Alice Spencer, Countess of Derby
| Alice Spencer | |
|---|---|
Portrait tentatively identified as Alice Spencer, painted by an unknown artist in the circle of Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger
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| Born | 4 May 1559 Althorp, Northamptonshire, England |
| Died | 23 January 1637 Harefield Place, Middlesex |
| Burial place | St Mary the Virgin Church, Harefield |
| Known for | Aristocrat Patron of the arts Represented Amaryllis in Edmund Spenser's poem, Colin Clouts Come Home Againe |
| Title |
Countess of Derby Baroness Ellesmere Viscountess Brackley |
| Spouse(s) |
Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley |
| Children | Lady Anne Stanley, Countess of Castlehaven Lady Frances Stanley Elizabeth Stanley, Countess of Huntingdon |
| Parent(s) |
Sir John Spencer Katherine Kytson |
Alice Spencer, Countess of Derby (4 May 1559 – 23 January 1637) was an English noblewoman from the Spencer family and noted patron of the arts. Poet Edmund Spenser represented her as "Amaryllis" in his eclogue Colin Clouts Come Home Againe (1595) and dedicated his poem The Teares of the Muses (1591) to her.
Her first husband was Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby, a claimant to the English throne. Alice's eldest daughter, Anne Stanley, Countess of Castlehaven, was heiress presumptive to Queen Elizabeth I. She married secondly in 1600 Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley and thus became a member of the Egerton family.
Alice was born in Althorp, Northamptonshire, England on 4 May 1559, the youngest daughter of Sir John Spencer, Member of Parliament and High Sheriff of Northamptonshire, and Katherine Kytson. She had three brothers and three older sisters.
In about 1579 Alice married her first husband, Ferdinando Stanley, heir to the Earldom of Derby, and a claimant to the English throne. His mother, Lady Margaret Clifford, was heir presumptive to Queen Elizabeth I from 1578 until her death in 1596. On 25 September 1593, he succeeded as Earl of Derby and Lord of Mann; from that date onwards, Alice was styled as the Countess of Derby.
Together Ferdinando and Alice had three daughters:
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