Sir Anthony Browne (d.1548)

Sir Anthony Browne (died 6 May 1548) was the son of Sir Anthony (or Ambrose) Browne, Standard Bearer of England and Governor of Queenborough Castle, by his wife Lucy Nevill, daughter of John Neville, 1st Marquess of Montagu.

He married Alice, daughter of Sir John Gage, and their children included:
*Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montagu;
*Mary Browne, who married John Grey of Pirgo and was the mother of Henry Grey, 1st Baron Grey of Groby;
*Mabel Browne, who married Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl of Kildare.

He was made a Knight of the Garter in 1540.

Sometime after 1540, he remarried Elizabeth Fitzgerald, daughter of the 9th Earl of Kildare, his wife Alice having died.

As a conservative, he had to be careful not to be brought down by factional politics at the court of Henry VIII. He became so trusted by Henry that in the King's latter years, Browne held a dry stamp of the King's signature, to use for minor letters.

During the uprisings in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, known as the Pilgrimage of Grace, Brown was sent against the Catholic protesters, to test his loyalty. He maintained Henry's trust.

Browne was said to be a good-looking man and two members of his family were said to have been mistresses of Henry VIII. One, 'Mistress Browne', we do not know the first name of, but it was allegedly his sister. One piece of information, however, points to it being his daughter, Elizabeth Browne, countess of Worcester. The ex-mistress was alleged to have been a prime mover in the downfall of Anne Boleyn. Elizabeth Browne was a lady-in-waiting to Queen Anne Boleyn and the chief witness against her. Another member of his family, Anne Bassett was rumoured to be in the running to become Henry's fifth wife and there were eariler rumours of an affair, shortly before his marriage to Anne of Cleves.

References

* [http://www.stirnet.com/HTML/genie/genfam.htm]