Welcome to 'The Dudley Women'

After a few months of gathering information, images etc, and applying those final tweaks, I'm pleased to finally launch 'The Dudley Women'.

So how did this all begin? Well, after revisiting Nicola Tallis' books 'Crown of Blood: The Deadly Inheritance of Lady Jane Grey'' and 'Elizabeth's Rival: The Tumultuous Tale of Lettice Knollys, Countess of Leicester' towards the end of last year, both of which I had first listened to on Audible during lockdown, I couldn't stop thinking of how the fates of these two, as well as other well-educated (and sometimes strong-willed) women were significantly impacted by their marriages into the Dudley family. It was also around this time I listened to a podcast about Amy Robsart, the first wife of Robert Dudley, and remembered how complex his relationships were throughout his life.

But the thoughts wouldn't stop, and so it has developed into this: an online resource, dedicated to these women, their immediate families as well as key locations and events in their lives during the 16th and early 17th century, from a variety of different sources, to which I have provided access and signposting. And the number of 'Dudley Women' themselves have expanded since commencing this project, It started with Jane Grey, Lettice Knollys and Amy Robsart, and quickly extended to Jane's mother-in-law Jane Guildford, with subsequent information be sought about these women's immediate families. However, as time has passed, further 'Dudley Women' have come to my attention, including John Dudley's mother Elizabeth Grey, and three Countesses of Warwick - Anne Seymour, Elizabeth Tailboys and Anne Russell.

The aim is to share the story of these women. Lady Jane Grey's story is very widely known, but she cannot be excluded from this list. As for the other women, I hope this website helps shine a light on these remarkable figures. As this online resource is newly launching, you can expect it to evolve and more information and resources to be added to it as time goes on.

Image Credits: L-R: Wolverhampton Arts and Heritage; Woburn Abbey; National Portrait Gallery, London; Longleat House Background © Philadelphia Museum of Art Additional Reading: Tallis, N., (2016). Crown of Blood: The Deadly Inheritance of Lady Jane Grey. London: Michael O'Mara Books Ltd.

Tallis, N., (2017). Elizabeth's Rival: The Tumultuous Tale of Lettice Knollys, Countess of Leicester. London: Michael O'Mara Books Ltd.