Lady Susan Hussey

Susan Katharine Hussey, Baroness Hussey of North Bradley, GCVO (née Waldegrave; born 1 May 1939), known as Lady Susan Hussey, is a British noblewoman who served as a Woman of the Bedchamber to Queen Elizabeth II and as a Lady of the Household from September to November 2022 under King Charles III.[1][2] According to BBC News, Hussey "was a key and trusted figure in the British royal household for decades."[3]

"Susan Hussey" redirects here. For the American playwright, see Susan Hussey (playwright).

The Right Honourable

The Lady Hussey of North Bradley

GCVO
Hussey in Toronto in 2010
Born
Lady Susan Katharine Waldegrave

(1939-05-01) 1 May 1939
Other namesLady Susan Hussey
OccupationWoman of the Bedchamber (formerly)
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1959; died 2006)​
Children2
Parent
RelativesJames Waldegrave, 13th Earl Waldegrave (brother)
William Waldegrave, Baron Waldegrave of North Hill (brother)
FamilyWaldegrave
AwardsRoyal Household Long and Faithful Service Medal

Family

Hussey is the fifth and youngest daughter of the 12th Earl Waldegrave, and Mary Hermione Grenfell (1909–1995). She is the sister of the 13th Earl Waldegrave and the Conservative politician William Waldegrave. Her aunt, Dame Frances Campbell-Preston, was lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.

On 25 April 1959, she married Marmaduke Hussey (later Chairman of the Board of Governors of the BBC) and had two children: James Arthur (b. 1961) and Katharine Elizabeth (b. 1964). Her daughter Katharine married Sir Francis Brooke and followed her mother into royal service, as one of the official companions to Queen Camilla.[4]

Royal household

Hussey joined the royal household in 1960, initially helping with royal correspondence, before being promoted to the position of Woman of the Bedchamber, owing to her knowledge of the inner workings of the household. She was a close friend of Queen Elizabeth II, as well as of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, and often spent time at Balmoral Castle.[1]

During her time as a courtier, Hussey was given the job of helping new arrivals adjust to life in the royal household, such as Diana, Princess of Wales. Another such new arrival whom Hussey was tasked with assisting was Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.[3]

Hussey is a godmother to Charles and Diana's first-born son, William, Prince of Wales,[1] and was chosen to accompany Queen Elizabeth at the funeral of Prince Philip.[5]

With other members of the royal household, Hussey attended the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on 19 September 2022. Following the Queen's death, she was made a Lady of the Household, along with the late Queen's other ladies-in-waiting, and was responsible for assisting at events held at Buckingham Palace.[1][4]

Departure and subsequent return to royal duties

In her role as a Lady of the Household, Hussey attended a reception hosted by Queen Camilla on 29 November 2022 as part of the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict initiative.[1] One of the guests was Ngozi Fulani, who had founded Sistah Space, a London-based domestic violence charity[6] that provides specialist services to women of African and Caribbean heritage.[7] The two women engaged in a conversation which Fulani summarised on Twitter, resulting in wider public attention.[8] Fulani said that Hussey had questioned her origins by repeatedly asking where she was "really" from,[9][10] which Fulani interpreted as racist.[8] Witnesses to the conversation, such as Women's Equality Party leader Mandu Reid, corroborated this account of events.[11][12]

Once Fulani's account of the conversation became public, Hussey stepped aside from her honorary role and apologised[13] via the Buckingham Palace press office.[10][14][15] A spokesperson for her godson, William, Prince of Wales, said that "racism has no place in our society".[16][17] The prime minister, Rishi Sunak, declined to comment on the controversy specifically, but stated that the country had made "incredible" progress in tackling racism, adding that it was "never done" and must continue to be addressed.[18][19] Some journalists defended her; her friend Petronella Wyatt offered a character reference.[20][21][22]

On 16 December, Hussey and Fulani met at Buckingham Palace to address the incident, with Hussey offering her apologies in person,[23] which Fulani accepted. A joint statement was released afterwards, reporting that the meeting was "filled with warmth and understanding" and that Fulani accepted the apology and "appreciates that no malice was intended".[24]

Hussey had reportedly returned to performing official royal duties by February 2023, representing Princess Anne at a memorial service for Dame Frances Campbell-Preston.[15]

Honours
Coat of arms

Having previously been appointed a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) in the 1971 New Year Honours,[25] and Dame Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (DCVO) in the 1984 New Year Honours,[26] Hussey was promoted to Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO) in the 2013 Birthday Honours.[27][28]

She was also awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Version of the Royal Household Long and Faithful Service Medal with 30-, 40-, 50- and 60-year bars.[29]

In September 2015, she received the Sash of Special Category of the Order of the Aztec Eagle,[30] the highest Mexican honour awarded to a foreigner.

Hussey is portrayed by Haydn Gwynne in season 5 of The Crown.[31]

References
  1. Badshah, Nadeem (30 November 2022). "Who is royal aide Lady Susan Hussey?". The Guardian.
  2. Smith, Sally Bedell (14 February 2012). "Her Majesty's A-team". The Daily Telegraph.
  3. "Lady Susan Hussey, Queen's confidante and Prince William's godmother - profile". BBC News. 30 November 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  4. Coughlan, Sean (27 November 2022). "Camilla scraps ladies-in-waiting in modernising move". BBC News. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  5. "The Queens' Lady-in-Waiting Who Is Supporting Her During Prince Philip's Funeral". Independent.co.uk. 17 April 2021. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022.
  6. Sheridan, Ed (23 August 2020). "Domestic abuse charity lodges formal complaint against Hackney mayor amid premises dispute". Hackney Gazette. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  7. Walawalker, Aaron (11 July 2020). "Hackney domestic violence charity faces battle to stay in premises". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  8. ""Prince William's godmother Lady Susan Hussey resigns from palace duties after asking black visitor "where she came from" on being told Hackney and then after further question London as a British citizen still not accepted as enough, had to endure further questioning asking her where she was "really from" being told Ngozi was from Hackney/London and born as a British citizen this was still not enough after further questioning as to where she was "really from " .."Oh I knew we'd get there in the end you're 'a Caribbean'" WHERE ARE YOU "really from "". Sky News. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  9. Low, Valentine; Ball, Tom (30 November 2022). "Royal aide Lady Susan Hussey resigns after making racist comment at palace". The Times. Archived from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  10. Coughlan, Sean (30 November 2022). "Lady Susan Hussey quits over remarks to charity boss Ngozi Fulani". BBC News. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
  11. Reid, Mandu (1 December 2022). "We didn't ask for Lady Hussey to resign. But, really, the monarchy must do better on race". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2 December 2022. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
  12. "Buckingham Palace race row raises awkward questions". BBC News. 30 November 2022. Archived from the original on 3 December 2022. Retrieved 3 December 2022. A witness described the incident as beginning with "chit chat" between a guest at the reception, Ngozi Fulani, and a member of the Royal Household later identified as Lady Susan Hussey. What turned the conversation into such a car crash was the apparent unwillingness to accept a black woman's response that she was from Britain - with the questioning assuming she must really be from elsewhere. There seemed to be an underlying misconception that she could not "really" be from the UK.
  13. "Lady Susan Hussey quits over remarks to charity boss Ngozi Fulani". BBC News. 1 December 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  14. Furness, Hannah; Ward, Victoria (30 November 2022). "Queen Elizabeth's aide, Lady Susan Hussey, resigns amid racism row". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  15. Low, Valentine (23 February 2023). "Lady Susan Hussey returns to royal duties after race row". The Times. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  16. Kirka, Danica (1 December 2022). "Racism row erupts as William and Kate visit Boston". ABC News. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  17. "William and Kate in Boston after palace race row". BBC News. 1 December 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  18. "We've made progress on racism but job not done - PM". BBC News. 2 December 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  19. "Rishi Sunak says racism must be confronted after Buckingham Palace aide controversy". Reuters. 1 December 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  20. Wyatt, Petronella (1 December 2022). "In defence of Lady Susan Hussey". The Spectator. Archived from the original on 2 December 2022. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  21. O'Neill, Brendan (1 December 2022). "The Palace has treated Lady Hussey cruelly". The Spectator. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  22. Milbank, Sebastian (2 December 2022). "The sacking of Lady Susan Hussey is ritual humiliation masquerading as social justice". The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  23. Davies, Caroline (16 December 2022). "Ngozi Fulani receives personal apology over Buckingham Palace racism incident". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  24. "A statement from Buckingham Palace and Ngozi Fulani, Founder of Sistah Space". The Royal Family. 16 December 2022. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  25. United Kingdom list: "No. 45262". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1970. p. 4.
  26. United Kingdom list: "No. 49583". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 1983. p. 4.
  27. "No. 60534". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 June 2013. p. 3.
  28. "Hussey, Lady Susan Katharine, (born 1 May 1939), Lady-in-Waiting to the Queen, 1960–2022". WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u21317. ISBN 978-0-19-954088-4. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  29. Sampson, Annabel (19 April 2021). "Meet Lady Susan Hussey, the Queen's most loyal lady-in-waiting who was by the monarch's side on Saturday". Tatler. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
  30. "TRH THE PRINCE OF WALES AND THE DUCHESS OF CORNWALL AWARDED WITH THE MEXICAN ORDER OF THE AZTEC EAGLE". Mexican Embassy in the United Kingdom. 21 August 2019. Archived from the original on 11 April 2019.
  31. Knight, Lewis (1 December 2022). "Who is Lady Susan Hussey and who plays her in The Crown?". Radio Times. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
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