Mabel Browne
Encyclopedia
Mabel Browne, Countess of Kildare (c. 1536 – 25 August 1610) was the wife of Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Kildare
, Baron of Offaly (25 February 1525 – 16 November 1585). She was born into the English Roman Catholic Browne family whose members held prominent positions at the courts of the Tudor
sovereigns for three generations. Mabel served as a gentlewoman of Queen Mary I's
Privy Chamber
, and enjoyed the Queen's favour.
, England
in about 1536, to Sir Anthony Browne, Knight of the Garter, Master of the Horse
, and his first wife Alice Gage. Her paternal grandparents were Sir Anthony Browne, Standard Bearer of England
and Governor of Queenborough Castle, and Lucy Neville. Her maternal grandparents were Sir John Gage
and Philippa Guildford. Mabel had five brothers, including Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montagu
, and two sisters. One of her aunts was Elizabeth Browne, a lady-in-waiting
to Anne Boleyn
.
In 1540, her mother died. In 1543, when Mabel was about seven years of age, her father married secondly, Elizabeth FitzGerald, an Irish noblewoman, also known as The Fair Geraldine, after a sonnet
written for her by Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey
.
The Brownes were staunch Roman Catholics. This fact, however, did not deter King Henry VIII
from granting Mabel's father, the ownership of Battle Abbey
in East Sussex after the Dissolution of the Monasteries
. Mabel spent her childhood mostly at Battle Abbey and Cowdray House
, in West Sussex which came into Sir Anthony's possession in 1542.
Her father died 6 May 1548, and his widow married secondly Edward Clinton, 1st Earl of Lincoln
.
in her Royal and Illustrious Ladies, the pair actually met at a masked ball and Mabel immediately fell in love with him. FitzGerald was given his sobriquet on account of his interest in alchemy
. They were married in the Chapel Royal
during the reign of Queen Mary I
, who held the Browne family in high esteem.
Mabel was a gentlewoman of Queen Mary's Privy Chamber
, and in February, the same year of his marriage to Mabel, FitzGerald had helped suppress the rebellion of Sir Thomas Wyatt
. Mabel went to live with her husband at Kilkea Castle
, Kildare
, in Ireland, the country where she was to spend most of her life. Together FitzGerald and Mabel had five children.
, as Mabel's recusant leanings were well known. She kept a number of priests in her household, including her private chaplain Nicholas Eustace, who was related to the Catholic rebel James Eustace, 3rd Viscount Baltinglass
, and she hired the suspected Father Compton to serve as the tutor of her children. She was also a close friend of Jane Dormer
, Duchess of Feria, their friendship dating from the time when they had both served in the household of Queen Mary. According to author Vincent P. Carey, Mabel "maintained a refuge and library for the Jesuit missionary Robert Rochfort.
Despite her overt Roman Catholicism, Mabel was never accused of treason
against Queen Elizabeth.
's historical romance Green Darkness
, where her brother Viscount Montagu, his wife Magdalen Dacre, and Cowdray Castle are featured prominently.
Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Kildare
Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Kildare , also known as the "Wizard Earl" , was an Irish peer....
, Baron of Offaly (25 February 1525 – 16 November 1585). She was born into the English Roman Catholic Browne family whose members held prominent positions at the courts of the Tudor
sovereigns for three generations. Mabel served as a gentlewoman of Queen Mary I's
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...
Privy Chamber
Privy chamber
A Privy chamber was the private apartment of a royal residence in England. The gentlemen of the Privy chamber were servants to the Crown who would wait and attend on the King and Queen at court during their various activities, functions and entertainments....
, and enjoyed the Queen's favour.
Family
Mabel was born in SussexSussex
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...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in about 1536, to Sir Anthony Browne, Knight of the Garter, Master of the Horse
Master of the Horse
The Master of the Horse was a position of varying importance in several European nations.-Magister Equitum :...
, and his first wife Alice Gage. Her paternal grandparents were Sir Anthony Browne, Standard Bearer of England
Standard Bearer of England
The Standard Bearer of England was once an important office within the English army, especially during the times when Kings were still present on the battlefield...
and Governor of Queenborough Castle, and Lucy Neville. Her maternal grandparents were Sir John Gage
Sir John Gage
Sir John Gage KG was an English courtier during the Tudor period. He held a number of offices, including Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster , Comptroller of the Household , Constable of the Tower and Lord Chamberlain .-Early life and family:Gage was born in 1479 at Burstow in Surrey...
and Philippa Guildford. Mabel had five brothers, including Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montagu
Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montagu
Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montagu KG PC was an English peer during the Tudor period.He was the eldest son of Sir Anthony Browne...
, and two sisters. One of her aunts was Elizabeth Browne, a lady-in-waiting
Lady-in-waiting
A lady-in-waiting is a female personal assistant at a royal court, attending on a queen, a princess, or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman from a family highly thought of in good society, but was of lower rank than the woman on whom she...
to Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn ;c.1501/1507 – 19 May 1536) was Queen of England from 1533 to 1536 as the second wife of Henry VIII of England and Marquess of Pembroke in her own right. Henry's marriage to Anne, and her subsequent execution, made her a key figure in the political and religious upheaval that was the...
.
In 1540, her mother died. In 1543, when Mabel was about seven years of age, her father married secondly, Elizabeth FitzGerald, an Irish noblewoman, also known as The Fair Geraldine, after a sonnet
Sonnet
A sonnet is one of several forms of poetry that originate in Europe, mainly Provence and Italy. A sonnet commonly has 14 lines. The term "sonnet" derives from the Occitan word sonet and the Italian word sonetto, both meaning "little song" or "little sound"...
written for her by Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey
Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey
Henry Howard, KG, , known as The Earl of Surrey although he never was a peer, was an English aristocrat, and one of the founders of English Renaissance poetry.-Life:...
.
The Brownes were staunch Roman Catholics. This fact, however, did not deter King 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...
from granting Mabel's father, the ownership of Battle Abbey
Battle Abbey
Battle Abbey is a partially ruined abbey complex in the small town of Battle in East Sussex, England. The abbey was built on the scene of the Battle of Hastings and dedicated to St...
in East Sussex after the Dissolution of the Monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
. Mabel spent her childhood mostly at Battle Abbey and Cowdray House
Cowdray House
Cowdray House consists of the ruins of one of England's great Tudor houses, architecturally comparable to many of the great palaces and country houses of that time. It is situated just east of Midhurst, West Sussex standing on the north bank of the River Rother...
, in West Sussex which came into Sir Anthony's possession in 1542.
Her father died 6 May 1548, and his widow married secondly Edward Clinton, 1st Earl of Lincoln
Edward Clinton, 1st Earl of Lincoln
Edward Fiennes, 1st Earl of Lincoln, KG, also known as Edward Clinton was an English nobleman and Lord High Admiral.-Background:...
.
Marriage
On 28 May 1554, when she was about eighteen years old, Mabel married a brother of her stepmother, Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Kildare, known as The Wizard Earl, whom she had met at the court of King Edward VI. According to historian Mary Anne Everett GreenMary Anne Everett Green
Mary Anne Everett Green, née Wood, was an English historian. After establishing a reputation for scholarship with two multi-volume books on royal ladies and noblewomen, she was invited to assist in preparing guides, or "calendars", to a collection of hitherto disorganised historical state papers...
in her Royal and Illustrious Ladies, the pair actually met at a masked ball and Mabel immediately fell in love with him. FitzGerald was given his sobriquet on account of his interest in alchemy
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
. They were married in the Chapel Royal
Chapel Royal
A Chapel Royal is a body of priests and singers who serve the spiritual needs of their sovereign wherever they are called upon to do so.-Austria:...
during the reign of Queen Mary I
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...
, who held the Browne family in high esteem.
Mabel was a gentlewoman of Queen Mary's Privy Chamber
Privy chamber
A Privy chamber was the private apartment of a royal residence in England. The gentlemen of the Privy chamber were servants to the Crown who would wait and attend on the King and Queen at court during their various activities, functions and entertainments....
, and in February, the same year of his marriage to Mabel, FitzGerald had helped suppress the rebellion of Sir Thomas Wyatt
Thomas Wyatt
Thomas Wyatt may refer to:* Thomas Wyatt , English poet* Thomas Wyatt the younger , rebel leader* Thomas Henry Wyatt , British architect...
. Mabel went to live with her husband at Kilkea Castle
Kilkea Castle
Kilkea Castle is located just northwest of Castledermot, County Kildare, Ireland near the village of Kilkea on the R418 regional road from Athy to Tullow. It was a medieval stronghold of the Fitzgeralds, earls of Kildare.- History of the Castle :...
, Kildare
Kildare
-External links:*******...
, in Ireland, the country where she was to spend most of her life. Together FitzGerald and Mabel had five children.
Issue
- Lady Elizabeth FitzGerald (died 12 January 1617), married Donnchadh MacConchobhair O'BrienDonogh O'Brien, 4th Earl of ThomondDonogh O'Brien, 4th Earl of Thomond and Baron of Ibrickan was an Irish nobleman and soldier noted for his loyalty to the English Crown...
, 4th Earl of ThomondEarl of Thomond"Earl of Thomond" was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created twice for the family of Ó Briain. The O'Brien dynasty were an ancient Irish sept native to north Munster....
, by whom she had issue. - Lord Gerald FitzGerald, Lord Offaly, Lord Garratt (28 December 1559 MaynoothMaynoothMaynooth is a town in north County Kildare, Ireland. It is home to a branch of the National University of Ireland, a Papal University and Ireland's main Roman Catholic seminary, St. Patrick's College...
- June 1580), married in October 1578, Catherine Knollys, a granddaughter of Mary BoleynMary BoleynMary Boleyn , was the sister of English queen consort Anne Boleyn and a member of the Boleyn family, which enjoyed considerable influence during the reign of King Henry VIII of England...
. They had a daughter LetticeLettice Digby, 1st Baroness OffalyLettice FitzGerald, 1st Baroness Offaly was an Irish noblewoman and a member of the powerful FitzGerald dynasty. Heiress-general to the Earls of Kildare on the death of her father, the title instead went to the next FitzGerald male heir when her grandfather, the 11th Earl of Kildare died in 1585...
who married Sir Robert Digby. These were the direct ancestors of the celebrated 19th-century adventuress Jane Digby. - Lord Henry Na Tuagh FitzGerald, 12th Earl of KildareHenry FitzGerald, 12th Earl of Kildare-Background:Kildare was the son of Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Kildare and Mabel Browne.-Military career:Nicknamed Henry "na Tuagh", or Henry "of the Battleaxes", he fought against the Spanish invaders in Ireland in 1588...
, (1562- 1597 DroghedaDroghedaDrogheda is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, 56 km north of Dublin. It is the last bridging point on the River Boyne before it enters the Irish Sea....
), married Lady Frances Howard, by whom he had female issue. - Lord William FitzGerald, 13th Earl of Kildare (died April 1599)
- Lady Mary FitzGerald (died 1 October 1610), married Christopher NugentChristopher NugentSir Christopher Nugent, 6th Baron Delvin was an Irish nobleman and writer. He was arrested on suspicion of treason against Queen Elizabeth I of England, and died while in confinement before his trial had taken place....
, 14th Baron Delvin, by whom she had issue.
Recusant leanings
While Mabel had enjoyed the favour of Queen Mary, she was less welcome at the court of the latter's successor, Queen Elizabeth IElizabeth 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...
, as Mabel's recusant leanings were well known. She kept a number of priests in her household, including her private chaplain Nicholas Eustace, who was related to the Catholic rebel James Eustace, 3rd Viscount Baltinglass
James Eustace, 3rd Viscount Baltinglass
James Eustace of Harristown, 3rd Viscount BaltinglassJames FitzEustace, the eldest son of Roland FitzEustace, the 2nd Viscount of Baltinglass and Joan, daughter of James Butler, 8th Baron Dunboyne. He was born in 1530 and died in Spain in 1585...
, and she hired the suspected Father Compton to serve as the tutor of her children. She was also a close friend of Jane Dormer
Jane Dormer
Jane Dormer, Duchess of Feria was an English lady-in-waiting to Mary I who went on to serve as the Duchess of Feria.-Biography:...
, Duchess of Feria, their friendship dating from the time when they had both served in the household of Queen Mary. According to author Vincent P. Carey, Mabel "maintained a refuge and library for the Jesuit missionary Robert Rochfort.
Despite her overt Roman Catholicism, Mabel was never accused of treason
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...
against Queen Elizabeth.
In fiction
Mabel Browne is a minor character in Anya SetonAnya Seton
Anya Seton was the pen name of Ann Seton, an American author of historical romances.-Biography:...
's historical romance Green Darkness
Green Darkness
Green Darkness is the 1972 novel by Anya Seton.-Plot summary:In the 1960s, young Celia Marsdon is a rich American heiress who, upon her marriage to English aristocrat Richard Marsdon, goes to live at an ancestral manor in Sussex, England. Shortly afterward, strange things begin to occur —...
, where her brother Viscount Montagu, his wife Magdalen Dacre, and Cowdray Castle are featured prominently.