Thomas van Straubenzee

Thomas Alexander van Straubenzee (born 1982)[1] is an English businessman, property consultant, and real estate agent. Van Straubenzee is known for his connection to the British royal family and as the godfather of Princess Charlotte of Wales.

Thomas van Straubenzee
Born
Thomas Alexander van Straubenzee

1982 (age 40–41)
Alma mater
OccupationReal estate businessman
Spouses
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 2013; div. 2016)​
  • Lucy Lanigan-O'Keeffe
    ​
    ​
    (m. 2020)​
Children2
RelativesCharlie van Straubenzee (brother)
Henry van Straubenzee
(paternal grandfather)
Charles van Straubenzee (paternal great great great great Uncle)
Casimir Cartwright van Straubenzee (cousin)
William van Straubenzee (cousin)

Early life and education

Van Straubenzee is the son of Captain Alexander van Straubenzee, formerly of the Royal Green Jackets and Claire Fenwick, daughter of Anthony Fenwick, of Eaton Grange, Grantham, Lincolnshire. He is a grandson of Lieutenant-Colonel Henry van Straubenzee. The van Straubenzee family are members of the landed gentry of Spennithorne, North Yorkshire; originally from the Netherlands, their ancestor Captain Philip William Casimir van Straubenzee was naturalised as British subject in 1759. They have a strong military tradition.[2] He attended Ludgrove School, where he was a schoolmate and close friend of the Prince of Wales, and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex.[3] He later attended Harrow School.[4] He is the older brother of Charlie van Straubenzee. In 2002 another younger brother, Henry, was killed in a car accident. The funeral was attended by members of the British royal family.[5][6] In June 2005, Thomas accompanied Prince William on his royal tour to New Zealand.[7]

Career

Van Straubenzee worked as a chartered surveyor with Strutt & Parker before co-founding VanHan with Rory Penn in 2012, a high-end residential and commercial real estate firm. His company was later acquired by Knight Frank.[8] In March 2018 he became the head of Knight Frank's Global Wealth Advisory team.[9]

Charity

Van Straubenzee is a patron of the Henry van Straubenzee Memorial Fund, a charity founded in honour of his late younger brother Henry.[10]

Van Straubenzee sits on the Philanthropy Board for the Royal Albert Hall, London.[11]

Personal life

Van Straubenzee is one of the five godparents of Princess Charlotte of Wales, the second child and only daughter of the Prince and Princess of Wales.[12][13][14]

Van Straubenzee married Lady Melissa Percy, daughter of the 12th Duke of Northumberland, at St Michael's Church, Alnwick on 22 June 2013.[15][16][17] They divorced in March 2016 on the grounds of van Straubenzee's "unreasonable behaviour".[18]

On 24 July 2020, van Straubenzee married the assistant head teacher at Princess Charlotte and Prince George's school Lucy Lanigan-O'Keeffe,[19] daughter of barrister Stephen Lanigan-O'Keeffe and sister of Irish Olympic pentathlete Arthur Lanigan-O'Keeffe.[20][21][22] The Lanigan-O'Keeffe family were landed gentry in County Tipperary.[23][24] They have a daughter, Mary van Straubenzee, born October 2020.[25]

They also have a son, Albert Fenwick van Straubenzee, born 2022, after Thomas's great-uncle, Major Ian Fenwick, who was an SAS hero in World War II.[26]

In 2012 Thomas was mugged on Albert Bridge Road as he was talking on the phone to Prince Harry. Harry came to his rescue and they reported the crime at the nearby police station.[27]

References
  1. "Thomas Alexander VAN STRAUBENZEE – Personal Appointments (free information from Companies House)". Companies House, Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
  2. Burke's Landed Gentry, 18th edition, vol. I, ed. Peter Townend, 1965, p. 687
  3. Sykes, Tom (16 May 2018). "Prince Harry's Wild, Partying Pals—And How They Were Tamed". Daily Beast. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  4. Freeman, Simon (22 August 2012). "Thomas van Straubenzee lucky to survive mugging says father of Prince Harry's friend". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  5. Robinson, Stephen (16 June 2009). "Remembering Henry". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  6. Midgley, Emma (22 January 2009). "Out of Africa". BBC. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  7. Geenty, Mark (2 July 2005). "'Excited' Prince William predicts a Lions' win". ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
  8. Hashish, Amira (5 December 2017). "Everybody needs good neighbours:Prince William's best friend selling family house just 500m from Meghan Markle and Harry's Kensington home". Homes & Property. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  9. "Knight Frank appoints Tom van Straubenzee to head new Global Wealth team". Knight Frank. 1 May 2018. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  10. "Henry van Straubenzee". henryvanstraubenzeemf.org.uk. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
  11. "Our Supporters". www.royalalberthall.com. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  12. Petit, Stephanie (4 August 2018). "Wedding Before the Wedding! Princess Eugenie and Fiancé Jack Brooksbank Attend Pal's Nuptials". People. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  13. "MEGHAN MARKLE'S BIRTHDAY IS SIGNIFICANT TO THE QUEEN FOR A BITTERSWEET REASON". Harper's Bazaar. 14 August 2018. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  14. Friedman, Megan (4 August 2018). "Who Is Charlie van Straubenzee? Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Are Set to Attend His Wedding". Town & Country. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  15. "Mr T.A. van Straubenzee and Lady Melissa Percy – Marriages Announcements – Telegraph Announcements". announcements.telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
  16. Wallace, Francesca (27 April 2018). "Aristocrats, billionaires and heirs: meet Prince Harry's closest friends". Vogue. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  17. "The wedding of Lady Melissa Percy and Thomas van Straubenzee". Tatler. 24 June 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  18. "Princess Charlotte's godparent and daughter of the Duke of Northumberland divorce after three years of marriage". The Telegraph. 3 March 2016. Archived from the original on 7 October 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  19. Harvey-Jenner, Catriona (10 August 2020). "Princess Charlotte's teacher is having a baby with her godfather". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  20. Cope, Rebecca (10 August 2020). "Princess Charlotte's godfather Thomas van Straubenzee has married her teacher at Thomas's Battersea". Tatler. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  21. "Athletics: Already aiming for gold in Rio". independent. 11 November 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  22. "Royally connected: meet the Irish people mixing in the most exclusive social circles in the world". independent. 30 June 2019. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  23. "Estate Record: Lanigan/Lanigan-O'Keeffe". www.landedestates.ie. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  24. Burke's Family Index, ed. Hugh Montgomery-Massingberd, Burke's Peerage Ltd, 1976, p. 117
  25. Cope, Rebecca (19 October 2020). "Princess Charlotte's godfather Thomas van Straubenzee and his wife Lucy have had a baby". Tatler. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  26. "Princess Charlotte's godfather Thomas van Straubenzee welcomes a son with wife, Lucy". Tatler. 13 December 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  27. Freeman, Simon (22 August 2012). "Thomas van Straubenzee lucky to survive mugging says father of Prince". Evening Standard. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
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