Elizabeth Boleyn, Countess of Wiltshire
| Elizabeth Boleyn | |
|---|---|
| Countess of Wiltshire Countess of Ormond Viscountess Rochford |
|
| Spouse(s) | Thomas Boleyn, 1st Earl of Wiltshire |
| Issue | |
| Noble family |
Howard (by birth) Boleyn (by marriage) |
| Father | Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk |
| Mother | Elizabeth Tilney |
| Born | c. 1480 |
| Died | 3 April 1538 (aged 57–58) |
| Buried |
St. Mary's Church, Lambeth 51°29′42″N 0°07′13″W / 51.4950°N 0.1202°W |
Elizabeth Boleyn, Countess of Wiltshire (née Lady Elizabeth Howard; c. 1480 – 3 April 1538) was an English noblewoman, noted for being the mother of Anne Boleyn and as such the maternal grandmother of Elizabeth I of England. The eldest daughter of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk and his first wife Elizabeth Tilney, she married Thomas Boleyn sometime in the later 15th century. Elizabeth became Viscountess Rochford in 1525 when her husband was elevated to the peerage, subsequently becoming Countess of Ormond in 1527 and Countess of Wiltshire in 1529.
Elizabeth was born c. 1480 into the wealthy and influential Howard family, as the eldest of the two daughters of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk and his first wife Elizabeth Tilney. Her paternal grandfather, John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk, had been created Duke of Norfolk in 1483 following the death of John de Mowbray, 4th Duke of Norfolk, with no legitimate male heirs. Through her paternal great-grandfather, Sir Robert Howard of Tendring, Elizabeth was a descendant of Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall, the second son of King John. Through her maternal great-grandmother, she was descendant of both Thomas of Brotherton, 1st Earl of Norfolk, a younger son of Edward I and Margaret of France, and Edmund Crouchback, Henry III.
Her family managed to survive the fall of their patron, King Richard III, who was killed at Bosworth in 1485 and supplanted by the victor, King Henry VII, when she was about five years old. Elizabeth became a part of the royal court as a young girl.
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