Mary Campbell of Mamore
Mary Campbell of Mamore born Mary Bellenden was a Scottish aristocrat who was a maid of honour to Caroline of Ansbach. She was rumoured to have had an affair with her husband the Prince of Wales, but she married his groom of the bedchamber John Campbell of Momore.
Life
She was one of the seven children of Lady Mary Ramsay, Countess Dowager of Dalhousie and her second husband John Drummond Bellenden, 2nd Lord Bellenden of Broughton. She was their third daughter and she was baptised in Edinburgh on 4 May 1685. She had an advantageous friendship with Mary Ker who was the wife of her cousin and Mary Ker proposed to Caroline of Ansbach that Mary should become her maid of honour.Court life had become more entertaining with the new Prince and Princess of Wales and Mary had significant admirers. Lord Hervey and Horace Walpole were on record for admiring her charms. The poets Alexander Pope and John Gay wrote poems that referenced her while the Prince of Wales was among the men at court who had her in their plans. For four years she avoided gossip but Lord Hervey believed that she and the Prince were involved.
Marriage and children
In 1720, she married John Campbell of Momore in secret. She had told the Prince that she would ask his blessing on any marriage but she broke this promise and married. She lost her position but John Campbell retained his job as a Groom of the Bedchamber. They moved to Combe Bank.They had six children, including:
- Lady Caroline Campbell
- Field Marshal John Campbell, 5th Duke of Argyll
- Lord Frederick Campbell
- Lord William Campbell