Margaret Bryan facts for kids

Margaret Bryan was a very important lady who looked after the children of King Henry VIII of England. These children later became famous rulers: Queen Mary I, Queen Elizabeth I, and King Edward VI. She also cared for Henry VIII's son, Henry FitzRoy. Her job was more like a nanny than what we think of as a governess today. She was in charge of their daily care and education.

Margaret was born Margaret Bourchier around 1468 in Beningbrough, Yorkshire, England. Her father, Sir Humphrey Bourchier, died in a big war called the Wars of the Roses when she was very young. Her brother, John, later became the second Baron Berners. Margaret also had a younger sister named Anne.

Margaret's Marriages

Margaret Bourchier was married three times in her life.

Her first marriage was to Sir John Sandys when she was quite young, around 10 or 11 years old. They had one child together.

Later, before 1495, she married Sir Thomas Bryan. Margaret was a lady-in-waiting to Catherine of Aragon, who was King Henry VIII's first wife. Margaret was even present at Catherine's wedding to Henry VIII in 1509. When Princess Mary (Henry and Catherine's daughter) was born in 1516, Margaret Bryan was given the important job of being her lady governess. She was also given the title of Baroness Bryan.

After Sir Thomas Bryan passed away around 1517, Margaret married her third husband, David Zouche, before 1523. Records from King Henry VIII's court show that Margaret received money and even a yearly barrel of wine for her service to the King and Queen Catherine. David Zouche may have passed away in 1536.

Caring for Royal Children

Margaret Bryan became the lady governess for Princess Mary in February 1516. She is even more famous for looking after Henry VIII's younger children, Princess Elizabeth and Prince Edward.

In August 1536, Margaret wrote an important letter to Thomas Cromwell, who was King Henry VIII's chief helper. In this letter, she explained that Princess Elizabeth's household was having money problems. This was because Elizabeth's mother, Anne Boleyn, had been executed, and Elizabeth was no longer considered a legitimate princess.

Margaret wrote:

Now, as my lady Elizabeth is put from that degree she was in, and what degree she is at now I know not but by hearsay, I know not how to order her or myself, or her women or grooms. I beg you to be good lord to her and hers, and that she may have raiment, for she has neither gown nor kirtle nor petticoat, nor linen for smocks, nor kerchiefs, sleeves, rails, bodystychets, handkerchiefs, mufflers, nor "begens."

In simpler words, she was saying that Princess Elizabeth needed clothes and supplies because her situation had changed. Margaret also mentioned that "My lady has great pain with her teeth, which come very slowly." (Princess Elizabeth had tooth problems throughout her life).

In October 1537, after Prince Edward was born, Margaret Bryan passed on the care of Princess Elizabeth to Katherine Champernowne. Margaret then became the new governess for the baby Prince Edward. In March 1539, she wrote another letter to Thomas Cromwell, describing the young Prince:

My lord Prince is in good health and merry. Would to God the King and your Lordship had seen him last night. The minstrels played, and his Grace danced and played so wantonly that he could not stand still ...

This shows that Prince Edward was a lively and happy child!

Margaret Bryan continued to receive payments from the King's court, with a record in 1545 showing she received money as "Lady Margaret Bryane, the King's servant."

She passed away in Leyton, which is now a part of London.

Family Connections

Margaret Bryan had connections to the royal Plantagenet family through her great-grandmother, Anne of Gloucester. Anne was the granddaughter of King Edward III. Margaret was also related to King Henry VIII's wives, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, through the wider Howard family.

Margaret Bryan's Children

Margaret Bryan had five children with Sir Thomas Bryan, and three of them lived to adulthood. Her daughter Margaret married Sir Henry Guildford. Another daughter, Elizabeth Bryan, married Sir Nicholas Carew. Her son, Sir Francis Bryan, became an important judge in Ireland. Through her daughter Elizabeth, Margaret Bryan was the great-grandmother of Elizabeth Throckmorton, who was Lady Raleigh (wife to Walter Raleigh) and a chief lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth I.

Margaret Bryan in Stories

Margaret Bryan appears in some books and TV shows.

• In Kathryn Lasky's book for young readers, Elizabeth I, Red Rose of the House of Tudor, she is nicknamed "Muggie" by the young Princess Elizabeth.
• She also appears in The Lady Elizabeth by Alison Weir.
• In the TV series The Tudors, the role of "Lady Margaret Bryan" is played by Jane Brennan. In the show, her character is a mix of the real Margaret Bryan and another lady named Anne Shelton.