William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire 1590-1628

Paternal Family Tree: William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire

Around 21st March 1580 [his father] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 27] and [his mother] Anne Keighley [aged 17] were married. He the son of [his grandfather] William Cavendish and [his grandmother] Bess of Hardwick Countess Shrewsbury and Waterford [aged 53].

Around 1590 William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire was born to William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 37] and Anne Keighley [aged 27].

After 1603 [his father] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 50] and [his step-mother] Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire [aged 35] were married. He the son of [his grandfather] William Cavendish and [his grandmother] Bess of Hardwick Countess Shrewsbury and Waterford [aged 76].

In 1605 [his father] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 52] was created 1st Baron Cavendish Hardwick. [his step-mother] Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire [aged 37] by marriage Baroness Cavendish Hardwick.

Death of Bess of Hardwick

On 13th February 1608 [his grandmother] Bess of Hardwick [aged 81] died. She was buried in All Saints Church, Derby [Map]. Her monument, which she had constructed before her death, was designed by Robert Smythson [aged 38]. She left nothing in her will for her 'bad son' [his uncle] Henry Cavendish [aged 57]. He did, however, inherit Chatsworth House, Derbyshire [Map] which he subsequently sold in 1609 to his brother William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 55] for £10,000.

The date of her funeral somewhat complicated. Rawsons 1910 book "Bess of Hardwick and her Circle" quotes Simpson's National Records of Derby for 1608: "The old Countess of Shrewsbury died about Candlemas this year, whose funeral was about Holy Thursday. A great frost this year. The witches of Bakewell hanged." Holy Thursday, the Feast of the Ascension, is thirty-nine days after Easter. Easter in 1608 was on the 6th of April, putting Holy Thursday on the 15th of May.

Ethel Carleton Williams "Bess of Hardwick", 1959, has a note: "9. The date of Bess of Hardwick's funeral is uncertain. The date on the coffin plate is said to be February 1608 (Cox and Hope, Chronicles of the Collegiate Church of All Saints, Derby), but on 31 March 1608 Gilbert Talbot wrote to Robert Cecil, excusing himself for not attending St George's Feast on the ground that his mother-in-law's funeral was to be on St George's Day (23 April). Later, on 3rd of April, the Earl of Arundel wrote to Gilbert (his father-in-law), 'the funeral at Derby is appointed to be either on the fourth or fifth of May, which Garter yet knoweth not, but rather thinketh on the fourth because the other is a holy day'".

Neither of which provide a definite answer. The former being around the 15th of May, the latter 'rather thinketh' the 4th of May. Are there any other contemporary sources available?

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On 10th April 1608 William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 18] and Christian Bruce Countess Devonshire were married. He the son of William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 55] and Anne Keighley [aged 45].

In 1609 William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 19] was knighted.

Around 1611 [his daughter] Anne Cavendish Countess Warwick was born to William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 21] and [his wife] Christian Bruce Countess Devonshire. She married 9th April 1632 Robert Rich 3rd Earl Warwick, son of Robert Rich 2nd Earl Warwick and Frances Hatton Countess Warwick, and had issue.

In 1614 William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 24] was elected MP Derbyshire.

On 10th October 1617 [his son] William Cavendish 3rd Earl Devonshire was born to William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 27] and [his wife] Christian Bruce Countess Devonshire. He married 4th March 1639 Elizabeth Cecil Countess Devonshire, daughter of William Cecil 2nd Earl Salisbury and Catherine Howard Countess Salisbury, and had issue.

On 2nd August 1618 [his father] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 65] was created 1st Earl Devonshire, at the Bishop's Palace, Salisbury Cathedral. [his step-mother] Elizabeth Boughton Countess Devonshire [aged 50] by marriage Countess Devonshire.

In 1619 William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 29] was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Derbyshire.

On 30th May 1620 [his son] Charles Cavendish was born to William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 30] and [his wife] Christian Bruce Countess Devonshire.

In 1621 William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 31] was elected MP Derbyshire.

William of Worcester's Chronicle of England

William of Worcester, born around 1415, and died around 1482 was secretary to John Fastolf, the renowned soldier of the Hundred Years War, during which time he collected documents, letters, and wrote a record of events. Following their return to England in 1440 William was witness to major events. Twice in his chronicle he uses the first person: 1. when writing about the murder of Thomas, 7th Baron Scales, in 1460, he writes '… and I saw him lying naked in the cemetery near the porch of the church of St. Mary Overie in Southwark …' and 2. describing King Edward IV's entry into London in 1461 he writes '… proclaimed that all the people themselves were to recognize and acknowledge Edward as king. I was present and heard this, and immediately went down with them into the city'. William’s Chronicle is rich in detail. It is the source of much information about the Wars of the Roses, including the term 'Diabolical Marriage' to describe the marriage of Queen Elizabeth Woodville’s brother John’s marriage to Katherine, Dowager Duchess of Norfolk, he aged twenty, she sixty-five or more, and the story about a paper crown being placed in mockery on the severed head of Richard, 3rd Duke of York.

Available at Amazon in eBook and Paperback format.

On 4th July 1622 [his brother-in-law] Thomas Bruce 1st Earl Elgin [aged 23] and Anne Chichester [aged 17] were married at Holy Trinity Church, Minories [Map].

In 1624 William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 34] was elected MP Derbyshire.

In 1625 William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 35] was elected MP Derbyshire.

In 1625 [his mother] Anne Keighley [aged 62] died.

In 1626 William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 36] was elected MP Derbyshire.

On 3rd March 1626 [his father] William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire [aged 73] died. His succeeded son William [aged 36] succeeded 2nd Earl Devonshire, 2nd Baron Cavendish Hardwick. [his wife] Christian Bruce Countess Devonshire by marriage Countess Devonshire. On 12th October 1616 [his uncle] Henry Cavendish died. Both were buried at St Peter's Church, Edensor [Map].

The monument was behind the altar in the original church but moved to a separate chapel in the new church.

Monument formed two bodies under a low four-poster with black Ionic columns and black covering slab. The monument has been attributed to Maximilian Colt [aged 51].

Before 20th June 1628 Daniel Mijtens [aged 38]. Portrait (attributed) of William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 38].

On 20th June 1628 William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire [aged 38] died at Devonshire House. He was buried at Derby Cathedral [Map]. His succeeded son William [aged 10] succeeded 3rd Earl Devonshire, 3rd Baron Cavendish Hardwick.

In 1675 [his former wife] Christian Bruce Countess Devonshire died. She was buried at Derby Cathedral [Map].

Royal Ancestors of William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire 1590-1628

Kings Wessex: Great x 17 Grand Son of King Edmund "Ironside" I of England

Kings Gwynedd: Great x 12 Grand Son of Owain "Great" King Gwynedd

Kings Seisyllwg: Great x 18 Grand Son of Hywel "Dda aka Good" King Seisyllwg King Deheubarth

Kings Powys: Great x 13 Grand Son of Maredudd ap Bleddyn King Powys

Kings England: Great x 9 Grand Son of King Edward I of England

Kings Scotland: Great x 14 Grand Son of King David I of Scotland

Kings France: Great x 17 Grand Son of Hugh I King of the Franks

Kings Duke Aquitaine: Great x 21 Grand Son of Ranulf I Duke Aquitaine

Kings Spain: Great x 13 Grand Son of Alfonso VII King Castile VII King Leon

Royal Descendants of William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire 1590-1628
Number after indicates the number of unique routes of descent. Descendants of Kings and Queens not included.

Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom [1]

Diana Spencer Princess Wales [1]

Ancestors of William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire 1590-1628

Great x 4 Grandfather: John Cavendish

Great x 3 Grandfather: William Cavendish

Great x 4 Grandmother: Joan Clopton

Great x 2 Grandfather: Thomas Cavendish

Great x 3 Grandmother: Joan Staventon

Great x 1 Grandfather: Thomas Cavendish 6 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England

Great x 3 Grandfather: John Scudamore

Great x 2 Grandmother: Catherine Scudamore 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England

Great x 4 Grandfather: Owain ap Gruffudd "Glyndŵr" Mathrafal Prince Powys 3 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England

Great x 3 Grandmother: Alys Mathrafal 4 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England

Great x 4 Grandmother: Margaret Hamner

GrandFather: William Cavendish 7 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England

Great x 2 Grandfather: John Carrington Smith

Great x 1 Grandmother: Alice Smith

Father: William Cavendish 1st Earl Devonshire 8 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England

Great x 2 Grandfather: John Harwick

Great x 1 Grandfather: John Hardwick 7 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England

Great x 3 Grandfather: Thomas Pinchbeck

Great x 2 Grandmother: Elizabeth Pinchbeck 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England

Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Green 4 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England

Great x 3 Grandmother: Anne Greene 5 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England

Great x 4 Grandmother: Mary aka Marina Bellers

GrandMother: Bess of Hardwick Countess Shrewsbury and Waterford 8 x Great Grand Daughter of King Edward I of England

Great x 4 Grandfather: John Leeke of Gotham

Great x 3 Grandfather: William Leeke of Lakeford

Great x 2 Grandfather: Thomas Leeke of Hasland 7 x Great Grand Son of King John of England

Great x 4 Grandfather: Thomas Chaworth 5 x Great Grand Son of King John of England

Great x 3 Grandmother: Catherine Chaworth 6 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England

Great x 1 Grandmother: Elizabeth Leeke 8 x Great Grand Daughter of King John of England

Great x 4 Grandfather: William Vaux

Great x 3 Grandfather: William Vaux of Harrowden

Great x 2 Grandmother: Margaret Vaux

William Cavendish 2nd Earl Devonshire 9 x Great Grand Son of King Edward I of England

GrandFather: Henry Keighley

Mother: Anne Keighley