Frances Seymour, Duchess of Somerset

Frances Seymour (née Devereux), Duchess of Somerset (30 September 1599 – 24 April 1674), was an English noblewoman who lived in the reigns of Queen Elizabeth I and Kings James I, Charles I and Charles II. Her father was Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, Queen Elizabeth's favourite who was executed for treason in 1601. Lady Frances was the second wife of William Seymour, 2nd Duke of Somerset, and the mother of his seven children. Lady Frances was born on 30 September 1599 at Walsingham House, Seething Lane, London, England. She was the youngest child of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex and Frances Walsingham. Her paternal grandparents were Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex and Lettice Knollys, and her maternal grandparents were Sir Francis Walsingham, Queen Elizabeth's trusted spymaster, and Ursula St. Barbe. Lady Frances was also a direct descendant of Mary Boleyn, the sister of Anne Boleyn. At the time of Frances's birth, her father, who was a former favourite of Queen Elizabeth...