Essex Finch, Countess of Nottingham

Essex Finch, Countess of Nottingham (c.1652 – 23 March 1684), formerly Lady Essex Rich, was the first wife of Daniel Finch, 2nd Earl of Nottingham.[1][2]

The Right Honourable The Countess of Nottingham
Lady Nottingham, née Lady Essex Rich (studio of Peter Lely)
Born	Essex Rich c. 1652 England
Died	23 March 1684(1684-03-23) (aged 31–32) London, England
Cause of death	Childbirth
Buried	Ravenstone, Buckinghamshire, England
Spouse(s)	Daniel Finch ​ (m. 1674)​
Issue Mary Finch
Parents	Robert Rich, 3rd Earl of Warwick Anne Cheeke

Essex was the youngest daughter of Robert Rich, 3rd Earl of Warwick, and his second wife Anne Cheeke. She was named after her mother's mother, who was also descended from Robert Rich, 1st Earl of Warwick. Following her mother's death, Essex and her sisters were brought up in the household of her father's brother, Charles Rich, 4th Earl of Warwick.[3]

Husbands proposed for Lady Essex Rich included the son of Baron Berkeley of Stratton and Thomas Vane.[3] However, on 16 June 1674, she married Daniel Finch at Leez Priory, near Felsted, and they moved in with his parents at Kensington Palace.[4] The couple had eight children but only one daughter survived to adulthood:

• Mary Finch (1677-1718), who married William Savile, 2nd Marquess of Halifax, as his second wife, following the death of his first wife Elizabeth Grimston. Halifax died in 1700 and she then married John Ker, 1st Duke of Roxburghe.[5]

The Countess of Nottingham died in childbirth, and was buried in the family vault at Ravenstone.[3] Following her death, her husband remarried, his second wife being the Hon. Anne Hatton, by whom he had several children.