Elizabeth Clinton, Countess of Lincoln ( Knyvet; c. 1570–1638) was an English noblewoman and writer. She was Countess of Lincoln from 1616 until the death of her husband

Thomas Clinton, 3rd Earl of Lincoln Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

, in 1619, then Dowager Countess. Her pamphlet on child-raising, ''The Countess of Lincoln's Nursery'', gained praise.

Family background

Elizabeth was the younger daughter and co-heiress of Sir

Henry Knyvet Sir Henry Knyvet (1537–1598) of Charlton Park, Wiltshire, was an English Member of Parliament. He was the eldest son of Sir Henry Knyvet, by his wife Anne, daughter and heiress of Sir Christopher Pickering of Killington, Cumbria, and widow of ...

MP of

Charlton Park, Wiltshire Charlton Park is a English country house, country house and estate in Wiltshire, England, northeast of the town of Malmesbury. Charlton Park House is a Grade I listed building and a leading example of the prodigy house. Malmesbury Abbey held Ch ...

, and his first wife, Elizabeth Stumpe. Her maternal grandfather was a merchant, Sir

James Stumpe Sir James Stumpe (by 1519 – 29 April 1563), of Malmesbury and Bromham, Wiltshire, was an English clothier and Member of Parliament. He was the eldest son of wealthy clothier and MP, William Stumpe. He was knighted 1549 or later and succeeded ...

Children

Elizabeth married the future earl on 21 September 1584.Charles Mosley, ed., ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage'', 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware, US: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003. Vol. 1, p. 824. They had 18 children, including: *

Theophilus Clinton, 4th Earl of Lincoln Theophilus Clinton, 4th Earl of Lincoln, KB (1599 – 21 May 1667), styled Lord Clinton until 1619, was an opponent of Charles I during and preceding the English Civil War. Family The eldest son of the 3rd Earl of Lincoln and Elizabeth Knyve ...

, 12th Baron Clinton (1599–1667, married twice, but had children only by his first wife, the Hon. Bridget Fiennes. *Henry Clinton (born 1595) *Thomas Clinton (born 1596) *

Lady Arbella Clinton Lady Arbella Johnson (née Clinton; 3 August 1597 – 30 August 1630) was one of the early settlers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. She was the daughter of Thomas Clinton, 3rd Earl of Lincoln and his wife Elizabeth. William Allen suggests that s ...

(1597-1630), who married

Isaac Johnson Isaac Johnson (November 1, 1803 – March 15, 1853) was a US politician and the 12th Governor of the state of Louisiana. Born on his father's plantation "Troy" near St. Francisville in West Feliciana Parish, Johnson was the fourth son of J ...

*Lady Susan Clinton, who married Sergeant-Major-General John Humphrey; they emigrated to America and returned to England in 1641. *Edward Clinton (born 1600) *Lady Frances Clinton, who married John Gorges, Lord Proprietor of the Province of Maine *Ann Clinton – baptized 3 March 1602 *Charles Clinton (born 1604) *Knyvett Clinton (born 1605) *John Clinton *Lady Dorcas Clinton (born 1614) *Lady Sara Clinton (born 1615)

Book of advice

In 1622, Elizabeth Clinton wrote an advisory pamphlet dedicated to her daughter-in-law,

Bridget Bridget is an Irish female name derived from the Gaelic noun ''brígh'', meaning "power, strength, vigor, virtue". An alternate meaning of the name is "exalted one". Its popularity, especially in Ireland, is largely related to the popularity of ...

, entitled ''The Countess of Lincoln's Nursery''. It drew on earlier works on child-rearing by

Elizabeth Jocelin Elizabeth Brooke Jocelin (sometimes spelled "Joceline" or "Joscelin") was an English writer believed to have lived from 1595–1622. She is best known for her work ''The Mother's Legacy to her Vnborn Child''. The book was first published two year ...

and

Dorothy Leigh Dorothy Leigh ( Kemp or Kempe; died ) was a 17th-century British writer remembered for ''The Mother's Blessing'' (1616). Biography Dorothy Kemp (or Kempe) was the daughter of William Kemp (or Robert Kemp), of Finchingfield, Essex. She married ...

,Ramona Wray, ''Women Writers of the Seventeenth Century'', 2004, Tavistock, Devon: Northcote House Publishers, p. 38. and the dowager's own experience as a mother. She praised the young countess for deciding to

breast-feed Breastfeeding, or nursing, is the process by which human breast milk is fed to a child. Breast milk may be from the breast, or may be expressed by hand or pumped and fed to the infant. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that brea ...

her own children, something which Elizabeth regretted that she had not done. The physician and author

Thomas Lodge Thomas Lodge (c. 1558September 1625) was an English writer and medical practitioner whose life spanned the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods. Biography Thomas Lodge was born about 1558 in West Ham, the second son of Sir Thomas Lodge, Lo ...

wrote a preface to the countess's book. He praised it for its conciseness and for tackling an issue little addressed hitherto.

Thomas Goad Thomas Goad (1576–1638) was an English clergyman, controversial writer, and rector of Hadleigh, Suffolk. A participant at the Synod of Dort, he changed his views there from Calvinist to Arminian, against the sense of the meeting. Life He was ...

, who edited the 1632 printing, called Elizabeth Clinton "a deputed mother for instruction".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lincoln, Elizabeth Clinton, Countess of 1570s births 1638 deaths English countesses 17th-century English women writers 17th-century English writers