Lady Catherine Grey
Encyclopedia
Lady Catherine Grey Countess of Hertford, was the younger sister of Lady Jane Grey
. A granddaughter of Henry VIII
's sister Mary, she was a potential successor to her cousin, Queen Elizabeth I of England
, but incurred Elizabeth's wrath by her secret marriage to Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford
. She lived in captivity until her death.
in the vicinity of Leicester
. She was the second surviving daughter of Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk
, by his marriage to Lady Frances Brandon
. She was the younger sister of Lady Jane Grey
and older sister of Lady Mary Grey. Catherine Grey's maternal grandparents were Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk
and Mary Tudor, younger daughter of Henry VII
, and former Queen consort of France.
Through her grandmother, the Grey sisters had a claim to the English throne. They were preceded in proximity only by Henry VIII's three children - Prince Edward
, Lady Mary
and Lady Elizabeth
- and the descendents of Margaret Tudor
, the elder daughter of Henry VII and Queen consort of Scotland, after 1542 represented by Mary, Queen of Scots. However, Henry VIII had excluded the Scottish line from the English succession in his will, placing the Grey sisters next-in-line after his own children.
was dying, the King and his chief minister, John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland
, attempted to exclude his sister Mary from the succession and put Catherine's elder sister Jane on the throne. To support this succession, Jane was married to Northumberland's son, Guilford Dudley, on 21 May 1553. The same day, Catherine was married to Henry Herbert
, son of William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke at Durham House. After the wedding, Catherine went to live with her husband at Baynard's Castle
on the Thames. When Jane's accession failed due to a lack of popular support, the Earl of Pembroke sought to distance himself from the Grey family by separating from Catherine and seeking the annulment
of the marriage. Pembroke secured the Queen Mary
's favour, but after another rebellion Jane Grey, Guilford Dudley and their fathers were executed for high treason
in February 1554.
, introduced Catherine to her brother, Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford
. Without seeking the Queen's permission, the two were married in December 1560 in a secret ceremony at Edward's house in Canon Row, with Jane Seymour being the only witness.
Shortly afterwards, the Queen sent Edward Seymour with Thomas Cecil
, eldest son of William Cecil
, on a tour across Europe
to improve their education. Seymour provided his wife with a document that would, in the event of his death, allow her to prove the marriage and inherit his property, but Catherine lost the document. Thus, after Jane Seymour died of tuberculosis
in 1561, Catherine was unable to prove that she was married.
, she decided to ask someone to plead for her with the Queen. She first confided in Bess of Hardwick
, who refused to listen to Catherine and berated her for implicating her. Catherine then went to her brother-in-law, Robert Dudley
. Visiting his bedroom in the middle of the night, she explained her dilemma. As Dudley's room adjoined the Queen's chamber, he was afraid they might be overheard or that he might be caught with a visibly pregnant woman at his bedside, and tried to get rid of Catherine as soon as he could. The next day he told Elizabeth everything he knew regarding Catherine and her pregnancy.
Elizabeth was greatly angered that her cousin had married without her permission. The marriage upset Anglo-Scottish diplomacy, as a possible union between Catherine and the Earl of Arran
, a young and unstable nobleman with a strong claim to the Scottish throne, was now removed from the table. The Queen also disapproved of her choice of husband and, still unmarried, also feared that Catherine's ability to bear a son could facilitate a rebellion in support of Catherine as queen. To Catherine's misfortune, her claim to the throne was at the time argued by a book written by John Hales.
Elizabeth had Catherine imprisoned in the Tower of London
, where Edward joined her on his return to England. Bess of Hardwick was also imprisoned, as Elizabeth became convinced that the marriage was part of a wider conspiracy against herself. Sir Edward Warner, the Lieutenant of the Tower, permitted secret visits between Catherine and Edward. Warner reported that the furnishings of Catherine's room, which were provided from the royal wardrobe in the Tower, had been damaged by her pet monkey and dogs. While imprisoned in the Tower, Catherine gave birth to two sons:
In 1562, the marriage was annulled and the Seymours were censured as fornicators for their "carnal copulation" by the Archbishop of Canterbury
's commission. This rendered the children illegitimate and thus ineligible to succeed to the throne. However, they were nevertheless courted as potential heirs to the Crown.
. For two years she was in his custody, and probably resided at Ingatestone Hall
; then she was removed to Sir John Wentworth's (a kinsman of Petre's first wife) at Gosfield Hall
, and after seventeen months' confinement there was taken to Cockfield Hall
at Yoxford
in Suffolk
.
There, Lady Catherine died fourteen days later on 26 January 1568 at the age of twenty-seven of consumption
. She was buried in the Cockfield Chapel in Yoxford
church in Suffolk
.
Lady Jane Grey
Lady Jane Grey , also known as The Nine Days' Queen, was an English noblewoman who was de facto monarch of England from 10 July until 19 July 1553 and was subsequently executed...
. A granddaughter 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...
's sister Mary, she was a potential successor to her cousin, Queen Elizabeth I of England
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...
, but incurred Elizabeth's wrath by her secret marriage to Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford
Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford
Sir Edward Seymour, 1st Baron Beauchamp of Hache and 1st Earl of Hertford, KG was the son of Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, by his second wife Anne Stanhope....
. She lived in captivity until her death.
Family and claim to the throne
She was born at Bradgate ParkBradgate Park
Bradgate Park is a public park in Charnwood Forest, in Leicestershire, England, just northwest of Leicester. It covers 850 acres . The park lies between the villages of Newtown Linford, Anstey, Cropston, Woodhouse Eaves and Swithland. The River Lin runs through the park, flowing into Cropston...
in the vicinity of Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
. She was the second surviving daughter of Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk
Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk
Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk, 3rd Marquess of Dorset, KG was an English nobleman of the Tudor period and the father of Lady Jane Grey.-Henry VIII's reign:...
, by his marriage to Lady Frances Brandon
Lady Frances Brandon
Frances Grey, Duchess of Suffolk , born Lady Frances Brandon, was the second child and eldest daughter of Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk and Mary Tudor, Dowager Queen of France...
. She was the younger sister of Lady Jane Grey
Lady Jane Grey
Lady Jane Grey , also known as The Nine Days' Queen, was an English noblewoman who was de facto monarch of England from 10 July until 19 July 1553 and was subsequently executed...
and older sister of Lady Mary Grey. Catherine Grey's maternal grandparents were Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, 1st Viscount Lisle, KG was the son of Sir William Brandon and Elizabeth Bruyn. Through his third wife Mary Tudor he was brother-in-law to Henry VIII. His father was the standard-bearer of Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond and was slain by Richard III in person at...
and Mary Tudor, younger daughter of 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....
, and former Queen consort of France.
Through her grandmother, the Grey sisters had a claim to the English throne. They were preceded in proximity only by Henry VIII's three children - Prince Edward
Edward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
, Lady Mary
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
and Lady 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...
- and the descendents of Margaret Tudor
Margaret Tudor
Margaret Tudor was the elder of the two surviving daughters of Henry VII of England and Elizabeth of York, and the elder sister of Henry VIII. In 1503, she married James IV, King of Scots. James died in 1513, and their son became King James V. She married secondly Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of...
, the elder daughter of Henry VII and Queen consort of Scotland, after 1542 represented by Mary, Queen of Scots. However, Henry VIII had excluded the Scottish line from the English succession in his will, placing the Grey sisters next-in-line after his own children.
Jane Grey and Catherine's first marriage
In 1553, as King Edward VIEdward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
was dying, the King and his chief minister, John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland
John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland
John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, KG was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady Jane Grey on the English throne after the King's death...
, attempted to exclude his sister Mary from the succession and put Catherine's elder sister Jane on the throne. To support this succession, Jane was married to Northumberland's son, Guilford Dudley, on 21 May 1553. The same day, Catherine was married to Henry Herbert
Henry Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke
Henry Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke KG was an English peer of the Elizabethan era.-Life:He was the son of William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke and Anne Parr. His aunt was queen consort Catherine Parr, last wife of King Henry VIII. Herbert was responsible for the costly restoration of Cardiff Castle...
, son of William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke at Durham House. After the wedding, Catherine went to live with her husband at Baynard's Castle
Baynard's Castle
Baynard's Castle refers to buildings on two neighbouring sites in London, between where Blackfriars station and St Paul's Cathedral now stand. The first was a Norman fortification constructed by Ralph Baynard and demolished by King John in 1213. The second was a medieval palace built a short...
on the Thames. When Jane's accession failed due to a lack of popular support, the Earl of Pembroke sought to distance himself from the Grey family by separating from Catherine and seeking the annulment
Annulment
Annulment is a legal procedure for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning almost as if it had never taken place...
of the marriage. Pembroke secured the Queen Mary
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
's favour, but after another rebellion Jane Grey, Guilford Dudley and their fathers were executed for high treason
High treason
High treason is criminal disloyalty to one's government. Participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplomats, or its secret services for a hostile and foreign power, or attempting to kill its head of state are perhaps...
in February 1554.
Potential heir under Mary and Elizabeth
After Jane Grey's execution, her sister Catherine inherited her claim to the throne. During the first phase of Queen Mary's reign, Catherine was a potential successor as Mary was yet unmarried and her younger sister Elizabeth was regarded as illegitimate. Demoted when Elizabeth was declared heir, Catherine's claim came to the fore again when Elizabeth came to the throne in November 1558. At one point the Queen seemed to be warming to Catherine as a potential Protestant heir, with rumours speaking of a possible adoption, but any such opportunities were cut short by Catherine's second marriage.Second marriage
One of Catherine's friends, Jane Seymour, daughter of Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of SomersetEdward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset
Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, 1st Earl of Hertford, 1st Viscount Beauchamp of Hache, KG, Earl Marshal was Lord Protector of England in the period between the death of Henry VIII in 1547 and his own indictment in 1549....
, introduced Catherine to her brother, Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford
Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford
Sir Edward Seymour, 1st Baron Beauchamp of Hache and 1st Earl of Hertford, KG was the son of Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, by his second wife Anne Stanhope....
. Without seeking the Queen's permission, the two were married in December 1560 in a secret ceremony at Edward's house in Canon Row, with Jane Seymour being the only witness.
Shortly afterwards, the Queen sent Edward Seymour with Thomas Cecil
Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter
Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter, KG , known as Lord Burghley from 1598 to 1605, was an English politician and soldier.-Life:...
, eldest son of William Cecil
William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley
William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley , KG was an English statesman, the chief advisor of Queen Elizabeth I for most of her reign, twice Secretary of State and Lord High Treasurer from 1572...
, on a tour across Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to improve their education. Seymour provided his wife with a document that would, in the event of his death, allow her to prove the marriage and inherit his property, but Catherine lost the document. Thus, after Jane Seymour died of tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
in 1561, Catherine was unable to prove that she was married.
Imprisonment
Catherine concealed the marriage from everyone for months, even after she became pregnant; in her eighth month of pregnancy and on progress with the Court in IpswichIpswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
, she decided to ask someone to plead for her with the Queen. She first confided in Bess of Hardwick
Bess of Hardwick
Elizabeth Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury Elizabeth Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury Elizabeth Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury (c. 1521 – 13 February 1608, known as Bess of Hardwick, was the daughter of John Hardwick, of Derbyshire and Elizabeth Leeke, daughter of Thomas Leeke and Margaret Fox...
, who refused to listen to Catherine and berated her for implicating her. Catherine then went to her brother-in-law, Robert Dudley
Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester
Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, KG was an English nobleman and the favourite and close friend of Elizabeth I from her first year on the throne until his death...
. Visiting his bedroom in the middle of the night, she explained her dilemma. As Dudley's room adjoined the Queen's chamber, he was afraid they might be overheard or that he might be caught with a visibly pregnant woman at his bedside, and tried to get rid of Catherine as soon as he could. The next day he told Elizabeth everything he knew regarding Catherine and her pregnancy.
Elizabeth was greatly angered that her cousin had married without her permission. The marriage upset Anglo-Scottish diplomacy, as a possible union between Catherine and the Earl of Arran
James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran
James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran was a Scottish nobleman and soldier who fought against French troops during the Scottish Reformation....
, a young and unstable nobleman with a strong claim to the Scottish throne, was now removed from the table. The Queen also disapproved of her choice of husband and, still unmarried, also feared that Catherine's ability to bear a son could facilitate a rebellion in support of Catherine as queen. To Catherine's misfortune, her claim to the throne was at the time argued by a book written by John Hales.
Elizabeth had Catherine imprisoned in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
, where Edward joined her on his return to England. Bess of Hardwick was also imprisoned, as Elizabeth became convinced that the marriage was part of a wider conspiracy against herself. Sir Edward Warner, the Lieutenant of the Tower, permitted secret visits between Catherine and Edward. Warner reported that the furnishings of Catherine's room, which were provided from the royal wardrobe in the Tower, had been damaged by her pet monkey and dogs. While imprisoned in the Tower, Catherine gave birth to two sons:
- Edward Seymour, Lord Beauchamp of Hache (1561–1612), who married Honora Rogers and fathered six children, including William Seymour, 2nd Duke of SomersetWilliam Seymour, 2nd Duke of SomersetSir William Seymour, 2nd Duke of Somerset, KG was an English nobleman and Royalist commander in the English Civil War....
. Among his descendents was 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...
, mother of Queen Elizabeth II. - Thomas Seymour (born 1563).
In 1562, the marriage was annulled and the Seymours were censured as fornicators for their "carnal copulation" by the Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
's commission. This rendered the children illegitimate and thus ineligible to succeed to the throne. However, they were nevertheless courted as potential heirs to the Crown.
Final years
After the birth of her second child in 1563, the enraged Queen ordered Catherine's permanent separation from her husband and younger son. Catherine was removed to the care of her uncle, Sir John Grey, at Pirgo. She stayed there until November 1564, when she was committed to the charge of Sir William PetreWilliam Petre
Sir William Petre was a secretary of state to Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I.Educated as a lawyer at Oxford, he became a public servant, probably through the influence of the Boleyns, one of whom, George, he had tutored at Oxford and another of whom, Anne, was married to the king...
. For two years she was in his custody, and probably resided at Ingatestone Hall
Ingatestone Hall
Ingatestone Hall is a sixteenth century manor house in Essex, England. It was built by Sir William Petre, and his descendants live in the House to this day.Queen Elizabeth I of England spent several nights at the hall on her royal progress of 1561....
; then she was removed to Sir John Wentworth's (a kinsman of Petre's first wife) at Gosfield Hall
Gosfield Hall
Gosfield Hall near Braintree in Essex, England was built in 1545 by Sir John Wentworth, a member of Cardinal Wolsey’s household, and hosted Royal visits by Queen Elizabeth I and her grand retinue throughout the middle of the 16th century....
, and after seventeen months' confinement there was taken to Cockfield Hall
Cockfield Hall
Cockfield Hall in Yoxford in Suffolk is a Grade I listed private house standing in of historic parkland, dating from the 16th century. It was built by the Spring family, wealthy cloth merchants and later baronets of Pakenham....
at Yoxford
Yoxford
Yoxford is a village in the east of Suffolk, England close to the Heritage Coast, Minsmere Reserve , Aldeburgh and Southwold.-Location and features:...
in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
.
There, Lady Catherine died fourteen days later on 26 January 1568 at the age of twenty-seven of consumption
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
. She was buried in the Cockfield Chapel in Yoxford
Yoxford
Yoxford is a village in the east of Suffolk, England close to the Heritage Coast, Minsmere Reserve , Aldeburgh and Southwold.-Location and features:...
church in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
.
Ancestry
Further reading
- de Lisle, Leanda: The Sisters Who Would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine & Lady Jane Grey Harper Press 2009
- Ellis, Henry, Original Letters illustrative of English History, 2nd series vol. 2, London (1827), pp. 272–290.
External links
- Catherine at Cockfield Hall — Tudor Place
See also
- Anne Stanley, Countess of Castlehaven