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Alice FitzAlan (1350-1416)
Encyclopedia
Alice Holland, Countess of Kent (1350 – 17 March 1416), formerly Lady Alice FitzAlan, was an English noblewoman, a daughter of the 10th Earl of Arundel
, and the wife of the 2nd Earl of Kent
, the half-brother of King Richard II
. She was the maternal grandmother of Anne Mortimer, thus an ancestor of King Edward IV
and King Richard III
. Through her daughter, Margaret, King Henry VII
was her descendant. She was also the maternal grandmother of Joan Beaufort, Queen of Scotland
.
She was appointed a Lady of the Garter in 1388.
in Sussex, England, the second daughter of the 10th Earl of Arundel, and Lady Eleanor of Lancaster
. She had six siblings who included the Richard FitzAlan
, later 11th Earl of Arundel, and Lady Joan FitzAlan, later Countess of Hereford, Essex, and Northampton. She also had three half-siblings from her parents' previous marriages.
Her paternal grandparents were the 9th Earl of Arundel
and Alice de Warenne
, and her maternal grandparents were the 3rd Earl of Lancaster
and Maud Chaworth
.
Edmund Mortimer who would in 1360 become the 3rd Earl of March
. The marriage however did not take place. Alice married instead on 10 April 1364, 2nd Earl of Kent
, one of the half-brothers of the future King Richard II by his mother Joan of Kent
's first marriage to Thomas Lord Holland
. She received from her father a marriage portion of 4000 marks. Upon her marriage, she was styled Lady Holland. She did not, however, become Countess of Kent until 1381, when her husband succeeded his father as Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent
.
Lord Holland was appointed captain of the English forces in Aquitaine
in 1366, and in 1375, he was made a Knight of the Garter. Two years later in 1377, his half-brother Richard succeeded to the throne of England, as King Richard II. Alice's husband would become one of the young King's chief counsellors and exert a strong influence over his brother which led to the enrichment of Thomas and Alice. Alice was appointed a Lady of the Garter, an order of chivalry
, in 1388.
Together Thomas and Alice had ten children:
, the son-in-law of her elder sister, Joan. In January 1400, Alice's eldest son Thomas, who had succeeded his father as the 3rd Earl of Kent, was captured at Cirencester
and beheaded
without a trial by a mob of angry citizens as a consequence of having been one of the chief conspirators in the Epiphany Rising
. The rebels had hoped to seize and murder King Henry, and immediately restore King Richard to the throne. Less than three years earlier, her brother Richard Fitzalan, 11th Earl of Arundel and a Lord Appellant had been executed for his opposition to King Richard.
Alice herself died on 17 March 1416 at the age of sixty-six years.
, Richard III
, Henry VII
; whom from the latter descended the Tudor monarchs. Alice was also an ancestress of Scottish king James II of Scotland
and his successors which included Mary, Queen of Scots and James I of England
. Her other notable descendants include the last queen consort of Henry VIII
, Catherine Parr
; Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick
known in history as Warwick the Kingmaker; Cecily Bonville, and Anne Bourchier, 7th Baroness Bourchier
. Living descendants of Alice Fitzalan include the current British Royal Family
.
Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel
Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel and 8th Earl of Surrey was an English nobleman and medieval military leader.- Lineage :...
, and the wife of the 2nd Earl of Kent
Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent
Thomas Holland , 2nd Earl of Kent, 3rd Baron Holand KG was an English nobleman and a councillor of his half-brother, King Richard II of England.-Family and early Life:...
, the half-brother of 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...
. She was the maternal grandmother of Anne Mortimer, thus an ancestor of King Edward IV
Edward IV of England
Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...
and 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...
. Through her daughter, Margaret, King Henry VII
Henry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
was her descendant. She was also the maternal grandmother of Joan Beaufort, Queen of Scotland
Joan Beaufort, Queen of Scotland
Joan Beaufort was the Queen Consort of Scotland from 1424 to 1437 as the spouse of King James I of Scotland. During part of the minority of her son James II , she served as the Regent of Scotland....
.
She was appointed a Lady of the Garter in 1388.
Family
Lady Alice FitzAlan was born in 1350 at Arundel CastleArundel Castle
Arundel Castle in Arundel, West Sussex, England is a restored medieval castle. It was founded by Roger de Montgomery on Christmas Day 1067. Roger became the first to hold the earldom of Arundel by the graces of William the Conqueror...
in Sussex, England, the second daughter of the 10th Earl of Arundel, and Lady Eleanor of Lancaster
Eleanor of Lancaster
Eleanor of Lancaster, Countess of Arundel was the fifth daughter of Henry, 3rd Earl of Lancaster and Maud Chaworth.-First marriage and issue:...
. She had six siblings who included the Richard FitzAlan
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:...
, later 11th Earl of Arundel, and Lady Joan FitzAlan, later Countess of Hereford, Essex, and Northampton. She also had three half-siblings from her parents' previous marriages.
Her paternal grandparents were the 9th Earl of Arundel
Edmund FitzAlan, 9th Earl of Arundel
Edmund FitzAlan, 9th Earl of Arundel was an English nobleman prominent in the conflict between Edward II and his barons. His father, Richard FitzAlan, 8th Earl of Arundel, died in 1302 while Edmund was still a minor. He therefore became a ward of John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, and married...
and Alice de Warenne
Alice de Warenne
Alice de Warenne, Countess of Arundel was an English noblewoman and heir apparent to the Earldom of Surrey. In 1305, she married Edmund FitzAlan, 9th Earl of Arundel.-Family:...
, and her maternal grandparents were the 3rd Earl of Lancaster
Henry, 3rd Earl of Lancaster
Henry , 3rd Earl of Leicester and Lancaster was an English nobleman, one of the principals behind the deposition of Edward II of England.-Family and lineage:...
and Maud Chaworth
Maud Chaworth
Maud de Chaworth was an English noblewoman and wealthy heiress. She was the only child of Patrick de Chaworth. Sometime before 2 March 1297, she married Henry, 3rd Earl of Lancaster, by whom she had seven children...
.
Marriage and issue
In 1354, at the age of four, Lady Alice was betrothed to her father's wardWard (law)
In law, a ward is someone placed under the protection of a legal guardian. A court may take responsibility for the legal protection of an individual, usually either a child or incapacitated person, in which case the ward is known as a ward of the court, or a ward of the state, in the United States,...
Edmund Mortimer who would in 1360 become the 3rd Earl of March
Earl of March
The title The Earl of March has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of England. The title derived from the "marches" or boundaries between England and either Wales or Scotland , and was held by several great feudal families which owned lands in those border...
. The marriage however did not take place. Alice married instead on 10 April 1364, 2nd Earl of Kent
Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent
Thomas Holland , 2nd Earl of Kent, 3rd Baron Holand KG was an English nobleman and a councillor of his half-brother, King Richard II of England.-Family and early Life:...
, one of the half-brothers of the future King Richard II by his mother Joan of Kent
Joan of Kent
Joan, Countess of Kent , known to history as The Fair Maid of Kent, was the first English Princess of Wales...
's first marriage to Thomas Lord Holland
Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent
Thomas Holland , 2nd Earl of Kent, 3rd Baron Holand KG was an English nobleman and a councillor of his half-brother, King Richard II of England.-Family and early Life:...
. She received from her father a marriage portion of 4000 marks. Upon her marriage, she was styled Lady Holland. She did not, however, become Countess of Kent until 1381, when her husband succeeded his father as Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent
Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent
Thomas Holland , 2nd Earl of Kent, 3rd Baron Holand KG was an English nobleman and a councillor of his half-brother, King Richard II of England.-Family and early Life:...
.
Lord Holland was appointed captain of the English forces in Aquitaine
Aquitaine
Aquitaine , archaic Guyenne/Guienne , is one of the 27 regions of France, in the south-western part of metropolitan France, along the Atlantic Ocean and the Pyrenees mountain range on the border with Spain. It comprises the 5 departments of Dordogne, :Lot et Garonne, :Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Landes...
in 1366, and in 1375, he was made a Knight of the Garter. Two years later in 1377, his half-brother Richard succeeded to the throne of England, as King Richard II. Alice's husband would become one of the young King's chief counsellors and exert a strong influence over his brother which led to the enrichment of Thomas and Alice. Alice was appointed a Lady of the Garter, an order of chivalry
Chivalry
Chivalry is a term related to the medieval institution of knighthood which has an aristocratic military origin of individual training and service to others. Chivalry was also the term used to refer to a group of mounted men-at-arms as well as to martial valour...
, in 1388.
Together Thomas and Alice had ten children:
- Alianore HollandAlianore HollandAlianore Holland, Countess of March was an English noblewoman, and the wife of Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March the heir presumptive of her half-uncle King Richard II of England, and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. She was the mother of Anne Mortimer, and Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March...
(1373- October 1405), married firstly Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March, by whom she had issue, including Anne Mortimer and Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March; she married secondly, Edward Charleton, 5th Baron CherletonEdward Charleton, 5th Baron CherletonEdward Charleton , 5th Baron Cherleton, KG , 5th and last Lord Charlton of Powys, was the younger son of John Charlton, the third baron, and his wife, Joan, daughter of Lord Stafford....
, by whom she had two daughters. - Thomas Holland, 1st Duke of SurreyThomas Holland, 1st Duke of SurreyThomas Holland, 1st Duke of Surrey, 3rd Earl of Kent, 4th Baron Holland, KG, Earl Marshal was an English nobleman.-Early life and family:...
(1374- 7 January 1400), married Joan Stafford, but the marriage was childless. - John Holland (died young)
- Richard Holland (died young)
- Elizabeth Holland (died 4 January 1423), married Sir John Neville, Lord Neville by whom she had issue.
- Joan HollandJoan HollandJoan Holland was the third daughter of Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent, and Alice FitzAlan. She married four times. Her first husband was a duke, and the following three were barons...
(1380- 12 April 1434), married firstly as his second wife, Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of YorkEdmund of Langley, 1st Duke of YorkEdmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, 1st Earl of Cambridge, KG was a younger son of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault, the fourth of the five sons who lived to adulthood, of this Royal couple. Like so many medieval princes, Edmund gained his identifying nickname from his...
; married secondly William de Willoughby, 5th Lord Willoughby de Eresby; married thirdly Henry le Scrope, 3rd Baron Scrope of Masham, her fourth husband was Henry Bromflete, 1st Lord Vessy. All her marriages were childless. - Edmund Holland, 4th Earl of KentEdmund Holland, 4th Earl of KentEdmund Holland, 4th Earl of Kent, 5th Baron Holand, KG was the Earl of Kent in ca. 1400 – ca. 1407. He was the 106th Knight of the Order of the Garter in 1403....
(6 January 1384 – 15 September 1408), married Lucia ViscontiBernabo ViscontiBernabò Visconti was an Italian soldier and statesman, who was Lord of Milan.-Life:He was born in Milan, the son of Stefano Visconti and Valentina Doria. From 1346 to 1349 he lived in exile, until he was called back by his uncle Giovanni Visconti...
(1372- 14 April 1424), but the marriage was childless. He fathered an illegitimate daughter Eleanor de Holland (born 1406), by his mistress Constance of YorkConstance of YorkConstance of York, Countess of Gloucester was the only daughter of Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York and his wife Isabella of Castile, daughter of Pedro of Castile and Maria de Padilla. On about 7 November 1379, Constance married Thomas le Despenser, 1st Earl of Gloucester , who was eventually...
. - Margaret HollandMargaret HollandMargaret Holland, Countess of Somerset was the daughter of Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent, who was the son of Joan "the Fair Maid of Kent"...
(1385- 30 December 1439), married firstly John Beaufort, 1st Earl of SomersetJohn Beaufort, 1st Earl of SomersetJohn Beaufort, 1st Marquess of Somerset and 1st Marquess of Dorset, later only 1st Earl of Somerset, KG was the first of the four illegitimate children of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, and his mistress Katherine Swynford, later his wife...
, by whom she had issue including John Beaufort, 1st Duke of SomersetJohn Beaufort, 1st Duke of SomersetJohn Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset, KG was an English noble and military commander.-Family:Baptised on 25 March 1404, he was the second son of John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset and Margaret Holland, and succeeded his elder brother Henry Beaufort, 2nd Earl of Somerset to become the 3rd Earl of...
and Joan Beaufort, Queen of ScotlandJoan Beaufort, Queen of ScotlandJoan Beaufort was the Queen Consort of Scotland from 1424 to 1437 as the spouse of King James I of Scotland. During part of the minority of her son James II , she served as the Regent of Scotland....
; she married secondly Thomas of Lancaster, 1st Duke of ClarenceThomas of Lancaster, 1st Duke of ClarenceThomas of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Clarence, KG , also known as Thomas Plantagenet, was the second son of King Henry IV of England and his first wife, Mary de Bohun. He was born before 25 November 1387 as on that date his father's accounts note a payment made to a woman described as his nurse...
. - Eleanor HollandEleanor HollandEleanor Holland, Countess of Salisbury , was an English noblewoman, the daughter of Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent, a half-brother of King Richard II of England. She was the first wife of Thomas Montacute, 4th Earl of Salisbury. One of her brothers was Edmund Holland, 4th Earl of Kent, to whom...
(1386- after 1413), married Thomas Montacute, 4th Earl of SalisburyThomas Montacute, 4th Earl of SalisburyThomas Montacute, 4th Earl of Salisbury, 6th and 3rd Baron Montacute, 5th Baron Monthermer, and Count of Perche, KG was an English nobleman...
, by whom she had one daughter, Alice Montacute, 5th Countess of Salisbury. - Bridget Holland (died before 1416), a nun at Barking AbbeyBarking AbbeyThe ruined remains of Barking Abbey are situated in Barking in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham in east London, England, and now form a public open space.- History :...
.
Later years
Alice's husband died on 25 April 1397. In 1399, King Richard was deposed, and the throne was usurped by Henry IVHenry 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...
, the son-in-law of her elder sister, Joan. In January 1400, Alice's eldest son Thomas, who had succeeded his father as the 3rd Earl of Kent, was captured at Cirencester
Cirencester
Cirencester is a market town in east Gloucestershire, England, 93 miles west northwest of London. Cirencester lies on the River Churn, a tributary of the River Thames, and is the largest town in the Cotswold District. It is the home of the Royal Agricultural College, the oldest agricultural...
and beheaded
Decapitation
Decapitation is the separation of the head from the body. Beheading typically refers to the act of intentional decapitation, e.g., as a means of murder or execution; it may be accomplished, for example, with an axe, sword, knife, wire, or by other more sophisticated means such as a guillotine...
without a trial by a mob of angry citizens as a consequence of having been one of the chief conspirators in the Epiphany Rising
Epiphany Rising
The Epiphany Rising was a failed rebellion against Henry IV of England in January 1400.-Background:After the murder of Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester in 1397, Richard II rewarded those who had supported him against Gloucester and the Lords Appellant with a plethora of new titles.Upon...
. The rebels had hoped to seize and murder King Henry, and immediately restore King Richard to the throne. Less than three years earlier, her brother Richard Fitzalan, 11th Earl of Arundel and a Lord Appellant had been executed for his opposition to King Richard.
Alice herself died on 17 March 1416 at the age of sixty-six years.
Descendants
Alice had many illustrious descendants which included English kings Edward IVEdward IV of England
Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...
, 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...
, Henry VII
Henry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
; whom from the latter descended the Tudor monarchs. Alice was also an ancestress of Scottish king James II of Scotland
James II of Scotland
James II reigned as King of Scots from 1437 to his death.He was the son of James I, King of Scots, and Joan Beaufort...
and his successors which included Mary, Queen of Scots and James I of England
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
. Her other notable descendants include the last queen consort of 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...
, Catherine Parr
Catherine Parr
Catherine Parr ; 1512 – 5 September 1548) was Queen consort of England and Ireland and the last of the six wives of King Henry VIII of England. She married Henry VIII on 12 July 1543. She was the fourth commoner Henry had taken as his consort, and outlived him...
; Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick
Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick
Richard Neville KG, jure uxoris 16th Earl of Warwick and suo jure 6th Earl of Salisbury and 8th and 5th Baron Montacute , known as Warwick the Kingmaker, was an English nobleman, administrator, and military commander...
known in history as Warwick the Kingmaker; Cecily Bonville, and Anne Bourchier, 7th Baroness Bourchier
Anne Bourchier, 7th Baroness Bourchier
Anne Bourchier was the suo jure 7th Baroness Bourchier, suo jure Lady Lovayne, and Baroness Parr of Kendal. She was the first wife of William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton, Earl of Essex, and the sister-in-law of Catherine Parr, the sixth wife of Henry VIII of England.She created a scandal in...
. Living descendants of Alice Fitzalan include the current British Royal Family
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
.