House of Howard

Howard family
Coat of arms of Howard, granted to Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk
Country	Kingdom of England, United Kingdom
Ethnicity	English (see details)
Founded	1483
Founder	John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk
Current head	Edward Fitzalan-Howard, 18th Duke of Norfolk
Cadet branches	Howards of Effingham Howards of Carlisle Howards of Suffolk Howards of Penrith Howards of Corby Castle

The House of Howard is an English Noble House founded by John Howard who was created Duke of Norfolk (3rd creation) by King Richard III of England in 1483. However, John was also the eldest grandson (although maternal) of the 1st Duke of 1st creation. The Howards have been part of the peerage since the 15th century and remain the Premier Dukes of the Realm in the Peerage of England, acting as Earl Marshal of England. After the English Reformation many Howards remained steadfast in their Catholic faith as the most high-profile recusant family; two members, Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel, and William Howard, 1st Viscount Stafford, are regarded as martyrs: a saint and a blessed respectively.

The senior line of the house, as well as holding the Duke of Norfolk, are also Earl of Arundel, Earl of Surrey and Earl of Norfolk, as well as holding six baronies. The Arundel title was inherited in 1580, when the Howards became the genealogical successors to the paternally extinct FitzAlans, ancient kin to the House of Stuart, dating back to when the family first arrived in Great Britain from Brittany (see Alan fitz Flaad). Thomas Howard, the 4th Duke of Norfolk, married as his first wife Mary FitzAlan; who, after the death of her brother Henry in 1556, became heiress to the Arundel estates of her father Henry FitzAlan, 19th Earl of Arundel. Her son was the above-mentioned Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel. It is from this marriage that the present Duke of Norfolk takes his name of FitzAlan-Howard and why his seat is in Arundel Castle. There have also been several notable cadet branches; those existing to this day include the Howards of Effingham, Howards of Carlisle, Howards of Suffolk and Howards of Penrith. The former three are earldoms, and the latter a barony.

Throughout much of English, and later British history, the Howards have played an important role. Claiming descent from folklore figure Hereward the Wake who resisted the Norman conquest, John Howard fought to the death at the Battle of Bosworth Field in defence of the cause for the House of York. They regained favour with the new Tudor dynasty after leading a defence of England from Scottish invasion at the Battle of Flodden, and Catherine Howard subsequently became the fifth wife and Queen consort to King Henry VIII. Her uncle, Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, played a significant role in Henrician politics. Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham, served as Lord Admiral of the English fleet which defeated the invading Spanish Armada.

Arundel Castle has been in the family of the Duke of Norfolk for over 400 years, and is still the principal seat of the Norfolk family. As cultural heritage, it is a Grade I listed building.^[1]

Origins

Background

Arundel Castle, home of the Fitzalans and later the Howards

The later Howards would claim a fanciful descent from Hereward the Wake who was of local Mercian background and resisted the Norman conquest of England from his base at the Isle of Ely, who would subsequently become a mainstay of English folklore.

A pedigree compiled and signed by Sir William Dugdale The Norroy King of Arms at the College of Arms dated 8 April 1665 however states that the Howard family are descended from the Howarth [sic Howard] family of Great Howarth Hall, Rochdale. And that “it is clear from above seventy deeds, without date, that the Howards, Dukes of Norfolk, do derive from the Howards Howarth of Great Howarth and that William Howard of Wigenhall… was a direct decedent of Osbert Howard de Howarth” given lands in Rochdale on behalf of his service as Master of King Henry I’s Buckhounds. Dugdale's account however has been disputed.^[2]

Indisputable descent begins with Sir William Howard (died 1308), a judge who was in the House of Commons in the Model Parliament of 1295. Sir William's son, Sir John Howard, became Sheriff of Norfolk and Suffolk. Sir John was married to Joan de Cornwall, granddaughter of Richard of England, 1st Earl of Cornwall and King of the Romans by his illegitimate child, Sir Richard de Cornwall.^[3]

History

Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII

Sir William's great-great-great-grandson, Sir Robert Howard, married Lady Margaret Mowbray, elder daughter of Thomas Mowbray, 1st Duke of Norfolk (1366–1399). The line of Dukes died out in 1476 and the heiress of the last Duke, Anne Mowbray, died at the age of nine in 1481; after declaring her widower King Edward IV's son Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York, illegitimate, Richard III of England created the son of Sir Robert and Lady Margaret, John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk, of a new creation on 28 June 1483, the 200th anniversary of the Barony of Mowbray to which he was also senior co-heir. John had previously been summoned to Parliament as Lord Howard by Edward IV. He was also created hereditary Earl Marshal. John's son and heir, Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk, was the grandfather of two English queens, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, both wives of Henry VIII.

The Howard family became one of the foremost recusant families due to their continued adherence to Roman Catholicism throughout the English Reformation and its aftermath. This meant that they often could not take their seats in the House of Lords. They are still known as the most prominent English Catholic family.

Catherine Howard, fifth wife of Henry VIII

Both the Dukedom and Earl Marshalship have been the subject of repeated attainders and restorations in the 15th to 17th centuries. Before Charles II restored the titles for good, the Howards had inherited the ancient title of Earl of Arundel through an heiress, and formed additional branches that have continued to this day.

A branch of the Howard family has been seated at Castle Howard, one of England's most magnificent country homes, for over 300 years.

In order of genealogical seniority:

• the Barons Howard of Penrith descend from a younger brother of the 12th Duke;
• the Earls of Suffolk and Berkshire descend from the 2nd son of the 4th Duke;
• the Earls of Carlisle descend from the third son of the 4th Duke;
• the Earls of Effingham descend from the fourth son of the 2nd Duke, who was Lord High Admiral and whose son was commander in chief against the Spanish Armada. (Curiously, this line was excluded from eligibility to inherit on the restoration of the Dukedom).

Queen Elizabeth I was the first English monarch to descend from John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk who was her great-great grandfather.

Queen Elizabeth II is the first British monarch to descend from John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk. Through her mother, Elizabeth Bowes Lyon, she descends twice from the 4th Duke and four times from the 2nd Duke. Her grandchildren descend a total of 34 times from John Howard, 1st Duke, including from the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Dukes, as well as from the Earls of Suffolk and Berkshire and the Earls of Effingham, and also from Mary Boleyn 11 times.^[4]

Howard Family Tree

The following chart is a family tree of the Dukes of Norfolk, who were members of the Plantagenet, Mowbray and Howard families.

Family tree

Image

Errors :

• Edward II was the issue of Edward I's first marriage to Eleanor of Castile, (1241-1290), not of his second marriage to Marguerite of France.
• There is no hard evidence that Richard, Duke of York, who was married as a child to Ann Mowbray, died in 1483.
• Frances de Vere, Countess of Surrey, wife of Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, was daughter of the 15th Earl of Oxford and Elizabeth Trussell, not the 14th Earl of Oxford and Anne Howard.
• Robert Petre, 10th Baron Petre's mother wasn't Juliana Howard (1769-1833), the daughter of Henry Howard of Glossop (1713-1787). His mother was Anne Howard (1742–1787), the daughter of Philip Howard (~1687-1750) and the great-granddaughter of Henry Howard, 6th Duke of Norfolk (1628-1684).

Below is a clickable family tree of the Howard family:

Arms of the Howard Family

See: Gallery of Howard Arms

The Howard family's original arms were the white bend on red with the crosslets. On marrying the heiress of the dukes of Norfolk, the first Howard duke of Norfolk quartered his arms with those of Thomas of Brotherton 1st Earl of Norfolk, son of King Edward I Longshanks as well as the Mowbray arms. Starting with the 2nd Duke of Norfolk, the Howards added in the 3rd quarter the checkered blue and gold of the Warren Earls of Surrey, whom they became heirs of. Philip Howard was deprived of the dukedom of Norfolk, which was under attainer, but inherited the earldom of Arundel. His descendants used the gold lion on red of the Fitzalan Earls of Arundel in the 4th quarter.

• 
  Original Howard Arms
• 
  Arms of Thomas of Brotherton (1300 † 1338), Earl of Norfolk, son of Edward I Longshanks, from whom all the Dukes of Norfolk are descended.Gules, three lions passant guardant in pale or armed and langued azure a label of three points argent.
• 
  Arms of John Howard, 1st Howard Duke of Norfolk, showing the original Howard Arms (I & III), quartered with the arms of Thomas of Brotherton (II) and the arms of Mowbray (IV), Gules, a lion rampant argent.
• 
  Arms of the Mowbray Family
• 
  The coat of arms used by the Howard Family. The Scots shield is an augmentation, see below.^[5] Gules, on a bend between six cross-crosslets fitchy argent an escutcheon or charged with a demi-lion rampant pierced through the mouth by an arrow within a double tressure flory counterflory of the first.
• 
  Augmentation to the arms of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk for his services at the Battle of Flodden.
• 
  Arms of the Warrenne Family, Earls of Surrey.
• 
  Coat of arms of the Howard Dukes of Norfolk, starting with Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk.Quarterly of 4: 1: Howard, with augmentation of honour; 2: Plantagenet, arms of Thomas of Brotherton, 1st Earl of Norfolk; 3: Chequy or and azure (de Warenne, Earl of Surrey); 4: Mowbray
• 
  Confirmation of arms, crest and supporters, dated 28 May 1580, by Robert Cooke, Clarenceux to Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel, omitting Howard arms and quarterings as the Dukedom of Norfolk was under attainder.
• 
  Coat of arms of the Howard Dukes of Norfolk Quarterly of 4: 1: Howard, with augmentation of honour; 2: Plantagenet, arms of Thomas of Brotherton; 3: de Warenne; 4: Gules a Lion rampant Or, Armed and Langued Azure (Fitzalan)
• 
  FitzAlan, Earls of Arundel.
• 
  Arms of the arms of Henry Howard, Earle of Surrey, for which he was attainted. The main offense was bearing the undifferenced arms of England (2nd quarter), which only the monarch was allowed. Surrey was beheaded on 19 January 1547 on a charge of treasonably quartering the royal arms.
• 
  Coat of arms of Howard Earls of Suffolk.
• 
  Coat of arms of Howard Earl of Carlisle

Earl Marshal is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England (then, following the Act of Union 1800, in the United Kingdom). It is the eighth of the Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord High Constable and above the Lord High Admiral. The Earl Marshal has responsibility for the organisation of State funerals and the monarch's coronation in Westminster Abbey.^[6] He is also a leading officer of arms. The office is hereditary in the Howard Family in their position as Dukes of Norfolk, the senior dukedom in the United Kingdom.

Coat of arms of the Duke of Norfolk

Adopted 1660 (by the 5th Duke of Norfolk) Coronet A Coronet of a Duke Crest 1st: Issuant from a Ducal Coronet Or a pair of Wings Gules each charged with a Bend between six Cross-crosslets fitchy Argent (Howard); 2nd: On a Chapeau Gules turned up Ermine a Lion statant gardant with tail extended Or gorged with a Ducal Coronet Argent (Thomas of Brotherton); 3rd: On a Mount Vert a Horse passant Argent holding in the mouth a Slip of Oak Vert fructed proper (Fitzalan). Escutcheon Quarterly, 1st: Gules on a Bend between six Cross-crosslets fitchy Argent an Escutcheon Or charged with a Demi-lion rampant pierced through the mouth by an arrow within a Double Tressure flory counterflory of the first (Howard); 2nd: Gules three Lions passant gardant in pale Or, Armed and Langued Azure, in chief a Label of three points Argent (Plantagenet of Norfolk); 3rd: Checky Or and Azure (Warenne); 4th: Gules a Lion rampant Or, Armed and Langued Azure (Fitzalan). Supporters Dexter a Lion, sinister a Horse both Argent the latter holding in the mouth a Slip of Oak Vert fructed proper. Motto Sola Virtus Invicta (Latin for "Virtue alone is unconquered"). Orders Often, the coat of arms of the Duke of Norfolk appears with the Garter circlet of the Order of the Garter surrounding the shield, as seen in the arms of the 17th Duke of Norfolk. However, this is not hereditary; the 17th Duke did not become a Knight of the Garter until 22 April 1983. The 18th Duke of Norfolk, as of 2017, had not been appointed to the Order of the Garter. Other elements Placed behind the shield are two gold batons in saltire enamelled at the ends in black, which represent the Duke of Norfolk's office as Earl Marshal and Hereditary Marshal of England. Symbolism The shield on the bend in the first quarter of the arms was granted as an augmentation of honour by Henry VIII to the 2nd Duke of Norfolk, to commemorate his victory at the Battle of Flodden. It is a modification of the Royal coat of arms of Scotland. Instead of its normal rampant position, the lion is shown cut in half with an arrow through its mouth, commemorating the death of King James IV at the battle.[7].

See also

• Duke of Norfolk
• Baron Howard de Walden
• Baron Howard of Escrick
• Baron Howard of Penrith
• Earl of Suffolk (1603 creation)
• Earl of Berkshire (1626 creation)
• Earl of Carlisle
• Earl of Effingham
• Earl of Norfolk
• Viscount FitzAlan of Derwent
• Baron Lanerton
• Baron Stafford (1640 creation)
• Baron Stafford (1640 creation)

Bibliography

• William Dugdale, Baronage of England (London, 1675–76);
• Collins, Peerage of England (fifth edition, London, 1779);
• Henry Howard, Memorials of the Howard Family (privately printed, 1834);
• Edmund Lodge, Portraits of Illustrious Personages (London, 1835); The Howard Papers, with a Biographical Pedigree and Criticism by Canston (London, 1862);
• Yeatman, The Early Genealogical History of the House of Arundel (London, 1882);
• Doyle, Official Baronage of England (London, 1886);
• Brenan and Statham, The House of Howard (London, 1907).

References

External links

• European Heraldry page
• http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/HOWARD1.htm