Charles Howard, 2nd Earl of Berkshire

Charles Howard, 2nd Earl of Berkshire KB (1615 – April 1679) was an English peer, styled Viscount Andover from 1626 to 1669, was the eldest son of Thomas Howard, 1st Earl of Berkshire and his wife Lady Elizabeth Cecil.

As an influential member of the Catholic nobility, and a staunch supporter of the Duke of York, the Catholic heir to the throne, he was, like his cousin Ven Sir William Howard Viscount Stafford (who was executed for treason in 1680), an obvious target of Titus Oates and other informers during the Popish Plot. More wary of the danger than was Stafford, he fled abroad in November 1678 before any accusation of treason was made against him, and died in Paris the following April.

No credible evidence of treason was ever produced against him, although it has been argued that his sudden flight was suspicious in itself. A number of supposedly incriminating letters which he wrote in 1674 merely confirmed his political support for the future James II, who he promised to stand by "in the dark hour of his fortune", and his alleged deathbed confession to a treasonable conspiracy is now regarded as a forgery.

Family

On 10 April 1637, he married Hon. Dorothy Savage, daughter of Thomas Savage, 1st Viscount Savage and Elizabeth Savage, Countess Rivers. They had three sons who all died young, and one daughter, Anne (c. 1650 – 19 September 1682) who married in 1666 to Henry Bedingfield, but died childless. With no male issue, he was succeeded by his brother Thomas in 1679.

Links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Howard,_2nd_Earl_of_Berkshire

http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I169428&tree...

http://www.thepeerage.com/p1702.htm

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Citations:

[S6] G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910-1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume II, pages 150-151. Hereinafter cited as The Complete Peerage.

[S15] George Edward Cokayne, editor, The Complete Baronetage, 5 volumes (no date (c. 1900); reprint, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 1983), volume III, page 152. Hereinafter cited as The Complete Baronetage.

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Public Member Trees Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Family trees submitted by Ancestry members.

GEDCOM Source

Ancestry Family Tree http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=108223660&pi...