Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby

Ferdinando Stanley
Ferdinando Stanley, the 5th Earl of Derby
Born	1559
Died	16 April 1594
Title	Earl of Derby
Tenure	1593-1594
Nationality	English
Locality	Lancashire, Cheshire

Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby (1559 – 16 April 1594) was the son of Henry Stanley, 4th Earl of Derby and Lady Margaret Clifford. Ferdinando had a place in the line of succession according to the Will of Henry VIII, after his mother, whom he predeceased. His sudden death led to suspicions of poisoning amid fears of Catholic plots to overthrow Elizabeth.

About 1572, when he was thirteen, Stanley matriculated as a member of the University of Oxford. A year later he was called to her Court by Queen Elizabeth, "to be shaped in good manners". He was subsequently summoned to Parliament in his father's Barony of Strange (of Knokyn) and became known as "Ferdinando, Lord Straunge". In 1579 he married Alice Spencer, the youngest daughter of Sir John Spencer of Althorp by his marriage to Catherine Kytson.

Ferdinando was a supporter of the arts, enjoying music, dance, poetry, and singing, but above all he loved the theatre. He was the patron of many writers, including Robert Greene, Christopher Marlowe, Edmund Spenser, and William Shakespeare. Shakespeare may have been employed by Strange in his early years as one of Lord Strange's Men, when this troupe of acrobats and tumblers was reorganized, emphasizing the performing of plays. By 1590, Strange's was allied with the Admiral's Men, performing at The Theatre (owned by James Burbage, father of Richard Burbage).