Juliana Leybourne

Juliana Leybourne (1303 – 2 November 1367) was an English noblewoman who was heir to a huge estate. She married three times and became a countess of Huntingdon. She was a patron of textiles. She gave huge land rights to Edward III but retained some rights for her lifetime. She was buried in a chapel she had built on the side of St Augustine's Abbey in Canterbury where prayers were to be said every day for her after her death.

Life She was born in 1303 or 1304 and she was the daughter of Alice (born Tosny) and Thomas of Leybourne. Her father died in 1307. Her grandfather was the first Lord Leybourne who built Maxstoke Castle. He died in 1354.

In 1362 she decided to give all of her lands and rights to Edward III. She retained a life interest and a number of manors were reserved for her to give to churches etc. She was living most of her time in Maxstoke but she preferred her estate at Preston-next-Wingham in Kent.

She gave the manor of Dene in Thanet to the abbey and she created a chantry to say daily prayers for her after her death. Her possessions at death are known because there is an inventory that is extant. She left a highly illustrated book called an Apocalypse to St Augustine's Abbey. She had been left the book by Henry de Cobham, 1st Baron Cobham, when he died in 1339. Notable items in the inventory were the textiles and today there are still examples of embroidery which include the Huntingdon crest. A larger item was a hanging featuring the English hero Bevis of Hampton. It is possible that she did some of the textile work.