Elizabeth Percy, Countess of Essex
Encyclopedia
Lady Elizabeth Percy, Countess of Essex, Viscountess Malden (1 December 1636 – 5 February 1718) was an English noblewoman, being the daughter of Algernon Percy, 10th Earl of Northumberland
. She was the wife of Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex
, PC
, Lord Lieutenant
of Ireland
. Lady Elizabeth was the subject of a portrait by court painter Sir Peter Lely.
, England
, one of the five daughters of Algernon Percy, 10th Earl of Northumberland by his first wife Lady Anne Cecil. She had one older surviving sister, Anne who married Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield
. Her paternal grandparents were Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland
, known by his sobriquet
of The Wizard Earl, and Dorothy Devereux
, the sister of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex
. Dorothy Devereux was also a direct descendant of Mary Boleyn
, the sister of Queen consort Anne Boleyn
. Elizabeth's maternal grandparents were William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury
and Lady Catherine Howard
.
When Elizabeth was just a year old, her mother died; her father married secondly in 1642, Lady Elizabeth Howard
. Elizabeth had a younger half-brother from her father's second marriage, Joceline Percy, 11th Earl of Northumberland
.
; Elizabeth was henceforth styled as the Countess of Essex. The marriage produced one surviving son and a daughter:
Elizabeth had five other sons who all died in early infancy.
In 1672, Elizabeth's husband was made a Privy Counsellor, and appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. He was dedicated to stamping out English corruption in Ireland; one of his many acts was to prevent Phoenix Park
in Dublin from being granted to King Charles's former mistress Barbara Villiers who had been promised the Park as well as the fertile lands surrounding it as a gift from the king. In point of fact, it was due to the Earl of Essex that Phoenix Park continues to exist in the 21st century.
In 1677, the Essexes returned to England; in 1679, the Earl was appointed First Lord of the Treasury. He was implicated in the Rye House Plot
in June 1683 and sent to the Tower of London
. It was there on 13 July 1683 that he committed suicide by cutting his own throat, leaving Elizabeth a widow at the age of forty-six. She never remarried.
She died on 5 February 1718, and was buried in Watford
, Hertfordshire
.
Algernon Percy, 10th Earl of Northumberland
Algernon Percy, 10th Earl of Northumberland, 4th Baron Percy, KG was an English military leader and a prominent supporter of constitutional monarchy.-Family background:...
. She was the wife of Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex
Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex
Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex PC , whose surname is sometimes spelled Capel, was an English statesman.-Early life:...
, PC
Privy Council of England
The Privy Council of England, also known as His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, was a body of advisers to the sovereign of the Kingdom of England...
, Lord Lieutenant
Lord Lieutenant
The title Lord Lieutenant is given to the British monarch's personal representatives in the United Kingdom, usually in a county or similar circumscription, with varying tasks throughout history. Usually a retired local notable, senior military officer, peer or business person is given the post...
of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. Lady Elizabeth was the subject of a portrait by court painter Sir Peter Lely.
Family
Lady Elizabeth was born on 1 December 1636 at Petworth Manor, 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...
, one of the five daughters of Algernon Percy, 10th Earl of Northumberland by his first wife Lady Anne Cecil. She had one older surviving sister, Anne who married Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield
Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield
Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield PC was a peer in the peerage of England.-Personal life:He was the son of Henry Stanhope, Lord Stanhope and his wife, Katherine Wotton. He inherited the title of Earl of Chesterfield on the death of his grandfather in 1656...
. Her paternal grandparents were Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland
Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland
Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland KG was an English aristocrat. He was a grandee and one of the wealthiest peers of the court of Elizabeth I. Under James I, Henry was a long-term prisoner in the Tower of London. He is known for the circles he moved in as well as for his own achievements...
, known by his sobriquet
Sobriquet
A sobriquet is a nickname, sometimes assumed, but often given by another. It is usually a familiar name, distinct from a pseudonym assumed as a disguise, but a nickname which is familiar enough such that it can be used in place of a real name without the need of explanation...
of The Wizard Earl, and Dorothy Devereux
Dorothy Percy, Countess of Northumberland
Dorothy Percy, Countess of Northumberland was the younger daughter of Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex by Lettice Knollys, and the wife of Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland.-Family:...
, the sister of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex
Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex
Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, KG was an English nobleman and a favourite of Elizabeth I. Politically ambitious, and a committed general, he was placed under house arrest following a poor campaign in Ireland during the Nine Years' War in 1599...
. Dorothy Devereux was also a direct descendant of Mary Boleyn
Mary Boleyn
Mary 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...
, the sister of Queen consort 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...
. Elizabeth's maternal grandparents were William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury
William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury
William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury, KG , known as Viscount Cranborne from 1605 to 1612, was an English peer and politician.-Early years, 1591-1612:...
and Lady Catherine Howard
Duke of Norfolk
The Duke of Norfolk is the premier duke in the peerage of England, and also, as Earl of Arundel, the premier earl. The Duke of Norfolk is, moreover, the Earl Marshal and hereditary Marshal of England. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the title refers to the...
.
When Elizabeth was just a year old, her mother died; her father married secondly in 1642, Lady Elizabeth Howard
Duke of Norfolk
The Duke of Norfolk is the premier duke in the peerage of England, and also, as Earl of Arundel, the premier earl. The Duke of Norfolk is, moreover, the Earl Marshal and hereditary Marshal of England. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the title refers to the...
. Elizabeth had a younger half-brother from her father's second marriage, Joceline Percy, 11th Earl of Northumberland
Joceline Percy, 11th Earl of Northumberland
Josceline Percy, 11th Earl of Northumberland, 5th Baron Percy was an English peer.Percy was the eldest son of Algernon Percy, 10th Earl of Northumberland and his second wife, Elizabeth Howard, daughter of Theophilus Howard, 2nd Earl of Suffolk...
.
Marriage and issue
On 19 May 1653 at Petworth, Lady Elizabeth married Arthur Capell, 2nd Baron Capell of Hadham. On 20 August 1661, he was created Viscount Malden and the first Earl of Essex by King Charles II of EnglandCharles 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...
; Elizabeth was henceforth styled as the Countess of Essex. The marriage produced one surviving son and a daughter:
- Algernon Capell, 2nd Earl of EssexAlgernon Capell, 2nd Earl of EssexAlgernon Capell, 2nd Earl of Essex PC was an English nobleman, a soldier and courtier. He was the son of Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex and Elizabeth Percy. After his father's suicide in 1683, Capell became the 2nd Earl of Essex...
(28 December 1670- 10 January 1710), married Mary Bentinck, by whom he had one son William Capell, 3rd Earl of EssexWilliam Capell, 3rd Earl of EssexWilliam Capell, 3rd Earl of Essex, KG, PC was the son of the 2nd Earl of Essex.Capell was one of the founding governors of the charity, the Foundling Hospital, created in October 1739 to care for abandoned children....
who in his turn married Lady Jane Hyde, by whom he had issue. - Anne de Vere Capell (1675- 14 October 1752), married on 25 July 1688, Charles Howard, 3rd Earl of CarlisleCharles Howard, 3rd Earl of CarlisleCharles Howard, 3rd Earl of Carlisle, PC was a British statesman and member of the peerage of England.Charles Howard was the eldest son of Edward Howard and inherited his title on the death of his father in 1692. He married in 1683 Lady Anne de Vere Capell, daughter of Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of...
, by whom she had two sons and four daughters.
Elizabeth had five other sons who all died in early infancy.
In 1672, Elizabeth's husband was made a Privy Counsellor, and appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. He was dedicated to stamping out English corruption in Ireland; one of his many acts was to prevent Phoenix Park
Phoenix Park
Phoenix Park is an urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying 2–4 km west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its 16 km perimeter wall encloses , one of the largest walled city parks in Europe. It includes large areas of grassland and tree-lined avenues, and since the seventeenth...
in Dublin from being granted to King Charles's former mistress Barbara Villiers who had been promised the Park as well as the fertile lands surrounding it as a gift from the king. In point of fact, it was due to the Earl of Essex that Phoenix Park continues to exist in the 21st century.
In 1677, the Essexes returned to England; in 1679, the Earl was appointed First Lord of the Treasury. He was implicated in the Rye House Plot
Rye House Plot
The Rye House Plot of 1683 was a plan to assassinate King Charles II of England and his brother James, Duke of York. Historians vary in their assessment of the degree to which details of the conspiracy were finalized....
in June 1683 and sent to 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...
. It was there on 13 July 1683 that he committed suicide by cutting his own throat, leaving Elizabeth a widow at the age of forty-six. She never remarried.
She died on 5 February 1718, and was buried in Watford
Watford
Watford is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, situated northwest of central London and within the bounds of the M25 motorway. The borough is separated from Greater London to the south by the urbanised parish of Watford Rural in the Three Rivers District.Watford was created as an urban...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
.