Rose Hanbury might be a main character in a dominant conspiracy surrounding British royals — and this time it’s not rooted in infidelity rumors.
Hanbury, 40, has been making headlines for her connection to Prince William as questions about Princess Kate Middleton’s whereabouts continue to rise, but now, some of her home furnishings seem to be in question.
Internet sleuths have unearthed various photo shoots of Hanbury and her husband, David Cholmondeley, 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley, posing in various rooms of their Norfolk, England home, Houghton Hall. The images — mainly from a May 2013 Vanity Fair profile and May 2023 Financial Times piece show the couple posing alongside what appear to be various oriental décor pieces that were allegedly looted from China during the Qing dynasty.
“So, due to the #KateGate / #WhereIsKate missing Kate Middleton / Princess of Wales #Katespiracy drama, lots of people around the world have increased interest in Rose Hanbury and her mysterious connection to Prince William,” one X user wrote earlier this week, sharing the photos of Hanbury and her husband. “Unfortunately, people in China looked a little too closely at this photoshoot of the Marquis and Marchioness of Cholmondeley in their gorgeous stately home, and noticed that it’s full of authentic Chinese furniture and artefacts [sic] that were stolen from China during the fall of the Qing dynasty, and they are pissed.”
The message continued: “Apparently, the Marquis of Cholmondeley inherited these controversial pieces from his Sassoon side of the family, and the Sassoons got them by pillaging Qing China while they were there trading opium,” the same X thread read. “Now, Chinese netizens noticed them in the background of their photoshoot at Houghton Hall.”
The Sassoon family reportedly ran a trading empire in the 19th century, dealing commodities across various nations, including China. It’s unclear how the Sassons family — and now Marquis and Marchioness of Cholmondeley — obtained the items in question. However, Sybil Sassoon is Cholmondeley’s paternal grandmother, so it seems there might be a connection.
Former BuzzFeed royal reporter Ellie Hall even weighed in on the new controversy, referring to it as a “favorite unanticipated side-plots” of the ongoing royal family drama.
Hanbury’s connection to the royal family actually dates back years. In fact, she attended Kate and William’s 2011 wedding. Eight years later, affair rumors between Hanbury and William started swirling. (In 2019, multiple outlets reported that Kate and Hanbury had a falling out over the alleged infidelity.)
Royal watchers brought up the affair rumors more recently when Kate’s whereabouts came into question after she underwent an abdominal surgery in January. Social media users went rogue with theories about the Princess of Wales’ well-being, with some claiming that William and Hanbury’s affair being the reason she hasn’t stepped out of the public eye.
“The rumors are completely false,” Hanbury’s lawyers reportedly told Business Insider earlier this week, denying the affair.
Editor-in-Chief of True Royalty TV Nick Bullen exclusively told Us Weekly on Tuesday, March 19, that Hanbury is “very upset” by the infidelity rumors being brought up once again.
“I know people who know the Marchioness of Cholmondeley very, very well, and she absolutely was not having an affair with the Prince of Wales,” Bullen added.
