Anne Howard, Countess of Arundel (née Dacre; 21 March 1557 – 19 April 1630), was an English poet, noblewoman, and religious conspirator. She lived a life devoted to her son, Thomas Howard, and religion, as she converted to the illegal and underground Catholic Church in England in 1582, in defiance of the Protestant Queen Elizabeth I's policy of Caesaropapism. She was known to be a "woman of strong character, and of religious desposition... whose influence soon made itself felt upon her husband... the increasing seriousness of his thoughts led him in the direction of Romanism...". She was also known as an author of Christian poetry and for literary works written about her.
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Family background
Anne was born in Naworth Castle, Carlisle, England, on 21 March 1557, the eldest daughter of Thomas Dacre, 4th Baron Dacre of Gilsland, and Elizabeth Leyburne of Cumbria. Following Anne, her mother gave birth to three more children: a son George (but sometimes called Francis), and two sisters, Elizabeth and Mary. George was born in 1562, followed by Mary in 1563, and Elizabeth in 1564. In 1567, Anne's father died; soon after, her mother remarried, becoming the third wife of Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk. In September 1567, when Anne was about 10 years old, her mother died during childbirth.