Anne Hyde

Anne Hyde (12 March 1637 – 31 March 1671) was the daughter of Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon, the first wife of James, Duke of York, later after her death King James II. She was the mother of two English queens Mary II and Anne I.

She was born on 22th of March in the family of a commoner Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon and his wife Frances Aylesbury. The eldest daughter, Anne, was born at Cranbourne Lodge in Windsor. She had two brothers and the sister Francis. Anne´s father was one of the best lawyers of that time. He was interested in politics and became close to Karl I who has seen in Earl of Clarendon one of his followers. Later Edward Hyde served the loyal Royalist chief adviser to the prospective King Charles II of England, James's elder brother. His achievement was the marriage of James, Duke of York, and his daughter Anne. The couple got marriage secretly at Breda in the Netherlands in 1659. Then an official marriage ceremony took place in London (3th September 1660). No one of Anne´s contemporaries could say that she was a beautiful woman. But she was charming and energy almost worthy of a King's blood.

Their first child was born after two months after their marriage but unfortunately died in infancy. During the life Anne gave the life of seven children but only two daughters could survive.

Karl (1660-1661) Mary (1662–1694) James (1663–1667) Anne (1665–1714) Charles (1666–1667) Edgar (1667–1671) Henrietta (1669–1669) Catherine (1671–1671)

Later Anne was secretly converted to Catholicism. But her husband was converted to the Roman Catholic faith only after her death in 1672. However James's and Anne's daughters were growing up in a Protestant faith.

http://thepeerage.com/p10136.htm#i101352 http://scandalouswoman.blogspot.de/2011/04/from-commoner-to-royalty-story-of-anne.html