Mary Berkeley

Mary Berkeley (c. 1511 – 1586) was an English noblewoman who aided her son, John Perrot, in his rise to prominence as a member of Elizabeth I's court. As with her contemporaries, Mary was likely highly literate and educated in music. Mary was the sole heir of her father's estate. Perrot was unable to administer his inherited lands until he turned 21, the age of majority. Maurice therefore purchased responsibility for Perrot from the Crown. if so, the poem suggests Mary was bothered by how often Thomas went hunting, Their son, John Perrot, was born in November 1528. Jones, who was around 18 years her senior, had two daughters from a previous marriage. Mary had two daughters of her own with Jones, Eleanor and Catherine, as well as four sons: Henry, Richard, James, and John. As a dower, she was entitled to one-third of the income from her first husband's Haroldston estates until her son, John Perrot, reached the age of majority. The rest belonged to the crown, and she was not allowed to marry without royal approval. Jones would later facilitate the entry of her eldest son, John Perrot, into the household of William Paulet, 1st Marquess of Winchester, where he met and befriended King Henry VIII's children, Elizabeth and Edward. He leveraged these lands into a successful political career, first by joining Haverfordwest's town council and later by becoming Pembrokeshire's first member of Parliament in 1542.

John Perrot came of age in late 1549. Mary also transferred some properties she held in dower.

Mary's grandson, James Perrot, would later recall Mary being fondly regarded in Cardigan, Carmarthenshire, and Pembrokeshire after her death. He also stated that Mary was known as "a lady of great virtue, wisdom, and good government." As historian Roger Turvey notes, James Perrot was likely motivated by a desire to improve the Perrot family's image, though biographer Robert Naunton similarly described her as considered to be "a lady of great honour" by the royal court.

Third marriage and widowhood Upon Jones' death in 1558 or 1559, Mary married Robert Whitney of Clifford Castle, another member of Parliament. They remained together until his death in August 1567. is last recorded as being alive in April 1586. The theory derives from two sources: John Perrot himself, who proclaimed to be Henry VIII's son while on trial for high treason in 1592, No contemporary evidence suggests Mary ever served Catherine. consumed with pursuing mistress Anne Boleyn.

Some historians have posited that she met Henry through her first husband Thomas Perrot's involvement with the royal court. In adulthood, he served as Queen Elizabeth's Lord Deputy of Ireland, a role that brought him into conflict with William FitzWilliam. FitzWilliam orchestrated evidence to have Perrot prosecuted for treason in 1590, resulting in Perrot being held in the Tower of London from March 1591, and sentenced in June 1592.

Robert Naunton, who married John Perrot's granddaughter nearly 30 years after John's death, wrote a biography of Elizabeth I's court entitled Fragmenta Regalia (1641). Naunton described Perrot returning to the Tower of London after being found guilty in 1592 and uttering angrily to its lieutenant, Owen Hopton: "Will the Queen suffer her brother to be offered up a sacrifice to the envy of my flattering adversaries?" Naunton stated this information had come to him from sources "with assurance."

Descendants Through her daughter Eleanor, Mary was a direct ancestor to Lucy Walter and James, Duke of Monmouth.