Elizabeth Howard, Duchess of Norfolk
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Howard (1494 – 30 November 1558) was the eldest daughter of Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham
and the wife of Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk
. She was of royal lineage as she was a direct descendant of Edward III of England
.
On 10 September 1533, she stood as one of the two godmothers
of Princess Elizabeth
.
(3 September 1478-1521) and Eleanor Percy
. Her paternal grandparents were Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham
and Catherine Woodville, and her maternal grandparents were Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland
and Maud Herbert. Her grandfather, the Duke of Buckingham, was executed in 1483 by King Richard III
for treason
, and in 1521, her own father suffered the same fate when he was beheaded on Tower Hill
for treason against his king, Henry VIII
. Elizabeth had two sisters, Mary, Lady Bergavenny and Catherine, Countess Westmoreland, and a brother, Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford
.
in 1509, and soon became her devoted friend for life. She also accompanied her husband to Ireland when we was sent on a mission there in 1520-22 and then again in 1524, when he gained the dukedom of Norfolk.
, Earl of Surrey, who in 1524, would become the 3rd Duke of Norfolk
. The marriage was his second. Elizabeth was against it from the start as her father Buckingham had promised her in marriage to Ralph Neville, Earl of Westmorland his ward whom Elizabeth was in love with. Howard however wouldn't accept any of Elizabeth's sisters as a wife and wanted her. Howard's first wife had been Anne of York, the daughter of Edward IV, but none of their children had lived beyond early infancy. According to some letters Elizabeth wrote about the early days of the marriage, when the two seemed to have been bound together by mutual love and loyalty. Elizabeth bore her husband four surviving children but their marriage was unhappy in the later days. He had taken in 1527 as his mistress Elizabeth Holland, whom, Elizabeth described as "a churl's daughter who was but a washer in my nursery for eight years" , though this was far from accurate, as Holland belonged to a family of local gentry and even served Anne Boleyn as a lady-in-waiting.
The Duke's infatuation caused the marriage to decay, and resulted eventually in Elizabeth leaving the family home, in 1533. She was then relocated to Redbourne
, Hertfordshire, from where she wrote many letters to Thomas Cromwell, accusing her husband and his servants of various ill-treatment, some of which appears extreme and possibly implausible.In March 1534 she wrote: She complained that she lived as a virtual prisoner and only got a paltry sum of 200 pounds as allowance, and even asserted her husband had exhorted her servants to sit on her while she had been pregnant. An accusation he strenuously denied as being preposterous, claiming no decent man would treat a "woman in child-bed" in such a way. A suggestion that her accusations of brutality are possibly exaggerated, if not invented, might lie in the fact that the records show her husband was desperately seeking divorce and was offering her return of her jewels and clothes if she would agree, implying it would have made little sense to alienate her in some of the ways she describes. Even when urged by Cromwell and others, Elizabeth refused either to give Norfolk an official divorce,, or to reconcile with him and live under his roof. According to a letter she wrote to Thomas Cromwell on 3 March 1539, she was determined
In January 1547, her husband and eldest son, Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey
, were arrested on charges of treason. Elizabeth was interrogated, as were Elizabeth Holland, and other members of the family, but not imprisoned, possibly saved by her estrangement from her husband. Her son was subsequently beheaded, but her husband was rescued from imminent execution by the death of Henry VIII the night before he was due to die. Norfolk remained in the Tower until 1554, and on his release appears to have been reconciled with Elizabeth. She lived with him until his death the same year.
, was crowned Queen of England. Elizabeth did not like Anne and was staunchly partisan in favour of Catherine of Aragon
. In 1530, Elizabeth smuggled letters received from Italy to Catherine concealed in oranges. In 1531, Elizabeth was exiled from the court for talking too freely against her niece by marriage and siding with Catherine openly. Elizabeth also later told the Spanish Ambassador, Eustace Chapuys
, that Howard had confided in her that "Anne would be the ruin of all her family". Anne, however, managed to win the favour of Elizabeth by arranging brilliant matches for the Howard children. Henry was married to the daughter of John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford
, while Mary married the King's illegitimate son, Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset
. Appeased, Elizabeth stopped plotting against Anne and returned to Court. On 10 September 1533, she stood as one of the two godmothers of Princess Elizabeth
.
She died on 30 November 1558 in Lambeth
, London at the age of sixty-four. Elizabeth was the Dowager
Duchess of Norfolk at the time of her death, her estranged husband, the Duke, having died four years earlier. She was buried on 7 December 1558 in Lambeth.
Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham
Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, KG was an English nobleman. He was the son of Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and the former Lady Catherine Woodville, daughter of the 1st Earl Rivers and sister-in-law of King Edward IV.-Early life:Stafford was born at Brecknock Castle in Wales...
and the wife of Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk
Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk
Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, KG, Earl Marshal was a prominent Tudor politician. He was uncle to Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, two of the wives of King Henry VIII, and played a major role in the machinations behind these marriages...
. She was of royal lineage as she was a direct descendant of Edward III of England
Edward III of England
Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
.
On 10 September 1533, she stood as one of the two godmothers
Godparent
A godparent, in many denominations of Christianity, is someone who sponsors a child's baptism. A male godparent is a godfather, and a female godparent is a godmother...
of Princess Elizabeth
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
.
Family
Elizabeth was born in 1494, the eldest daughter of Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of BuckinghamEdward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham
Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, KG was an English nobleman. He was the son of Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and the former Lady Catherine Woodville, daughter of the 1st Earl Rivers and sister-in-law of King Edward IV.-Early life:Stafford was born at Brecknock Castle in Wales...
(3 September 1478-1521) and Eleanor Percy
House of Percy
The House of Percy were the most powerful noble family in Northern England for much of the Middle Ages, having descended from William de Percy who crossed from Normandy to England with William I in early December 1067 and was rebuilding York Castle in 1070...
. Her paternal grandparents were Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham
Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham
Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, KG played a major role in Richard III of England's rise and fall. He is also one of the primary suspects in the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower...
and Catherine Woodville, and her maternal grandparents were Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland
Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland
Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland, KG son of Henry Percy, 3rd Earl of Northumberland and his wife Eleanor Poynings, daughter of Richard Poynings, Lord Poynings....
and Maud Herbert. Her grandfather, the Duke of Buckingham, was executed in 1483 by King Richard III
Richard III of England
Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...
for treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
, and in 1521, her own father suffered the same fate when he was beheaded on Tower Hill
Tower Hill
Tower Hill is an elevated spot northwest of the Tower of London, just outside the limits of the City of London, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Formerly it was part of the Tower Liberty under the direct administrative control of Tower...
for treason against his king, Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
. Elizabeth had two sisters, Mary, Lady Bergavenny and Catherine, Countess Westmoreland, and a brother, Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford
Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford
Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford was born in Penshurst, Kent, England the eldest son of Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham and Eleanor Percy, Duchess of Buckingham. Eleanor was the daughter of Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland and Maud Herbert, Countess of Northumberland...
.
Early life
Elizabeth was betrothed to her father's ward Ralph Neville, fourth Earl of Westmorland. The couple seemed to be in love and devoted to each other. Elizabeth first came to court in the train of Catherine of AragonCatherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon , also known as Katherine or Katharine, was Queen consort of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII of England and Princess of Wales as the wife to Arthur, Prince of Wales...
in 1509, and soon became her devoted friend for life. She also accompanied her husband to Ireland when we was sent on a mission there in 1520-22 and then again in 1524, when he gained the dukedom of Norfolk.
Marriage
On 8 January 1513, Elizabeth married Thomas HowardThomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk
Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, KG, Earl Marshal was a prominent Tudor politician. He was uncle to Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, two of the wives of King Henry VIII, and played a major role in the machinations behind these marriages...
, Earl of Surrey, who in 1524, would become the 3rd Duke of Norfolk
Duke of Norfolk
The Duke of Norfolk is the premier duke in the peerage of England, and also, as Earl of Arundel, the premier earl. The Duke of Norfolk is, moreover, the Earl Marshal and hereditary Marshal of England. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the title refers to the...
. The marriage was his second. Elizabeth was against it from the start as her father Buckingham had promised her in marriage to Ralph Neville, Earl of Westmorland his ward whom Elizabeth was in love with. Howard however wouldn't accept any of Elizabeth's sisters as a wife and wanted her. Howard's first wife had been Anne of York, the daughter of Edward IV, but none of their children had lived beyond early infancy. According to some letters Elizabeth wrote about the early days of the marriage, when the two seemed to have been bound together by mutual love and loyalty. Elizabeth bore her husband four surviving children but their marriage was unhappy in the later days. He had taken in 1527 as his mistress Elizabeth Holland, whom, Elizabeth described as "a churl's daughter who was but a washer in my nursery for eight years" , though this was far from accurate, as Holland belonged to a family of local gentry and even served Anne Boleyn as a lady-in-waiting.
The Duke's infatuation caused the marriage to decay, and resulted eventually in Elizabeth leaving the family home, in 1533. She was then relocated to Redbourne
Redbourne
Redbourne is a village and civil parish in the North Lincolnshire district of Lincolnshire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 386...
, Hertfordshire, from where she wrote many letters to Thomas Cromwell, accusing her husband and his servants of various ill-treatment, some of which appears extreme and possibly implausible.In March 1534 she wrote: She complained that she lived as a virtual prisoner and only got a paltry sum of 200 pounds as allowance, and even asserted her husband had exhorted her servants to sit on her while she had been pregnant. An accusation he strenuously denied as being preposterous, claiming no decent man would treat a "woman in child-bed" in such a way. A suggestion that her accusations of brutality are possibly exaggerated, if not invented, might lie in the fact that the records show her husband was desperately seeking divorce and was offering her return of her jewels and clothes if she would agree, implying it would have made little sense to alienate her in some of the ways she describes. Even when urged by Cromwell and others, Elizabeth refused either to give Norfolk an official divorce,, or to reconcile with him and live under his roof. According to a letter she wrote to Thomas Cromwell on 3 March 1539, she was determined
In January 1547, her husband and eldest son, Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey
Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey
Henry Howard, KG, , known as The Earl of Surrey although he never was a peer, was an English aristocrat, and one of the founders of English Renaissance poetry.-Life:...
, were arrested on charges of treason. Elizabeth was interrogated, as were Elizabeth Holland, and other members of the family, but not imprisoned, possibly saved by her estrangement from her husband. Her son was subsequently beheaded, but her husband was rescued from imminent execution by the death of Henry VIII the night before he was due to die. Norfolk remained in the Tower until 1554, and on his release appears to have been reconciled with Elizabeth. She lived with him until his death the same year.
Relationship with Anne Boleyn
In 1533, Howard's niece, Anne BoleynAnne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn ;c.1501/1507 – 19 May 1536) was Queen of England from 1533 to 1536 as the second wife of Henry VIII of England and Marquess of Pembroke in her own right. Henry's marriage to Anne, and her subsequent execution, made her a key figure in the political and religious upheaval that was the...
, was crowned Queen of England. Elizabeth did not like Anne and was staunchly partisan in favour of Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon , also known as Katherine or Katharine, was Queen consort of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII of England and Princess of Wales as the wife to Arthur, Prince of Wales...
. In 1530, Elizabeth smuggled letters received from Italy to Catherine concealed in oranges. In 1531, Elizabeth was exiled from the court for talking too freely against her niece by marriage and siding with Catherine openly. Elizabeth also later told the Spanish Ambassador, Eustace Chapuys
Eustace Chapuys
Eustace Chapuys was a Savoyard diplomat who served as the Imperial ambassador to England from 1529 until 1545 and is best known for his extensive and detailed correspondence.-Life:...
, that Howard had confided in her that "Anne would be the ruin of all her family". Anne, however, managed to win the favour of Elizabeth by arranging brilliant matches for the Howard children. Henry was married to the daughter of John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford
John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford
John de Vere, 15th Earl of Oxford was an English peer and courtier.-Biography:John de Vere was the son of John de Vere and Alice Kilrington , and the great-grandson of Richard de Vere, 11th Earl of Oxford, succeeding his second cousin, John de Vere, 14th Earl of Oxford.Oxford was Esquire of the...
, while Mary married the King's illegitimate son, Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset
Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset
Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset was the son of King Henry VIII of England and his teenage mistress, Elizabeth Blount, the only illegitimate offspring whom Henry acknowledged.-Childhood:...
. Appeased, Elizabeth stopped plotting against Anne and returned to Court. On 10 September 1533, she stood as one of the two godmothers of Princess Elizabeth
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
.
She died on 30 November 1558 in Lambeth
Lambeth
Lambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
, London at the age of sixty-four. Elizabeth was the Dowager
Dowager
A dowager is a widow who holds a title or property, or dower, derived from her deceased husband. As an adjective, "Dowager" usually appears in association with monarchical and aristocratic titles....
Duchess of Norfolk at the time of her death, her estranged husband, the Duke, having died four years earlier. She was buried on 7 December 1558 in Lambeth.
Issue
- Henry Howard, Earl of SurreyHenry Howard, Earl of SurreyHenry Howard, KG, , known as The Earl of Surrey although he never was a peer, was an English aristocrat, and one of the founders of English Renaissance poetry.-Life:...
(1517-1547). He married Frances de Vere. Their children include Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of NorfolkThomas Howard, 4th Duke of NorfolkThomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk, KG, Earl Marshal was an English nobleman.Norfolk was the son of the poet Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey. He was taught as a child by John Foxe, the Protestant martyrologist, who remained a lifelong recipient of Norfolk's patronage...
. The Earl was executed for treason in 1547. - Mary Howard, Duchess of Richmond (1519–1557). She married 28 November 1533 Henry Fitzroy, 1st Duke of Richmond (1519–1536). They had no children. She was lady-in-waiting to Anne BoleynAnne BoleynAnne Boleyn ;c.1501/1507 – 19 May 1536) was Queen of England from 1533 to 1536 as the second wife of Henry VIII of England and Marquess of Pembroke in her own right. Henry's marriage to Anne, and her subsequent execution, made her a key figure in the political and religious upheaval that was the...
and Anne of ClevesAnne of ClevesAnne of Cleves was a German noblewoman and the fourth wife of Henry VIII of England and as such she was Queen of England from 6 January 1540 to 9 July 1540. The marriage was never consummated, and she was not crowned queen consort...
. - Thomas Howard, 1st Viscount Howard of BindonViscount Howard of BindonViscount Howard of Bindon was a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1559 for Thomas Howard, second son of Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk. His two sons, the second and third Viscount, both succeeded him in the title. As neither had any male children, the title became extinct on...
(1520–1582). He married four times: Elizabeth Marney, by whom he had five children; Gertrude Lyte, by whom he had two children; Mabel Burton, by whom he had one daughter; and lastly, Margaret Manning but this marriage was childless.