Frances Carr, Countess of Somerset.

Links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Carr,_Countess_of_Somerset

http://histfam.familysearch.org/getperson.php?personID=I65754&tree=...

http://thepeerage.com/p10302.htm#i103019

In order to marry Carr, Frances had to divorce her husband, Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex. They had been married when they were both mere children,  and after their marriage lived separately. By the time the 18-year-old Essex returned from touring the Continent (1609), Frances had set her heart on Robert Carr. 

She alleged that Essex was impotent (which he denied) and Carr and the Howards persuaded James to support a divorce. He pressurized a commission of bishops to find in Frances' favor. 

In 1613 the divorce was granted, and Carr and Frances married. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Carr,_Countess_of_Somerset

Frances Carr, Countess of Somerset (31 May 1590[1][2]– 23 August 1632), born Frances Howard, was an English noblewoman who was the central figure in a famous scandal and murder during the reign of King James I. She was found guilty but spared execution, and was eventually pardoned by the King and released from the Tower of London in early 1622.

She was born Frances Howard, the daughter of Lord Thomas Howard (later 1st Earl of Suffolk), and his wife, the former Catherine Knyvet. Frances' father, the second son of Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk, was a wealthy and powerful nobleman during the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Her maternal grandparents were Sir Henry Knyvet, of Charlton, Wiltshire, and Elizabeth Stumpe.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0yW_RVyA4Y

Who Do You Think You Are UK S09E08 Celia Imrie

Start at 31:46.

[MTD]

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