Contents:
- Personal and family information
- Domicile region and Migration
- Social Information
- Education
- Sources
- Notes
- Sent letters
- Received letters
Personal and family information
Personal information
| Person ID | MB |
| Sex | Female |
| First Name | Margaret Cavendish |
| Last Name | Harley |
| Married name | Bentinck |
| Spouse | William Bentinck |
| Spouse's Rank | Nobility |
| Spouse's Title | 2nd Duke of Portland |
| Year of Marriage | 1734 |
| Life span | 70 |
| Year of Birth | 1715 |
| Year of Death | 1785 |
Family
| Father | Edward Harley |
| Father's Rank | Nobility |
| Father's Title | 2nd Earl of Oxford and Mortimer |
| Mother | Henrietta Cavendish Harley née Holles |
Domicile region and Migration
Place of Birth (Town)
| Town | London |
Domicile Region
| Address | Town | County | Country | From | To | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | London | Middlesex | England | 1715 | - | 1 |
| Wimpole Hall | Wimpole | Cambridgeshire | England | [1715] | - | 2 |
| Welbeck Abbey | - | Nottinghamshire | England | 1716 | 1785 | 3 |
1 Margaret Cavendish was born in London in 1715 and presumably spent part of her childhood there.
2 The Wimpole Hall was a family estate of the Harleys, but was sold in 1740 to pay off debts.
3 Margaret Cavendish Bentinck née Harley's mother Henrietta Cavendish Harley née Holles inherited the Cavendish family residence Welbeck Abbey in 1716. Margaret Cavendish inherited it from her mother, and in 1734 upon her marriage to William Bentinck, 2nd Duke of Portland, it became the seat of the Duke of Portland.
Migration
| Address | Town | County | Country | From | To | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulstrode Hall | near Gerrard's Cross | Buckinghamshire | England | 1734 | 1785 | 1 |
| Whitehall | London | Middlesex | England | - | 1785 | 2 |
1 Margaret Cavendish died at Bulstrode Hall in 1785.
2 Margaret Cavendish spent the winters in London, at Whitehall, where she also created a 'museum' of natural curiosities.
Social Information
Social Class
| Rank 1 | Nobility |
| Title | - |
| From | 1715 |
| To | 1734 |
| Rank 2 | Nobility |
| Title | - |
| From | 1715 |
| To | 1734 |
Social Mobility
Through the marriage to the 2nd Duke of Portland Margaret Cavendish gained the title of 2nd Duchess of Portland.
Occupation
Collector of art and natural history specimens and patron of arts and sciences
Education
Formal
| Institution | - |
| Highest Degree | - |
| From | - |
| To | - |
Private
Margaret Cavendish Harley had a governess who taught her French and Italian, and she had a special interest in natural history and arts.
Languages known
French, Italian
Sources
Bibliography IDs
Rogers, 2004; Sairio, 2009
Notes
Margaret Cavendish Bentinck née Harley was known, amongst other things, for her large botanical and natural history collections. At Whitehall, where she spent the winters, she created a 'museum' of natural curiosities. At Bulstrode Margaret took care of the large gardens and also had a collection of shells. Margaret Cavendish was a close friend to Elizabeth Montagu, whom she gave the nickname Fidget and whom she had known since they were teens.
Sent letters
No letters