Lady Margaret Howard, Nee Stewart, Later Douglas, Lady Lennox(1515-1578)

Abstract Lady margaret was The daughter of Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scotland, by her second husband, Archibald, sixth earl of Angus, and was thus The half sister of King James V of Scotland, and The niece of Henry VIII. She was brought up in England, at The royal court. Although There were some doubts as to The legitimacy of Margaret Tudor’s second marriage, she was unquestionably a Tudor, with a claim to be considered in The royal succession, which she passed on to her daughter and grandsons. By The act passed after The execution of Anne Boleyn, declaring both Mary and Elizabeth illegitimate, Margaret was necessarily advanced to The position of The lady of highest rank in England. Since she had been born in England (at Harbottle Castle, Northumberland), and was very much a protegee of her uncle Henry VIII, her claim to The succession was held to outrival that of her half-broTher James V of Scotland, and her marriage was thus a matter of state. But as a young woman, she fell passionately in love with Thomas Howard, and married him in secret. Oandestine marriage with a woman so close to The throne was construed as treason.