Elizabeth Cary, Viscountess Falkland
| Lady Falkland | |
|---|---|
by Paul van Somer c. 1620
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| Born | 1585 Burford Priory, Oxfordshire, England |
| Died | 1639 (aged 53–54) London, England |
| Occupation | Poet, translator, dramatist |
| Nationality | English |
| Period | 1598–1639 |
| Notable works | The Tragedy of Mariam |
Elizabeth Cary, Viscountess Falkland (née Tanfield; 1585–1639), was an English poet, translator and dramatist. Precocious and studious, she was known from a young age for her learning and knowledge of languages. She is said to be first woman to have an original work (The Tragedy of Mariam) published in her own name.
Elizabeth was born in 1585 at Burford Priory in Oxfordshire, the only child of Sir Lawrence Tanfield and his wife Elizabeth Symondes. Her father was a lawyer, who eventually became a judge and Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer. Her parents were very supportive of their daughter's love for reading and learning, which was so great that her mother forbade the servants from giving Elizabeth candles to read by at night.
Elizabeth's parents employed a French instructor for her when she was five years old. Five weeks later, she was speaking fluently. After excelling in French, she insisted on learning Spanish, Italian, Latin, Hebrew, and Transylvanian on her own, without an instructor. Later on at the age of ten, she also helped exonerate a woman accused of witchcraft after noticing that the accused woman was just answering "yes" to every question she was asked, without thinking about what she was admitting to.
At the age of fifteen, her father arranged her marriage to Sir Henry Cary, later made Viscount Falkland, who married her because she was an heiress. When she finally moved into her husband's home, her mother-in-law informed Elizabeth that she was forbidden to read, so Elizabeth instead chose to write poetry in her spare time.
It was not until seven years after they were married that Lord and Lady Falkland had children; they would go on to have a total of eleven: Catherine (1609–1625), Lucius (1610–1643; became the second Viscount Falkland), Lorenzo (1613–1642), Anne (c.1614–1671), Edward (1616–1616), Elizabeth (1617–1683), Lucy (1619–1650), Victoria (1620–1692), Mary (1621–1693), Henry (1622–?), and Patrick (1623–1657).
At the age of twenty, Elizabeth began doubting her Protestant upbringing. Her brother-in-law helped her find Catholicism by telling her stories of his travels and recommending books for her to read.
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