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Anne Browne (c. 1495 – 10 March 1582) N BROWN was a Tudor noblewoman known for her prominence in the English court during the 16th century. Born around 1495, Anne Browne lived through a significant period in English history, witnessing the tumultuous events of the
Tudor era In England and Wales, the Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603, including the Elizabethan era during the reign of Elizabeth I (1558–1603). The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in England, which began with ...
. Her life spanned the reigns of several monarchs, including Henry VII,
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...
,
Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. The only surviving son of Henry VIII by his thi ...
,
Mary I Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain as the wife of King Philip II from January 1556 until her death in 1558. She made vigorous a ...
, and
Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...
, allowing her a unique perspective on the changing political and social landscape of the time. Browne's influence and status within the noble circles of Tudor England afforded her a notable position in historical records. She died on 10 March 1582.


Life

She was the daughter of Sir William Browne, sometime
Lord Mayor of the City of London Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...
. Her first marriage was to Richard Fermor in 1515. They had one son, Sir John Fermor, (c. 1516 – 12 December 1571). Her second marriage was to John Tyrrell (died 1540) of Heron Hall, Essex, by whom she had two daughters, Katherine and Anne. Her third marriage had occurred by March 1542 and was to
William Petre Sir William Petre (c. 1505 – 1572) (pronounced ''Peter'') was Secretary of State to three successive Tudor monarchs, namely Kings Henry VIII, Edward VI and Queen Mary I. He also deputised for the Secretary of State to Elizabeth I. Educated ...
of
Ingatestone Hall Ingatestone Hall is a Grade I listed 16th-century manor house in Essex, England. It is located outside the village of Ingatestone, approximately south west of Chelmsford and north east of London. The house was built by Sir William Petre, a ...
, Essex - it was his second marriage. His first had been to Gertrude Tyrrell, possibly a relation of Anne's first husband. Anne brought Petre a marriage portion of £280 from the lease of an estate at Dunton near East Horndon, and from manors in Cambridgeshire and Hampshire. She and Petre had three sons and two daughters: *
John Petre, 1st Baron Petre John Petre, 1st Baron Petre (20 December 1549 – 11 October 1613) was an English peer who lived during the Tudor period and early Stuart period. He and his family were recusants — people who adhered to the Catholic faith after the Englis ...
(1549–1613), who 1570 married Mary Waldegrave (died 2 August 1604). *Two sons who died young. *Katherine Petre, who married John Talbot of Grafton, Worcestershire. *Thomasine Petre, who married Lodovick Greville, son of Sir Edward Greville (died 1559) of Milcote, and by him had Sir Edward Greville.Greville, Sir Edward (1566–1634), of Milcote, Warwickshire, later of Pishobury, Hertfordshire. and Fulham, Middlesex, History of Parliament
Retrieved 11 July 2013.
Anne survived Petre by many years and (like him in his final years) was a covert Catholic; she lived on at Ingatestone Hall, and there received and sheltered many of the seminary priests, whose presence was strictly forbidden in England by Elizabeth's law at that time. Coming from
Douai Douai ( , , ; ; ; formerly spelled Douay or Doway in English) is a city in the Nord (French department), Nord département in northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the department. Located on the river Scarpe (rive ...
, they could be missionaries to the persecuted Catholics or mercenaries plotting against Queen Elizabeth I. One of these missionaries was John Payne, who lived for some time at Ingatestone Hall under her protection. He was arrested there in 1577, thrown into prison for three weeks, and then released. He returned to France by the end of the year, but it was not long before he was back in England and at Ingatestone Hall, where he passed as Lady Petre's steward and acted as her confessor. In 1581, information was laid against him, and he was arrested at
Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...
and tried, not only for saying Mass, which was then a punishable offence, but also for plotting against Elizabeth. After long investigation, trial, and torture, he was executed in 1582 at Chelmsford. John Payne was nephew of Rector Woodward, of Ingatestone who had resigned rather than conform. Anne herself was on the list of recusants whose addresses were to be sent up in 1582. Payne's trial and execution seems to have been a severe blow to Anne, for she died in April of the same year and was buried with her second husband in the vault adjoining the chancel at
St Edmund and St Mary's Church, Ingatestone St Edmund and St Mary's Church is the Church of England parish church in the village of Ingatestone in Essex. It dates to the 11th century and received major modifications in the 17th century. Its west tower is in red brick and is described by Si ...
, and her effigy lies by his on the tomb above. Lady Anne made a final will in February 1582; she died later that year. Among the bequests in her will, she left to her daughter-in-law, Mary Petre, a billiment of goldsmith work with black enamel, thirteen pieces set with nine pearls, and fourteen pieces without pearls. This piece was intended to adorn a French hood. She owned a tablet or locket with a unicorn bone, reckoned to be a charm against poison. F. G. Emmison, ''Elizabethan Life: Wills of Essex Gentry and Merchants'' (Chelmsford, 1978), pp. 32–36.


References


Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Browne, Anne
Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), Annie a ...
1490s births 1582 deaths 16th-century English nobility 16th-century English women Wives of knights