Henry Clifford, 2nd Earl of Cumberland
Henry Clifford, 2nd Earl of Cumberland (1517 – January 1570) was a member of the Clifford family which held the seat of Skipton from 1310 to 1676.[1][2][3] He was married to Lady Eleanor Brandon, a niece of Henry VIII of England.
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[edit] Family
Henry was a son of Henry Clifford, 1st Earl of Cumberland and Margaret Percy.[3] His maternal grandparents were Henry Algernon Percy, 5th Earl of Northumberland and Catherine Spencer.[3] His maternal grandfather was a son of Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland and Maud Herbert, Countess of Northumberland.[3] His maternal grandmother was a daughter of Sir Robert Spencer and Eleanor Beaufort.[3] Eleanor was a daughter of Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset and Eleanor Beauchamp. She was a granddaughter of Richard de Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick and Elizabeth Berkeley.[3] He served as hereditary High Sheriff of Westmorland.[3][4]
[edit] First marriage
He married first Lady Eleanor Brandon in June, 1537 at latest.[3] The expenses of this alliance seriously impoverished Henry's estate, and obliged him to alienate 'the great manor of Temedbury, co. Herreford, the oldest estate then remaining in the family.'[1] His wife was the third child and second daughter of Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk and Mary Tudor, former queen consort of France. She was a younger sister of Henry Brandon (who died very young) and Lady Frances Brandon and an older sister of Henry Brandon, 1st Earl of Lincoln (named after their dead brother). Her paternal grandparents were Sir William Brandon and Elizabeth Bruyn. Her maternal grandparents were Henry VII of England and his queen consort Elizabeth of York. Henry and Eleanor had three children:
- Lady Margaret Clifford (1540 - 29 September 1596). She was consort to Henry Stanley, 4th Earl of Derby.
- Henry Clifford. Died an infant.
- Charles Clifford. Died an infant.
Eleanor died on September 27, 1547. According to the Third Succession Act of March 23, 1544, she was the seventh-in-line heir for the throne of the Kingdom of England. With her death their daughter Margaret took her place in the line of succession. Henry retired to the country, he succeeded in increasing his paternal inheritance, and is said to have visited the court only thrice: at Queen Mary's coronation, on his daughter's marriage, and again soon after Queen Elizabeth's accession.[1]
[edit] Second marriage
Henry married secondly Anne Dacre (c. 1521 - July 1581). Anne was a daughter of William Dacre, 3rd Baron Dacre (April 29, 1500 - November 18, 1563) and Elizabeth Talbot. Her maternal grandparents were George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury and Anne Hastings. Anne Hastings was a daughter of William Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings and Katherine Neville. Katherine Neville was a daughter of Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury and Alice Neville, 5th Countess of Salisbury. Henry and Anne had at least three children:
- George Clifford, 3rd Earl of Cumberland (8 August 1558 – 30 October 1605)
- Francis Clifford, 4th Earl of Cumberland (1559–1641).
- Frances Clifford (d. 1592). Married Philip Wharton, 3rd Baron Wharton.
In July 1561 Henry and Lord Dacre, his father-in-law, were accused of protecting the popish priests in the north.[1] A similar charge was advanced in February 1562.[1] He was in 1569 strongly opposed to the contemplated marriage of Mary Queen of Scots and Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk, and readily promised support to the great rebellion of that year.[1] In May 1569 he was in London.[1] As the year wore on he gave in his adherence to the scheme for proclaiming Mary queen of England; but when the critical moment arrived he did not act with vigour, but as a 'crazed man, leaving his tenants to the leadership of Leonard Dacres'.[1] He assisted Lord Scrope in fortifying Carlisle against the rebels.[1] Henry is described by his daughter as having 'a good library,' being 'studious in all manner of learning, and much given to alchemy.'[1]
He died shortly after 8 Januray 1569-70, at Brougham Castle, and was buried at Skipton.[1]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k
"Clifford, Henry de (d.1570)". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900. - ^ Record for Henry Clifford, 2nd Earl of Cumberland on thepeerage.com
- ^ a b c d e f g h Charles Mosley, editor. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes (Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003), volume 1, page 1064 and 1101.
- ^ G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors. The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910-1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume III, page 295.
[edit] External links
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Office created |
Lord Lieutenant of Westmorland 1553–1559 |
Succeeded by Unknown |
| Peerage of England | ||
| Preceded by Henry Clifford |
Earl of Cumberland 1542-1570 |
Succeeded by George Clifford |
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