William Feilding, 1st Earl of Denbigh
Encyclopedia
Cannock
Cannock is the most populous of three towns in the district of Cannock Chase in the central southern part of the county of Staffordshire in the West Midlands region of England....
) was an English naval officer and courtier.
William Feilding was the son of Basil Fielding of Newnham Paddox in Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
, (High Sheriff of Warwickshire
High Sheriff of Warwickshire
The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities associated with the post have been transferred elsewhere or are now defunct, so that its functions...
in 1612), and of Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Walter Aston (1530-1599) and his wife, Elizabeth Leveson.
The descent of the Feildings from the house of Habsburg, through the counts of Laufenburg and Rheinfelden, long considered authentic, and accepted by Edward Gibbon
Edward Gibbon
Edward Gibbon was an English historian and Member of Parliament...
, has been proved to have been based on forged documents.
Feilding matriculated at Queens' College, Cambridge
Queens' College, Cambridge
Queens' College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The college was founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou , and refounded in 1465 by Elizabeth Woodville...
in 1603. Knighted on 4 March 1607, he was appointed Master of the Great Wardrobe in 1622, and Custos Rotulorum of Warwickshire
Custos Rotulorum of Warwickshire
This is a list of people who have served as Custos Rotulorum of Warwickshire.* Sir George Throckmorton bef. 1544–1552* Sir Ambrose Cave bef. 1558–1568* Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester bef. 1573–1588...
in 1628, having been created Baron and Viscount Feilding in 1620, and Earl of Denbigh
Earl of Denbigh
Earl of Denbigh is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1622 for the courtier and soldier William Feilding, 1st Viscount Feilding. He was Master of the Great Wardrobe under King James I and also took part in the Expedition to Cádiz of 1625...
on 14 September 1622. He attended Prince Charles
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
on the Spanish adventure, served as Admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
in the unsuccessful Cadiz Expedition
Cádiz Expedition (1625)
The Cádiz Expedition of 1625 was a naval expedition against Spain by English and Dutch forces.The plan was put forward because after the Dissolution of the Parliament of 1625, the Duke of Buckingham, Lord High Admiral wanted to undertake an expedition that would match the exploits of the heroes of...
in 1625, and commanded the disastrous attempt upon Rochelle
La Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
in 1628, becoming the same year a member of the Council of war
Council of war
A council of war is a term in military science that describes a meeting held to decide on a course of action, usually in the midst of a battle. Under normal circumstances, decisions are made by a commanding officer, optionally communicated and coordinated by staff officers, and then implemented by...
, and in 1633 a Member of the Council of Wales and the Marches. In 1631 Lord Denbigh visited the East.
On the outbreak of the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
he served under Prince Rupert of the Rhine
Prince Rupert of the Rhine
Rupert, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Bavaria, 1st Duke of Cumberland, 1st Earl of Holderness , commonly called Prince Rupert of the Rhine, KG, FRS was a noted soldier, admiral, scientist, sportsman, colonial governor and amateur artist during the 17th century...
and was present at the Battle of Edgehill
Battle of Edgehill
The Battle of Edgehill was the first pitched battle of the First English Civil War. It was fought near Edge Hill and Kineton in southern Warwickshire on Sunday, 23 October 1642....
. On 3 April 1643 during Rupert's attack on Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
he was wounded and died from the effects on the 8th, being buried at Monks Kirby
Monks Kirby
Monks Kirby is a village and civil parish in north-eastern Warwickshire, England. The population of the parish is 434 .Monks Kirby is located around one mile east of the old Fosse Way, around 8 miles north-west of Rugby, seven miles north-east of Coventry and six miles west of Lutterworth....
in Warwickshire. His courage, unselfishness and devotion to duty are much praised by the Earl of Clarendon
Earl of Clarendon
Earl of Clarendon is a title that has been created twice in British history, in 1661 and 1776. The title was created for the first time in the Peerage of England in 1661 for the statesman Edward Hyde, 1st Baron Hyde...
.
Marriage and issue
In 1606 he married SusanSusan Feilding, Countess of Denbigh
Susan Feilding, Countess of Denbigh was an English courtier. She was a Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Henrietta Maria....
, daughter of Sir George Villiers
George Villiers (of Brokesby)
Sir George Villiers, of Brokesby was a minor member of the English gentry, notable as the father of the royal favourite George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham...
, sister of the future Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham KG was the favourite, claimed by some to be the lover, of King James I of England. Despite a very patchy political and military record, he remained at the height of royal favour for the first two years of the reign of Charles I, until he was assassinated...
, and on the rise of Buckingham received various offices and dignities.
Sir William and his wife Susan Villiers had five children:
- Basil Feilding, 2nd Earl of DenbighBasil Feilding, 2nd Earl of DenbighBasil Feilding, 2nd Earl of Denbigh was the eldest son of William Feilding, 1st Earl of Denbigh.Like his father, the son was educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He was summoned to the House of Lords as Baron Feilding in March 1629...
(ca. 1608-1675) - George Feilding, 1st Earl of DesmondGeorge Feilding, 1st Earl of DesmondGeorge Feilding, 1st Earl of Desmond was an Irish peer and the second son of William Feilding, 1st Earl of Denbigh.Lord Desmond married Bridget Stanhope, daughter of Sir Michael Stanhope, with whom he had one child:...
(ca. 1614-1665) - Lady Margaret (1613-1638), married James Hamilton, 1st Duke of HamiltonJames Hamilton, 1st Duke of HamiltonGeneral Sir James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton KG was a Scottish nobleman and influential Civil war military leader.-Young Arran:...
. One of their many descendants include the late Princess of Wales, Lady Diana Spencer. - Lady Anne (died 1636), married Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount CampdenBaptist Noel, 3rd Viscount CampdenSir Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden was an English politician. He was Lord Lieutenant of Rutland, Custos Rotulorum of Rutland and the Member of Parliament for Rutland....
- Lady Elizabeth, Countess of GuildfordElizabeth Boyle, Countess of GuilfordElizabeth Boyle, Countess of Guilford was an English peeress. She was created 1st Countess of Guildford for life at the Restoration on 14 July 1660, which became extinct upon her death c. 3 September 1667...
(died 1667), married Lewis Boyle, 1st Viscount Boyle.
His daughter, Lady Margaret Feilding (1613-1638), also known as Mary, was married to James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton
James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton
General Sir James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton KG was a Scottish nobleman and influential Civil war military leader.-Young Arran:...
, one of the heirs to the throne of Scotland after the descendants of James VI (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 portrait was painted by Anthony van Dyck
Anthony van Dyck
Sir Anthony van Dyck was a Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England. He is most famous for his portraits of Charles I of England and his family and court, painted with a relaxed elegance that was to be the dominant influence on English portrait-painting for the next...
and Henry Pierce Bone
Henry Pierce Bone
Henry Pierce Bone was an English enamel painter.Bone was the son of Henry Bone, the notable enamel painter, and Elizabeth Van der Meulen, herself a descendant of the distinguished battle-painter Adam Frans van der Meulen. His brother was artist Robert Trewick Bone...
. One of his two sons, George Feilding
George Feilding, 1st Earl of Desmond
George Feilding, 1st Earl of Desmond was an Irish peer and the second son of William Feilding, 1st Earl of Denbigh.Lord Desmond married Bridget Stanhope, daughter of Sir Michael Stanhope, with whom he had one child:...
, was the 1st Earl of Desmond
Earl of Desmond
The title of Earl of Desmond has been held historically by lords in Ireland, first as a title outside of the peerage system and later as part of the Peerage of Ireland....
.