Born in 1654 to the 2nd Duke and Duchess of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Elizabeth Cavendish was the eldest of six kids. Granddaughter to each Civil Struggle common William Cavendish and distinguished MP William Pierrepont, Elizabeth, or ‘little Betty’, grew up in a privileged world, born to some of the influential and rich households of the time. Throughout her lifetime she was made a duchess twice over, performed hostess to monarchy, and amassed an important fortune in each wealth and property. But by the tip of her life she had been declared a lunatic below legislation, identified to her contemporaries and historians alike as ‘the mad duchess’.