Anne Vane

Anne Vane (17 September 1710 – 27 March 1736), also known as "the Hon. Mrs. Vane," was a maid of honour to Caroline of Ansbach and mistress to Caroline's son Frederick, Prince of Wales.

Life Vane was the first daughter of Gilbert Vane, second Baron Barnard, and sister to the politician Henry Vane who was the first Earl of Darlington. Her mother, Mary (born Randyll), was described as "scandalous" by her father-in-law (i.e. Anne's paternal grandfather), Christopher Vane, 1st Baron Barnard, and Anne inherited her reputation. Vane became a maid of honour to Caroline, Princess of Wales, who became queen consort in 1727 as the wife of George II. Vane's mother, Mary, died on 4 August 1728.

When Caroline's son Frederick came to England in 1728 and was in turn made Prince of Wales in 1729, he made Vane his mistress and publicly acknowledged her to the extent that Vane entertained his guests at her house in Soho Square. In that year, Vane was parodied in a number of works including a book titled The Secret History of the Beautiful Vanella. The poems' theme is her aristocratic lovers and the ambiguous paternity of her children. It is said that "she was the model for Hogarth's Anne Boleyn in the picture of 1729".

Dr. Johnson wrote in the Vanity of Human Wishes: "Yet Vane could tell what ills from beauty spring;" referring to Anne, as distinct from her niece. His point is that "she generally ends her career betrayed, despised and distressed".