Anne Hyde

Anne Hyde was born to Edward Hyde, later created Earl of Clarendon, and Frances Aylesbury. Her life took a significant turn when her family fled to the Netherlands after King Charles I’s execution. In Breda, she served as a maid of honour to Mary of Orange. Anne’s personal life garnered attention when she became pregnant by James, Duke of York, necessitating a marriage in 1660. Despite societal disapproval and her husband’s infidelities, Anne bore eight children, with two surviving to adulthood and becoming monarchs. She converted to Catholicism post-marriage, influencing James’s conversion and setting the stage for the Glorious Revolution. Anne died from breast cancer shortly after the birth of her last child.