Congratulations Lady Susan Hussey! The close confidant of the late Queen Elizabeth II has welcomed a great-granddaughter
Lady Susan Hussey’s grandson George Francis Geoffrey Brooke and his wife Emily Anne K. Brooke announced the birth of their daughter, Scarlett Elizabeth, this week. Could the newborn's name be a touching reference to the late Queen?
Lady Susan Hussey, dubbed the ‘Number One Head Girl’ of the royal household, has become a great-grandmother
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Congratulations are in order for Lady Susan Hussey, as the godmother to Prince William and close confidant to the late Queen Elizabeth II has welcomed a new great-granddaughter.
Lady Susan Hussey’s grandson George Francis Geoffrey Brooke and his wife Emily Anne K. Brooke announced the birth of their daughter, Scarlett Elizabeth, on 31 January. George Brooke is the heir of Sir Francis George Windham Brooke, 4th Baronet, and his wife the Hon Lady Brooke – who was born the Hon Katharine Elizabeth Hussey in 1964 to Lady Susan Hussey and her husband, Marmaduke Hussey.
Herself the youngest daughter of the 12th Earl Waldegrave, Lady Susan Hussey served as a Woman of the Bedchamber to the late Queen Elizabeth II from 1960 until her death, then acted as a Lady of the Household under King Charles III from September to November 2022.
A close friend of Her Late Majesty and Queen Margrethe of Denmark, she was a part of the royal family’s inner circle for several decades, with the BBC describing her as a ‘key and trusted figure’ for the House of Windsor. Her extensive knowledge of the household – where she was reportedly known as ‘Number One Head Girl’ – meant she was often asked to help newcomers (Lady Diana Spencer, for example) to settle into royal life.
Lady Susan Hussey's daughter hit the headlines after Buckingham Palace referred to her ‘unacceptable and deeply regrettable comments' during a Buckingham Palace reception in 2022
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In November 2022, Lady Susan Hussey resigned from her position as a royal aide after Ngozi Fulani, founder and chief executive of London-based domestic abuse charity Sistah Space, took to Twitter to recount an incident in which Lady Susan repeatedly asked where she was ‘really from’ at a Buckingham Palace reception.
In the wake of the news, the Palace responded with a statement expressing their apologies for the ‘unacceptable and deeply regrettable comments’. Three months later, however, Lady Susan was ‘back in the fold’, as she represented Princess Anne at a memorial service for Dame Frances Campbell-Preston.
Hussey’s daughter, the Hon Katharine Elizabeth Hussey, is married to Sir Francis George Windham Brooke, 4th Baronet – who himself enjoyed a special bond with the late Queen Elizabeth. In June 2020, the keen horse owner was named Her Majesty’s Representative at Ascot. The last person to serve in the position, he followed in the footsteps of the Duke of Norfolk, the Marquess of Abergavenny, Sir Piers Bengough, the Duke of Devonshire and Sir Johnny Weatherby.
Sir Francis and Lady Brooke at the Boodles Cheltenham Festival
Hubert Cecil
‘It was a huge privilege to be appointed,’ said Sir Francis Brooke of the role, which saw him induct the late Queen into the Ascot Hall of Fame. ’[S]ince then I’ve been extraordinarily fortunate to be in the position for the Accession of King Charles, helping to see Ascot through the sadness of losing the Queen and then on through the transition to the King.’
Now, he will no doubt be thrilled to welcome a new granddaughter, as his son George and daughter-in-law Emily look forward to raising Scarlett Elizabeth – who might just have been named in honour of the monarch who played such an important part in her family’s life.