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Biography

Arabella Churchill was born 23 February 1648 to Winston Churchill (1620-1688) and Elizabeth Drake (1620-1698) and died 4 May 1730 of unspecified causes. She married Charles Godfrey (c1648-1715) 1 June 1680 in Holy Trinity Minories, London, Greater London, England, United Kingdom.

Arabella Churchill became a mistress of King James II and mother of four of his children; among her descendants are Earl Waldegrave; the Earls Spencer; the Dukes of Berwick, and the later Dukes of Alba; Viscount Falmouth. The are surnamed FitzJames, that is, "son of James".

Life

She was a daughter of Sir Winston Churchill and sister of the first Duke of Marlborough; her other brothers were George and Charles. The Churchills' loyalty to the royal household was ardent; their only feeling about Arabella's seduction by King James II "seems to have been a joyful surprise that so plain a girl had attained such high preferment."[1]

James, then Duke of York, began his adulterous affair with Arabella Churchill, around 1665, while he was still married to Anne Hyde. Churchill became the duchess's lady-in-waiting in that year, and gave birth to two children during Anne's lifetime. Churchill was described as a "tall creature, pale-faced, and nothing but skin and bone." Charles II, who was baffled by his brother's predilection for plain women, joked that his confessor must impose them as a penance. She often displayed the quick wit and lively intelligence which bound James to her through ten years and four children.[2]

On 1 June 1680 at Holy Trinity Minories, London,[3] she married Charles Godfrey and had three more children. They lived happily together for 40 years.[4] Godfrey died in 1714, at the age of 67.[5] She survived him by 16 years, dying in 1730 aged 82.

Ashe House

AsheHouse

Artistic rendoring of Ashe House in Musbury.

Ashe House, in the parish of Musbury in the county of Devon, is an historic estate of the Tudor style. Long the residence of the ancient Drake family, the heir of which remarkably was always called John, only one excepted, for ten generations.] It was formerly believed to have been the birthplace of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, though he was certainly baptized there.


Children

Children with James II of England

  1. Henrietta FitzJames (1667 – 3 April 1730)
  2. James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick (1670–1734)[6]
  3. Henry FitzJames, 1st Duke of Albemarle (1673–1702)
  4. Arabella FitzJames (1674 – 7 November 1704); became a nun

From her children Henrietta, Countess of Newcastle, and James, Duke of Berwick, she is an ancestor of the Earls Spencer and Diana, Princess of Wales as well as of the Dukes of Berwick, the later Dukes of Alba and of Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, 18th Duchess of Alba, the person with the most noble titles in the world.

Children with Charles Godfrey

  1. Francis Godfrey
  2. Charlotte Godfrey, born before 1685, married Hugh Boscawen, 1st Viscount Falmouth
  3. Elizabeth Godfrey, married Edmund Dunch, son of Hungerford Dunch[7]


Children


Offspring of James II of England (1633-1701) and Arabella Churchill
Name Birth Death Joined with
Henrietta FitzJames (1667-1730) 1667 St. James's Square, Westminster, England, United Kingdom 3 April 1730 Henry Waldegrave, 1st Baron Waldegrave (1661-1690)
Piers Butler, Earl of Newcastle (1652-1740)
James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick (1670-1734)
Henry FitzJames, 1st Duke of Albemarle (1673-1702) 6 August 1673 6 December 1702 Bagnols-sur-Cèze Marie Gabrielle d'Audibert de Lussan (1675-1741)
Arabella FitzJames (1674-1704)


Offspring of Charles Godfrey (c1648-1715) and Arabella Churchill
Name Birth Death Joined with
Charlotte Godfrey (c1679-1754)
Elizabeth Godfrey (c1681-)
Francis Godfrey (c1683-)
Diana Godfrey (c1685-)



Siblings


Offspring of Winston Churchill (1620-1688) and Elizabeth Drake (1620-1698)
Name Birth Death Joined with
Winston Churchill (1646-1647) 1646 Ashe Manor, Musbury, Devon, England 1647 Ashe Manor, Musbury, Devon, England
Arabella Churchill (1648-1730) 23 February 1648 4 May 1730 James II of England (1633-1701)
Charles Godfrey (c1648-1715)
Winston Churchill (1649-1672) 1649 Devon, England 7 June 1672 Southwold, East Suffolk, England
John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough (1650-1722) 24 June 1650 Ashe House, Devon, England, United Kingdom 16 June 1722 Cumberland Lodge, Berkshire, England, United Kingdom Sarah Jennings (1660-1744)
George Churchill (1653-1710) 28 February 1653 Mintern Magna, Dorsetshire, England 8 May 1710 Windsor, Berkshire, England
Charles Churchill (1656-1714) 2 February 1656 Ashe House, Devon, England 29 December 1714 Minterne Magna, Dorset, England Mary Gould (1676-1757)
Elizabeth Dodd (c1660-)
Dorothy Churchill (1657-1658) 1657 Ashe House, Devon, England 1658 Ashe House, Devon, England
Mountjoy Churchill (1658-1659) 1658 Ashe House, Devon, England 1659 Ashe House, Devon, England
Jasper Churchill (1659-) 1659 Ashe House, Devon, England
Theobald Churchill (1663-1685) 1663 Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland 5 December 1685 England
Mary Churchill (1664-1665) 1664 Ashe House, Devon, England 1665 Ashe House, Devon, England
Barbara Churchill (1666-1667) 1666 Ashe House, Devon, England 1667 Ashe House, Devon, England

 


References

  1. ^ Macaulay Macaulay, Baron Thomas Babington (1898). The history of England, from the accession of James II, Volume 1. p. 347. https://books.google.com/books?id=geRXAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA347&dq=Arabella+Churchill+james+ii&hl=en&sa=X&ei=vQZyT8qgMOy10QHq6vyeAQ&ved=0CD4Q6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=Arabella%20Churchill%20james%20ii&f=false. 
  2. ^ Herman, Eleanor (2005). Sex with Kings: 500 Years of Adultery, Power, Rivalry, and Revenge. Enchanting Ugliness: William Morrow. p. 52. ISBN 0060585439. https://archive.org/details/sexwithkings500y00herm/page/52. 
  3. ^ London Metropolitan Archives, Holy Trinity Minories, Register of marriages, 1676 - 1683, P69/TRI2/A/007/MS09242A
  4. ^ Herman, Eleanor (2005). Sex with Kings: 500 Years of Adultery, Power, Rivalry, and Revenge. The Business of Life: William Morrow. p. 219. ISBN 0060585439. https://archive.org/details/sexwithkings500y00herm/page/219. 
  5. ^ Fea, Allan (1908). James II. and his wives. University of California Libraries. p. 303. https://books.google.com/books?id=obsxAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA303&dq=Arabella+Churchill+james+ii&hl=en&sa=X&ei=vQZyT8qgMOy10QHq6vyeAQ&ved=0CE4Q6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=Arabella%20Churchill%20james%20ii&f=false. 
  6. ^ Herman, Eleanor (2005). Sex with Kings: 500 Years of Adultery, Power, Rivalry, and Revenge. Pushed into War, Sold into Marriage: William Morrow. p. 190. ISBN 0060585439. https://archive.org/details/sexwithkings500y00herm/page/190. 
  7. ^ Wikisource-logo Shuckburgh, Evelyn Shirley (1887). "Churchill, Arabella". In Leslie Stephen. Dictionary of National Biography, 1885–1900. 10. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 

External links

See also



Legitimate descendants include Sacheverell Reresby Sitwell (1897-1988)




Footnotes (including sources)

‡ General
¶ Death
  • Wikipedia says "30 May".



Robin Patterson

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