 She died following the birth of Thomas, aged only 23.Sarah became known as the Cottage Countess, and never seemed to have adapted to her role as the mistress of a great household.The episode is recounted in Tennyson's poem "The Lord of Burleigh" (1835, published 1842), and was investigated by Elisabeth Inglis-Jones in her book "The Lord of Burghley" and by Andrew Harris for his book "The Vernons of Hanbury Hall".