Nancy Leishman

Nancy Louise Leishman (October 2, 1894 – February 22, 1983) was an American heiress who married into the European aristocracy.

[1] Her sister, Marthe Leishman, a favorite of King George V and a close friend of Cole Porter[2] and Francis Poulenc,[3] married twice, first to Count Louis de Gontaut-Biron and, after his death, to American heir James Hazen Hyde.

[1] While her father was serving as the American ambassador to Germany, Nancy met and fell in love with Karl (1889-1974), 13th Duke von Croÿ.

[a] Since Nancy was a commoner (and an American) and Karl was a duke who ranked among the highest nobility of titled Europeans, the opposition to their marriage was enormous.

Karl's aunt, Princess Isabella of Croÿ (wife of Archduke Friedrich, Duke of Teschen),[10] was chief among the European nobility who vehemently protested the match,[11] which led Kaiser Wilhelm II to refuse to give his official permission for their marriage.