Search results
Most of the Gilded Age Heiresses who crossed the sea in search of a noble title were the daughters of self-made men. One exception was Cora Smith, who married the soap company heir Samuel J Colgate (39 years her senior) and was left at his death a very rich widow – the estate was valued at over $260 million in today’s money. Cora, when she ...
Jun 2, 2011 · Spanning about a twenty year time period wealthy American ladies of marrying age headed across the pond to snag the ultimate in opulent accessories: a noble title. In this episode, the third part of our Gilded Age series, we sit down to a chat about several of these women.
May 15, 2011 · During the Gilded Age, a number of American heiresses married members of the British aristocracy, a trend that became fashionable for both cash starved royalty and the title hungry inner-circle of New York’s high society.
Anne de Courcy, author of the book "The Husband Hunters: Social Climbing in London and New York" talks with BHT about the real-life Downton Abbey, Lady Coras, American heiresses, and their history-changing legacy amongst the British aristocracy.
- Overview
- HISTORY Vault: America the Story of Us
During the Gilded Age, marrying British aristocrats was seen as a way for American heiresses to raise their social status.
When Jennie Jerome and Lord Randolph Churchill announced their engagement in 1874, his parents were horrified. The couple had only known one another for three days, and Jerome—the tattooed daughter of a philandering financier and a social climber—was an American socialite, not a British noblewoman. Appalled, the Churchills tried to block the match…until they did the math.
Jerome’s family might have humble origins, but they were outrageously wealthy. Lord Randolph’s parents were not, and Jerome’s father was willing to pay a dowry that equaled the equivalent of over $4.3 million dollars today. The marriage went forward with the grudging approval of Lord Randolph’s parents.
They could have no way of knowing that Jerome, who became Lady Randolph Churchill when she married in 1874, would be the mother of a future prime minister, Winston—or that by allowing their aristocratic son to barter his title for much-needed wealth, they had helped spark a trend.
Between the late 19th century and World War II, a flood of “dollar princesses” flocked to England looking for love. In return for a coveted title, they offered their much-needed wealth to an aristocracy desperate for cash. And along the way, they helped change British royalty forever—including the lives of the modern-day heirs to Britain’s throne.
Jerome was just one of hundreds of heiresses thought to have injected the equivalent of a billion pounds into the British economy. The exchange was worth it in their eyes; they knew that marriages to people with titles like Lord, Viscount and Duke would improve their family’s fortunes back in the United States and solidify their position on the American social circuit.
America The Story of Us is an epic 12-hour television event that tells the extraordinary story of how America was invented.
WATCH NOW
Dec 18, 2023 · According to Titled Americans, 454 American heiresses married into the European aristocracy during the Gilded Age. What did the lives of dollar princesses look like once they were married? The unions between American heiresses and British aristocrats resulted in material riches, but rarely promised happiness.
People also ask
How many heiresses were married during the Gilded Age?
Who were 'dollar princesses' in the Gilded Age?
What did American heiresses do after marriage?
How many heiresses were married in 1895?
Aug 13, 2013 · The nouveau riche of the Gilded Age had buckets of money but little social standing—until they started marrying their daughters to British nobles
