Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk

Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk (10 March 1473 – 25 August 1554) was a powerful English nobleman and politician during the Tudor period. He was the uncle of two of King Henry VIII's wives: Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard. Both of his nieces were executed, and Thomas Howard was deeply involved in the political schemes surrounding these royal marriages.

His Grace The Duke of Norfolk KG PC
Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk by Hans Holbein the Younger, Royal Collection.
Lord High Treasurer
In office 4 December 1522 – 12 December 1546
Monarch	Henry VIII
Preceded by	Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk
Succeeded by	Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset
Personal details
Born	c. 1473
Died	25 August 1554 (aged 80–81) Kenninghall, Norfolk
Resting place	Church of St Michael the Archangel, Framlingham, Suffolk
Spouse(s)	Anne of York (m. 1494 or 1495; died 1511) Elizabeth Stafford (m. 1513)
Children	Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey Katherine Stanley, Countess of Derby Mary FitzRoy, Duchess of Richmond and Somerset Thomas Howard, 1st Viscount Howard of Bindon
Mother	Elizabeth Tilney
Father	Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk
Religion	Roman Catholicism

In 1546, he fell out of favor with King Henry VIII, lost his title of Duke, and was imprisoned in the Tower of London. He narrowly escaped execution when Henry VIII died in January 1547.

Howard was freed when Queen Mary I, a Roman Catholic, became queen. He helped her secure the throne, but his family’s Catholic ties created tensions with the Protestant royal line, especially when Elizabeth I, Mary’s half-sister, became queen.