Monday, March 4, 2019

Sir Miles Huntington-Whiteley (1929-2019)

 Sir Miles and Victoria Huntington-Whiteley (1997)  (Marlene A Eilers Koenig Collection)




Sir (John) Miles Huntington-Whiteley 4th Baronet, Lt Cdr RNR, VRD and Two Clasps, died suddenly 19th February, aged 89. Beloved husband of Victoria and father of Louise, Beatrice and Leopold, and grandfather to four boys. Funeral Service will be held at 12 noon on Thursday 21st March 2019 at Chelsea Old Church, Old Church Street, London SW3 5DQ. No black to be worn. No flowers but donations, if desired, to the RNLI c/o Chelsea Funeral Directors, 260b Fulham Road, London SW10 9EL.


John Miles Huntington-Whiteley was born on July 18, 1929 at Fareham, Hampshire, the third son of Sir Herbert Maurice Huntington-Whitelely, 2nd Baronet,  and Lady Pamela Margaret Baldwin daughter, Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley.

Stanley Baldwin served as prime minister on three occasions during the 1920s and 1930s.  He was prime minister during the abdication of Edward VIII.


Sir Miles was married to Countess Viktoria Adelheid zu Castell-Rüdenhausen, daughter of Princess Caroline Mathilde (Calma) of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Count Friedrich-Wolfgang zu Castell-Rüdenhausen, who was killed in action in 1940.

He succeeded to the baronetcy in 2014 following the death of his older brother, Sir Hugo, who was the second of the three sons.  The eldest son, Herbert, was killed during the second world war in 1944.

Countess Viktoria Adelheid was living at Kensington Palace with her great-aunt, Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone, whose brother, the late Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha,  Viktoria's grandfather,  when she met Miles.



The couple married at Queen's Chapel, St. James's Palace on June 20, 1960 in the presence of Princess Alexandra of Kent, Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone, the Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the Duchess of Beaufort and Lady Helena Gibbs.   The reception was held at Kensington Palace.

Sir Miles is survived by his wife, Victoria, their two two daughters, Louise Sewell and Beatrice Grant and son, Leopold, who succeeds to the baronetcy, and four grandsons, Henry & Benjamin Sewell and Frederik and Ludovic Grant.



I corresponded with Sir Miles for many years - and we exchanged Christmas cards since the 1990s.  The last card was in December 2018.

9 comments:

Maora JFB said...

Any link to Jason Statham's wife, British actress and model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley ?

Unknown said...

Hi Marlene. Is that the same Victoria who appeared in a documentary on Duke Carl Eduard of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha? "Hitler's Favorite Royal" I believe was the name of it

Marlene Eilers Koenig said...

Maora. Yes. In fact, Rosie's father is next in line to the baronetcy. Her grandfather was Miles' first cousin. Philip. Yes she was in the documentary

KM said...

I've always wondered about Victoria's relationship with her immediate family, especially her mother and her sister Calma. After reading your book Victoria and all her siblings seemed to end up on complete different ends of the spectrum. Is there anything you can tell?

Marlene Eilers Koenig said...

She and Calma remained in touch, but not their families. I messaged Calma after I saw the announcement -and Calma already knew as she talks to her sisters. Victoria's kids are in contact with European cousins, but not American ones.

KM said...

Thank You, for answering back.

John said...

Was his wife known as Countess Viktoria Adelheid zu Castell-Rüdenhausen, Lady Huntington-Whiteley? or, did she not use the Baronet wife style?

Marlene Eilers Koenig said...

She was Mrs. Miles Huntington-Whiteley, then Lady Huntington-Whiteley. Her legal surname before marriage was Grafin zu Castell-Rüdenhausen

Beryl Hughes said...

I worked in a stockbrokers office with Miles when he married Victoria.I was about l8 or l9 and he early thirties. He was a really nice kind man and once asked me if I knew of anyone who would be a housekeeper for them and my mother got the job. She met Princess Alice who visited the house. They were very kind to my mother and I and I still have a pair of painted wall candle lights which had come from Germany given by Princess Alice. Later I married but we kept in touch and I brought my children to their house . The last time I spoke to Victoria was when she telephoned me to say how sorry she was to hear of the death of my youngest son in a horrific accident. They were not a bit snobbish and until recently had no idea how high up the chain they were! Beryl Hughes nee Atkinson.