Category Archives: The Tudors (1485-1603)

Family of Queen Katherine: THE FUNERAL of William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke

Posted on by
4
Old St. Paul's before the fire of 1666. Old St. Paul’s before 1561. (Benham)

18 APRIL 1570: THE FUNERAL of Sir William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke took place at Old St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. Pembroke had been the husband of Lady Anne (Parr), sister of the late Queen Katherine and the Marquess of Northampton.

Lord Pembroke died on 17 March 1570 at Hampton Court Palace. William was eldest son of Sir Richard Herbert of Ewyas, Herefordshire, by his wife Margaret, daughter of Sir Matthew Cradock of Swansea. Pembroke’s father, Sir Richard, was an illegitimate son of the original Herbert first creation of the Earldom, William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke (d. 1469), by a mistress, Maud, daughter of Adam ap Howell Graunt. He married firstly to Anne Parr in 1538 and after her death, Lady Anne Talbot, daughter of the Earl of Shrewsbury. Parr gave Pembroke an heir (the 2nd Earl), an heir to spare (ancestor to the Earls of Powis), and a daughter (no issue). Talbot had no issue by Pembroke.

In his will, Pembroke listed two possible burial places; Old Saint Paul’s or Canterbury Cathedral. If he died near London, his wishes were to be buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral next to his first wife, Lady Anne (Parr). Pembroke obviously loved his wife for when he wrote his will, despite being married again, he wanted nothing more than to be buried “near the place where Anne my late wife doth lie buried” in St. Paul’s.

On Tuesday, 18 April 1570, Pembroke was buried with great state and ceremony in Old St. Paul’s Cathedral. His funeral was attended by all the principle members of the Government, as well as all the numerous officers of his household. A full list is provided in “Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society,” 1879. The list states the various positions and who attended to them.

“An ordre of Proceedinge at the funerall of the late right Honorable William Erle of Penbrooke one tuisdaye the xviijth daye of April 1570,”

Some highlights of the list:

Chief Mourner: Sir Henry Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke (eldest son of Lord Pembroke).

Mourners assistants with their hoods on:

  • The Earl of Leicester
  • Edward Herbert (second son of Lord Pembroke)
  • Sir James Crofts
  • Sir William Cecil
  • Sir Walter Myldemaye
  • Sir Nicholas Throckmorton (cousin to Pembroke’s wife, Lady Anne (Parr))

Six noblemen with their rolls:

  • Lord Admiral (Edward Clinton, Lord Clinton (later Earl of Lincoln))
  • Lord Chamberlain (Lord Howard of Effingham)
  • Lord Talbot
  • Lord Cobham
  • Lord Grey of Wilton
  • Lord Buckherst

One of the three knights with their hoods on their shoulders included Sir Francis Knollys.

“The proceedinge to the offringe as heerafter folowith: First the chief mourner, his trayne borne, and all the rest of the mourners to folowe and none to offerre but he and the officers of Arms before him.

Then the chief mourner to goe upp alone, and to offerre for himself, and ther to remayne untill all the hatchements  be offred, whiche he shall receyve and delyuer to York Herauld, who shall set theim one the communion boord: then he to be brought downe agayne to his place.

Then the hatchements to be offred as folowith, and at all tymes…Herauld before them..

First my Lord Keper and The Erl of Leicester offred the Coat of Armes

Then Mr Edward Herbert and Sr James Crofte offred the sword

Then Sr William Cicill [Cecil] and Sr Walter Myldemay offred the Targe

Sr Nicholas Throckmorton [and] Mr Gerard attorney generall offred the heaulme and crest

Then the viij mourners to offerre for theime selfes as folowith ij and ij

First the Lorde Keper [and] The Erle of Leicester; Garter Kinge of Armes before them

Mr Comptroller, Mr Edward Herbert; Richemond Harauld before theim

Sr William Cicill [Cecil], Sr Walter Myldemay; Chester Harauld before theim

Sr Nicholas Throckmorton, Mr Gerard attorney generall; Richemond Harauld before theim

The the iiij assistantes York Harauld before theim

Then the noble men in blackes ioyntly togither Richemond Haruald before theim

Then the Steward Threasorer & comptroller; Chester Harauld before theim

Then the Knightes Master Coferer and Clerkes of the greene clothe and all other Esquyres and gentlemen to folowe theime ioyntly ij and ij Richemond Harauld before

Then the banner of his armes, Then the Standert; a Harauld before either of theim

Then all other gentlemen having no blackes that will offere

Then the offringe donn and a certayne collect reade all the chief mourners and noble men departed leauinge the officers and assistantes to see the body buryed . Which officers did putt  the Defunctes staff into the graue and brake eche of theim ther owne staves and cast theim into the graue with him.”

Choir in Old St. Paul's Cathedral. Choir in Old St. Paul’s Cathedral. (Benham)

Pembroke’s tomb (along with Lady Anne Parr) was located between the choir and the North aisle. The tomb was/is by John of Gaunt and Blanche of Lancaster, between the pillars of the 6th bay of the Choir. (Benham) It was a magnificent structure consisting of effigies of the earl and his lady (Anne Parr) lying on a sarcophagus, attended by kneeling children, and the whole covered by an elaborate canopy resting on stone shafts. (Clinch)

Tomb of William, Earl of Pembroke, in St Paul's; the tomb on a tall base on which lie a man and wife, in ermine robes, heads to left; eleven columns support a double arch above and obelisk topped extensions at the sides; two cartouches at top, to the left with coat of arms and to the right with dedication by 'Ioh Herbert'; illustration to William Dugdale's 'History of St Paul's' (London, 1658 and 1716) Tomb of William, Earl of Pembroke, in St Paul’s; the tomb on a tall base on which lie a man and wife, in ermine robes, heads to left; eleven columns support a double arch above and obelisk topped extensions at the sides; two cartouches at top, to the left with coat of arms and to the right with dedication by ‘Ioh Herbert’; illustration to William Dugdale’s ‘History of St Paul’s’ (London, 1658 and 1716) Trustees of the British Museum

See also

Sources

Links

Family of Queen Katherine: The Death of the Marchioness of Northampton

Posted on by
8

'The Master of the Countess of Warwick', ‘Portrait of a lady, aged 21, possibly Helena Snakenborg’, dated 1569.

‘The Master of the Countess of Warwick’, ‘Portrait of a lady, aged 21, possibly Helena Snakenborg’, dated 1569. (Tate)

10 APRIL 1635: THE DEATH of Helena, the Dowager Marchioness of Northampton (c.1549-10 April 1635) was the daughter of Ulf or Wulfgang Henriksson Snakenborg or Snachenberg of Ostargotland (d.c.1565) and Agneta Knuttson (d.1568+).

Princess Cecilia of Sweden (Cecilia Gustavsdotter Vasa) (16 November 1540 – 27 January 1627)

Princess Cecilia of Sweden (Cecilia Gustavsdotter Vasa) (16 November 1540 – 27 January 1627)

She came as a maid-in-waiting to Princess Cecilia of Sweden on a state visit in the autumn of 1565 and stayed on when Cecilia left in May 1566. She was being courted by Sir William Parr, Marquess of Northampton who had asked her to marry him. Queen Elizabeth stepped in, taking Helena into her keeping at court, as a maid of honor. Helena was given private quarters at Hampton Court Palace. Later she was a gentlewoman of the privy chamber, although without pay. Helena and Parr finally married in May 1571, after the death of his first wife, from whom he had been separated (and annulled) for decades. The Queen attended the wedding which took place in the queen’s closet at Whitehall Palace with pomp and circumstance. The Marquess died soon after, leaving Helena a wealthy widow and, as Dowager Marchioness of Northampton, senior to every other lady at court save the queen and the queen’s cousin, Lady Margaret Douglas. 

 

Longford Castle in Wiltshire. Longford Castle is located on the banks of the River Avon south of Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. In 1573 Thomas Gorges, of Langford acquired the manor (at the time written “Langford”), which was originally owned by the Cervingtons. Prior to this the existing mansion house had been damaged by fire.

 
Around 1577 she remarried, taking as her second husband Thomas (later knt.) Gorges. Helena was a patron of the arts, rebuilt Langford Castle in Wiltshire, and was chief mourner at the funeral of Queen Elizabeth Tudor. She was buried at Salisbury Cathedral where an effigy is still present.

Helena, Marchioness of Northampton and Sir Thomas Gorges in Salisbury Cathedral.

Helena, Marchioness of Northampton and Sir Thomas Gorges in Salisbury Cathedral.

Helena's effigy which has a coronet, Salisbury Cathedral.

Helena’s effigy which has a coronet, Salisbury Cathedral.

Links

8 APRIL 1608: THE DEATH of Hon. Magdalen Dacre

Posted on by
Reply
Coat of arms of the Barons of Dacre showing their heraldic charges, the Bull. European Heraldry.

Coat of arms of the Barons of Dacre showing their heraldic charges, the Bull. European Heraldry.

Hon. Magdalen Dacre, Viscountess Montagu (January 1538 – 8 April 1608) was an English noblewoman. She was the daughter of William Dacre, 3rd Baron Dacre of Gilsland, and the second wife of Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montagu. Magdalen, a fervent Roman Catholic, was a Maid of Honour at the wedding of Mary I of England to Philip II of Spain in Winchester Cathedral. Dacre, despite being a Catholic, managed to remain in high regard with the Protestant Tudor Queen who succeeded Mary, Elizabeth I. Dacre was, according to biographer Lady Antonia Fraser in her historical biography, The Gunpowder Plot: Terror and Faith in 1605, a fine example of “how the most pious Catholic could survive if he (or she) did not challenge the accepted order”.

Effigy of Hon. Magdalen, Viscountess Montague.

Effigy of Hon. Magdalen, Viscountess Montague.

Magdalen Dacre died at Battle Abbey, Sussex on 8 April 1608 at the age of seventy. She was originally buried in Midhurst Church, where a splendid tomb with her effigy was erected. The tomb was moved in 1851 to Easebourne Church.

Magdalen Dacre was a cousin to Queen Katherine Parr via several common ancestors. Her closest connection to Queen Katherine was her paternal great-grandmother, Mabel Parr, Lady Dacre (great-aunt of Queen Katherine) and maternal great-grandmother, Lady Katherine Neville (great-great-aunt of Queen Katherine as sister to Lady Alice, great-grandmother of Queen Katherine).

Family of Queen Katherine: Sir Edward Herbert of Powis

Posted on by
1
Pembroke family of Wilton. Wilton Church.

Pembroke family of Wilton. Wilton Church. Left panel shows the 1st Earl of Pembroke with his two sons, Henry (future 2nd Earl of Pembroke) and Sir Edward of Powis.

Sir Edward Herbert of Powis Castle (Jun 1544-23 March 1595) was the second child and son of Sir William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke (10th creation) and his first wife, Lady Anne (Parr). His siblings were Lord Henry Herbert (later 2nd Earl of Pembroke) and Lady Anne Talbot, wife of Lord Francis Talbot. Through his mother, Herbert was a nephew to Queen Katherine Parr and the 1st Marquess of Northampton, William Parr. Upon the death of his aunt, Queen Katherine, his mother became the sole heiress to her brother the Marquess of Northampton.

Arms of Sir William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke (10th creation)

Arms of Sir William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke (10th creation) [2]

Herbert was a member of the Herbert family, a Welsh noble family who descended from Sir William ap Thomas of Raglan Castle. His father, Sir William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke of the second creation (within the Herbert family) was the grandson of the first creation also named William (1423-1469). From birth, Edward Herbert had the backing of his family’s powerful clan. It also didn’t hurt that his father, the Earl of Pembroke, would become a large influence at court. Due to his mother’s affiliation to Henry VIII’s last queen, Katherine Parr, Herbert’s father owed some of his advancement to Edward’s mother — Anne. Lady Pembroke (at the time Lady Anne Herbert) was sister to Queen Katherine, the last queen consort to King Henry VIII. In the reign of Henry VIII’s children, especially Edward VI, Pembroke became a guardian to the young king and was part of the court circle of men around the boy. Pembroke tried to advance his standing by marrying his son to a granddaughter of Princess Mary Tudor (Henry VIII’s younger sister and designated heirs to the throne after his immediate children), Lady Katherine Grey. The marriage was to bring the family close to the crown upon the attempt to put Grey’s sister, Lady Jane, on the throne as Queen. When Lady Jane was “deposed,” Pembroke tried to distant himself from the “traitors” which included his brother-in-law, Northampton. Pembroke had the marriage between his son and Lady Katherine annulled and tried to gain favour with the Catholic queen Mary Tudor. The plan worked and his family was spared. Pembroke would also contribute heavily to the reign of Elizabeth I.

Lord Pembroke’s marriage to the queen’s sister advanced the family and Anne gave legitimacy to the Herbert family. Lady Pembroke’s descendants also had the luxury of becoming the heirs of the Parr inheritance once Lady Pembroke’s brother, William, 1st Marquess of Northampton died in 1571 without issue. Although the title of Marquess of Northampton and Earl of Essex were forfeit, the children inherited other “titles”, manors, lands, etc.

HANWORTH, a village and a parish in Staines district, Middlesex. Ordnance Survey First Series, Sheet 8.

HANWORTH, a village and a parish in Staines district, Middlesex. Ordnance Survey First Series, Sheet 8.

In June 1544, the Queen lent her sister Lady Herbert her manor, Hanworth for the lying-in for her second child. It was there that Anne Herbert gave birth to her second son, Edward (his elder brother was named Henry, was this a coincidence?). The Queen sent regular messengers to Hanworth to inquire on the health of her sister. For the christening, the queen provided a large delegation (five yeo-men, two grooms, and Henry Webbe) from her household to attend. Letters continued well into July between the two sisters while Lady Herbert remained at Hanworth. After the birth, Lady Herbert visited Lady Hertford (Anne Stanhope), who had also just given birth, at Syon House near Richmond.[1]

In August 1544, the queen paid for a barge to bring her sister Lady Herbert by river from Syon House (home to the Hertford’s) to Westminster. The queen’s involvement in the birth and christening of her nephew would eventually lead her to take him in as part of her household after the death of King Henry.[1]

After King Henry VIII’s death in January 1547, when the queen dowager’s household was at Chelsea, both Lady Herbert and her son Edward were part of the household there. The Dowager queen, as always, was keen to have her family close to her. After having no children of her own by her previous three husbands and no role in the new government, the queen probably didn’t mind having her toddler nephew around. While Lady Herbert attended her sister, her husband Lord Herbert was appointed as one of the guardians to the new king, Edward VI. Lord Herbert became part of the circle around the new king which included his brother-in-law, the Marquess of Northampton.[1]

Hendon Church, Middlesex. London, England; June 1, 1815 (published). John Preston Neale, born 1766 - died 1847 (artist); Bonner, Thomas, born 1735 - died 1816 (engraver) Engraving. Given by Dr. G. B. Gardner. V&A Online Collections.

Hendon Church, Middlesex. London, England; June 1, 1815 (published). John Preston Neale, born 1766 – died 1847 (artist); Bonner, Thomas, born 1735 – died 1816 (engraver) Engraving. Given by Dr. G. B. Gardner. V&A Online Collections.

At the age of his majority, Herbert returned for the family borough and never sat for Parliament again. On the death of his father in 1569, Herbert inherited the manor of Hendon, Middlesex. He also inherited his mother’s lands in Northampton and Westmorland (the Parr inheritance).

Powis_Castle

Probably the most important event in his life was the purchase of Powis Castle in Wales (at the time it was called “Poole Castell”).[2] Sir Edward Herbert bought the lordship and castle in 1587 from Edward Grey, a feudal Lord of Powis.[3] Edward Grey was the illegitimate child of the last Lord Powis and Jane Orwell; therefore his father’s estates, which he inherited, came with limitations within Lord Powis’s will.[4] One of those limitations was the obvious title, Baron Powis, which would be bestowed on Herbert’s son, William Herbert, in the reign of James I. The castle Sir Edward took over was probably in serious need of repair and modernisation, and he undertook extensive work between 1587 and 1595, of which only the long gallery survives (completed in 1593).[5]

Herbert’s interests were mostly in Montgomeryshire and he had little to do with public life (most likely by choice). He was knighted in 1574. In 1590, his brother the 2nd Earl of Pembroke put him forward for a membership in the council of the marches. Herbert appears to have been of the Catholic faith and that may also explain his non-involvement in Parliament and at the court of Elizabeth I. Herbert’s wife however was Catholic and it was most likely to her influence that he converted. Lord and Lady Herbert’s names appeared on a list of Catholics drawn up between 1574 and 1577; his wife’s name would appear again in 1582. In 1580, Henry Sydney (brother to his sister-in-law Lady Pembroke), was to arrest recusants and did institute proceedings against them in Montgomeryshire. The Herbert’s were left to be until June 1594 when Lady Herbert and her five children, all under age, were presented for recusancy, not having attended Church services (Protestant) at the parish church in Welshpool for twelve months.

Women were very important to the recusant cause in Wales, as in England. Often a wife stayed at home while her husband kept up appearances by attending Anglican services. Some people outwardly conformed to avoid stiff fines, but secretly remained Catholics.

In 1581, it was made treason to convert to Catholicism, or try to convert someone else to it; further measures followed, and the penalty for being caught was often death. But some Catholics risked their lives all the same. The Jesuit order provided many missionary priests, some raised in Wales but trained on the continent. It was a perilous life, and some Welsh homes still have priest holes, where these men hid from the authorities. A number of Welsh Catholics (mostly priests) were executed in the 16th and 17th centuries.[6]

In 1570, Herbert married Mary Stanley, daughter and heir of Sir Thomas Stanley of Standon, Herts. and London. They had four sons and eight daughters.[7] Their children included the eldest son and heir Sir William Herbert, 1st Baron Powis; George, who died unmarried; Sir John Herbert, Knt, who died without issue; Edward, who died a bachelor; Elizabeth died young; Joyce; Frances; Jane; Mary; Winifred; and two more daughters named Anne and Katherine (most likely named after Herbert’s mother and aunt, the queen).[8][9]

Herbert died on 23 March 1595 and was buried in Welshpool Church, Montgomeryshire, where a monument is erected in his memory on the North side of the Chancel. The Herbert memorial consists of two figures in black marble kneeling. In the middle is an inscription in letters of gold, in roman capitols.[9]

Here lyeth the Bodyes of the Right Worshipful Sir Edward Herbert, Knight, second Son to the Right Honourable Sir William Herbert, Knt. Earl of Pembroke, Lord Cardiffe and Knight of the most Noble Order of the Garter, and of Anne his Wife, Sister and sole Heire to Sir William Parr, Kt. Lord Parr of Kirbeby, Kendall, Marmion, FitzHugh, St. Quintin, Earl of Essex, Marquis of Northampton, and Knt. of the most Noble Order of the Garter. Which Sir Edward Herbert married Mary Daughter and sole Heire to Thomas Stanley of Standen, in the County of Hertford, Esq; Master of the Mint, A.D. 1570, youngest Son of Thomas Stanley of Dalgarthe, in the County of Cumberland, Esq. Which Sir Edward Herbert and Dame Mary his Wife had Issue iv Sonnes and viii Daughters, viz.

William Herbert, Esq; his eldest Sonne and Heire, who married Lady Eleanor, second Daughter to Henry late Earl of Northumberland, George Herbert, 2d Son, John Herbert, 3d Son, and Edward Herbert, 4th Son : Elizabeth, first Daughter died young, Anne 2d Daughter, Joyce 3d Daughter, Frances 4th Daughter, Katharine 5th Daughter, Jane 6, Mary 7, and Winifred 8th Daughter. Which Sir Edward died 23 Day of March DMDLXXXXIV and this Monument was made at the Charge of the sayd Lady Herbert 23 October 1595.[9]

Letters of administration were issued to his widow in April 1595.[7]

Books of Hours belonging to Lady Eleanor Powis, wife to Sir William, 1st Baron Powis. Lady Eleanor used her Book of Hours to remind her of important anniversaries writing these dates against the Feast Days of the Catholic Calendar at the front of her book. She includes the birthdays of herself, her husband William, and her children. © National Trust Collections

Books of Hours belonging to Lady Eleanor Powis, wife to Sir William, 1st Baron Powis. Lady Eleanor used her Book of Hours to remind her of important anniversaries writing these dates against the Feast Days of the Catholic Calendar at the front of her book. She includes the birthdays of herself, her husband William, and her children. © National Trust Collections

Sources

  1. Susan James. “Catherine Parr: Henry VIII’s Last Love,” The History Press, US Edition: 2009. pg 275-76.
  2. European Heraldry. “House of Herbert“
  3. George Edward Cokayne. Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct, Or Dormant , Volume 6. G. Bell & sons, 1895. pg 295.
  4. A letter dated 8 October 1590 from Sir Edward Herbert at “The Poole Castell.” Kynaston Peerage Papers No 148.
  5. Hugh Montgomery-Mass, Christopher Simon Sykes. “Great Houses of England & Wales,” Laurence King Publishing, 1994. pg 44-45. Google eBook.
  6. Katharine Olson. “A New History of Wales: Katharine Olson debates Reformation in Wales – a hidden history?,” Wales Online, 24 September 2010. URL: http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/welsh-history/articles/2010/09/24/a-new-history-of-wales-katherine-olsen-debates-reformation-in-wales-a-hidden-history-91466-27334897/2/#ixzz2OKGjwyCM
  7. “The History of Parliament: the House of Commons” 1558-1603, ed. P.W. Hasler, 1981. HERBERT, Edward II (c.1542-95), of Wilton, Wilts.; later of Powis Castle, Mont.
  8. Edward Thornton Evans. “The History and Topography of the Parish of Hendon, Middlesex,” Simpkin, 1890 – Hendon (London, England). pg 37.
  9. Arthur Collins. “The Peerage of England,” Volume 1, 1735. pg 506. Google eBook.

Holbein Pendant of Helena, Marchioness of Northampton

Posted on by
Reply
Drawn by Hans Holbein the Younger, c.1532-1543

Drawn by Hans Holbein the Younger, c.1532-1543

Description
Pendant, with a lady holding a stone, and three hanging pearls, one of three designs for jewellery with inscriptions, from the ‘Jewellery Book’; half-length figure of a lady facing front, her head turned slightly to right and wearing a head-dress, holding an inscribed rectangular tablet in front
Pen and black ink, with grey wash.

The drawing was acquired in 1753, bequeathed by Sir Hans Sloane. Transferred from the Dept. of Manuscripts to Prints + Drawings on 20 July 1860. For a history of the contents of Sloane 5308, see SL,5308.1.

Inscriptions
Inscription Content: Rowlands 1993
Inscribed by an early hand, in brown ink on the stone, “WELL / LAYDI / WELL”

'The Master of the Countess of Warwick', ‘Portrait of a lady, aged 21, possibly Helena Snakenborg’, dated 1569.

‘The Master of the Countess of Warwick’, ‘Portrait of a lady, aged 21, possibly Helena Snakenborg’, dated 1569. The brooch can be seen around her neck hanging from a gold chain.

‘Although there appears to be no surviving example of this type, as Sjögren has noted, the sitter in the painting, according to Strong, by ‘The Master of the Countess of Warwick’, ‘Portrait of a lady, aged 21, possibly Helena Snakenborg’, dated 1569 (R. Strong, ‘The English Icon’, London and New York, 1969, p. 113, no. 61, repr.) in the Tate Gallery (T400) is wearing a very similar pendant jewel, in which the half-length figure of a lady is depicted holding a large stone. This suggests that the inscription was a later, although probably still sixteenth-century, addition. Sjögren makes the tempting, not impossible, proposal that they are one and the same jewel and further conjectures that it was given to the sitter by William Parr (1513-71), the Marquess of Northampton, brother of Queen Katherine Parr, prior to her becoming his third wife in 1565. It is conceivable, if so, that the jewel had originally been ordered in the 1540s for Parr’s first wife, Anne Bourchier.’

By 1540, Parr’s marriage was already in trouble. It is doubtful Parr ordered this for his adulteress wife who ran away in 1541 with her lover. Helena also did not become Parr’s wife until the death of Anne Bourchier on 28 January 1571. Perhaps it was ordered for Elisabeth Brooke, Parr’s common wife by law.

Sources

20 MARCH 1549: THE EXECUTION of Lord Seymour of Sudeley

Posted on by
Reply
Seymour_Thomas1

Portrait of Thomas Seymour (1508-49) 1st Baron of Sudeley from ‘Memoirs of the court of Queen Elizabeth’ — Sarah of Essex, out of copyright

Following the death of Queen Katherine Parr in September 1548, Lord Seymour didn’t even wait for his wife’s funeral before he returned to London. As he was free to marry Lady Elizabeth Tudor again, Seymour went straight to her for the second time. Seymour bombarded Elizabeth with letters, lent her his house in London, and coerced her governess Kat Ashley into pleading his case on any and every occasion possible. Of course, Elizabeth refused to comply, a move that probably kept her from being beheaded herself.

Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons as Lord Seymour and Lady Elizabeth in "Young Bess" (1953)

Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons as Lord Seymour and Lady Elizabeth in “Young Bess” (1953)

In his head, Seymour had a grand plan for himself and had acquired ten thousand men and was preparing for a military coup. As things started to go awry, Seymour refused to wait. He took a gun and broke into the private quarters of the King. On his way to the King, the boy King’s spaniel awoke and started to bark. Seymour shot the dog and the whole household was awoken. Seymour was arrested, thrown in the Tower, and accused of 33 charges of High Treason and misdemeanor.

Death scene of Queen Katherine played by Deborah Kerr and Stewart Granger as Thomas Seymour in "Young Bess." Kerr had a strong resemblance to the real Queen Katherine.

Death scene of Queen Katherine played by Deborah Kerr and Stewart Granger as Thomas Seymour in “Young Bess” (1953). Kerr had a strong resemblance to the real Queen Katherine.

The authorities had thrown everything they could at Seymour. They even accused him in a possible connection to the death of his wife, the Dowager Queen. That ‘he helped to her end to hasten forth his other purposes.’ Seymour was never given a trial before his peers. Instead, an Act of Attainder (the same legal process that had be used to rid Henry VIII of Katherine Howard) was introduced to Parliament. It passed unopposed in the House of Lords on 25 February, and in the House of Commons on March 5, where it was only opposed by a handful of members.

The Act lists thirty-three charges trumped up against Seymour. In “The Annals of Winchcombe and Sudeley” by Emma Dent, she summarizes the charges:

“Articles of High Treason and other Misdemeanors against the King’s Majesty and his Crown objected to Sir Thomas Seymour Kt Lord Seymour of Sudeley and High Admiral of England Article

  1. He was charged with endeavouring to get into his own hands the government of the king

  2. With bribing certain members of the Privy Chamber

  3. With dictating a letter for the king to send to Parliament tending to the disturbance of the government

  4. For endeavouring to gain several of the nobility to join him in making changes in the affairs of state

  5. For threatening to make the Blackest Parliament ever known in England

  6. For refusing to answer a summons to explain certain things laid to his charge

  7. For prejudicing the king against the protector

  8. For suggesting to the king to take upon himself the affairs of government

  9. For plotting to take the king into his custody

  10. For plotting that the king should apply to him alone for all he needed

  11. For intending to control the king’s marriage

  12. For confederating with discontented noblemen to make a strong party abroad ready to serve them when occasion required

  13. 13 For planning that certain noble partisans should counteract those who opposed him

  14. For winning over the yeomanry to be ready to serve in case of need

  15. For strengthening his party by giving away various stewardships

  16. For retaining in his service too great a number of gentlemen and yeomen ready to strengthen his cause if needed

  17. For having 10,000 available men

  18. And having in readiness sufficient money to support the 10,000 for a month

  19. For endeavouring to bring about a clandestine marriage with the Princess Elizabeth second heir to the throne

  20. For having married the queen scandalously soon after the death of the king

  21. For deceiving the king and others in persuading them to plead with the queen they being already married

  22. For refusing to promote every way tl at was to the king’s advantage and of so strengthening his own party by sea and land as to bring within his reach the power of aspiring to the throne

  23. For endeavouring to obtain the public authority for his having the Mint of Bristol and which by fraud he had already got into his hands

  24. For having aided and abetted Sir Wm Sherrington who was known to be a traitor to the king

  25. For defrauding the king of 2,800 having conspired for this object with Sir Wm Sherrington

  26. For extorting large sums of money from ships

  27. For having taken possession of goods seized by pirates

  28. For wrongfully imprisoning those who had captured pirates

  29. For letting go free head pirates thus captured and brought before him

  30. For openly disobeying the Protector’s orders for the restitution of goods taken from pirates

  31. For robbing foreign ships wrecked on the English coast

  32. For betraying the king’s secret counsel

  33. For laying in provisions and money for a great number of men for his servants spreading the report the king was dead of a riot in consequence being expected had it not been stopped by his apprehension and committal to prison”(Dent)

Edward and Anne from "The Tudors"

Edward and Anne Seymour from “The Tudors”

He was sentenced to death; his own brother signed his death warrant. Later it was said that his fate was sealed by the Duchess of Somerset, Anne, who had threatened to leave her husband if he did not act against his own brother. Whether or not that is true we do not know. It may simply be speculation.

The Act of Attainder concluded:

‘considering that he is a member so unnatural, unkind and corrupt and such a heinous offender of your majesty and your laws as he cannot be suffered to remain in body of your grace’s commonwealth but to the extreme danger of your highness and it is too dangerous an example that such a person, so much bound and so forgetful of it … should remain among us.’ He was to be ‘adjudged and attained of high treason and … shall suffer such pains of death as in cases of high treason have been accustomed.’

Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons and Lord Seymour and Lady Elizabeth "Young Bess" (1953)

Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons and Lord Seymour and Lady Elizabeth “Young Bess” (1953)

Seymour remained optimistic to the end and in his last moments tried to send Lady Elizabeth a message sewn into his servants velvet shoes. However, he retreated into silence as far as those who condemned him were concerned. While in the Tower, Seymour made his peace with the God others accused him of rejecting, writing the following lines:

‘Forgetting God
to love a king
Hath been my rod
Or else nothing:
In this frail life
being a blast
of care and strife
till in be past.
Yet God did call
me in my pride
lest I should fall
and from him slide
for whom loves he
and not correct
that they may be
of his elect
The death haste thee
thou shalt me gain
Immortally
with him to reign
Who send the king
Like years as noye
In governing
His realm in joy
And after this
frail life such grace
As in his bliss
he may have place.’ (Harington)

On the even of his death, Seymour requested his daughter should be given into the care of the Dowager Duchess of Suffolk, Katherine Willoughby. A few days later, Lady Mary Seymour, who was now about seven months old, was taken from Syon House (home to the Lord Protector and his wife, Anne) to the Duchess’s home — Grimsthorpe Castle in Lincolnshire. Upon the death of Mary’s mother, Queen Katherine, she had left all her wealth and possessions to her husband. Therefore upon his execution, Seymour’s wealth and possessions (which included that which he inherited by the Dowager Queen) reverted to the Crown and there was no money for his daughter.

Seymour was executed early in the morning of 20 March 1549. It took two blows of the axe to sever his head. He was buried in St. Peter’s Chapel in the Tower of London where other royals like Anne Boleyn, Lady Salisbury (the last Plantagenet “Princess”, daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Clarence), and Katherine Howard had been buried. Seymour’s own brother, Somerset (Edward), would join him in January of 1552 after his own execution under Edward VI; two uncles in one reign.

Elizabeth said, upon hearing of his death: “There died this day a man of much whit and very little judgement.”

References

  • Linda Porter. “Katherine, the queen,” St. Martin’s Press, 2010.
  • John Harington, “Nugae Antiquae,” (London, 1769), vol. 3, pg 259. (Linda Porter)
  • Susan James. “Catherine Parr: Henry VIII’s Last Love,” The History Press, 2009.
  • “Young Bess” (1953)

Family of Queen Katherine: DEATH of William, 1st Earl of Pembroke

Posted on by
2
Pembroke family of Wilton. Wilton Church. Pembroke family of Wilton. Wilton Church.

Yesterday was the anniversary of the death of Sir William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke, husband of Anne Parr, and thus sister-in-law to Queen Katherine. Lord Pembroke died on 17 March 1570 at Hampton Court Palace. William was eldest son of Sir Richard Herbert of Ewyas, Herefordshire, by his wife Margaret, daughter of Sir Matthew Cradock of Swansea. Pembroke’s father, Sir Richard, was an illegitimate son of the original William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke of the first creation (d. 1469), by a mistress, Maud, daughter of Adam ap Howell Graunt. He married firstly to Anne Parr in 1538 and after her death, Lady Anne Talbot, daughter of the Earl of Shrewsbury. Parr gave Pembroke an heir (the 2nd Earl), an heir to spare (ancestor to the Earls of Powis), and a daughter (no issue). Talbot had no issue by Pembroke.

Hampton Court Palace, London, England. Hampton Court Palace, London, England.

On the eve of 17 March 1570, Pembroke took to his bed in his quarters at Hampton Court Palace. He was joined by his younger son, Sir Edward Herbert and the Earl of Leicester, Robert Dudley.

Pembroke had written his will back on 28 December 1569. Pembroke’s executors/witnesses of his will were his heir Henry Herbert (later 2nd Earl of Pembroke was the sole executor), the Earl of Leicester (Robert Dudley); Sir Walter Milday; Sir Nicholas Throckmorton (cousin to his first wife); Gilbert Gerrard. To those men he bequethed £50 to be delivered either in money, plate of jewels, within one month. And by codicil it is mentioned that Pembroke declared to Leicester and his son, Sir Edward Herbert, that on the night before his death, the Lord Keeper of the Great Seal, Sir James Crofts, and Mr. Secretary Cecil be joined in the oversee and receive the same gifts. To his wife, (Anne Talbot) he left her, her own clothes and jewels, which would otherwise go to his son Henry, Lord Herbert and his wife. Lady Pembroke was to be looked after and to be allowed to stay at Baynard’s Castle where Pembroke’s previous wife had died in 1552. Pembroke’s second son, Edward, was given a plate with the value of 500 marks. Pembroke’s daughter, Anne, Lady Talbot, was to receive £500. To his brother-in-law, the Marquess of Northampton (William Parr), he left his second-best gold sword. Leicester received Pembroke’s best gold sword. Pembroke also wanted £200 bestowed upon the poor near Baynard castleward in London, Salisbury in Wiltshire, and Hendon. To the Queen (Elizabeth), he left his “newest fairest and richest bed” and his greatest jewel called the “Great Ballace.” Most importantly, the ordinary men (his servants, etc) were to be looked after by his heir, Henry.

That my lorde Herbert do consider Thomas Gregorie and Tidie with money for their travaile and paines beside that he hath bequethed to them in annuity that he speciallie do appointe to Francis Zouche and Charles Arundell fit and good annuities for them. That he have special care of Henrie Morgan, George Morgan, Phillip Williams, Robert Vaughan, and Thomas Scudamore and either entertaigne them into his service payinge them their wages beforehand or else appoint them sufficient annuities. That he do entertaigne his household and keep them together

Philip Williams had been Pembroke’s secretary; Robert Vaughan, his treasurer; Thomas Scudamore was one of the men who carried his coffin.

Leicester then left Pembroke’s bedside, leaving Pembroke with his son and physicians. Pembroke died the next morning, 17 March 1570 at the age of sixty-three.

In his will, Pembroke listed two possible burial places; Old Saint Paul’s or Canterbury Cathedral. If he died near London, his wishes were to be buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral next to his first wife, Anne Parr. Pembroke obviously loved his wife for when he wrote his will, despite being married again, he wanted nothing more than to be buried “near the place where Anne my late wife doth lie buried” in St. Paul’s. He was buried in April.

Shortly after his death, the Dowager Lady Pembroke received a letter from the Queen in the hand of Cecil, but heavily corrected (most likely by Elizabeth). The Queen expressed her condolences of the loss of “our late cousin.”

See also: “Funeral of William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke”

References

  • Adam Nicolson. “Quarrel with the King: The story of an English family on the high road to Civil War,” HarperCollins, Oct 6, 2009.
  • Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society, Devizes : Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society, 1879. pg 126-28.

Family of Queen Katherine: Margaret Fiennes, 11th Baroness Dacre

Posted on by
5
Margaret Fiennes, 11th Lady Dacre with her husband Sampson Lennard.

Margaret Fiennes, 11th Lady Dacre with her husband Sampson Lennard from Hon. Thomas Barrett-Lennard’s “An Account of the Families of Lennard and Barrett,” 1908.

Margaret Fiennes (or Fynes), 11th Baroness Dacre of the South (1541 – 16 March 1612) was a suo jure peeress having been created Baroness Dacre by King James I of England in 1604. She was the daughter of Thomas Fiennes, 9th Baron Dacre who was executed for murder in the year of her birth. His title and lands, upon his death, were forfeited to the crown. The title would not return to the family until her brother was restored in 1558 by Elizabeth I.

Thomas Fiennes, Baron Dacre, father to Lady Dacre.

Thomas Fiennes, 9th Baron Dacre, father to Lady Dacre.

Family

Mary Neville and her son Gregory Fiennes, 10th Baron Dacre by Hans Eworth c. 1559

Mary Neville and her son Gregory Fiennes, 10th Baron Dacre by Hans Eworth c. 1559

Lady Dacre was born in 1541, the youngest child and only daughter of Thomas Fiennes, 9th Baron Dacre and Mary Nevill, daughter of the 5th Baron Bergavenny. In the year of her birth, her father was hanged for the murder of a gamekeeper by the order of King Henry VIII, and his lands and title were forfeited to the crown. Lady Dacre’s brother, Gregory Fiennes, would become the 10th Baron Dacre upon the ascension of Elizabeth I in 1558. The 10th Baron married to Anne Sackville, cousin to Queen Anne Boleyn; they had one daughter who died young. Upon his death, the barony went into abeyance until it was revived for Margaret under James I of England.

Coat of arms of the 9th Baron Dacre of the South from his tomb in Chelsea Church, London.

Coat of arms of Gregory Fiennes, 10th Baron Dacre of the South from his tomb in Chelsea Church, London.

Lady Dacre was related to three of Henry VIII’s six queens. Her paternal great-grandparents were Thomas Fiennes, 8th Baron Dacre and Anne Bourchier. Anne Bourchier was the uterine half-sister of Lady Elizabeth Howard (mother of Queen Anne Boleyn) and Lord Edmund Howard (father of Queen Katherine Howard). Lady Dacre’s father, the cousin of Queen Katherine Howard, was executed in 1541 despite her position as queen.

The Parr’s shared several connections. Firstly, Fiennes’s great-grandfather, Thomas, 8th Baron Dacre was the first cousin of Sir Thomas Parr of Kendal, father of Queen Katherine Parr. Their mothers, Alice Fiennes (FitzHugh) and Elizabeth Parr/Vaux (FitzHugh) were sisters; both daughters of Sir Henry FitzHugh, 5th Baron FitzHugh and Lady Alice Neville (sister of Warwick, the Kingmaker). The Parr’s also shared the Woodville connection of Mary Neville, Lady Dacre’s great-grandmother, Katherine Woodville, Duchess of Buckingham.

Anne Boleyn (wife no. 2), Katherine Howard (wife no. 5), and Katherine Parr (wife no. 6) were all cousins to Lady Dacre.

Anne Boleyn (wife no. 2), Katherine Howard (wife no. 5), and Katherine Parr (wife no. 6) were all cousins to Lady Dacre.

Marriage and issue

On 10 November 1564 at the age of 23, Margaret married Sampson Lennard (died 1615), who came from a family of landed gentry. They resided at Chevening, Kent. He was a Member of Parliament for various constituencies, and from 1590 to 1591, he held the post of High Sheriff of Kent. Lady Dacre and her husband had four sons and six daughters:[1]

  • John Lennard, born 1567; buried 10 Oct 1575.
  • Sir Henry Lennard, 12th Baron Dacre (25 March 1570 – 8 August 1616); Born in Chevening, Kent, England; married Chrysogona Baker, by whom he had issue.[1]
CHRYSOGNA BAKER, Lady Dacre, aged six (d.1616) who married the 12th Lord Dacre (1589); a portrait (English 1579) by an unknown artist at The Vyne.

CHRYSOGNA BAKER, Lady Dacre, aged six (d.1616) who married the 12th Lord Dacre (1589); a portrait (English 1579) by an unknown artist at The Vyne. ©National Trust Images/Derrick E. Witty

  • Anne Lennard, born 1 Aug 1572 Chevening, Kent; married Herbert Morley.
  • Elizabeth Lennard, born 5 Jun 1580; buried 20 Oct 1581.
  • Elizabeth Lennard, born 26 Nov 1581; married Sir Francis Barnham, by whom she had issue.
  • Gregory “George” Lennard, born 25 Oct 1573Chevening, Kent; married in 1614 to Maud Llewellyn. Died 1620, without issue.[1]
  • Mary Lennard, born 22 Oct 1574 Chevening, Kent; married Sir Ralph Bosville.
  • Thomas Lennard, died 1638 without issue (d.s.p).[1] He is NOT the ancestor to the “Leonards” of Taunton and Bridgewater in America.[1][2]
  • Margaret Lennard, born 28 Sep 1578; married Sir Thomas Waller, by whom she had issue, including Parliamentarian soldier Sir William Waller.
  • Frances Lennard, born 28 Jul 1583; married Sir Robert More
  • John Lennard,[1] born 11 Oct 1584; died bef. 1615.

Baroness Dacre

The title of Baron Dacre had been restored to Margaret’s brother Gregory by Queen Elizabeth I shortly after her ascension to the throne; however upon his death in 1594, it had once again lapsed in abeyance. On 8 December 1604,[2] King James I created her suo jure Baroness Dacre, and she held this title until her death on 16 March 1612. She was succeeded by her eldest son, Henry.

References

  1. Thomas Barrett-Lennard. “An account of the families of Lennard and Barrett compiled largely from original documents by Thomas Barrett-Lennard,” Spottiswoode and Co. Ltd, 1908. pg 214, 240. Open Library
  2. Wm. R. Deane. “A genealogical memoir of the Leonard family containing a full account of the first three generations of the family of James Leonard, who was an early settler of Taunton, Ms., with incidental notices of later descendants,” Boston: Office of the New England historic-genealogical register, 1851. Open Library

28 February 1552: The Burial of the Queen’s Sister

Posted on by
1

Lady Anne Herbert [Parr], Countess of Pembroke died at Baynard’s Castle on 20 February 1552; at the age of thirty-six. Lady Pembroke had out-lived her sister, the Dowager Queen Katherine (d. 5 September 1548), who had also died in the year of her thirty-sixth birthday (Katherine was born in 1512, no official date is recorded). Unlike her sister and brother, the Marquess of Northampton, Lady Pembroke left two sons and a daughter to continue her legacy. Lady Pembroke  was buried with huge pomp in Old St. Paul’s Cathedral in London next to her ancestor Prince John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster [and his first wife, Blanche of Lancaster] on 28 February 1552.

On the 28th February was buried the noble countess of Pembroke, sister to the late Queen Katharine, wife of King Henry VIII. She died at Baynard’s Castle and was so carried into Paul’s. There were a hundred poor men and women who had mantle frieze gowns, then came the heralds; after this the corpse, and about her, eight banner rolls of arms. Then came the mourners both lords and knights and gentlemen, also the lady and gentlewomen mourners to the number of two hundred. After these were two hundred of her own and other servants in coats. She was buried by the tomb of the Duke of Lancaster. Afterwards her banners were set up over her and her arms set on divers pillars. (Diary of Henry Machin citizen of London Camden Soc vol 42)

Tomb of William, Earl of Pembroke, in St Paul's; the tomb on a tall base on which lie a man and wife, in ermine robes, heads to left; eleven columns support a double arch above and obelisk topped extensions at the sides; two cartouches at top, to the left with coat of arms and to the right with dedication by 'Ioh Herbert'; illustration to William Dugdale's 'History of St Paul's' (London, 1658 and 1716)

Tomb of William, Earl of Pembroke, in St Paul’s; the tomb on a tall base on which lie a man and wife, in ermine robes, heads to left; eleven columns support a double arch above and obelisk topped extensions at the sides; two cartouches at top, to the left with coat of arms and to the right with dedication by ‘Ioh Herbert’; illustration to William Dugdale’s ‘History of St Paul’s’ (London, 1658 and 1716)

The tomb is located between the choir and the North aisle. The tomb was by the magnificent tomb of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster and Blanche of Lancaster, between the pillars of the 6th bay of the Choir. (Benham) The Pembroke tomb was a magnificent structure consisting of effigies of the earl and his Lady Pembroke lying on a sarcophagus, attended by kneeling children, and the whole covered by an elaborate canopy resting on stone shafts. (Clinch) Her memorial there read: “a most faithful wife, a woman of the greatest piety and discretion” and “Her banners were set up over her arms set on divers pillars.“ On her tomb her epitath read that she had been “very jealous of the fame of a long line of ancestors.“ Her husband, Lord Pembroke, died on 17 March 1570 and by his wishes was also buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral on 18 April 1570 next to Lady Pembroke.

Lady Pembroke figure, Wiltshire Archeological and Natural History, 1879, pg 98.

Lady Pembroke figure, Wiltshire Archeological and Natural History Magazine, 1879, pg 98.

In her honor, in the old chapel at Wilton House was preserved a stained glass window in which were painted the kneeling figures of Lord Pembroke and his two sons also that of his wife Anne Parr and her daughter (also named Anne). The glass is now removed to the new Church at Wilton and will be found in the first window to the right on entering. Lady Pembroke is represented as wearing a rich mantle covered with her armorial bearings.

Lady Pembroke and her daughter, also named Anne (Lady Talbot). Wilton Church.

Lady Pembroke and her daughter, also named Anne (Lady Talbot). Wilton Church.

The lady’s mantle bears the following quarterings

  1. Argent, two bars azure within a bordure engrailed Sable–Parr
  2. Or, three water bougets Sable–Ros of Kendal
  3. Azure, three bucks trippant Vert–Green
  4. Gules, a chevron between three cross-crosslets, and in chief a lion passant Or–Mablethorpe
  5. Azure, three chevronels braced in base, and a chief Or–Fitzhugh
  6. Vaire, a fess Gules–Marmion
  7. Or, three chevronels Gules, a chief Vaire–St. Quentin
  8. Gules, a bend between six cross-crosslets Or–Furneaux
  9. Barry of eight Argent and Gules a fleur-de-lis Sable–Stavely
  10. This last quartering now replaced by a fragment of flowered glass was no doubt that of Gernegan–barry of ten Or and Azure an eagle displayed Argent.

Sources

See also

12 FEBRUARY: The Throckmorton Brothers

Posted on by
Reply
Coughton Court, Warwickshire, England

Coughton Court, Warwickshire, England

The Throckmorton family of Coughton Court in Warwickshire is one of the oldest Catholic families in England. The Throckmortons were prominent in the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I (Tudor). Sir George Throckmorton was a favorite of King Henry VIII during his early years as King. He owed his position probably due to his brother-in-law, Sir Thomas Parr, comptroller of the King’s household and loyal friend of the King. However, his marriage to the Lancastrian Vaux family may have had something to do it. Throckmorton’s wife, Lady Katherine (Vaux), was the younger half-sister of Lord Parr, both being children from one of Lady Elizabeth’s (born FitzHugh) two marriages; Lord Parr and Lord Vaux. The Vaux family was loyal to Henry VI and especially Margaret of Anjou when she was exiled to France. George’s father-in-law, Nicholas, became a protege and favorite of Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII Tudor. As the stepson of Lord Vaux (Lord William Parr died shortly after the coronation of Richard III in 1483), Thomas Parr is noted to have been a possible pupil in the household of Henry VIII’s grandmother as a young lad.

The connection to the Parr family made Throckmorton an uncle by marriage to queen consort Katherine Parr, the Marquess of Northampton, and Lady Anne Herbert (wife of William, 1st Earl of Pembroke). The Parrs also shared common ancestry with the Throckmorton’s through their maternal great-grandmother Matilda Throckmorton (Lady Green), daughter of Sir John Throckmorton and Eleanor de la Spiney (great-grandparents of Sir George). George Throckmorton, however, would become involved in a scandal to keep the King from divorcing his first wife, Queen Katherine of Aragon, to marry her lady-in-waiting, Anne Boleyn. Throckmorton didn’t approve and supported the queen. Most members, including Sir Thomas Parr’s widow and his cousin, Lady Maud Parr (Green), stuck by Katherine of Aragon until her household was dissolved.

12 FEBRUARY 1570: THE DEATH of Sir Nicholas Throckmorton

Sir Nicholas Throckmorton by Unknown Anglo-Netherlandish artist. © National Portrait Gallery, London

Sir Nicholas Throckmorton by Unknown Anglo-Netherlandish artist. © National Portrait Gallery, London

A cousin of Katherine Parr, Throckmorton was a staunch Protestant, and a supporter of Lady Jane Grey, though he served as a Member of Parliament under all the Tudor monarchs including the Catholic queen, Mary I. His importance during the reign of Elizabeth I was mainly as an ambassador to France and to Scotland. Throckmorton was the son of Katherine’s paternal aunt, Hon. Katherine Vaux and cousin Sir Robert Throckmorton of Coughton Court (a supporter of Queen Katherine of Aragon). Throckmorton was a page in the household of Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond by 1532-6; his cousin, William Parr (brother of Queen Katherine) had been raised and educated with Fitzroy and the Earl of Surrey and his maternal uncle, also named William Parr, was head of the household there. Throckmorton then became a servant in the household of his cousin, William, Baron Parr by 1543. Throckmorton, along with his brother Clement, would go on to serve in the household of their cousin Queen Katherine Parr by 1544-7 or 8. After the reign of Henry VIII, Throckmorton continued to serve at court. Upon the death of the Dowager Queen, he returned to the household of his cousin, the 1st Marquess of Northampton (William Parr).

12 FEBRUARY 1581: THE DEATH of Sir Robert Throckmorton

Robert Throckmorton by British School (c) National Trust, Coughton Court; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation

Robert Throckmorton by British School (c) National Trust, Coughton Court; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation

Sir Robert Throckmorton (c.1513-12 February 1581) was the eldest son of Sir George Throckmorton of Coughton Court and Hon. Katherine Vaux. As such, Robert was the elder brother of Nicholas, above. Throckmorton, like his father, was Catholic. His role in the succession crisis of Queen Mary is not clear, but it seems that he backed Mary’s claim because of the positions he was given. He was knighted in 1553 and appointed Constable of Warwick Castle among other positions. His Catholicism explains his disappearance from the Commons in the reign of Elizabeth I, although the most Catholic of his brothers, Anthony Throckmorton, was to sit in the Parliament of 1563. Judged an ‘adversary of true religion’ in 1564, Throckmorton remained active in Warwickshire until his refusal to subscribe to the Act of Uniformity led to his removal from the commission of the peace. (A. L. Rowse) Throckmorton married twice and had issue by both wives who would continue his legacy at Coughton Court.

References