Duke of Marlborough is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created by Queen Anne in 1702 for John Churchill, 1st Earl of Marlborough (1650–1722), the noted military leader. In historical texts, unqualified use of the title typically refers to the 1st Duke. The name of the dukedom refers to Marlborough in Wiltshire.
Anne was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland between 8 March 1702 and 1 May 1707. On 1 May 1707, under the Acts of Union, the kingdoms of England and Scotland united as a single sovereign state known as Great Britain. She continued to reign as Queen of Great Britain and Ireland until her death in 1714.
General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, 1st Prince of Mindelheim, 1st Count of Nellenburg, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reigns of five monarchs. From a gentry family, he served first as a page at the court of the House of Stuart under James, Duke of York, through the 1670s and early 1680s, earning military and political advancement through his courage and diplomatic skill.
Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, Princess of Mindelheim, Countess of Nellenburg, was an English courtier who rose to be one of the most influential women of her time through her close relationship with Anne, Queen of Great Britain. Sarah's relationship and influence with Princess Anne were widely known, and leading public figures often turned their attentions to her, hoping for favor from Anne. By the time Anne became queen, Sarah’s knowledge of government and intimacy with the queen had made her a powerful friend and a dangerous enemy.
Marlborough House, a Grade I listed mansion in St James's, City of Westminster, London, is the headquarters of the Commonwealth of Nations and the seat of the Commonwealth Secretariat. It was built for Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, the favourite and confidante of Queen Anne. For over a century it served as the London residence of the dukes of Marlborough. It became a royal residence through the 19th century and first half of the 20th. It was leased by Queen Elizabeth II to the Commonwealth Secretariat beginning in 1965.
Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl of Sunderland, KG, PC, known as Lord Spencer from 1688 to 1702, was an English statesman and nobleman from the Spencer family. He served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (1714–1717), Lord Privy Seal (1715–1716), Lord President of the Council (1718–1719) and First Lord of the Treasury (1718–1721).
John Winston Spencer-Churchill, 7th Duke of Marlborough, styled Earl of Sunderland from 1822 to 1840 and Marquess of Blandford from 1840 to 1857, was a British Conservative cabinet minister, politician, peer, and nobleman. He was the paternal grandfather of Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill.
Charles Spencer, 3rd Duke of Marlborough,, styled as The Honourable Charles Spencer between 1706 and 1729 and as The Earl of Sunderland between 1729 and 1733, was a British soldier, nobleman, and politician from the Spencer family. He briefly served as Lord Privy Seal in 1755. He led British forces during the Raid on St Malo in 1758.
Abigail Masham, Baroness Masham, was an English courtier. She was a favourite of Queen Anne, and a cousin of Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough.
The First Churchills is a BBC serial from 1969 about the life of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and his wife, Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough. It stars John Neville as the duke and Susan Hampshire as the duchess, was written and produced by Donald Wilson, and was directed by David Giles. It is notable as being the first programme shown on PBS's long-running Masterpiece series in the United States. Wilson and Giles were fresh from their success in writing and directing The Forsyte Saga, which also starred Susan Hampshire and Margaret Tyzack.
Anne Spencer, Countess of Sunderland was the wife of Robert Spencer, 2nd Earl of Sunderland and the daughter of George Digby, 2nd Earl of Bristol and Lady Anne Russell.
John Spencer was a British nobleman and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1732 to 1746.
Anne Spencer, Countess of Sunderland, was an English court official and noble. She held the office of Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Anne from 1702 to 1712.
Anne, Queen of Great Britain, has been depicted in novels, film and television.
St. James's is a novel by William Harrison Ainsworth serially published in 1844. It describes the events surrounding the end of Queen Anne's reign and the dispute between the Duke and Duchess of Marlborough with two Tories for influence over the queen.
Hubert Willis was a British actor best known for his recurring role as Doctor Watson in a series of silent Sherlock Holmes films co-starring with Eille Norwood.
John Churchill, Marquess of Blandford was a British nobleman. He was the heir apparent to the Dukedom of Marlborough – as the only surviving son of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, an accomplished general, and Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, a close friend of Queen Anne. Blandford died childless in 1703, and upon his father's death in 1722, the dukedom passed to his eldest sister, Lady Henrietta Godolphin.
Queen Anne is a 2015 play by the British playwright Helen Edmundson on the life of Anne, Queen of Great Britain. It is set between just before her accession in 1702 and her husband George's death in 1708 and centres on the relationship between Anne and her close friend Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough, by whom Anne was heavily influenced in the period before and during her reign.
The Glass of Water: or, Effects and Causes is an 1840 five-act stage comedy by the French writer Eugène Scribe. It is set at the court of Queen Anne of Great Britain during the early 18th century. It premiered at the Théâtre-Français in Paris on 17 November 1840. It has been translated into several languages, including into German in 1841 by Alexander Cosmar.
Frances Harris, was a British historian known for her focus on the Stuart period.
