Elizabeth Knollys
Elizabeth Knollys | |
|---|---|
| Lady Leighton | |
Portrait of Elizabeth Knollys by an unknown painter after George Gower, 1577 | |
| Born | 15 June 1549 England |
| Died | c. 1605 (aged about 56) |
| Noble family | Knollys (by birth) Leighton (by marriage) |
| Spouse(s) | Sir Thomas Leighton |
| Issue | Thomas Leighton Elizabeth Talbot Anne, Lady St John |
| Father | Sir Francis Knollys |
| Mother | Catherine Carey |
| Occupation | Maid of Honour Gentlewoman of the Privy Chamber |
Elizabeth Knollys, Lady Leighton (15 June 1549 – c.1605), was an English courtier who served Queen Elizabeth I of England, first as a Maid of Honour and secondly, after 1566, as a Gentlewoman of the Privy Chamber. Knollys was the grand-niece of Queen consort Anne Boleyn, which made her a cousin once removed of the Queen. Elizabeth married Sir Thomas Leighton of Feckenham in Worcestershire in 1578. He served as Governor of Jersey and Guernsey.
She is sometimes mistakenly referred to in documents as "Cecilia", which was the name of her youngest sister.