Elizabeth Maitland, Duchess of Lauderdale, 2nd Countess of Dysart (; 28 September 1626 – 5 June 1698), was a Scottish noblewoman. She was the eldest daughter of William Murray and his wife Catherine, the Earl and Countess of Dysart. She was raised in English court circles during the years leading up to the English Civil War and received a well-rounded education from her parents. Her first husband was Lionel Tollemache, by whom she had eleven children. In 1672, three years after Lionel's death, she married John Maitland and resumed her close connection with the restored court.
After her father's death Maitland held the title of Countess of Dysart in her own right and from the date of her remarriage in 1672 she was also the Duchess of Lauderdale. She was famous for the political influence she exercised and for her support for Charles II during his exile. As a member of the secret Royalist organisation known as the Sealed Knot, she actively supported the return of the monarchy after the execution of Charles I. She was also a lifelong patron of artists, particularly Peter Lely. She died at the age of 71 at her family home, Ham House near Richmond by the Thames, and is buried in the nearby parish church.
Early life
Murray was the eldest of the five daughters of William Murray, 1st Earl of Dysart, and his wife Catherine Bruce. Dysart was a close friend and gentleman of the bedchamber of Charles I. Murray's birth was recorded in the baptismal register at St. Martin-in-the-Fields in 1626. During that year, her parents moved to Ham House, near Richmond by the Thames, where she spent her childhood. Her father saw that she received a full education, which was unusual for women of the period, and her mother ensured she was prepared to run a household efficiently.
English Civil War and first marriage
During the English Civil War, Elizabeth's father was often away from the family in service to the King. Her mother took the opportunity to travel along the Thames to the court at Oxford, to spend time with William while also instructing her daughters in etiquette. Elizabeth developed a reputation for charisma and beauty, being described by Thomas Knyvett as "...a pretty witty Lass." After some years of searching for a suitable match, she married Sir Lionel Tollemache in 1648, a prudent choice for the daughter of a prominent Royalist given his lack of political involvement, and one that created a stable marriage. The following year, Ham House was placed in the hands of trustees administered by Lionel, to help secure the estate from the threat of sequestration.
At the start of their marriage, Sir Lionel and Lady Dysart lived at Fakenham Magna in Suffolk, a wooded countryside near his family estate at Helmingham Hall and removed from much of the upheaval of war. They had eleven children, five of whom survived to adulthood:
Lionel Tollemache, 3rd Earl of Dysart, the eldest son, inherited the Earldom of Dysart on his mother's death in 1698. Thomas Tollemache, lieutenant-general and MP. Elizabeth Tollemache (1659–1735) married Archibald Campbell, 1st Duke of Argyll. William Tollemache (1661–1694) was a captain in the Royal Navy. Catherine Tollemache married James Stewart, Lord Doune and secondly John Gordon, 16th Earl of Sutherland.
Elizabeth often based herself at Ham House after her mother's death in 1649. She became acquainted with the Parliamentarian Oliver Cromwell, probably when his army headquarters were located in nearby Kingston-upon-Thames in the summer of 1647, and the connection provided a cover for her own Royalist tendencies. She also used that friendship to successfully plead for the life of John Maitland, the royalist Earl of Lauderdale, after his capture at the Battle of Worcester. From 1653 she was affiliated with the secret Royalist organisation, the Sealed Knot. She was in correspondence with exiled supporters of Charles II and visited Europe often to convey letters to the King, despite being frequently pregnant and under the close scrutiny of the Protectorate. Her dedication to the cause led her to develop a type of invisible ink to be used for secret correspondence.