Anne Brett or Anne Mason; Anne Gerard, Countess of Macclesfield (1667/8 – 11 October 1753) was a

Kingdom of Great Britain The Kingdom of Great Britain (officially Great Britain) was a Sovereign state, sovereign country in Western Europe from 1 May 1707 to the end of 31 December 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of ...

courtier. She had a scandalous divorce.

References

Brett was born in

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...

in 1667 or 1668. Her parents were Anna and Sir Richard Mason and she had a sister, Dorothy. She first married Charles Gerard, Viscount Brandon when she was fifteen. The marriage was not a success but divorce was difficult. She had two children with

Richard Savage, 4th Earl Rivers General Richard Savage, 4th Earl Rivers PC (ca. 1654 – 18 August 1712) was an English nobleman and soldier who was a senior Army officer in the English and then British Army. The second son of Thomas Savage, 3rd Earl Rivers and his first wi ...

before her marriage was ended in 1698. Whilst she waited for their divorce her husband became the Earl of Macclesfield so she was a countess when they parted. She was a rich countess as over £12,000 was returned to her from before her marriage. Her children, Anne and Richard Savage had been kept a secret. She said that they died young, but years later the poet Richard Savage claimed to be her son. Countess Macclesfield was appointed as a

Lady in Waiting A lady-in-waiting or court lady is a female personal assistant at a court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman but of lower rank than the woman to whom sh ...

to Princess Anne. Her second husband was

Henry Brett Henry may refer to: People * Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal ...

. They had a daughter, Anna Margharetta, who was said to be a mistress of

George I of Great Britain George I (George Louis; ; 28 May 1660 – 11 June 1727) was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 and ruler of the Electorate of Hanover within the Holy Roman Empire from 23 January 1698 until his death in 1727. He was the first ...

. However there is poor evidence for this.

Colley Cibber Colley Cibber (6 November 1671 – 11 December 1757) was an English actor-manager, playwright and Poet Laureate. His colourful memoir ''Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber'' (1740) describes his life in a personal, anecdotal and even rambling ...

is said to have submitted for her approval the text of his play, ''

The Careless Husband ''The Carless Husband'' is a comedy play by the English writer Colley Cibber. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on 7 December 1704. The original cast featured Cibber as Lord Foppington, George Powell as Lord Morelove, Robert Wilks as ...

'', which was first put on the boards in 1704 because he valued her opinion. Brett died at her home in

Old Bond Street Bond Street in the West End of London links Piccadilly in the south to Oxford Street in the north. Since the 18th century the street has housed many prestigious and upmarket fashion retailers. The southern section is Old Bond Street and the ...

in London, on 11 October 1753.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brett, Anne 1660s births 1753 deaths People from Shropshire British ladies-in-waiting

Macclesfield Macclesfield is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Bollin in the east of the county, on the edge of the Cheshire Plain, with Macclesfield Forest to its east ...

Court of Anne, Queen of Great Britain