The 21st Lady Saltoun (1930-2024)

Robert Golden Collection

Flora Marjory Fraser, 21st Lady Saltoun died on September 3, 2024, at her home, Inverey House in Ballater, Aberdeenshire.  She was 93 years old and the most junior member of the British Royal Family.

Her position in the Precedence list was due to her marriage to Alexander Arthur Alfonso David Maule Ramsay of Mar (1919-2000), the only son of Lady Patricia Ramsay (nee HRH Princess Patricia of Connaught) and Captain. the Hon. Alexander Ramsay, third son of the 13th Earl of Dalhousie.   Lady Patricia was the youngest of three children of HRH Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, third son of Queen Victoria. 

 She was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, on October 18, 1930, the younger child of Alexander Arthur Fraser, 20th Lord Saltoun, and Dorothy Geraldine Welby, daughter of Sir Charles Glynne Earle Welby, 5th Baronet.   Her father succeeded to the Lordship in 1933, and Flora was now styled as the Hon. Flora Fraser.

Her older brother, Alexander Simon Fraser, Master of Saltoun, was the heir apparent until he was killed in action in 1944.  Flora became her father's heiress presumptive and succeeded as the 21st Lady Saltoun in 1979.  The Lord Lyon recognized Flora as  Chief of the Name and Arms of Clan Fraser.  This was done by decree of the Court of the Lord Lyon in May 1984.

She was the only person with a Lordship of Parliament who was an elected hereditary Peer in the House of Lords until her retirement on December 12, 2014.  

A Lordship of Parliament is the 5th grade in the Scottish peerage, the equivalent of a baron in the Peerages of England, Great Britain, Ireland, and the United Kingdom.  

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It was love at first for Alexander Ramsay of Mar when he met Flora at a Perth Hunt Ball. On August 19, 1956, Queen Elizabeth II held a quick Privy Council meeting on board the HMS Britannia to give"her assent in council" to Flora and Alexander's forthcoming marriage.

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The marriage was celebrated on October 6, 1956, at St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire. Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and Queen Ingrid of Denmark, the groom's first cousin, were present at the ceremony.   Flora was given away by her father, Lord Saltoun.  She wore a "gown of white peau-de-soie with a tight-fitting bodice, a high neckline finished with a little Peter Pan collar, and large leg-of-mutton sleeves."

Her "tulle veil was held in place by a circlet of pink and white pearls."  There were no bridesmaids nor did the bride carry a bouquet.  The Princess Royal was expected to attend but was indisposed.

The reception was held at Lord Saltoun's home, Cairnbulg Castle.

The couple had three daughters, Hon Katharine Ingrid Mary Isabel (1957), whose godparents included Queen Ingrid of Denmark and the Princess Royal,  Hon, Alice Elizabeth Margaret (1961), a goddaughter of the late Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester (1961) and Hon. Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Ramsay (1963).   

The wedding of Hon. Katharine Fraser and Capt. Mark Nicolson (1980)
Marlene A Eilers Koenig Collection

In 1973,  the Lord Lyon King of Arms recognized Katharine's use of the Fraser surname.  

One of the first royal events, the new Hon. Mrs. Alexander Ramsay attended was the funeral of the Earl of Athlone on January 19, 1957.    Lord Athlone was the late Queen Mary's brother.  His wife, Princess Alice, was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria.

At the wedding of the Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer,  Lady Saltoun and her husband, and the Duke of Fife, were in the third of four cars in the "car procession of junior members" of the Royal Family leaving St. James's for St Paul's Cathedral.

Lady Saltoun and her husband were often invited to Royal events in Scotland and were always present for the Braemar Highland Games and Garden parties at Holyrood Palace.

In 1997, Lady Saltoun and Lord Lovat, Chief of Clan Fraser of Lovat, co-hosted a gathering of Clan Fraser members, the first gathering in 46 years. The four-day event was held at Castle Fraser near Invurerie on the River Don. For the gathering, Lady Saltoun commissioned three new tartans to add to the 21 Fraser tartans already available.  More than 12,000 members of the Clan from around the world attended the gathering.

In July 2000, Lady Saltoun attended the Queen Mother's 100th birthday Thanksgiving Service at St. Paul's, sitting between Mrs. James Ogilvy and the Earl of Snowdon.    

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 She also was a guest at the Prince and Princess of Wales's wedding in 2011.   

Alexander Ramsay's close relationships with his Danish and Swedish cousins meant the family spent time in Scandinavia.  In 1967, Flora and Alexander traveled to Copenhagen for the wedding of Princess Margrethe of Denmark, the eldest of three daughters of King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid.   The following year, they were back in Copenhagen for the wedding of Queen Ingrid's middle daughter, Princess Benedikte.

The Braemar Highland, Games, held annually at the Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Memorial Park, was perhaps Lady Saltoun's favorite event.  Her husband served as a Vice Patron for many years.

In a 1997 interview with Hello magazine, Lady Saltoun, posing for photos at her home, Cairnbulg Castle, near Fraserburgh.  She grew up in "this fabulous setting," which she inherited from her father after his death.  "Our family sold the castle in 1613, but he bought it back in 1934."

Lady Saltoun talked about her role as Chief of Clan Fraser.  "Being a woman clan leader is out of the ordinary.  But I don't think it displeases the members of my clan.  It's very important to me that this castle remains in the family.  It's a focal point, a place where all Frasers know they can find me.  They come... not in great numbers, but I welcome them warmly, except in the kitchen with my hands full of flour."

The late Lady Saltoun enjoyed cooking.  A Cordon Bleu certificate hung on the wall in the kitchen. 

"My mother grew up surrounded by servants and couldn't do a thing.  She insisted I learn to cook and sew, so I might have some independence." 

When she served in the House of Lords,  Lady Saltoun would fly from Aberdeen on Monday and return home on Friday morning.  "I could never live in London!," she said.  She believed it was important for Scottish peers "to keep an eye on anything concerning Scotland. It's of paramount importance for me to continue in that and participate as much as I can."

Lady Saltoun lived for many years in Inverery House in Braemar.  The house was built in 1984 after Alexander sold the rights to the Dalvorar Beat on the River Dee.  He died at Inverey on December 19, 2000.

Lady Saltoun is survived by her three daughters, Katharine, who becomes the 22nd Lady Saltoun of Abernethy, Hon, Alice Ramsey, and the Hon Elizabeth Ramsay, seven grandchildren,  Louise Morshead, Juliet Rood, Alexander Fraser, Master of Saltoun,  Alexander, Victoria, George, and Oliver Ramsey, and five great-grandchildren, Rory and Frederick Morshead,  Albert (Albie), Edmund (Edo) and Xanthe Rood.