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Northumberland, Earl of (E, 1416 - 1537)

Creation: let.pat. 16 Mar 1415/6

Extinct: 30 Jun 1537

Family name: Percy

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Arms:

 See Earl of Northumberland

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Henry [Percy], 1st Earl of Northumberland

only son and heir of Sir Henry Percy KG "Hotspur", styled Lord Percy (by his wife Lady Elizabeth Mortimer, 1st dau. of Edmund [Mortimer], 3rd Earl of March, by his wife Lady Philippa Plantagenet, suo jure Countess of Ulster, only child of Lionel "of Antwerp", 1st Duke of Clarence), 1st son and heir ap. of Henry [Percy], 1st Earl of Northumberland

born

3 Feb 1392/3

mar.

aft. Oct 1414 Lady Eleanor la Despencer (widow of Richard [le Despencer], 4th Baron Burghersh, only son and heir ap. of Thomas [le Despencer], 1st Earl of Gloucester), 3rd dau. of Ralph [Neville], 1st Earl of Westmorland, by his second wife Lady Joan Beaufort, legitimated dau. of John "of Gaunt", 1st Duke of Lancaster (by his mistress and later third wife Katherine Swynford, widow of Sir Hugh Swynford, of Kettlethorpe, co. Lincoln, and 2nd dau. and cohrss. of Sir Payn de Roet, Guienne King of Arms), 4th son of King Edward III

children

1. Henry Percy, later 2nd Earl of Northumberland

2.Thomas Percy, later 1st Baron Egremont

3. George Percy, Rector of Rothbury and Caldbeck (d. bef. 9 Dec 1474)

4. Sir Ralph Percy (d. 25 Apr 1464), mar. Eleanor de Acton, dau. and hrss. of Laurence de Acton, of Newcastle, and had issue

5. William Percy, Bishop of Carlisle 1452-62

6. Sir Richard Percy (d. 29 Mar 1461), mar. Katherine Neville (mar. (2) William Fairfax, of Walton, co. York), dau. of Sir Alexander Neville, of Thornton Bridge, co. York

1. Lady Joan Percy, a nun at Whitby

2. Lady Catherine Percy (b. 28 May 1423), mar. bef/ Jan 1458/9 Edmund [Grey], 1st Earl of Kent, and had issue

died

22 May 1455

suc. by

son

note

restored to the Percy lands and titles 1415/6; Warden of the East March 1417; executor of King Henry V and member of the Council of Regency 1423/4; Constable of England 1450; killed fighting for King Henry VI at the 1st Battle of St Albans

Henry [Percy], jure uxoris 5th Baron Poynings later 2nd Earl of Northumberland

born

25 Jul 1421

mar.

c. 25 Jun 1435 Eleanor de Poynings, de jure suo jure Baroness Poynings and Baroness Bryan (d. Feb 1483/4), dau. and hrss. of Sir Richard de Poynings MP (by his second wife Elizabeth FitzAlan or Arundel, widow of John [FitzAlan or Arundel], 13th or 6th Earl of Arundel, and dau. of Sir John Berkeley, of Beverstone, co. Gloucester), son and heir ap. by his first wife of Robert [de Poynings], 4th Baron Poynings

children

1. Henry Percy, later 3rd Earl of Northumberland

1. Lady Elizabeth Percy (d. aft. 20 May 1512), mar. Henry [Scrope], 6th Baron Scrope of Bolton, and had issue

2. Lady Eleanor Percy

3. Lady Ann Percy (d. 5 Jul 1522), mar. (1) bef. 14 Oct 1460 Sir Thomas Hungerford, de jure 4th Baron Hungerford, (2) Sir Laurence Rainsford (d. 1490), and (3) Sir Hugh Vaughan, and had issue by her first husband

4. Lady Margaret Percy, mar. Sir William Gascoigne, of Gawthorpe, co. York (d. 1487), and had issue

died

29 Mar 1461

suc. by

son

note

knighted 1426; Governor of Berwick and Warden of the East March 1440; had livery of his wife's inheritance 1446; sum. to Parliament v.p. 14 Dec 1446 as Baron Poynings; Chief Justice in Eyre, North of Trent 1459; took part in the Battle of Wakefield 1460 and killed at the Battle of Towton 1461 fighting for King Henry VI; attainted 1461 when his lands and titles were forfeited

Henry [Percy], 3rd Earl of Northumberland, KG

born

c. 1449

mar.

c. 1476 Lady Maud Herbert (d. bef. 27 Jul 1485), 2nd dau. of William [Herbert], 1st Earl of Pembroke, by his wife Anne Devereux, dau. of Sir Walter Devereux, of Bodenham, co. Hereford

children

1. Henry Algernon Percy, later 4th Earl of Northumberland

2. Sir William Percy, mar. (1) Agnes Oughtred (widow of Sir Henry Oughtred), dau. of Sir Marmaduke Constable, of Flamborough, co. York, and (2) Margaret .....

3. Alan Percy, Master of St John's College, Cambridge (d. May 1560)

4. Josceline Percy, of Sandal and Beverley, co. York (d. bef. 14 Sep 1532), mar. Margaret Frost, dau. and hrss. of Walter Frost, of Beverley, co. York, and had issue

1. Lady Eleanor Percy (d. 13 Feb 1530), mar. 14 Dec 1490 Edward [Stafford], 3rd Duke of Buckingham, and had issue

2. Lady Anne Percy (d. 1552), mar. c.1511 as his second wife William [FitzAlan], 18th or 11th Earl of Arundel, and had issue

3. Lady Elizabeth Percy (d. young)

died

28 Apr 1489

suc. by

son

note

the Earldom was restored to him 1470 and his father's attainder reversed by Act of Parliament 1484; Warden of the East and Middle Marches 1470; Sheriff of Northumberland 1474 and 1488; Privy Councillor 1474; Knight of the Garter 1474; Governor of Berwick 1483; suc. his mother Feb 1484 as 6th Baron Poynings; Lord Great Chamberlain of England 1483-85; murdered whilst collecting taxes on behalf of the King at Topcliffe, co. York

Henry Algernon [Percy], 4th Earl of Northumberland, KG

born

14 Jan 1477/8

mar.

bef. 1502 Catherine Spencer (bur. 19 Oct 1542), dau. and cohrss. of Sir Robert Spencer, of Spencer Combe, co. Devon, by his wife Lady Eleanor Beaufort, 1st dau. and cohrss. in her issue of Edmund [Beaufort], 1st Duke of Somerset

children

1. Hon Henry Percy, later 5th Earl of Northumberland

2. Hon Sir Thomas Percy, took part in the Pilgrimage of Grace 1537, attainted and executed (d. 2 Jun 1537), mar. Eleanor Harbottle (mar. (2) Sir Richard Holland, of Denton, co. Lancaster; d. Apr 1567), sister and cohrss. of George Harbottle, of Beamish, co. Durham, and dau. of Sir Guiscard Harbottle, of Horton, co. Northumberland, and has issue:

1a. Thomas Percy, later 1st Earl of Northumberland

2a. Henry Percy, later 2nd Earl of Northumberland

3a. Guiscard Percy (d. young)

1a. Mary Percy (bur. 7 Feb 1597/8), mar. Francis Slingsby, of Scriven, co. York

3. Hon Sir Ingelram Percy (d. bef. 21 Mar 1538/9)

1. Lady Margaret Percy (d. 25 Nov 1540), mar. c. 1516 as his second wife Henry [Clifford], 1st Earl of Cumberland, and had issue

died

19 May 1527

suc. by

son

note

Knight of the Bath 1489; Knight of the Garter 1499; in action at the Battle of the Spurs 1513; a Judge of the Lists at the Field of Cloth of Gold 1520; a Councillor of the North 1522

Henry [Percy], 5th Earl of Northumberland

born

c. 1502

mar.

c. Jan 1523/4 Lady Mary Talbot (dsp. bef. 6 Jun 1572), 5th dau. of George [Talbot], 4th Earl of Shrewsbury, by his first wife Hon Anne Hastings, only dau. of William [Hastings], 1st Baron Hastings

died

s.p. 30 Jun 1537

note

knighted 1519; page to Cardinal Wolsey; a Councillor of the North 1522; Warden of the East and Middle Marches 1527-37; Knight of the Garter 1531; Sheriff of Northumberland 1532

On the death of the 5th Earl of Northumberland his heir was his nephew, Thomas Percy, eldest son of his next youngest brother, Sir Thomas Percy. Sir Thomas had been attainted and executed a month earlier for treason following his rebellion against the King. According to the law then in force, the presence of the attainder barred any title of honour passing through him to any of his children. Consequently the Earldom of Northumberland was deemed to have become extinct at this point. More recent peerage law on attainder (i.e. in force since 1764) would have allowed the transmission of the earldom through the attainted party to the rightful heir.

 Last updated 8 Jun 2009

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