Dame Sarah Rose Troughton (née Colman; born 3 May 1953) is the Lord Lieutenant of Wiltshire, appointed with effect from February 2012. She is the first woman to hold the position since it was created in the 16th century. A second cousin of King Charles III, for ten years she was lady-in-waiting to Katharine, Duchess of Kent. In 2022, she became one of the six women appointed Queen's companions to Queen Camilla.

Early life

Troughton was born in Paddington in 1953."Sarah R Colman" in England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007: Registration Quarter Apr-May-June 1953, Registration District Paddington, Mother's Maiden Name Bowes-Lyon, Volume 5d, Page 195 She is the eldest of the five children of Sir Timothy Colman, a past Lord Lieutenant of Norfolk,Charles Mosley, ed., Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th edition, vol. 2 (2003), p. 1639‘COLMAN, Sir Timothy (James Alan)’, in Who's Who 2012 (London: A & C Black, 2012) and Lady Mary Cecilia Bowes-Lyon, a granddaughter of Claude Bowes-Lyon, 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne. Her maternal grandfather Michael Bowes-Lyon, who died two days before her birth, was a brother of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, so that she is a second cousin once removed of the present Earl of Strathmore and a first cousin once removed of Queen Elizabeth II. Her ancestor Jeremiah Colman (1777–1851) made a fortune from Colman's mustard, a business which eventually grew into Reckitt & Colman, of which her father was a director until 1989.

Public life From 1990 to 2000, Troughton was lady-in-waiting to the Duchess of Kent.Debrett's Peerage & Baronetage online edition, p. 1360 (subscription required), accessed 26 May 2012

Living at Wanborough, near Swindon, she became a trustee of the Community Foundation for Wiltshire and Swindon, a role in which she still serves, and is also President of Community First/Youth Action Wiltshire.Morwenna Blake, Queen appoints new Lord Lieutenant from Salisbury Journal, 3 December 2011 online at salisburyjournal.co.uk, accessed 7 May 2012 She became a Deputy Lieutenant of Wiltshire in 2006.London Gazette, issue 57993 of 26 May 2006, p. 7299 In December 2011, with effect from February 2012, she was promoted to the Lord Lieutenancy. Charles Petty-Fitzmaurice, 9th Marquess of Lansdowne, was her Vice-Lord-Lieutenant until 2016, to be succeeded by Lieutenant-General Sir Roderick Cordy-Simpson (2016–2019), William Wyldbore-Smith (2019–2023) and later Sir Andrew Gregory.Lord-Lieutenant of Wiltshire, wiltshire.gov.uk, accessed 12 September 2022 In 2011, she was chairman of the Chelsea Physic Garden, but retired from that role in 2020.

As Lord Lieutenant, Troughton's public duties include overseeing arrangements for visits to Wiltshire by members of the Royal Family and escorting royal visitors; representing the King at events and presenting awards and medals on his behalf; liaising with the Wiltshire units of the Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force; leading the local magistracy as chairman of the Lord Chancellor's Advisory Committee on Justices of the Peace; and advising on nominations for national honours.

In January 2013, Troughton was appointed a Commander of the Order of St John by the Queen, and advanced to Dame of Grace of the order in 2021.

In 2022, she was one of the first six women appointed as "Queen's companions" (replacing the traditional ladies-in-waiting) to Queen Camilla.Sean Coughlan, "Camilla scraps ladies-in-waiting in modernising move", BBC News, 27 November 2022, accessed 27 November 2022 A BBC News article described Troughton as one of Camilla's longstanding personal friends.

Troughton was appointed a Dame Commander of the Royal Victorian Order in the 2025 New Year Honours.

Personal life In 1977 she married Peter Troughton (born 1948), a member of HM Diplomatic Service,The Diplomatic Service List 1976 (London: HMSO, 1976), p. 425: "Troughton, Peter John Charles; Second Secretary FCO since June 1975; born 18.6.48; FCO 1970; Third later Second Secretary Jakarta 1973." and the eldest son of Sir Charles Troughton, chairman of W H Smith."TROUGHTON, Sir Charles (Hugh Willis)", in Who Was Who, online edition by Oxford University Press, 2007, accessed 26 May 2012 They have a son and two daughters.Burkes Peerage, vol. 3 (2003), p. 3784 Her grandson, Nicholas Barclay, son of her daughter Rose, was a page of honour at the coronation of King Charles III. Her husband was later a director of the Lowland Investment Company PLC in the City of London,"Troughton, Peter John Charles" in The Directory of Directors (1997), p. 734 a trustee of the Royal Collection and Pro-Chancellor of the University of Bath. He is now a trustee of the Rothschild Foundation and a member of the Salisbury Diocesan Board of Finance.

Honours +Ribbon bar of Sarah Troughton CountryDateAppointmentRibbonPost-nominal lettersNotesUnited Kingdom6 February 2012Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee MedalInternational15 January 2013Commander of the Order of St JohnCStJ Advanced to DStJ in 2021United Kingdom6 February 2022Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee MedalInternational22 April 2021Dame of Grace of the Order of St JohnDStJUnited Kingdom6 May 2023King Charles III Coronation MedalInternationalService Medal of the Order of St JohnUnited Kingdom1 January 2025Dame Commander of the Royal Victorian OrderDCVO

Notes