Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk

Who was Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk?

Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, KG, PC, Earl Marshal was a prominent Tudor politician. He was an uncle of two of the wives of Henry VIII: Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, and played a major role in the machinations behind these marriages. After falling from favour in 1546, he was stripped of the dukedom and imprisoned in the Tower, avoiding execution when the King died. He was released on the accession of Queen Mary I. He aided Mary in securing her throne, setting the stage for alienation between his Catholic family and the Protestant royal line that would be continued by Queen Elizabeth I.