American-born countess leaves $41M fortune to interior designers, not husband's son

An American-born widow of an English earl left her deceased husband's son out of her will – opting instead to leave her $41 million fortune to a pair of interior designers, according to a report.

Gloria, Dowager Countess Bathurst, born Gloria Cary, was the second wife of the eighth Earl Bathhurst, an eccentric man who was known as "Barmy Bathurst." When she died in December 2018 at 90 years old, she chose not to award the fortune to her stepson, Lord Allen Bathurst, the Daily Mail reported, citing recently released probate documents.

Instead, the $41.3 million will go to New York luxury designer Geoffrey Bradwell and U.K.-based interior decorator Grant White, the outlet reported. Neither person immediately responded to FOX Business' request for comment.

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"The Countess's will has left the whole estate in deep shock," a source told the Mail. "While it was known that Gloria had her differences with her stepson, no one thought she would cut him out of her legacy entirely."

Lord Brathurst had previously described his stepmother as having "a lack of standards."

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After his father died in 2011, he inherited a tony 15,000-acre estate in Gloucestershire – which includes a village – called "Cirencester Park," where the Countess and the late Earl had lived.

The Lord and his father's second wife had a notoriously sour relationship.

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The pair had been embroiled in a bitter legal battle late into her life over whether or not she would have access to the sprawling home for the "use and enjoyment" of the family's collection of heirlooms, which was worth £13 million, or approximately $16.7 million, The Telegraph reported at the time.

"It was no secret that my stepmother, Gloria, and I did not see eye to eye, despite a number of attempted reconciliations being made, all of which were thrown back in our faces," he told the Mail shortly after her death.

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The Countess had been accused by the Lord of taking advantage of the family's aristocratic status, the outlet reported. She chose to forgo her American citizenship in 2008, allegedly to get out of paying U.S. taxes.

"Having married into the family, she was happy to use the family name," the Lord added to the outlet. "It was just disappointing that she could not follow in the manners, standards and loyalty of the family of the past."

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