Anne Sackville, Countess of Dorset (died 22 September 1618), née Anne Spencer, was the second wife of

Robert Sackville, 2nd Earl of Dorset Robert Sackville, 2nd Earl of Dorset (1561–1609) was an English aristocrat and politician, with humanist and commercial interests. Life He was the eldest son of Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset, by Cecily, daughter of John Baker (died ...

. Dorset was her third husband, the first two being

William Stanley, 3rd Baron Monteagle William Stanley, 3rd Baron Monteagle (1528 – 10 November 1581), of Hornby Castle, Lancashire, was an English politician. He was the son of Thomas Stanley, 2nd Baron Monteagle and Mary Brandon, Baroness Monteagle, Lady Mary Brandon, the daughter ...

, and

Henry Compton, 1st Baron Compton Henry Compton, 1st Baron Compton (14 July 1544 – 10 December 1589), was an English peer and Member of Parliament. Compton was the posthumous son of Peter Compton of Compton Wynyates and his wife Anne, daughter of George Talbot, 4th Earl of Sh ...

, both of whom predeceased her. She was the daughter of Sir John Spencer of Althorp and his wife, the former Katherine Kitson. She married Lord Monteagle as his second wife in September 1575. They had no children of their own, and he died in 1581. She married Sir Henry Compton, as his second wife, within a few years of her first husband's death. They had one son, Sir Henry Compton, MP. Anne's second husband died in 1589. A revised version of

Edmund Spenser Edmund Spenser (; – 13 January 1599 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) was an English poet best known for ''The Faerie Queene'', an epic poem and fantastical allegory celebrating the House of Tudor, Tudor dynasty and Elizabeth I. He is re ...

's poem, "

Mother Hubberd's Tale ''Mother Hubberd's Tale'' is a poem by English poet Edmund Spenser, written in 1578–1579. The more commonly read version of the poem is a revision of the original, created sometime in 1590, and published in 1591 as a part of Spenser's collection ...

", published in 1590, was dedicated to Anne as "the Lady Compton and Mountegle". Anne married the future earl on 4 December 1592, a year after the death of his first wife, the former Lady Margaret Howard. Whereas his first marriage had been a happy one, he described his second wife in his will as one "whom without great grief and sorrow inconsolable I cannot remember, in regard of her exceeding unkindness and intolerable evil usage towards myself and my late good lord and father deceased". Dorset complained about his second wife's "misconduct", and was considering a separation from her at the time of his death in 1609. However, Cecily, one of his daughters from his first marriage, married his stepson Henry Compton, by whom she had three children. In March 1610 Anne, Countess of Dorset, argued and fought with officers sent to administer Lord Compton's estate, and was sent to the

Fleet Prison Fleet Prison was a notorious London prison by the side of the River Fleet. The prison was built in 1197, was rebuilt several times, and was in use until 1844. It was demolished in 1846. History The prison was built in 1197 off what is now ...

.''HMC Downshire'', vol. 2 (London, 1936), p. 272.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dorset, Anne Sackville, Countess of 1618 deaths English countesses Monteagle