She was awarded the CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1958 Queen's New Year Honours List and the DBE (Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1963 Queen's Birthday Honours List for her services to ballet.
She was discovered by Russian impresario Sergei Diaghilev as a child
and went on to tour Europe where she came into contact with people such
as Matisse and Stravinsky.
She retired in 1963 following a leg injury but went on to teach and
became director of ballet for the Metropolitan Opera Ballet in New
York.
She co-founded the English National Ballet in 1950 with Sir Anton Dolin
and was president of the company.
In 1935, she co-founded the Markova-Dolin Ballet, the first of several
companies which led to the foundation of Festival Ballet, now known as
English National Ballet.