Philadelphia Carey

Title: 
Baroness Scrope of Bolton, Mascham and Upsall
Other names: 
Mrs. Thomas Scrope
Dates: 
circa 1552 - 3rd February1627

Philadelphia Carey was born around 1552. Her parents were Sir Henry Carey (1525/6- 1596), first Baron of Hunsdon, and Anne Morgan. Her father was a cousin of Queen Elizabeth I of England and he served as Warden of the Eastern Marches on the Scottish border; Chamberlain of the Household, twice Member of Parliament for Buckingham. She had 10 surviving brothers and sisters. Thomas, Catherine, George, Henry, Michael, John, Edmund, Robert, Mary (Margaret) and William.

Philadephia was one of Queen Elizabeth I of England’s ladies in waiting. This meant that Philadelphia spent much of her time living on the Scottish borders when she was growing up or later on at Court.

In 1584 she married Thomas Scrope (1567-1609), 10th Baron Scrope of Bolton, Mascham and Upsall, who became Member of Parliament for Cumberland and Warden of the English West March.

They had one son, Em(m)anuel, 1st Earl of Sunderland (1584-1630)who became Lord President of King James VI of Scotland, I of England’s Council in the North.

Effigies of all three members of the family adorn their tomb in Langar Village Church, Nottinghamshire where she died on 3rd February, 1627.

When Elizabeth I died in 1603 at Richmond Palace, there were attempts to keep it secret until the nobles could work out what to do next since their were many claimants to the throne. However, a version of the story is that Robert Carey, Philadelphia‘s brother and first Earl of Monmouth, decided to ride north to Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh to inform King James VI of Scotland of her death. Philadelphia took Elizabeth’s blue ring, probably a sapphire, given to her by King James, from her finger and threw it down to her brother who took it with him as evidence that he was telling the truth.

King James would be Elizabeth’s successor and become King James I of England.

This episode, and Philadelphia’s part in it, is recorded in an embroidered panel as part of the Great Tapestry of Scotland, first exhibited in the Scottish Parliament.

Images: 
Tomb of Thomas and Philadelphia Scrope at Langar, Nottinghamshire
Sources
Philadelphia CAREY (B. Scrope of Bolton)
website about the Tudor Court
All results for Philadelphia Carey
Ancestry.com search page
Thomas Scrope, 10th Baron Scrope of Bolton
Wikipedia biography
Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon
Wikipedia biography
Rob Ride, Ride Rob to Scotland
Website Tudor and Stuart Britain 1485-1714
The Great North Ride 1603 London to Edinburgh 2011
Planning and Report on re-enactment ride
Philadelphia (Carey) Scrope
family tree site