Barbara FitzRoy
| Lady Barbara FitzRoy | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
16 July 1672 Cleveland House, London |
| Died | 6 May 1737 (aged 64) Priory of St. Nicholas, Pontoise |
| Nationality |
 English
|
| Children | Charles Hamilton (illegitimate) |
| Parent(s) |
Charles II of England (disputed) Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland |
Lady Barbara FitzRoy (16 July 1672 – 6 May 1737), was the sixth and youngest child of Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland, a mistress of Charles II of England. Although Charles publicly acknowledged her as his child, he was probably not the father. She became a Benedictine nun, known as Benedite.
Barbara was born at Cleveland House in St Martin in the Fields, London, England on 16 July 1672. Around the time she was born, Louise de Kérouaille was supplanting her mother in the king's bed.
Although her mother insisted she was a daughter of the king, Barbara was probably fathered by either John Churchill, later Duke of Marlborough, a second cousin of her mother, or Lord Chesterfield, whom she is said to have resembled in her features. Boyer in his "Annals", published in the lifetime of the Duke of Marlborough says of Barbara:
"I do not find the King ever owned her for his daughter; but a great man now living is her reputed father. [...] It is generally believ'd that Mr. Churchill, afterwards Duke of Marlborough, was her father."
Finally, it may be remarked that her mother's husband, Lord Castlemaine, believed her to be his daughter, and bequeathed her his estate.Charles, however, always insisted on acknowledging her as his child, while disavowing her in private.
She and her mother were painted by Thomas Pooley in 1677. They are seen holding a basket of flowers; Barbara Fitzroy is portrayed as a smiling, round-faced five-year-old with blonde curls.
The king died in 1685. In March 1691, eighteen-year-old Barbara gave birth to an illegitimate son of the Earl of Arran, whom she named Charles Hamilton (1691-1754). Arran's parents bitterly opposed his relationship with Barbara. Right after giving birth, she became a nun in the English Priory of St. Nicholas, at Pontoise in Normandy, France, taking the name Sister Benedicta, where she later became prioress in 1721. Her son Charles was raised by her mother, the Duchess of Cleveland, who supposedly disowned her.
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Wikipedia