 1919, Lady Astor ran for her husband's former seat in the House of Commons, becoming only the second woman in history at the time elected to parliament. While some dollar princesses found fulfillment as duchesses and Vicereines, many began to argue publicly against the practice. Frank Work, for example, whose daughter Frances became a baroness through marriage, eventually came to oppose the idea of trading American daughters for titles. His 1911 obituary quoted an interview where Work argued, "It's time this international marrying came to a stop." Frank's objection was mainly based on economic concerns, as he complained, "as fast as our honorable, hardworking men can earn this money, their daughters take it and toss it across the ocean." Work railed against a system that he perceived as ultimately just a way for foreign nobles to pay off their debts at the expense of Americans, saying, "if I had anything to say about it, I'd make an international marriage a hanging offense." So what do you think? How do you view marriage-- for love or for financial benefits? Let us know in the comments below. And while you're at it, check out some of these other videos from our Weird History.
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Channel: Weird History
Views: 1,001,966
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Keywords: The Dollar Princesses, Facts About Titled Brides, Dollar Princesses and British Aristocrats, Marriage For Social Status, Weird History, Weird History US History, American Elites, Jennie Jerome, Winston Churchill, Titled Brides, Marriage In the Industrial Era, Consuelo Vanderbilt, Blenheim Palace, Princess Diana, Downton Abbey, Mary Leiter, Marriage Customs, Winnaretta Singer, Nancy Langhorne Shaw, Social Status, Drunk History, History, 90 Fiance, Alternate History Hub, USA
Id: EOYHdalUOno
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Length: 11min 37sec (697 seconds)
Published: Wed Jan 27 2021
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