George Carey, 2nd Baron Hunsdon (1547 – 9 September 1603) was the eldest son of

Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon (4 March 1526 – 23 July 1596) was an English peer and courtier. He was the patron of the Lord Chamberlain's Men, William Shakespeare's playing company. The son of Mary Boleyn, he was a cousin of Elizabeth I. ...

and Anne Morgan. His father was first cousin to

Elizabeth I of England Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

. In 1560, at the age of 13, George

matriculated Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term ''matriculation'' is seldom used now ...

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

Military and political career

In December 1566 he accompanied the

Earl of Bedford Earl of Bedford is a title that has been created three times in the Peerage of England and is currently a subsidiary title of the Dukes of Bedford. The first creation came in 1138 in favour of Hugh de Beaumont. He appears to have been degraded ...

on an official mission to Scotland, to attend the baptism of the future King James.

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...

gave him a ring and a chain with her miniature portrait. George was sent by his father to see Mary, Queen of Scots, at

Bolton Castle Bolton Castle is a 14th-century castle located in Wensleydale, Yorkshire, England (). The nearby village of Castle Bolton takes its name from the castle. The castle is a Grade I listed building and a Scheduled Ancient Monument. The castle was d ...

in August 1568. They discussed border issues connected with Lord Hunsdon's wardenry. Mary believed that her enemies made false reports against her supporters in the

Scottish Borders The Scottish Borders is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by West Lothian, Edinburgh, Midlothian, and East Lothian to the north, the North Sea to the east, Dumfries and Galloway to the south-west, South Lanarkshire to the we ...

, hoping the English authorities would make reprisals. During the Northern Rebellion of 1569, George was knighted in the field by Thomas Radcliffe 3rd

Earl of Sussex Earl of Sussex is a title that has been created several times in the Peerages of England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. The early Earls of Arundel (up to 1243) were often also called Earls of Sussex. The fifth creation came in the Pee ...

for bravery. George had challenged Lord Fleming, the commander of

Dunbar Castle Dunbar Castle was one of the strongest fortresses in Scotland, situated in a prominent position overlooking the Dunbar Harbour, harbour of the town of Dunbar, in East Lothian. Several fortifications were built successively on the site, near th ...

, to single combat. SealMatrix GeorgeCary 2ndBaronHunsdon Circa1586 MirrorImage

George served as a member of Parliament in the Commons for several terms (for

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

in 1571, for

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

in 1584, 1586, 1589, and 1593). He was created Knight Marshal in 1578. He was given the tenure of the lands of the Cornish

recusant Recusancy (from ) was the state of those who remained loyal to the Catholic Church and refused to attend Church of England services after the English Reformation. The 1558 Recusancy Acts passed in the reign of Elizabeth I, and temporarily repea ...

Francis Tregian when the latter was convicted of

praemunire In English history, or ( or ) was the assertion or maintenance of papal jurisdiction, or any other foreign jurisdiction or claim of supremacy in England, against the supremacy of the monarch. The 14th-century law prohibiting this was enforced ...

in 1577 for aiding and abetting the missionary priest

Cuthbert Mayne Cuthbert Mayne (c. 1543–29 November 1577) was an Catholic Church in England and Wales, English Catholic priest executed under the laws of Elizabeth I of England, Elizabeth I. He was the first of the seminary priests trained on the Continental ...

. Carey went to

Carisbrooke Castle Carisbrooke Castle is a historic motte-and-bailey castle located in the village of Carisbrooke (near Newport), Isle of Wight, England. Charles I was imprisoned at the castle in the months prior to his trial. Early history The site of Carisb ...

on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

. In 1586, French diplomats complained that as Governor of the Isle he profited from goods taken from merchant ships, including velvet, satin, leather,

cardamom Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genus (biology), genera ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indon ...

, and ivory. He was the commander of the Isle's defenses during the

Spanish Armada The Spanish Armada (often known as Invincible Armada, or the Enterprise of England, ) was a Spanish fleet that sailed from Lisbon in late May 1588, commanded by Alonso de Guzmán, Duke of Medina Sidonia, an aristocrat without previous naval ...

threat. In July 1596, when his father died, George became the second Baron Hunsdon, and the following year he was appointed Lord Chamberlain of the Royal Household, a position which had been held by his father.

Theatre

Both Henry and George Carey were patrons of the professional theatre company in London known as "the

Lord Chamberlain's Men The Lord Chamberlain's Men was an English company of actors, or a "playing company" (as it then would likely have been described), for which William Shakespeare wrote during most of his career. Richard Burbage played most of the lead roles, includ ...

". Talents such as

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

and

Richard Burbage Richard Burbage (6 January 1567 – 13 March 1619) was an English stage actor, widely considered to have been one of the most famous actors of the Globe Theatre and of his time. In addition to being a stage actor, he was also a theatre owne ...

were among the writers and performers of the company. In 1597 George was invested as a

Knight of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. The most senior order of knighthood in the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British honours system, it is outranked in ...

, and it is sometimes proposed that the first performance of

's ''

Merry Wives of Windsor ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' or ''Sir John Falstaff and the Merry Wives of Windsor'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare first published in 1602, though believed to have been written in or before 1597. The Windsor of the play's title is a ref ...

'' was held to commemorate the occasion.

Family

George married Elizabeth Spencer (related to poet/author

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 ...

), who like her husband was a patron of the arts. They had one daughter,

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Empress Elisabeth (disambiguation), lists various empresses named ''Elisabeth'' or ''Elizabeth'' * Princess Elizabeth ...

Death

He died on 9 September 1603 (from

venereal disease A sexually transmitted infection (STI), also referred to as a sexually transmitted disease (STD) and the older term venereal disease (VD), is an infection that is spread by sexual activity, especially vaginal intercourse, anal sex, or ...

and mercury poisoning), and his brother

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

(the next eldest) became the third Lord Hunsdon.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hunsdon, George Carey, 2nd Baron 1547 births 1603 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Georger Knights of the Garter Lord-lieutenants of Hampshire Carey, George Carey, George 16th-century English nobility 17th-century English nobility Carey, George Carey, George Carey, George Carey, George Carey, George Barons Hunsdon