Elizabeth Brooke 1602?-1683

Elizabeth BROOKE, Lady Brooke 1602?-83

Biographical Note

Of Cockfield Hall, Suffolk, daughter of Thomas Colpeper (d.1613) and wife of Sir Robert Brooke (d.1646). She taught herself theology and philosophy and acquired a large number of religious writings.

Inscription of Elizabeth Brooke (J. Preston, Life eternall, 1631, Private Collection)

Books

Although we have no direct documentation of her library, the biography in her funeral sermon refers not only to the depth and breadth of her reading, but also to the body of devotional writings she left behind. She evidently had a closet well-stocked with books.

Sources

• Mendelson, Sara H. "Brooke [née Colepeper], Elizabeth, Lady Brooke (1602?–1683), exemplar of godly life." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.
• Parkhurst, N. The faithful and diligent Christian described, 1684.