Category Archives: Lettice Knollys

Living on The Strand

Posted on November 11, 2023 by Christine Hartweg

The Elizabethan aristocracy, when in London, resided on the Strand. If you could afford to live in one of the former bishop’s palaces between the street called The Strand and the bank of the Thames (and rebuild them) you had … Continue reading →

Posted in Andrew Dudley, Elizabeth I, family & marriage, John Dudley, Lettice Knollys, Robert Dudley | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Lettice in the Theatre

Posted on April 29, 2023 by Christine Hartweg

On 4 September 1588 Lettice, Countess of Leicester (née Lettice Knollys), became a widow for the second time. She was never to regain Queen Elizabeth’s favour, but was still left a wealthy lady. Robert Dudley had appointed her executrix of … Continue reading →

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Lettice and Elizabeth

Posted on November 13, 2022 by Christine Hartweg

On 3 March 1600 Rowland White wrote from the court that “[y]esterday the Countess of Leicester sent the Queen a most curious gown.” He reported that “Her Majesty liked it well.” Alas, she “did not accept or refuse it[,] only … Continue reading →

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How Much Did Lettice Knollys Resemble Queen Elizabeth I?

Posted on March 3, 2018 by Christine Hartweg

It is often said that Lettice Knollys, Robert Dudley’s second wife, bore a remarkable resemblance to her first cousin once removed, Queen Elizabeth I. Because Robert Dudley risked his favoured position with Elizabeth when he married Lettice, biographers have sometimes … Continue reading →

Posted in Elizabeth I, errors & myths, Lettice Knollys, paintings | 6 Comments

The Lovesick Earl, Part II

Posted on November 16, 2014 by Christine Hartweg

The quarrel between the Earl of Leicester and Sir Thomas Heneage continued into 1566, though at some point it must have died down because 20 years later, when Elizabeth sent Heneage to rebuke Leicester in the Netherlands, he showed so … Continue reading →

Posted in Elizabeth I, errors & myths, family & marriage, letters, Lettice Knollys, Robert Dudley, sources & historians | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

The Lovesick Earl, Part I

Posted on November 11, 2014 by Christine Hartweg

By 1565, Sir Nicholas Throckmorton, ambassador first to France and then to Scotland, had become Leicester’s “political brain”.1 As will appear, he had also become the chief advisor of the earl’s love life. – For the first time since falling … Continue reading →

Posted in Elizabeth I, family & marriage, Lettice Knollys, Robert Dudley, sources & historians | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Peace Portrait: The Significance of the Little Dog

Posted on September 30, 2014 by Christine Hartweg

One of the most beautiful portraits of Elizabeth I is the so-called Peace Portrait, and it has long been associated with the Earl of Leicester. The queen, symbolizing the goddess of peace, Pax, holds an olive branch and stands on … Continue reading →

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Leicester as Stepfather

Posted on June 16, 2014 by Christine Hartweg

Robert Dudley was fond of children.1 As a young uncle he had taken a fancy to his five-year-old nephew Philip Sidney, an affection which lasted for a lifetime; when he visited William of Orange in 1582 the prince’s wife was … Continue reading →

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1560 and 1588 – Two Funerals

Posted on September 29, 2013 by Christine Hartweg

On 22 September 1560 Lady Amy Dudley was laid to rest at St. Mary’s Church, Oxford. After her sudden death on 8 September the court had gone into mourning for the wife of the queen’s favourite, Hampton Court being “stuffed … Continue reading →

Posted in Ambrose Dudley, Amy Robsart, Elizabeth I, friends & foes, Lettice Knollys, Robert Dudley, Sir Robert Dudley | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Departure and Arrival: Leicester and the Netherlands in 1585, Part I

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Christine Hartweg

Elizabeth simply would not let him leave. For a good decade the Earl of Leicester had hoped to lead an expedition to the Netherlands in support of the “cause”, the Protestant revolt against King Philip of Spain. In the summer … Continue reading →

Posted in Elizabeth I, letters, Lettice Knollys, Netherlands, Robert Dudley | Tagged , | 1 Comment