Elizabeth Cecil, Countess of Devonshire01

Elizabeth Cavendish, Countess of Devonshire (1619 – 19 November 1689) was the wife of

William Cavendish, 3rd Earl of Devonshire William Cavendish, 3rd Earl of Devonshire, KB, FRS (c. 10 October 161723 November 1684) was an English nobleman and politician, known as a royalist supporter. Life The eldest son of William Cavendish, 2nd Earl of Devonshire and his wife Christi ...

. She was one of the twelve children of

William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury, (28 March 1591 – 3 December 1668), known as Viscount Cranborne from 1605 to 1612, was an English peer, nobleman, and politician. Early years, 1591–1612 Cecil was the son of Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of ...

Hatfield house Hatfield House is a country house set in a large park, the Great Park, on the eastern side of the town of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England. The present Jacobean house, a leading example of the prodigy house, was built in 1611 by Robert Cec ...

, and his wife, the former Lady Catherine Howard of Audley End House, member of the

House of Howard The House of Howard is an English noble house founded by John Howard, who was created Duke of Norfolk (third creation) by King Richard III of England in 1483. However, John was also the eldest grandson (although maternal) of the 1st Duke of the ...

. On 4 March 1639, she married the Earl of Devonshire. The couple had three children: *

William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Devonshire William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Devonshire, (25 January 164018 August 1707) was an English soldier, nobleman, and Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1661 to 1684 when he inherited his father's peerage as Earl of Devonshire. ...

(1641–1707) * Charles Cavendish, who died unmarried on 3 March 1671. * Lady Anne Cavendish (c. 1650–1703), who married firstly Charles, Lord Rich, son of

Charles Rich, 4th Earl of Warwick Charles Rich, 4th Earl of Warwick (abt 1623 – 24 Aug 1673), styled The Honourable Charles Rich until 1658, was an English peer and politician. Rich was the second son of Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick and Frances Hatton. As a young man, he ...

, and secondly

John Cecil, 5th Earl of Exeter John Cecil, 5th Earl of Exeter (c. 1648 – 29 August 1700), known as Lord Burghley until 1678, was a British peer and Member of Parliament. He was also known as the Travelling Earl. Life Exeter was the son of John Cecil, 4th Earl of Exeter (162 ...

, on 2 May 1670; she had nine children by the latter. They lived at Chatsworth, then an Elizabethan house. A Royalist, the earl left the country during the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

in order to protect his family, and moved to his mother's house at

Latimer, Buckinghamshire Latimer is a village that sits on the border between Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire, England. In 2013, the civil parish of Latimer was renamed, Latimer and Ley Hill. The parish, forming part of the Buckinghamshire district of Chiltern, includ ...

, returning to Chatsworth only after the Restoration. The countess died at the age of about seventy, and is buried at the

Henry VII Chapel The Henry VII Lady Chapel, now more often known just as the Henry VII Chapel, is a large Lady chapel at the far eastern end of Westminster Abbey, paid for by the will of King Henry VII. It is separated from the rest of the abbey by brass gates ...

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 Unite ...

. A drawing of her by

Pierre Lombart Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...

is held by the

Scottish National Portrait Gallery The Scottish National Portrait Gallery is an art museum on Queen Street, Edinburgh. The gallery holds the national collections of portraits, all of which are of, but not necessarily by, Scots. It also holds the Scottish National Photography Co ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Devonshire, Elizabeth Cavendish, Countess of 1619 births 1689 deaths Burials at Westminster Abbey English countesses Daughters of British earls