The ‘new Princess Kate’ set to marry Prince William and Harry’s pal worth £9.9bn
The future Duchess of Westminster remains relatively low-key but she is set to marry one of the richest men in the country next month.
The Duke of Westminster and Olivia Henson’s engagement photo
The future Duchess of Westminster, Olivia Henson, has drawn comparisons with a young Kate, Princess of Wales for her long brown hair, slim frame, and stylish attire.
Her wedding next month at Chester Cathedral will see her marry Hugh Grosvenor, who was once the 11th richest person in the UK according to The Times’ Rich List 2023.
Hugh Grosvenor was long considered to be Britain’s most eligible bachelor and inherited his title and the Grosvenor Estate in 2016 after his father died. His estates are in the wealthy London neighbourhoods of Belgravia and Mayfair, and the ancestral home in Cheshire, Eaton Hall.
The pair will be tying the knot on June 7 in Chester where they plan to live as a married couple. Grosvenor’s status as King Charles’ godson and godfather to a young Prince George means that it’ll be a royal affair, with multiple senior members of the family expected to attend.
At just 33 years old, he is the richest person under 35 in the UK, worth £9.878billion, according to The Times.
Prince William and a young Hugh Grosvenor in 2004
Hugh’s father, Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, the 6th Duke and a close friend of the Queen and then-Prince Charles, was 64 when he died of a heart attack on August 9, 2016. At the time, he was the 114th wealthiest person in the world, with a fortune of around £9billion, according to Forbes. He was laid to rest in the Grosvenor family plot at the Old Churchyard of St. Mary’s Church in Eccleston.
Much of the family’s fortune comes from a 17th-century dowry given to Sir Thomas Grosvenor, which included 500 acres of land just outside of London.
Bride to be, Olivia Henson, 31, studied at Marlborough College, just like the Princess of Wales, and is of aristocracy having descended from the Hoare banking family, the Marquesses of Bristol and the Dukes of Rutland as reported in the Telegraph.
Ms Henson met Grosvenor, who is also known as “Hughie”, in October 2021 through mutual friends.
The June 7 wedding will be held in Chester cathedral
When Ms Henson and Hugh released their official engagement photo in April last year which was taken in the grounds of his family home of Eaton Hall in Cheshire – eyebrows were raised at how casual it the couple appeared.
According to the Telegraph, one critic said that Henson hadn’t brushed her hair and appeared to be wearing pyjamas. However, a royal expert, Victoria Murphy, stated it showed the couple’s low-maintenance, relaxed approach, instead.
Their wedding next month will be held at Chester Cathedral, with a reception at Eaton Hall. No other details have been revealed as of yet, but it appears it will be a low-key and sustainable event.
It is reported the wedding, will not be attended by the California-based Duke and Duchess of Sussex, despite Hugh being a personal friend of Harry’s. Given that fact, and the ongoing tensions between the Sussexes and the British Royals, one source told Page Six at the start of last month claimed Harry called Hugh to tell him it would be “too awkward” for them to be there.
