Frances Howard, Lady Essex

English noble

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June 26, 2026

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Frances Howard, Lady Essex, was an English noblewoman known for her involvement in a significant scandal during the reign of King James I. She was married to Robert Devereux, 3rd earl of Essex, but fell in love with Robert Carr, a favorite of the king. Howard, with Carr's alleged assistance, obtained an annulment of her marriage and married Carr in 1613. Shortly before their marriage, Sir Thomas Overbury, who had opposed the union, died under suspicious circumstances, poisoned while imprisoned. Both Frances and Robert Carr were found guilty of Overbury's murder, though they were later pardoned. Frances Howard was the daughter of Thomas Howard, 1st earl of Suffolk.12

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Henry Howard, earl of Northampton
…his grandniece, Frances Howard, Lady Essex, in obtaining her divorce from her husband in order to marry the favourite Robert Carr, earl of Somerset, whose mistress she already was and whose alliance Northampton was eager to secure for himself. He obtained the divorce by the decree of a special commission,…
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…his grandniece, Frances Howard, Lady Essex, in obtaining her divorce from her husband in order to marry the favourite Robert Carr, earl of Somerset, whose mistress she already was and whose alliance Northampton was eager to secure for himself. He obtained the divorce by the decree of a special commission,…
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Sir Thomas Overbury
Lady Essex soon secured a divorce from her husband with the intention of marrying Rochester. Overbury feared that Rochester’s prospective marriage would reduce his own influence over Rochester, however, and he tried strongly to dissuade the latter from marrying her. Overbury’s A Wife, which described…
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Lady Essex soon secured a divorce from her husband with the intention of marrying Rochester. Overbury feared that Rochester’s prospective marriage would reduce his own influence over Rochester, however, and he tried strongly to dissuade the latter from marrying her. Overbury’s A Wife, which described…
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