Lady Elizabeth Mortimer
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Mortimer, Baroness Camoys (12 February 1371 – 20 April 1417) was an English noblewoman, who, as the granddaughter of Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence
, was in the line of succession to the English throne. Her first husband was Sir Henry Percy, known to history as "Hotspur". She married secondly Thomas de Camoys, 1st Baron Camoys
.
She is represented as Kate, Lady Percy in William Shakespeare
's play Henry IV, Part 1
and briefly again as "Widow Percy" in Henry IV, Part 2
.
, Monmouthshire
, Wales
the eldest daughter and child of Edmund Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March, and Philippa Plantagenet, 5th Countess of Ulster
. Her mother Philippa was the only child of Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence, and Elizabeth de Burgh, Countess of Ulster. Lionel was the second eldest son of King Edward III of England
, therefore Lady Elizabeth, through her mother, was in the second senior line of succession to the English throne. Her younger brother, Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March was in point of fact, King Richard II
's heir presumptive
.
Besides Roger, she had two other brothers, Sir Edmund Mortimer
and John; she had also one younger sister, Philippa, who married firstly John Hastings, 3rd Earl of Pembroke
, secondly, Sir Thomas Poynings, and thirdly as his second wife, Richard Fitzalan, 11th Earl of Arundel
.
. He was about five or seven years her senior, and would later acquire the reputation as a great soldier and warrior, known to history by the nickname of "Hotspur". Together the couple resided at Alnwick Castle
in Northumberland
, and they had three children:
On 21 July 1403, her husband was killed in the Battle of Shrewsbury
, while commanding the rebel army which fought against the royalist forces of King Henry IV
. He was buried in Whitchurch, Shropshire
; however when rumours circulated throughout the kingdom that he was still alive, King Henry ordered that his body be exhumed. This done, the King dispatched Percy's head to York
where it was impaled on the city's gate; his four quarters were first sent to London
, Newcastle upon Tyne
, Bristol
, and Chester
before they were finally delivered to Elizabeth. She had him buried in York Minster
in November of that same year. In January 1404, her husband was posthumously declared a traitor
and his lands were forfeited to the Crown.
Sometime after 1403, she married her second husband Thomas de Camoys, 1st Baron Camoys
, by whom she had two additional children:
Upon her marriage to Camoys, Elizabeth was styled Baroness Camoys. Like her first husband, Baron Camoys was a renowned soldier who commanded the left wing of the English Army at the Battle of Agincourt
on 25 October 1415.
at Trotton
, Sussex
. Her second husband was buried beside her; and their table-tomb with its fine monumental brass
depicting the couple holding hands, can be viewed in the middle of the chancel
inside the church.
Through her eldest daughter, Elizabeth Percy, Queen consort Jane Seymour
was among her many descendants.
Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence
Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence, jure uxoris 4th Earl of Ulster and 5th Baron of Connaught, KG was the third son, but the second son to survive infancy, of Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault...
, was in the line of succession to the English throne. Her first husband was Sir Henry Percy, known to history as "Hotspur". She married secondly Thomas de Camoys, 1st Baron Camoys
Thomas de Camoys, 1st Baron Camoys
Thomas de Camoys, 1st Baron Camoys, KG , was an English peer and soldier.De Camoys was the son of Sir John de Camoys. In August 1383 he was summoned to the House of Lords as Lord Camoys. He fought in the Hundred Years' War and commanded the left wing of the English Army at the Battle of Agincourt...
.
She is represented as Kate, Lady Percy in William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's play Henry IV, Part 1
Henry IV, Part 1
Henry IV, Part 1 is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written no later than 1597. It is the second play in Shakespeare's tetralogy dealing with the successive reigns of Richard II, Henry IV , and Henry V...
and briefly again as "Widow Percy" in Henry IV, Part 2
Henry IV, Part 2
Henry IV, Part 2 is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed written between 1596 and 1599. It is the third part of a tetralogy, preceded by Richard II and Henry IV, Part 1 and succeeded by Henry V.-Sources:...
.
Claim to the English throne
Lady Elizabeth was born in UskUsk
Usk is a small town in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated 10 miles northeast of Newport.The River Usk flows through the town and is spanned by an ancient, arched stone bridge at the western entrance to the town. A castle above the town overlooks the ancient Anglo-Welsh border crossing - the river can...
, Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire is a county in south east Wales. The name derives from the historic county of Monmouthshire which covered a much larger area. The largest town is Abergavenny. There are many castles in Monmouthshire .-Historic county:...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
the eldest daughter and child of Edmund Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March, and Philippa Plantagenet, 5th Countess of Ulster
Philippa Plantagenet, 5th Countess of Ulster
Philippa of Clarence was the Countess of Ulster suo jure.Philippa was born in Eltham Palace, Kent, England on 16 August 1355. She was the daughter and only child of Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence and Elizabeth de Burgh, 4th Countess of Ulster...
. Her mother Philippa was the only child of Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence, and Elizabeth de Burgh, Countess of Ulster. Lionel was the second eldest son of King 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...
, therefore Lady Elizabeth, through her mother, was in the second senior line of succession to the English throne. Her younger brother, Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March was in point of fact, King Richard II
Richard II of England
Richard II was King of England, a member of the House of Plantagenet and the last of its main-line kings. He ruled from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. Richard was a son of Edward, the Black Prince, and was born during the reign of his grandfather, Edward III...
's heir presumptive
Heir Presumptive
An heir presumptive or heiress presumptive is the person provisionally scheduled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir or heiress apparent or of a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question...
.
Besides Roger, she had two other brothers, Sir Edmund Mortimer
Edmund Mortimer
-Members of the Marcher family of Mortimer:*Edmund Mortimer, 2nd Baron Wigmore*Edmund Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March, and his second son*Edmund Mortimer, son of the 3rd Earl*Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March...
and John; she had also one younger sister, Philippa, who married firstly John Hastings, 3rd Earl of Pembroke
John Hastings, 3rd Earl of Pembroke
John Hastings, 3rd Earl of Pembroke was the son of John Hastings, 2nd Earl of Pembroke and Anne Manny, 2nd Baroness Manny...
, secondly, Sir Thomas Poynings, and thirdly as his second wife, Richard Fitzalan, 11th Earl of Arundel
Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel
Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel and 9th Earl of Surrey KG was an English medieval nobleman and military commander.-Lineage:...
.
Marriages and issue
On an unknown date, sometime before 10 December 1379, when she was still a child, she married her first husband, Henry Percy, eldest son of Henry Percy, 1st Earl of NorthumberlandHenry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland
Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland, 4th Baron Percy, titular King of Mann, KG, Lord Marshal was the son of Henry de Percy, 3rd Baron Percy and a descendent of Henry III of England. His mother was Mary of Lancaster, daughter of Henry, 3rd Earl of Lancaster, son of Edmund, Earl of Leicester and...
. He was about five or seven years her senior, and would later acquire the reputation as a great soldier and warrior, known to history by the nickname of "Hotspur". Together the couple resided at Alnwick Castle
Alnwick Castle
Alnwick Castle is a castle and stately home in the town of the same name in the English county of Northumberland. It is the residence of the Duke of Northumberland, built following the Norman conquest, and renovated and remodelled a number of times. It is a Grade I listed building.-History:Alnwick...
in Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
, and they had three children:
- Henry Percy, 2nd Earl of NorthumberlandHenry Percy, 2nd Earl of NorthumberlandHenry Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland was an English nobleman and military commander in the lead up to the Wars of the Roses. He was the son of Henry "Hotspur" Percy, and the grandson of Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland...
(3 February 1393- 22 May 1455), married Eleanor Neville, by whom he had issue. He was killed in the First Battle of St AlbansFirst Battle of St AlbansThe First Battle of St Albans, fought on 22 May 1455 at St Albans, 22 miles north of London, traditionally marks the beginning of the Wars of the Roses. Richard, Duke of York and his ally, Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, defeated the Lancastrians under Edmund, Duke of Somerset, who was killed...
during the series of dynastic civil wars known as the Wars of the RosesWars of the RosesThe Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic civil wars for the throne of England fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet: the houses of Lancaster and York...
. - Lady Elizabeth PercyLady Elizabeth PercyLady Elizabeth Percy was the daughter of Henry Hotspur Percy and Lady Elizabeth Mortimer.She married John Clifford, 7th Baron de Clifford in 1404. They had the following children:...
(c.1395- 26 October 1437), married firstly John Clifford, 7th Baron de CliffordJohn Clifford, 7th Baron de CliffordSir John Clifford, 7th Baron de Clifford, also 7th Lord of Skipton, KG , hereditary High Sheriff of Westmorland was an English peer.-Life:...
, by whom she had issue; secondly Ralph Neville, 2nd Earl of WestmorlandRalph Neville, 2nd Earl of WestmorlandRalph Neville, 2nd Earl of Westmorland was an English peer.The eldest son of John Neville, Lord Neville, he became heir apparent to his grandfather Ralph de Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland upon his father's death in 1420...
, by whom she had one son, John. - Matilda Percy, died young.
On 21 July 1403, her husband was killed in the Battle of Shrewsbury
Battle of Shrewsbury
The Battle of Shrewsbury was a battle fought on 21 July 1403, waged between an army led by the Lancastrian King, Henry IV, and a rebel army led by Henry "Hotspur" Percy from Northumberland....
, while commanding the rebel army which fought against the royalist forces of King Henry IV
Henry IV of England
Henry IV was King of England and Lord of Ireland . He was the ninth King of England of the House of Plantagenet and also asserted his grandfather's claim to the title King of France. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence his other name, Henry Bolingbroke...
. He was buried in Whitchurch, Shropshire
Whitchurch, Shropshire
Whitchurch is a market town in Shropshire, England on the border between England and Wales. It is the oldest continuously inhabited town in Shropshire. According to the 2001 Census, the population of the town is 8,673, with a more recent estimate putting the population of the town at 8,934...
; however when rumours circulated throughout the kingdom that he was still alive, King Henry ordered that his body be exhumed. This done, the King dispatched Percy's head to York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
where it was impaled on the city's gate; his four quarters were first sent to 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...
, Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
, Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, and Chester
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
before they were finally delivered to Elizabeth. She had him buried in York Minster
York Minster
York Minster is a Gothic cathedral in York, England and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe alongside Cologne Cathedral. The minster is the seat of the Archbishop of York, the second-highest office of the Church of England, and is the cathedral for the Diocese of York; it is run by...
in November of that same year. In January 1404, her husband was posthumously declared a traitor
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 his lands were forfeited to the Crown.
Sometime after 1403, she married her second husband Thomas de Camoys, 1st Baron Camoys
Thomas de Camoys, 1st Baron Camoys
Thomas de Camoys, 1st Baron Camoys, KG , was an English peer and soldier.De Camoys was the son of Sir John de Camoys. In August 1383 he was summoned to the House of Lords as Lord Camoys. He fought in the Hundred Years' War and commanded the left wing of the English Army at the Battle of Agincourt...
, by whom she had two additional children:
- Roger Camoys (1406–1473)
- Alice Camoys (died 1455), married Sir Leonard Hastings, by whom she had issue, including William Hastings, 1st Baron HastingsWilliam Hastings, 1st Baron HastingsWilliam Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings KG was an English nobleman. A follower of the House of York, he became a close friend and the most important courtier of King Edward IV, whom he served as Lord Chamberlain...
.
Upon her marriage to Camoys, Elizabeth was styled Baroness Camoys. Like her first husband, Baron Camoys was a renowned soldier who commanded the left wing of the English Army at the Battle of Agincourt
Battle of Agincourt
The Battle of Agincourt was a major English victory against a numerically superior French army in the Hundred Years' War. The battle occurred on Friday, 25 October 1415 , near modern-day Azincourt, in northern France...
on 25 October 1415.
In fiction
Lady Elizabeth is represented as Kate, Lady Percy in William Shakespeare's play Henry IV, Part 1.Death
Elizabeth died on 20 April 1417 at the age of 46 years. She was buried in St. George's ChurchSt. George's church, Trotton
St. George's Church is an Anglican church in Trotton, a village in the district of Chichester, one of seven local government districts in the English county of West Sussex. Most of the structure was built in the early 14th century. However, some parts date to around 1230, and there is...
at Trotton
Trotton
Trotton is a village in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. It lies within the civil parish of Trotton with Chithurst, on the A272 road 3 miles west of Midhurst. The A272 crosses the River Rother at Trotton Bridge near the church....
, Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
. Her second husband was buried beside her; and their table-tomb with its fine monumental brass
Monumental brass
Monumental brass is a species of engraved sepulchral memorial which in the early part of the 13th century began to partially take the place of three-dimensional monuments and effigies carved in stone or wood...
depicting the couple holding hands, can be viewed in the middle of the chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
inside the church.
Through her eldest daughter, Elizabeth Percy, Queen consort Jane Seymour
Jane Seymour
Jane Seymour was Queen of England as the third wife of King Henry VIII. She succeeded Anne Boleyn as queen consort following the latter's execution for trumped up charges of high treason, incest and adultery in May 1536. She died of postnatal complications less than two weeks after the birth of...
was among her many descendants.