Elizabeth Lyon, Countess of Strathmore
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Stanhope, Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne (May 1663- 24 April 1723), was an English noblewoman and the wife of Scottish peer John Lyon, 4th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne
. Born to Lady Elizabeth Butler
and Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield
, her paternity was in doubt. It is possible that her actual father was James, Duke of York, who would in 1685 ascend the throne as King James II of England
.
She was the subject of three portraits in mezzotint
published by Alexander Browne after Sir Peter Lely. These are displayed at the National Portrait Gallery, in London
.
, England, the daughter of Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield and Lady Elizabeth Butler, eldest daughter of James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde
. Her paternity was in doubt as despite her putative father's own licentious conduct, having been the lover of the notorious Barbara Villiers, mistress of King Charles II of England
, he believed that Elizabeth was not his daughter. Prior to her birth, Samuel Pepys
alleged that Elizabeth's mother, tired of her husband's neglect of her in his pursuit of Barbara Villiers, had had affairs with both James Hamilton
and James, Duke of York
, who would later rule as King James II of England. In fact, she was caught in flagrante with the latter. It is possible, although it cannot be firmly established, that Elizabeth was in fact an illegitimate child of the Duke of York. Historian and author Antonia Fraser describes Elizabeth's mother as having been one of his mistresses.
Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon
, the father of York's wife, Anne Hyde
, stood as Elizabeth's godfather
at her baptism
.
Lady Elizabeth never knew her mother, as she died when Elizabeth was two years of age. Chesterfield subsequently married Elizabeth Dormer, by whom he had two sons.
On 21 September 1691, Elizabeth married Scottish nobleman John Lyon, son of Patrick Lyon, 3rd Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne
. In May 1695, almost four years after their marriage, he succeeded his father as the 4th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne; and from that time onwards, she was styled Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne.
Together they had 10 children:
in Scotland. She was not quite 60 years old.
John Lyon, 4th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne
John Lyon, 4th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne was a Scottish peer and the son of Patrick Lyon, 3rd Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne. He was succeeded by his son, John as Earl....
. Born to Lady Elizabeth Butler
Elizabeth Butler Stanhope, Countess of Chesterfield
Elizabeth Stanhope, Countess of Chesterfield was the second wife of Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield, and the eldest daughter of James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde and Lady Elizabeth Preston.-Marriage:...
and Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield
Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield
Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield PC was a peer in the peerage of England.-Personal life:He was the son of Henry Stanhope, Lord Stanhope and his wife, Katherine Wotton. He inherited the title of Earl of Chesterfield on the death of his grandfather in 1656...
, her paternity was in doubt. It is possible that her actual father was James, Duke of York, who would in 1685 ascend the throne as King James II of England
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
.
She was the subject of three portraits in mezzotint
Mezzotint
Mezzotint is a printmaking process of the intaglio family, technically a drypoint method. It was the first tonal method to be used, enabling half-tones to be produced without using line- or dot-based techniques like hatching, cross-hatching or stipple...
published by Alexander Browne after Sir Peter Lely. These are displayed at the National Portrait Gallery, in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Family
Lady Elizabeth was born in May 1663 at Bretby, DerbyshireDerbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
, England, the daughter of Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield and Lady Elizabeth Butler, eldest daughter of James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde
James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde
James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde PC was an Irish statesman and soldier. He was the second of the Kilcash branch of the family to inherit the earldom. He was the friend of Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford, who appointeed him commander of the Cavalier forces in Ireland. From 1641 to 1647, he...
. Her paternity was in doubt as despite her putative father's own licentious conduct, having been the lover of the notorious Barbara Villiers, mistress of King Charles II of England
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
, he believed that Elizabeth was not his daughter. Prior to her birth, Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys FRS, MP, JP, was an English naval administrator and Member of Parliament who is now most famous for the diary he kept for a decade while still a relatively young man...
alleged that Elizabeth's mother, tired of her husband's neglect of her in his pursuit of Barbara Villiers, had had affairs with both James Hamilton
James Hamilton (colonel)
James Hamilton was an Irish courtier and soldier, the eldest son of Sir George Hamilton, 1st Baronet and Mary Butler.Like his younger brothers, he chose a military career, and became a colonel. A favorite of Charles II, he was appointed Ranger of Hyde Park in 1660 and Groom of the Bedchamber on 28...
and James, Duke of York
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
, who would later rule as King James II of England. In fact, she was caught in flagrante with the latter. It is possible, although it cannot be firmly established, that Elizabeth was in fact an illegitimate child of the Duke of York. Historian and author Antonia Fraser describes Elizabeth's mother as having been one of his mistresses.
Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon
Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon
Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon was an English historian and statesman, and grandfather of two English monarchs, Mary II and Queen Anne.-Early life:...
, the father of York's wife, Anne Hyde
Anne Hyde
Anne Hyde was the first wife of James, Duke of York , and the mother of two monarchs, Mary II of England and Scotland and Anne of Great Britain....
, stood as Elizabeth's godfather
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...
at her baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
.
Lady Elizabeth never knew her mother, as she died when Elizabeth was two years of age. Chesterfield subsequently married Elizabeth Dormer, by whom he had two sons.
Marriage and issue
Patrick Lyon, 3rd Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne
Patrick Lyon, 3rd Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne was a Scottish peer and the son of John Lyon, 2nd Earl of Kinghorne....
. In May 1695, almost four years after their marriage, he succeeded his father as the 4th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne; and from that time onwards, she was styled Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne.
Together they had 10 children:
- Patrick Lyon, Lord Glamis (1692- September 1709)
- Philip Lyon, Lord Glamis (29 October 1693- 18 March 1712), died of smallpoxSmallpoxSmallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
in London; he was unmarried. - John Lyon, 5th Earl of Strathmore and KinghorneJohn Lyon, 5th Earl of Strathmore and KinghorneJohn Lyon, 5th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne was a Scottish peer and the son of John Lyon, 4th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne. He died fighting with the Jacobites in The Battle of Sheriffmuir in 1715...
(27 April 1696- 13 November 1715), was killed at the Battle of SheriffmuirBattle of SheriffmuirThe Battle of Sheriffmuir was an engagement in 1715 at the height of the Jacobite rebellion in England and Scotland.-History:John Erskine, 6th Earl of Mar, standard-bearer for the Jacobite cause in Scotland, mustered Highland chiefs, and on 6 September declared James Francis Edward Stuart as King...
while fighting for the JacobiteJacobitismJacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
cause. Died unmarried. - Charles Lyon, 6th Earl of Strathmore and KinghorneCharles Lyon, 6th Earl of Strathmore and KinghorneCharles Lyon, 6th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne was a Scottish peer and the son of John Lyon, 4th Earl of Strathmore. His exact date of birth is unknown but he was baptised on 12 July 1699....
(baptised 12 July 1699- 11 May 1728), was killed in a brawl; he married Lady Susan Cochrane, but had no legitimate issue. - Hendrie Lyon (born 1 July 1700), died young.
- James Lyon, 7th Earl of Strathmore and KinghorneJames Lyon, 7th Earl of Strathmore and KinghorneJames Lyon, 7th Earl of Strathmore was a Scottish peer and freemason.He was the son of John Lyon, 4th Earl of Strathmore and Lady Elizabeth Stanhope....
(baptised 24 December 1702- 4 January 1735); a Freemason, he married Mary Oliphant, however, their marriage was childless. - Thomas Lyon, 8th Earl of Strathmore and KinghorneThomas Lyon, 8th Earl of Strathmore and KinghorneThomas Lyon, 8th Earl of Strathmore was the son of John Lyon, 4th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne and Lady Elizabeth Stanhope.On 20 July 1736, he married Jean Nicholsen, at Houghton-le-Spring. They had seven children:...
(baptised 6 July 1704- 18 January 1753), married Jean Nicholson (died 13 May 1778), by whom he had issue. Elizabeth Bowes-LyonElizabeth Bowes-LyonElizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon was the queen consort of King George VI from 1936 until her husband's death in 1952, after which she was known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, to avoid confusion with her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II...
, Queen consort of George VI of the United KingdomGeorge VI of the United KingdomGeorge VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death...
was one of his numerous descendants. - Lady Helen Lyon (baptised 8 January 1695- 19 December 1723), married Robert Stuart, 7th Earl of Blantyre; her only son died young
- Lady Mary Lyon (baptised 16 April 1697- 26 May 1780), unmarried.
- Lady Catherine Lyon (baptised 24 April 1707), died young.
Death
Elizabeth died on 24 April 1723 at Castle LyonCastle Huntly
Castle Huntly sits approximately seven miles west of Dundee in the Carse of Gowrie, Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It is situated close to the shore of the Firth of Tay and can be seen from the main road linking Dundee and Perth. The castle sits on top of a rocky outcrop surrounded by what is now...
in Scotland. She was not quite 60 years old.