Before getting married, David was a ladies' man
David Cholmondeley was called "the greatest catch in England" — maybe not by your average Londoner, but certainly by his fellow blue bloods (via Daily Mail). Upon his 30th birthday, the marquess inherited a jaw-dropping fortune that some have estimated as being as high as £112 million. To put that sum in perspective, that's more than his alleged romantic rival, Prince William, who is estimated to have a net worth of $100 million (roughly £89 million), according to Celebrity Net Worth.
Among David's inherited assets are 10,000 acres of land and a small collection of castles, including the sprawling Norfolk estate, Houghton Hall, and Cholmondeley Castle in Cheshire. It's no wonder, then, that this "great catch" of the British aristocracy caught the eye of more than one glamorous, well-connected woman. According to the Daily Mail, David's high-profile girlfriends included French film star Isabelle Adjani and Irish heiress Sabrina Guinness – whom King Charles III also dated.
At only 19, Rose Hanbury made waves among her royal circle when she began dating the much-older David Cholmondeley. At the time, the marquess was 42 years old — only eight years younger than Rose's father. As British nobles are wont to do, the two partied the night away in Italy when they first met.
Legend has it, their host and the owner of Villa Cetinale was none other than the disgraced Lord Lambton, a Conservative MP who had been run out of parliament years prior when photos surfaced of him smoking marijuana in bed with two sex workers (via Daily Mail). So, let's just say this Italian meet-cute probably wasn't exactly your grandmother's garden soirée.
Despite their large age gap, Rose captured playboy David's heart and soon convinced him to give up his life of womanizing. After six years of dating, the former ladies' man abandoned his life of bachelorhood for good and married his marchioness, Tatler reported.
Marriage and the baby carriage weren't too far off for this couple. Rose Hanbury and David Cholmondeley announced their engagement in June 2009 and, to the shock of high society, Rose's mother, Emma, announced that her daughter was pregnant with twins the very next day, according to The Telegraph. The two quietly wed the following day at Chelsea Town Hall in London with little fanfare.
While Rose and David exchanged vows at the altar, news of their whirlwind few days was quickly making its way around the palatial estates and countryside homes of Britain. People were shocked by the couple's hasty marriage and pregnancy announcement. In less than a week, Rose Hanbury had gone from the much-younger girlfriend of Britain's "greatest catch" to the pregnant wife of the Marquess of Cholmondeley.
While her family's opinion of David and their marriage is unknown, it may have very well been regarded as a scandal. After all, Rose's royal connections date back all the way to 1947, when, according to Hello! Magazine, Rose's grandmother was a bridesmaid for Queen Elizabeth II at her wedding to Prince Philip.
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https://www.pressreader.com/uk/the-scottish-mail-on-sunday/20190609/282308206604856