Magdalen Dacre, Viscountess Montagu

Magdalen Dacre, Viscountess Montagu (January 1538 -8 April 1608) was an English noblewoman. She was the daughter of William Dacre, 3rd Baron Dacre of Gilsland, and the second wife of Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montagu. Magdalen was a lady-in-waiting to Queen Mary I.

Family

Lady Magdalen Dacre was born in January 1538 at Naworth Castle in Cumberland, a daughter of William Dacre, 3rd Baron Dacre of Gilsland, 2nd Baron Greystoke, and Elizabeth Talbot. The Dacres were powerful Northern Border lords and fervent Roman Catholics. Her paternal grandparents were Thomas Dacre, 2nd Baron Dacre of Gilsland, 1st Baron Greystoke, and Elizabeth Greystoke. Her maternal grandparents were George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury and Anne Hastings. She had five brothers and five sisters. Her father was the English Warden of the Scottish Marches and Governor of Carlisle.

List of siblings

# Thomas Dacre, 4th Baron Dacre of Gilsland 3rd Baron Greystoke (1527/1530- 1 July 1566. Married firstly Elizabeth Neville and secondly Elizabeth Leybourne, by whom he had five children, including George Dacre, 5th Baron Dacre of Gilsland, 4th Baron Greystoke, and Anne Howard, Countess of Arundel (21 March 1557-19 April 1630). When Thomas died, his widow remarried Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk.
# Leonard Dacre (died 12 August 1573). Joined the Northern Rebellion and had to flee England.
# Frances Dacre (born 1523)
# Anne Dacre (1521-July 1581). Married Henry Clifford, 2nd Earl of Cumberland. Had six children.
# Dorothy Dacre (born 1533). Married Sir Thomas Windsor. They had one daughter, Anne Windsor.
# George Dacre (born 1534)
# Eleanor Dacre. Married Henry Jerningham,Esq., of Cotesby Hall. Had issue.
# Mary Dacre (born 1539). Married Sir Alexander Culpepper of Bedgebury. Had one son, Sir Anthony Culpepper of Bedgebury.
# Edward Dacre (died 1579). Joined his brother in the Northern Rebellion.
# Sir Francis Dacre (died 1632). Married Dorothy Radcliffe. Had issue.

Marriage

She became a Maid of Honour to Queen Mary I in 1554, and was her intimate friend and confidante. On 15 July 1558, Lady Magdalen married Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montagu, (29 November 1528- 19 October 1592)), Privy Counsellor, a Knight of the Garter. He was briefly King Philip II of Spain's Master of the Horse. At Queen Mary's coronation, Anthony Browne carried the Queen's train. [Carolly Erickson "Bloody Mary",page294] In 1554, he was created Viscount Montagu. This was his second marriage, his first wife Jane Radclyffe having died in childbirth in 1552. The Queen attended the wedding. The Browne family was also staunchy Catholic. Their principal residences were Cowdray Castle and Battle Abbey, both in Sussex. Anthony and Magdalen had ten children. He had two children by his former marriage, Anthony Maria Browne, 2nd Viscount Montagu and Mary Browne, Countess of Southampton. Following the accession of Queen Elizabeth I to the throne in 1558, Montagu lost his seat on the Privy Council but was made joint Lord Lieutenant of Sussex in 1570. Magdalen found favour with the Queen despite her Catholicism, her former close friendship with the late Queen Mary and later the treacherous behaviour of her Dacre relations, some of whom conspired to depose the Queen and replace her with Mary Queen of Scots. The Montagus entertained the Queen for a week at Cowdray Castle in 1591. [Cowdray ruins: a short history and guide.] Magdalen Dacre died at Battle Abbey, Sussex on 8 April 1608 at the age of 70. [Worldroots.com]

List of children

# Philip Browne (born 1559). He is assumed to have died young.
# Sir Henry Browne (1562-6 February 1628). He married firstly Mary Hungate and secondly Anne Catesby. Had issue.
# George Browne. Married firstly Eleanor Brydges, by whom he had issue; he married secondly Mary Tyrwhitt, by whom he had issue.
# Sir Anthony Browne. He married Anne Bell.
# Jane Browne. Married Sir Francis Lacon.
# Mary Browne
# Elizabeth Browne (died after 29 September 1623). She married Robert Dormer, 1st Baron Dormer of Wing. Had issue.
# Mabel Browne
# Thomas Browne
# William Browne

In fiction

Magdalen Dacre appears in Anya Seton's historical romance "Green Darkness", which was partially set in 16th century England.

References

# Tudorplace.com.ar/Dacre
# Tudorplace.com.ar/Browne
# Worldroots.com.
# Carolly Erickson "Bloody Mary", International Collector's Library, Garden City, New York, 1978
# Cowdray ruins: a short history and guide