Mary Somerset

Mary Somerset (nee Capell), Duchess of Beaufort, was the daughter of Arthur Capel (first Baron Capel of Hadham,  1604–1649) and Elizabeth Morrison. She first married Henry Seymour, Lord Beauchamp (c.1626–1654), by whom she had two children. Her second marriage was to Henry Somerset (1629-1700) in 1657. They had many children: five sons and four daughters, of whom six children survived to adulthood. Somerset was created the Duke of Beaufort in 1682. Mary was a skilled botanist who developed renowned gardens at both Badminton (where the family had its seat) and Chelsea. She also collected insects. She maintained a correspondence with Sloane, John Ray and James Petiver, and at her death, left her herbarium to Sloane.

 

Reference

P. E. Kell, ‘Somerset , Mary, duchess of Beaufort (bap. 1630, d. 1715)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/40544 (accessed 7 Feb 2017)]

Molly McClain, ‘Somerset, Henry, first Duke of Beaufort (1699-1700)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://oxforddnb.com/view/article/26009 (accessed 14 May 2010)].

 

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