Through Sarah Jennings Churchill comes the descent from the Howards.

Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk was an important politician of the 16th Century.  In his greed for power he manipulated King Henry VIII Tudor into marrying two of his neices, Ann Boleyn and Catherine Howard.  His eldest son, the Earl of Surrey went to the block because of his scheming and pride.  The Duke was the great schemer in making dynastic marriages for his family.  His first wife, Ann Princess of York was the sister of Elizabeth of York, heiress of the York branch of the Royal family and wife of Henry VII.  None of her children survived.  The Duke remarried Elizabeth Stafford, not an heiress, but the daughter of the heir to the line of Thomas Duke of Gloucester, youngest son of King Edward III progenator of the houses of York and Lancaster.  This Edward Stafford, Duke of Buckingham was the cousin of Ann and Elizabeth of York through the Woodvilles but was too proud and was executed by the orders of Henry VIII.  Howard's daughter Mary was married to Henry Fitzroy the King's illegitimate son, but turned bitterly against her family.

A younger son of the Howard Duke was Thomas Howard (1520-1582) who in time was created Viscount Howard of Bindon.  By his second wife Gertrude Lyte he has a son Charles Lyte Howard, born in 1560, who married Roberta Webb.  His daughter Ann Howard married Sir William Thornhurst and was mother of Sir Gifford Thornhurst, Baronet who died in 1627.  By his marriage to Susan Temple he was father of Frances Thronhurst.   She married Richard Jennings (died 1688) and was the mother of Sarah Jennings 1660-1744 who is known to history as the first Great Duchess of Marlborough.

THE FIRST CHURCHILLS

JOHN CHURCHILL

1ST DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH

HIS WIFE SARAH

AND CHILDREN

John Churchill his life and times 1650-1722

John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough was to make his name as a successful general and courtier.  He came to the court of King Charles II at a time when it was a great promoter of careers and fortunes.  Probably he benefited from his relationship with his cousin Barbara Villiers, Lady Castlereagh, Charles' mistress. His sister Arabella was mistress of James Duke of York, brother and heir of the king and mother of some of his children.   He married Sarah Jennings and together they began to develop the families fortunes.  They were to form a special friendship with Anne, York's daughter.

After the death of Charles II in 1685, his openly Catholic brother succeeded as James II.  Churchill, already having had experience in French service helped crush the Monmouth rebellion and became a Major General.  In a few years he was to engineer a coup which was to remove James II bloodlessly and bring to power the Prince of Orange, William III, next heir after James's children, and married to his eldest daughter Mary II.  William awarded Churchill as Earl of Marlborough.  He further worked for William in Ireland, though his work was undermined when the Churchill's fell out with William and Mary as they championed Princess Anne, loosing his offices.   They even made some effort to mend their fences with the Jacobites.

By 1700 William was ill, but war was breaking out on the Continent.  The King of Spain had died childless.  The two great European powers each produced candidates.  Marlborough was recalled to lead the fight in the Netherlands against the French and maintain the Dutch alliance.  By 1702 Anne was on the throne and the French were in retreat.  Marlborough became a Duke.  The French were to put their armies in an unsupportable position at Blenheim and lost heavily, Marlborough being supported by the forces of Prince Eugene of Savoy, the emperors general.   The reaction of the allies was to threaten to withdraw from the alliance as they thought the war was won, but Marlboroughs great diplomatic skills saved the alliance.   Military failures in 1705 were followed by the great victory at Ramillies in 1706.   In 1708 he won the Battle of Oudenarde and Malplaquet in 1709.

The public perceived that the government was committed to endless war.  The new Tory government of 1711 removed him from office.  But he was to come back to help the new king George I suppress the new Jacobite rebellion in 1715.

Marlborough retired to his vast new mansion in Oxfordshire, designed like Castle Howard by Sir John Vanbrugh.  He died in 1722, but Sarah lived on until 1744, a scheming dynastic builder right to the end.

The death of Churchills only son (John, Lord Churchill 1685/6-1702/3) brought an unusual succession agreement to the Duchy.  The title was to be inherited by Marlborough's eldest daughter (Henrietta, Lady Godolphin 1681-1733) and then to her sons and in remainder to Marlborough's second daughter (Ann, Countess of Sunderland) and her sons, then to the third daughter (Elizabeth, Countess of Bridgwater) and her sons and then failing them to his fourth daughter (Mary, Duchess of Montagu) and her sons.   From then on the title was to go to other descendants of the sisters (for more information see The Complete Peerage - MARLBOROUGH, Vol viii).

At the death of the first Duke the Duchy accordingly went to his eldest daughter Henrietta, now second Duchess of Marlborough.   She was married to Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl Godolphin.  She left two daughters, Henrietta Duchess of Newcastle (d1776) and Mary Duchess of Leeds (died 1764).   Mary left male issue who stood in succession to the Duchy title after the sons of her aunt Ann the Countess of Sunderland.

In accordance to the succession rules Charles Spencer Earl of Sunderland, 1706-1758 the eldest surviving son of Ann Countess of Sunderland became the 3rd Duke of Marlborough in 1733.  His youngest brother was John Spencer, who was to become the father of the first Earl Spencer.  Charles married Elizabeth Trevor and had issue including the fourth Duke, George Spencer.

For more information about the Churchills see: The Later Churchills and the Spencers.

This page is compiled by Timothy J. Owston of York, England.