The Lady Williams of Elvel | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jane Gillian Portal 11 December 1929 British Raj, British Empire |
| Died | 15 July 2023 (aged 93) |
| Spouse(s) | Gavin Bramhall James Welby (1955–1959; divorced) Charles Williams, Baron Williams of Elvel (m. 1975) |
| Children | Justin Welby |
| Parent(s) | Gervas Edward Portal Iris Mary Butler |
| Relatives | Charles Portal, 1st Viscount Portal of Hungerford (uncle) Rab Butler, Baron Butler of Saffron Walden (uncle) Dorothy Middleton (aunt) Sir Montagu Sherard Dawes Butler (grandfather) |
| Occupation | Secretary |
Jane Gillian Williams, Baroness Williams of Elvel (born Jane Gillian Portal; 11 December 1929 – 15 July 2023), formerly Jane Welby, was a British government worker. She served as a personal secretary to Sir Winston Churchill from 1949 to 1955. While working as Churchill's secretary, she accompanied him to the airport in 1952 to greet a young Elizabeth II upon her return to the United Kingdom from the Kenya Colony following the death of George VI. Lady Williams of Elvel wrote down the speech dictated by Churchill for his later address to the nation concerning the death of the king.
Lady Williams of Elvel was married twice. Her first husband was Gavin Bramhall James Welby. During this marriage, she gave birth to Justin Welby, who later became the Archbishop of Canterbury. In 2016, it was revealed that her son was fathered by Sir Anthony Montague Browne, with whom she worked in Churchill's administration at 10 Downing Street and with whom she had affair in 1955. She divorced Welby in 1959. She married a second time, in 1975, to Charles Cuthbert Powell Williams, who was created a life peer in 1985.