Elizabeth Tilney

Elizabeth Tilney, Countess of Surrey (before 1447 – 4 April1497) was the first wife of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk and the mother of Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk. She was the maternal grandmother of Anne Boleyn and the paternal grandmother of Catherine Howard both queen consorts of King Henry VIII.

Family

Elizabeth was born at Ashwellthorpe Manor, Norfolk, England sometime before 1447. She was the daughter of Sir Frederick Tilney and Elizabeth Cheney, of Ditton, Cambridgeshire. [The Complete Peerage G.E. Cokayne] Her paternal grandparents were Sir Philip Tilney and Isabel Thorpe. Her maternal grandparents were Sir Laurence Cheney of Fen Ditton and Elizabeth Cockayne. Elizabeth Cockayne was the daughter of Sir John Cockayne, Chief Baron of the Exchequer and Ida de Grey. Ida was a daughter of Welsh Marcher Lord Reginald Grey, 2nd Baron Grey de Ruthyn and Alianore Le Strange. Through her mother, Ida was a direct descendant of Welsh Prince Gruffydd II ap Madog, Lord of Dinas Bran and his wife Emma de Audley.

Marriages

She married her first husband Sir Humphrey Bourchier around 1466. He was the son of John Bourchier, 1st Lord Berners and Margery Berners. The marriage produced a son John Bourchier, 2nd Lord Berners and two daughters. Sir Humphrey was killed at the Battle of Barnet on 14 April 1471 fighting on the Yorkist side. [The Complete Peerage] Elizabeth married her second husband Thomas Howard, Earl of Surrey on 30 April 1472. On 22 August 1485 his father John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk was killed at the Battle of Bosworth while fighting for his king Richard III who was also his close friend and companion. [Paul Murray Kendall "Richard The Third", pages 193-96] Thomas was wounded in the battle and imprisoned for several years, his right to ascend to the dukedom of Norfolk being forfeit. He would not gain the title until 1514. After his Earldom and estates were restored to him, he continued in the service of the Tudor king Henry VII. The marriage produced nine children including Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, Elizabeth Howard, mother of Anne Boleyn, and Lord Edmund Howard, father of Catherine Howard.

List of children

# John Bourchier, 2nd Lord Berners (1467-1523) married firstly Katherine Howard. Had issue. Married secondly Elizabeth Bacon. Had issue.
# Anne Bourchier (1470- 29 September 1530) Married Thomas Fiennes, 2nd Baron Dacre of the South. Had issue.
# Margaret Bourchier (died 1552) Married firstly Sir Thomas Bryan. Had issue. Married secondly David Zouche. Married thirdly John Sands. She is not recorded as having had further children by her last two husbands.
# Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk (1473- 25 August 1554). Married Elizabeth Stafford. Had issue, including Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey.
# Admiral Sir Edward Howard, Lord High Admiral of England (1476/77- 25 April 1513). Married firstly Elizabeth Stapleton and secondly Alice Lovell. He died at sea following an attack on French galleys. Had two illegitimate sons.
# Lord Edmund Howard (1479-1539). Married Joyce Culpeper. Queen Catherine Howard was one of their children.
# Lady Elizabeth Howard (1480- 3 April 1538) Married Thomas Boleyn, 1st Earl of Wiltshire. They were the parents of Queen Anne Boleyn, Mary Boleyn, and George Boleyn.
# Muriel Howard. Married John Grey, 2nd Viscount Lisle.
# Henry Howard
# Richard Howard
# Sir John Howard
# Charles Howard

Death

Elizabeth Tilney died on 4 April 1497. She never held the title of Duchess of Norfolk. Four months after Elizabeth's death, Thomas Howard married secondly her cousin Agnes Tilney by whom he had more children.

In fiction

A fictional account of Elizabeth Tilney's life was written by Juliet Dymoke in "The Sun in Splendour" which depicts Elizabeth, known as "Bess", at the court of King Edward IV. It is highly romanticised and not to be regarded as a biography.

References

# "The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, the United Kingdon, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed." G.E. Cokayne. Published by Alan Sutton Publishing
# "The Six Wives of Henry VIII" Alison Weir, published by Ballantine Books, New York 1991 ISBN: 0-345-38072-X
# "Richard The Third" Paul Murray Kendall, published by George Allen and Unwin LTD, London 1953 ISBN: 0-04-94204R-R
# Tudorplace.com.ar/Bourchier