Marie Kelly

Renée Octavie Ghislaine Marie-Noële Kelly, Lady Kelly (; 25 December 1901 – 22 February 1995) was a Belgian-born English hostess and traveler. She was posted abroad to Sweden, Egypt, Argentina, Switzerland, Turkey and the Soviet Union as the wife of David Kelly, the Head of Chancery, later Ambassador there. Kelly travelled widely throughout her life and published several books Turkish Delights, Mirror to Russia, Picture Book of Russia and This Delicious Land Portugal. She wrote about her travels in Country Life magazine and the London Evening Standard newspaper.

Early life On 25 December 1901, Marie-Noelle Kelly was born in Belgium into an aristocratic family. She was the eldest of three daughters of Charles de Jourda de Vaux, comte de Vaux, whose ancestors emigrated from France during the French Revolution. Her ancestors on her father's side were Maréchal Charles Noël de Jourda, comte de Vaux, who conquered Corsica for Louis XV and planned an invasion of England. Kelly was brought up as a devout Roman Catholic, and was first educated at home During the First World War, she stayed as a guest of Lloyd Tyrell-Kenyon, 4th Baron Kenyon, at his house in Shropshire. she was stepmother to her husband's two children from his first marriage. she was buried in County Wexford.