Elizabeth Wiseman

Elizabeth Wiseman born Hon. Elizabeth North aka; Lady Wiseman and Elizabeth Paston, Countess of Yarmouth (4 January 1647 – 1730) was an English noblewoman and litigant. After her first marriage left her as a woman of property she found that she was a commodity which her own brother was keen to see married to advantage irrespective of her views.

Life Wiseman was born in London in 1647. Her mother was Anne (born Montagu) and her father was Dudley North, fourth Baron North. Her notable siblings included Francis North, 1st Baron Guilford, Roger North who was a lawyer and biographer and Professor John North who taught Greek at Cambridge.

She married the jurist Sir Robert Wiseman and after he died in 1684 she had £20,000 available to the man that married her. This led to a lot of interest and among the candidates was Robert Spencer who was backed by her eldest brother Charles North. She asked three of her other brothers to stand by her. They told her to move away and she went to lodge with her brother-in-law Sir George Wenyeve in Suffolk. Another potential marriage to Sir John Thorold was also put aside and Roger North took it upon himself to gather together the letters written by him and his brothers about the case. Roger believed there might be a breach of promise case and he wanted sufficient evidence to counter any such claim. There was a case at the Court of Arches and Robert Spenser and Charles North were required to recant their version of the events.