Anna Maria Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury ( Brudenell; 25 March 1642 - 20 April 1702) was Countess of Shrewsbury from 1659 to 1668, by virtue of her marriage to

Francis Talbot, 11th Earl of Shrewsbury Francis Talbot, 11th Earl of Shrewsbury, 11th Earl of Waterford (1623 – 16 March 1668), was an English peer who was a Royalist officer in the English Civil War. He survived the war only to be mortally wounded in a duel with the Duke of Buckingh ...

Biography

Born on 25 March 1642, she was the eldest daughter of

Robert Brudenell Robert Brudenell (20 September 1726 – 20 October 1768) was a British army officer and Member of Parliament. Brudenell was the third son of the 3rd Earl of Cardigan and Elizabeth Bruce and a younger brother of the 1st Duke of Montagu a ...

, who succeeded to the earldom of Cardigan as the second earl in 1663. Her mother was Anne Savage, the earl's second wife. Her brother was Francis Brudenell, Lord Brudenell, whose daughter was

Lady Frances Brudenell Lady Frances Brudenell (before 1677 – 23 February 1735/36), Countess of Newburgh, was an Irish aristocrat known as the subject of a satire in which she was portrayed as the leader of a society of lesbians. She was the daughter of Francis ...

. Anna Maria married

, on 10 January 1659, and they had one son,

Charles Talbot, 1st Duke of Shrewsbury Charles Talbot, Duke of Shrewsbury, KG, PC (15 July 16601 February 1718) was an English politician who was part of the Immortal Seven group that invited Prince William III of Orange to depose King James II of England during the Glorious R ...

, born on 15 July 1660. She was a passionate woman (harsher critics have called her a nymphomaniac). Her numerous lovers included

Henry Jermyn, 1st Baron Dover Henry Jermyn, 3rd Baron Jermyn and 1st Baron Dover, 1st Jacobite Earl of Dover PC (c. 1636–1708) was an English peer and supporter of James II. Jermyn was the second son of Thomas Jermyn, of Rushbrooke, Suffolk, who died in 1659, and his wi ...

, and Colonel Thomas Howard (younger brother of

Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Carlisle Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Carlisle (162824 February 1685) was an English military leader and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1653 and 1660 and was created Earl of Carlisle in 1661. Howard was the son and ...

). In 1662, they fought a celebrated duel for her favour in which Jermyn was left for dead and his second, Giles Rawlings, was killed. In 1667, the countess embarked on an affair with

George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, 20th Baron de Ros, (30 January 1628 – 16 April 1687) was an English statesman and poet. Life Early life George was the son of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, favourite of James I ...

, and the earl challenged Villiers to a duel. The countess is said to have been present, disguised as a boy, and to have held the duke's horse. Her husband died of the injuries inflicted on him in the duel which was fought with swords at

Barn Elms Barn Elms is an open space in Barnes in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, located on the northerly loop of the River Thames between Barnes and Fulham. The WWT London Wetland Centre (105 acres of what were once reservoirs) lie ...

on 16 January 1668, and was commented upon by

Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys (; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English diarist and naval administrator. He served as administrator of the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament and is most famous for the diary he kept for a decade. Pepys had no mariti ...

in his diary the next day. The sovereign, King Charles II, strongly disapproved of duelling within his realm and the duke temporarily fell out of royal favour as a result. It was said that, at various times, Buckingham fought five different men over Anna. For a time, the Duke of Buckingham kept Anna Maria as his mistress in his family home, where his wife,

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

, also resided. Anna gave birth to his illegitimate son and created a scandal at court by having the boy baptised in

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...

.Fraser, Antonia (1979). ''King Charles II''. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p.280 Their affair was finally broken off in 1673. The countess went to France and spent some time in a convent. Her legitimate son had been removed from her care. While both his parents were

Roman Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, his own upbringing was Protestant and as an adult, he conformed to the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

. Anna Maria, Countess of Shrewsbury later returned to Britain and remarried in 1677

George Rodney Brydges George Rodney Brydges or Bridges (after 1649 – 1714), of Avington, Hampshire, was an English Whig politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons between 1690 and 1714. Brydges was the second surviving son of Sir Thomas Bridges ...

(aft.1649-1714), MP for Haslemere 1690-1698 and Winchester 1700-1714, Her second husband was a younger but 2nd surviving son of Sir Thomas Bridges (d. 1707) of Keynsham, Somerset, by his wife Anne Rodney, daughter and coheiress of Sir Edward Rodney MP of Stoke Rodney, Somerset. From 1678 to 1685, he served as

Groom of the Bedchamber Groom of the Chamber was a position in the Household of the monarch in early modern England. Other ''Ancien Régime'' royal establishments in Europe had comparable officers, often with similar titles. In France, the Duchy of Burgundy, and in Eng ...

, thanks to his wife buying him a place. The former Countess and George Rodney Brydges had one son George Brydges (1678-1751) also an MP, who died childless.

Legacy

The former countess continued to be a famous beauty. Her portrait was painted by Sir

Peter Lely Sir Peter Lely (14 September 1618 – 7 December 1680) was a painter of Dutch origin whose career was nearly all spent in England, where he became the dominant portrait painter to the court. Life Lely was born Pieter van der Faes to Dutch ...

and is held by the National Portrait Gallery in London. Her statue by

Thomas Burman Thomas Burman (1618–1674) was a 17th century English sculptor based in London. Life Born in London in 1618 of Jewish parentage he was indentured as a bound apprentice to mason and sculptor Edward Marshall in 1633. He began working indep ...

stands in

St. John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corporation established by a charter dated 9 April 1511. The ...

.Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660-1851 by Rupert Gunnis The folk dance, "Anna Maria", is thought to have been named after her.

Sources

Origin of the folk dance

References

External links

BRYDGES (BRIDGES), George Rodney (aft.1649-1714), of Avington, Hants
Published in ''The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1690-1715'', ed. D. Hayton, E. Cruickshanks, S. Handley, 2002. Retrieved 15 December 2012
BRYDGES (BRIDGES), George (1678-1751), of Avington, Hants
Published in ''The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1690-1715'', ed. D. Hayton, E. Cruickshanks, S. Handley, 2002. Retrieved 15 December 2012 {{DEFAULTSORT:Shrewsbury, Anna Maria Talbot, Countess Of 1642 births 1702 deaths English countesses

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

Daughters of British earls People from Bromsgrove