Tudor portrait long identified as Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury

Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, at the Tower of London

Niece of two kings and one of the richest landowners in England, she ran her own estates and raised a princess. At 67, after two and a half years in the Tower, she was led out to die for crimes she said no one had named.

Visit

Timed entry to the fortress, the Crown Jewels and the White Tower. Tower of London tickets

Location

Tower of London, London EC3N 4AB, on the north bank of the Thames.

Visit duration

Historic Royal Palaces suggests two or three hours. Plan your visit

Born

At Farleigh Castle, Somerset, on 14 August 1473. Executed at the Tower on 27 May 1541.

Who Was Margaret Pole?

Margaret Pole was the daughter of George, Duke of Clarence, and the niece of Edward IV and Richard III. She was one of only two women in 16th-century England to hold a peerage in her own right, as Countess of Salisbury, and governess to the future Mary I. Her royal blood and her sons’ opposition to Henry VIII brought her to the Tower, where she was executed at 67. She is one of the women of the Tower of London remembered on Tower Green.

Margaret Pole in Brief

An Act of Parliament restored the Earldom of Salisbury to her in 1512.

By 1538 she was the fifth-richest peer in England.

She was godmother and governess to Princess Mary, Henry VIII’s daughter.

She was lady-in-waiting and friend to Katherine of Aragon.

Her interrogators wrote that she was more like a strong and constant man than a woman.

The Catholic Church beatified her in 1886.

A Plantagenet Daughter in a Tudor World

The entrance towers of the Tower of London — Photo: dynamosquito, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Margaret was born in 1473 into the House of York. Her father was executed for treason when she was four, and after 1485 the Tudors saw her family as a threat.

Her younger brother Edward, the last male heir of the line, was held in the Tower from 1485 and executed in 1499. Margaret was married at 14 to Richard Pole, a loyal supporter of the new king, a match some historians see as a way to lower her status.

Widowed in 1505 with five children and little money, she took lodgings with the nuns of Syon Abbey.

Countess of Salisbury in Her Own Right

Tower Green and the Beauchamp Tower — Photo: Pam Fray, geograph.org.uk, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Henry VIII restored her fortunes. In 1512 she became Countess of Salisbury, with lands in 17 English counties, and she ran them herself, building Warblington Castle as her main seat.

She was a patron of the New Learning and, from 1520, governess to Princess Mary, who came to see her as a second mother.

When Henry set Katherine of Aragon aside, Margaret stood with the queen. She even refused to hand back Mary’s jewels when the princess was declared illegitimate.

Margaret Pole’s Imprisonment and Execution

Her son Reginald, a cardinal in Rome, attacked the king in print, and in 1538 the family was caught up in a treason inquiry. Margaret denied everything under days of questioning. In 1539 an Act of Parliament condemned her without a trial.

She was held in the Tower for two and a half years. On the morning of 27 May 1541 she was told she would die within the hour, and answered that no crime had been laid against her.

The usual executioner was away, and one ambassador reported that a young, inexperienced man botched the execution. She was buried in the Tower’s chapel.

Where to Find Margaret Pole at the Tower

The Scaffold Site Memorial

The memorial remembers those executed inside the walls, where she died.

The Chapel Royal

She is buried in the chapel, alongside three Tudor queens.

Inside the Chapel

The chapel was rebuilt in 1519 and 1520, two decades before she was laid to rest here.

The Beauchamp Tower

Her grandson Arthur Pole was later held here and died a prisoner in 1570.

Visiting the Tower of London for Margaret Pole

Stand on Tower Green at the scaffold site memorial, then step into the chapel where she was buried with the queens of Henry VIII’s court. The chapel holds regular services, so it can close at times, and the rest of the fortress is on the same ticket.

Tower of London: An Iconic and Intriguing Location!

Highlights

Explore an iconic landmark steeped in political intrigue and royal history.

Discover the newly restored Medieval Palace showcasing stories of monarchs and their households.

See the Crown Jewels, a highlight of the exhibition.

Admire the White Tower with Henry VIII’s oversized armor and London’s oldest church, St John’s Chapel.

Experience thrilling narratives about the Tower’s past, including imprisonment and executions.

Questions About Margaret Pole

Who was Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury?

The daughter of George, Duke of Clarence, and one of only two women in 16th-century England to hold a peerage in her own right.

Why was Margaret Pole executed?

Her son Reginald opposed Henry VIII from Rome, and her family was accused of treason. She was condemned by Act of Parliament without a trial.

When was Margaret Pole executed?

On 27 May 1541, inside the Tower of London, at the age of 67.

Where is Margaret Pole buried?

In the Chapel Royal of St Peter ad Vincula at the Tower of London.

How long was Margaret Pole in the Tower?

About two and a half years before her execution in 1541.

Is Margaret Pole a saint?

Pope Leo XIII beatified her in 1886, so she is known as Blessed Margaret Pole.