What is the history of the Cliveden House?
Cliveden stands on the site of a house built in 1666 designed by architect William Winde as the home of George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham. But before Buckingham’s purchase the land was owned by the Mansfield family and before that to the de Clyveden family. Cliveden has not only been a residence for members of the British Royal family but as a political powerhouse has hosted royalty from King George I to Queen Elizabeth II.
Does the Astor family still have wealth?
Even though the family and its wealth are now mostly gone, you probably know the Astors thanks to Brooke’s generous donations in the Astor name, and from the real estate legacy the family left in New York. Relationship with the Vanderbilts The Vanderbilts, as members of socialite New York through the copious amounts of money that the family had earned rather than inherited, represented a type of wealth that was abhorrent to Astor and her group.The absence of sufficient planning was the final nail in the coffin of the Vanderbilt family’s wealth. The family did not participate in thorough estate planning, which would have ensured that assets were distributed in a systematic and planned manner to future generations.
Why did the Astors sell Cliveden?
The ‘Profumo Affair’ in 1963 shattered the Astor’s lives. The death shortly afterwards of Waldorf and Nancy’s son Bill hastened the family’s decision to leave Cliveden. Waldorf Astor had given Cliveden to the National Trust in 1942 and in 1966 the Trust took over the management of the estate, opening it to the public. National Trust ownership After the death of the 2nd Viscount in 1952, his son William (Bill) Astor, the 3rd Viscount Astor took over the house until his death in 1966. Following the death of Bill Astor, the National Trust took over the management of the estate.