Percy was the eldest son of Sir Thomas Percy and Eleanor , daughter of Sir Guiscard Harbottal . He was the nephew of Henry Percy , 6th Earl of Northumberland , with whom Anne Boleyn had a romantic association before she became the wife of King Henry VIII . When Thomas was eight years old his father , Sir Thomas Percy , was executed at Tyburn ( 2 June 1537 ) for having taken a leading part in the Pilgrimage of Grace , and he also is considered a martyr by many . Thomas and his brother Henry were then removed from their mother 's keeping and entrusted to Sir Thomas Tempest
Pilgrimage of Grace
Pilgrimage of Grace
Thomas Percy, 7th Earl of Northumberland