Anna Sophie Dormer, Countess of Carnarvon (-3 June 1643) (née Lady Anna Sophia Herbert) was an English noblewoman who married Robert Dormer, 1st Earl of Carnarvon (1610 – 20 September 1643) and thereby became Countess of Carnarvon. Dormer received the title

Baron Dormer Baron Dormer, of Wyng (or Wenge), County of Buckingham, is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created on 30 June 1615 for Sir Robert Dormer, 1st Baronet. He had, only twenty days earlier on 10 June 1615, been created a baronet "of Wing ...

at the age of six and on 2 August 1628, at age 18, he was raised to Viscount Ascott and was created Earl of Carnarvon. Anne Sophia died on 3 June 1643 of smallpox. Her husband did not long outlive her; Carnarvon was killed at the first Battle of Newbury on 20 September 1643.

Early life

Anna Sophia Herbert was born in around 1610, the daughter of

Philip Herbert, 4th Earl of Pembroke Philip Herbert, 4th Earl of Pembroke and 1st Earl of Montgomery, (10 October 158423 January 1650) was an English courtier, nobleman, and politician active during the reigns of James I and Charles I. Philip and his older brother William were ...

and Lady Susan de Vere, the youngest daughter of the

Elizabethan The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personifi ...

courtier, poet, and playwright, Edward de Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford.

Marriage and children

On 27 February 1625, she was married to Robert Dormer, 1st Earl of Carnarvon, a match which secured her future, as Dormer was one of the wealthiest men in England at the time. The Countess of Carnarvon and her husband were regular performers in masques at court. He was an ardent

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

and defied his father-in-law in fighting for King

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

in 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 ...

. Their son Charles Dormer, 2nd Earl of Carnarvon was born on 25 October 1632, and baptised in St Benet's in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Charles Dormer was educated at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

, where he graduated

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

in 1648.

Death and legacy

Lady Carnarvon died on 3 June 1643 of smallpox . Anecdotes of her are to be found in the ''Strafford Papers'' (ii, 47) and the ''Sydney Papers'' (ii, 621) and a poem addressed to her is printed in ''Choice Drollery'', 1656. Lord Carnarvon survived her only by a few months; he was killed at the first Battle of Newbury on 20 September 1643 by a lone trooper who chanced upon him returning from a successful cavalry charge. As he lay dying he was asked if he had one final request of the King. "No", he replied, "in an hour like this, I have no prayer but to the King of Heaven."Warburton, loc cit, pg 296. Their eldest son,

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

, succeeded to the Earldom on his father's death, and became Hereditary Chief Avenor and Keeper of the King's Hawks. However, Charles Dormer died without a male heir in 1709 and with him the earldom of Carnarvon in the family of Dormer became extinct. Lady Carnarvon's portrait and that of her eldest son, Charles, was part of the exhibition of

Anthony van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Brabantian Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Southern Netherlands and Italy. The seventh c ...

's works at the

Grosvenor Gallery The Grosvenor Gallery was an art gallery in London founded in 1877 by Sir Coutts Lindsay and his wife Blanche. Its first directors were J. Comyns Carr and Charles Hallé. The gallery proved crucial to the Aesthetic Movement because it provided ...

in 1887.

References

{{Reflist

External links

''Description of the Van Dyck Portrait of Lord Carnarvon''

Retrieved 12 August 2019 Cavaliers Daughters of British earls 1643 deaths 1610s births English countesses Year of birth uncertain