Sometimes the quickest route to wealth, power or a prestigious title wasn’t through hard work; it was through marriage.
Anna Nicole Smith
Anna Nicole Smith was a dancer in Houston when she met billionaire oilman J. Howard Marshall II, who was over 60 years her senior. Smith had achieved minor success as a model before marrying Marshall in 1994, but becoming an 89-year-old billionaire’s wife altered her life in a different way.
Marshall lavished her with gifts throughout their relationship. Their marriage instantly spawned rumors that she only wanted his money. He died 14 months later. An epic legal fight over his estate ensued, prolonging the battle well after they each died.
Alexis Mdivani
Alexis Mdivani had the fancy title of prince of Georgia, but his family had been exiled from Georgia and never attained the wealth that comes with royalty. That all changed when he married Woolworth heiress Barbara Hutton in 1933.
Known as the richest woman in America, Hutton brought her husband into contact with nearly unthinkable wealth. He enjoyed plush gifts and the lifestyle afforded by his young wife, but their marriage only lasted until 1935.
Eva Duarte
Eva Duarte was an aspiring actress and radio actor when she became involved with Argentine politician Juan Perón in 1944. She quickly gained entrance into his world, and they married in 1945. Two years later, Perón was elected President of Argentina, making Eva Perón the first lady of Argentina.
Eva wielded that role forcefully. She amassed a political constituency of her own. She campaigned for women’s suffrage and became identified with the laboring class and the poor.
Pamela Digby
At the age of 19, Pamela Digby had a marriage that would open doors for her throughout her life. She wed Randolph Churchill, Winston Churchill’s only son. While Pamela was from an aristocratic family, she was now suddenly thrown into the center of Britain’s most influential political dynasty on the eve of World War II as Winston Churchill’s daughter- in-law.
The marriage was not a happy one, and they later divorced. However, she capitalized on the connections she made through this marriage and started spending time in powerful social circles around the world. She later married millionaire diplomat Averell Harriman and became a political force all on her own.
Madame de Maintenon
Few people enjoyed quite as dramatic an ascension as Madame de Maintenon. Françoise d’Aubigné was born in 1635 and suffered an unstable childhood. The death of her first husband, poet Paul Scarron, left her relatively poor. She was appointed governess to the children of King Louis XIV and his mistress Madame de Montespan.
Françoise slowly gained the king’s confidence and heart, wealth, and status and became Marquise de Maintenon. Following the death of Queen Maria Theresa, Louis married Maintenon. The marriage was never announced, and she never took the title of queen, but the former penniless widow now sat beside one of Europe’s most powerful kings and became a powerful influence in Versailles.
Wallis Simpson
Wallis Simpson was already married to her second husband when she became involved with Edward, Prince of Wales. When he ascended to the throne in 1936, she was suddenly on the verge of being a king’s wife.
Instead, her relationship with Edward led to the abdication crisis. He abdicated, received the title Duke of Windsor, and married Wallis in 1937. Wallis became Duchess of Windsor and lived out her years surrounded by money, nobility, and international high society.
Gloria Morgan
Beautiful, social-climbing and well-born, Gloria Morgan married into America’s wealthiest dynasty when she wed Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt in 1923. He was 42; Gloria was 18. When Reginald inherited his Vanderbilt fortune, Gloria gained not only his famous name, but the incredibly high status that went along with it as well.
Sadly, their marriage didn’t last long, and Reginald died in 1925, leaving their daughter, Gloria Vanderbilt, with a trust fund worth millions.
Gloria Morgan’s marriage continued to impact her life many years later as she and her daughter became embroiled in one of America’s biggest custody scandals with her mother-in-law, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney.
Serge Obolensky
Revolution had destroyed the world Serge Obolensky was born into. The Russian prince escaped his homeland and came to the West with a distinguished name, but without the safety his family had known. Then he married Ava Alice Muriel Astor, the daughter of Titanic victim John Jacob Astor IV.
The marriage didn’t last long, but it did allow Obolensky to firmly entrench himself in American high society. He went on to forge a remarkable independent career in hotels and business, but his marriage to an Astor offered an unparalleled connection between old-world aristocracy and America’s new rich.
Patrizia Reggiani
Patrizia Reggiani enjoyed a comfortable upbringing, but her marriage to Maurizio Gucci in 1972 thrust her into a world of unimaginable riches. Maurizio was heir to the Gucci fashion empire.
Patrizia embraced the prestige of power with gusto, gaining lavish assets, high-profile friends, expensive residences, and lavish gatherings. She also became deeply attached to the Gucci name and the prestige it provided.
When Maurizio abandoned her in 1985 (and subsequently divorced her), Patrizia lost more than her husband; she lost her standing in the family empire. In 1998, she was convicted of hiring the man who killed Maurizio in 1995.
Charles Spencer-Churchill
American heiress Consuelo Vanderbilt’s socially ambitious mother targeted Charles Spencer-Churchill, 9th Duke of Marlborough, because he had what she wanted: one of Britain’s highest titles. The duke needed what Consuelo had: money. The upkeep of Blenheim Palace was outrageously expensive, and the Marlborough family needed every penny they could find.
They married in 1895, Consuelo providing her Vanderbilt money and a hefty financial settlement. It was one of the most well-known examples of the union between wealthy American women and European aristocrats, known as the “dollar princess” phenomenon.
James H. R. Cromwell
James H. R. Cromwell wasn’t poor when he married Doris Duke, but he joined vast fortunes when they wed. Duke was the daughter and only child of tobacco heir James Buchanan Duke. Cromwell married Duke in 1935, making him the husband of one of the wealthiest girls in the world.
The marriage put Cromwell in the public eye like never before, and coincided with his developing interest in politics. He went on to serve as U. S. minister to Canada and ran for election to the U. S. Senate, although he was unsuccessful. The marriage failed, and the couple became estranged and divorced after years of legal battles.
Prince Christopher of Greece and Denmark
When Prince Christopher of Greece and Denmark wed wealthy American widow Nancy Leeds in 1920, old-world royalty automatically conferring riches was becoming outdated. Nancy, however, happened to own millions left to her by her first husband, tin-plate millionaire William B. Leeds.
Both parties benefited greatly from the union. Christopher had landed himself a rich wife after his own royal family fell from political grace and suffered monetary losses. Nancy had gained (what money can’t buy) royal status. Upon her conversion to Greek Orthodox Christianity, she became Princess Anastasia of Greece and Denmark.
George Washington
George Washington was an ambitious young Virginia planter and army officer who married wealthy widow Martha Dandridge Custis in 1759. Martha’s first husband had died, leaving one of Virginia’s sizable fortunes. As his widow, she managed extensive property for herself and her children. Washington, by marriage, gained control of much of the Custis property and solidified his status among the Virginian planter aristocracy.
Prince Miguel of Braganza
Prince Miguel of Braganza, Duke of Viseu, was of Portugal’s formerly deposed Miguelist line. Although this entitled him to quite the noble name, it didn’t afford him the type of royal wealth people often expect. In 1909, Miguel married Anita Stewart, daughter of American multimillionaire William Rhinelander Stewart and Annie Armstrong Stewart.
Before marrying Anita, her mother supposedly gave the royal groom a hefty monetary settlement. Anita became Princess Miguel of Braganza, while Miguel became financially secure by marrying an American heiress.
Sources: Please see here for a complete listing of all sources that were consulted in the preparation of this article.
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For better or worse: 11 destructive historical marriages that ended in flames
There are many ways that a marriage can go wrong, but somehow, a few famous couples managed to turn theirs into stories involving murder and so much worse.
For better or worse: 11 destructive historical marriages that ended in flames
