Maria Anne Smythe was born in Hampshire, the next county to West Sussex, on 26th July 1756. She first married at the age of 18. She was unlucky in her first two marriages, because her first husband, Edmund Weld died after only one year of marriage; her second husband, Thomas Fitzherbert died of a chill after only three years of marriage.
However, Maria became "Mrs Maria Fitzherbert", a young widow with a lot of money and went to live at Richmond Hill near London.
By the time of her third marriage in December 1785, she was aged 29. The man who became her third husband, George, the young Prince of Wales was 23. The marriage was secret and unofficial, because it was against the law under the Royal Marriage Act of 1772, which forbade "unapproved marriages" involving members of the Royal Family. As future head of the Church of England, it was considered inappropriate for the Prince of Wales to marry a Catholic, who had no intention of renouncing her religion.
The Royal Marriage Act came into force as a result of the Duke of Cumberland's marriage to an Irish widow in 1771. The Duke of Cumberland was the youngest brother of King George III and the Prince of Wales's favourite uncle, so when the young prince fell in love with the older Mrs Fitzherbert, after meeting her at the opera, he continued to draw her attention in spite of her Catholic faith. She tried to get out of his way by travelling to France, but on her return the Prince of Wales was waiting for her.
On 15th December 1785, at Mrs Fitzherbert's home in Park Street, London, the reverent Robert Burke performed the wedding ceremony in return for a £500 bribe from the Prince. Mrs Fitzherbert only agreed to a relationship with the prince as his married wife. Although the Pope declared that Maria and George were married in the eyes of God, the British Constitution refused to recognise the marriage. George was later forced to distance himself from Mrs Fitzherbert and settle for an official marriage on 8th August 1795 to a woman he did not love - his cousin, Princess Caroline of Brunswick.
Mrs Fitzherbert was to spend a few more happy years with Maria. After separating from Caroline and leaving all his possessions to Maria Fitzherbert in his will in 1796, he resumed his relationship with Maria in 1804, but they never lived in the same building. He had Steine House built for Maria in Old Steine, conveniently near the Royal Pavilion. Maria Fitzherbert's house is now the YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association) and a hostel for homeless people.
However, when George became Prince Regent (taking over from his sick father George III as ruler of Britain), he found it necessary to distance himself from Maria again. The letters written between the two lovers are still in existence and have been displayed at the Royal Pavilion. After 1811, Maria was never to visit The Pavilion again. In spite of being older than the Prince Regent (who was crowned King George IV at the age of nearly 60 in 1821), Maria outlived him by seven years.
Maria Fitzherbert died at Steine House on 27 March 1837. She is buried near the altar of St John the Baptist's Catholic Church in Bristol Road (East Brighton). To get to the church from Old Steine, take St James Street (which runs parallel to Marine Parade to the east) and you will arrive in Bristol Road after walking less than one kilometer. A memorial, designed by John Carew, shows Maria, the devout Catholic, kneeling with three rings on her fingers - the lady who made three legitimate marriages in the eyes of the Catholic church.