HENRY CAREY, 1ST BARON HUNSDON
HENRY CAREY, 1ST BARON HUNSDON
1526-1596
Henry Carey was the son of Mary Boleyn and William Carey. Mary Boleyn was the older sister of Anne Boleyn (the second wife of King Henry VIII). Mary had been a mistress to King Henry VIII of England before he fell in love with her sister Anne. Mary married William in 1520 and the couple had two children. There were rumours that Henry Carey (and his sister Catherine) were fathered by King Henry VIII, due to their mother’s affair with him.
William Carey died in 1528 from the sweating sickness and Mary became a widow, Anne provided a pension for her. Anne and Henry VIII married in 1533 and their daughter Elizabeth was born.
Mary fell in love with the soldier and commoner, William Stafford and she married him in secret in 1535. When Anne found out about her sisters marriage she was furious and Mary was disowned by her family and banished from court. Mary struggled financially, and Anne finally caved in and helped her by sending her money. Anne was executed in 1536 for treason (Henry Carey was aged 10 when she was beheaded), and what happened to Mary at the end of her life is unknown, she died in 1543 in Essex.
In 1545, Carey married Anne Morganand and all up he had 16 children as well as children with his mistresses. When his cousin Elizabeth became Queen, he became Member of Parliament and was then knighted in 1559. His sister, Catherine became one of Queen’s favourite ladies-in-waiting. Carey owned Hunsdon House which had previously belonged to Queen Mary I of England. In 1564, Elizabeth I made him her personal bodyguard for four years and he later became Lord Chamberlain of the Household in 1585.
In 1587, Carey had an affair with Emilia Lanier the daughter of a court musician, he was 45-years older than her, during this time he paid her a pension. In 1529, Lanier, aged 23 gave birth to his child and Carey married Lanier off to her cousin (who was the Queen’s musician). Lanier gave birth to his son, who was also called Henry in 1593.
Carey died at Somerset House in 1596 and is buried at Westminster Abbey.
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