Henry Somerset, 1st Marquess of Worcester
Encyclopedia
Henry Somerset, 1st Marquess of Worcester (bef. 1590 – 18 December 1646) was an English aristocrat, inheriting the title Earl of Worcester from his father Edward Somerset, 4th Earl of Worcester
, in 1628. He was a prominent and financially important royalist.
, of £24,000. By good management, as well as by inheritance and marriage, he built up major holdings in property. When war came, he claimed to have expended and lent £900,000 to the royalist cause.
Charles I asked him to keep a low profile in public life. Some noted recusants, such as Gwilym Puw and his chaplain Thomas Bayly
, gathered around him at Raglan Castle
. His local support was increased by the fact that he was not identified as a courtier. For his financial support of King Charles I at the outset of the First English Civil War
, he was created 1st Marquess of Worcester, on 2 November 1642.
After the battle of Naseby
, King Charles sought refuge at Raglan, in the period June to September 1645. The next year, the Marquess was forced to surrender Raglan Castle to the forces of Sir Thomas Morgan, 1st Baronet
, late in 1646, marking the effective end of the Civil War in Wales. He was taken into custody by the Parliamentary forces, and died in Covent Garden
, on 18 December 1646.
and Elizabeth Hastings
. On 3 March 1628, he succeeded his father and became the 5th Earl of Worcester
. He married Hon. Anne Russell, daughter of John Russell, Baron Russell and Elizabeth Cooke on 16 June 1600. Anne's paternal grandparents were Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford
and his wife Margaret St. John. Anne's maternal grandparents were Sir Anthony Cooke and his wife Anne FitzWilliam.
With his wife, he had nine sons and four daughters including, Edward Somerset, 2nd Marquess of Worcester
, his heir and successor, and Sir John Somerset, who married Hon. Mary Arundell
, a daughter of the 1st Baron Arundell of Wardour, co. Wiltshire
by his second wife.
Edward Somerset, 4th Earl of Worcester
Edward Somerset, 4th Earl of Worcester, KG, Earl Marshal was an English aristocrat. He was an important advisor to King James I, serving as Lord Privy Seal....
, in 1628. He was a prominent and financially important royalist.
Life
Brought up a Protestant, he converted to Catholicism as a young man. He was considered an outstandingly wealthy peer, with an income, by the contemporary estimate of Richard SymondsRichard Symonds (diarist)
Richard Symonds was an English royalist and antiquary, now remembered for an eye-witness diary he wrote of events of the First English Civil War.-Life:...
, of £24,000. By good management, as well as by inheritance and marriage, he built up major holdings in property. When war came, he claimed to have expended and lent £900,000 to the royalist cause.
Charles I asked him to keep a low profile in public life. Some noted recusants, such as Gwilym Puw and his chaplain Thomas Bayly
Thomas Bailey (Controversialist)
Thomas Bailey or Bayly was a seventeenth-century English religious controversialist, a Royalist Church of England clergyman who converted to Roman Catholicism....
, gathered around him at Raglan Castle
Raglan Castle
Raglan Castle is a late medieval castle located just north of the village of Raglan in the county of Monmouthshire in south east Wales. The modern castle dates from between the 15th and early 17th-centuries, when the successive ruling families of the Herberts and the Somersets created a luxurious,...
. His local support was increased by the fact that he was not identified as a courtier. For his financial support of King Charles I at the outset of the First English Civil War
First English Civil War
The First English Civil War began the series of three wars known as the English Civil War . "The English Civil War" was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations that took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1651, and includes the Second English Civil War and...
, he was created 1st Marquess of Worcester, on 2 November 1642.
After the battle of Naseby
Battle of Naseby
The Battle of Naseby was the key battle of the first English Civil War. On 14 June 1645, the main army of King Charles I was destroyed by the Parliamentarian New Model Army commanded by Sir Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell.-The Campaign:...
, King Charles sought refuge at Raglan, in the period June to September 1645. The next year, the Marquess was forced to surrender Raglan Castle to the forces of Sir Thomas Morgan, 1st Baronet
Sir Thomas Morgan, 1st Baronet
Major-General Sir Thomas Morgan, 1st Baronet was a Welsh soldier during the English Civil War, and Commander-in-Chief in Scotland during the Restoration....
, late in 1646, marking the effective end of the Civil War in Wales. He was taken into custody by the Parliamentary forces, and died in Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
, on 18 December 1646.
Family
He was the son of Edward Somerset, 4th Earl of WorcesterEdward Somerset, 4th Earl of Worcester
Edward Somerset, 4th Earl of Worcester, KG, Earl Marshal was an English aristocrat. He was an important advisor to King James I, serving as Lord Privy Seal....
and Elizabeth Hastings
Elizabeth Somerset, Countess of Worcester (1556–1621)
Elizabeth Hastings, later Countess of Worcester was a noblewoman born in Scotland to Francis Hastings, 2nd Earl of Huntingdon and Catherine Pole. In December 1571, she married Sir Edward Somerset, 4th Earl of Worcester, son of Sir William Somerset, 3rd Earl of Worcester and Christian North...
. On 3 March 1628, he succeeded his father and became the 5th Earl of Worcester
Earl of Worcester
Earl of Worcester is a title that has been created five times in the Peerage of England. The first creation came in 1138 in favour of the Norman noble Waleran de Beaumont. He was the son of Robert de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Leicester, by Elizabeth of Vermandois, and the twin brother of Robert de...
. He married Hon. Anne Russell, daughter of John Russell, Baron Russell and Elizabeth Cooke on 16 June 1600. Anne's paternal grandparents were Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford
Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford
Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford, KG was an English nobleman, soldier and politician and godfather to Sir. Francis Drake.-Early life:...
and his wife Margaret St. John. Anne's maternal grandparents were Sir Anthony Cooke and his wife Anne FitzWilliam.
With his wife, he had nine sons and four daughters including, Edward Somerset, 2nd Marquess of Worcester
Edward Somerset, 2nd Marquess of Worcester
Edward Somerset, 2nd Marquess of Worcester , styled Lord Herbert of Ragland from 1628–1644, was an English nobleman involved in royalist politics and an inventor...
, his heir and successor, and Sir John Somerset, who married Hon. Mary Arundell
Mary Arundell, Baroness Arundell
Mary Arundell was born in Wriothesley, Staffordshire, to Henry Wriothesley, 2nd Earl of Southampton and Mary Browne...
, a daughter of the 1st Baron Arundell of Wardour, co. Wiltshire
Thomas Arundell, 1st Baron Arundell of Wardour
Sir Thomas Arundell, 1st Baron Arundell of Wardour was the eldest son of Sir Matthew Arundell of Wardour Castle in Wiltshire , and Margaret Willoughby, the daughter of Sir Henry Willoughby, of Wollaton, Nottinghamshire...
by his second wife.