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Amy Robsart: A Life and Its End
Amy Robsart, the wife of Queen Elizabeth's favourite Robert Dudley, was found dead at the foot of some stairs at Cumnor, Oxfordshire, on 8 September 1560. Did she fall and break her neck, as the coroner's jury concluded? Was she ill? Did she jump? Was she pushed? Was she murdered, as many people suspected – at the time and since – and who were the killers? This vivid biography recounts her life and death in the shadow of the Tudor court, using all available documents, some for the first time. There will also for the first time be an in-depth look at the people around her, like her half-brothers, her host, or her supposed killer. The possible causes of her death, accident, suicide, murder, even illness, are discussed in context of the surviving evidence, modern statistics, and Renaissance culture. While there will never be a definite answer to the mystery of Amy's death, her life can be rescued from the myths that have grown around her over the centuries.
156 pages, Paperback
Published September 1, 2017
29 people are currently reading
143 people want to read
About the author
Christine Hartweg
2 books34 followersChristine Hartweg lives in Berlin and was born in South America in 1972. She has been researching the Dudley family of Tudor England since 2008 and has advised the BBC and other TV channels.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 17, 2017
A comprehensive look at the brief life of Amy Robsart, the unfortunate wife of Robert Dudley. Married just before her 18th birthday, Amy Robsart wed Robert Dudley after a short acquaintance. Robert Dudley had a tumultuous life, his father orchestrated Lady Jane Grey's "nine-day Queenship," and his family was imprisoned by Mary when she regained power. Both his brother Guilford and father were beheaded as traitors and his father's heir died soon after being released from jail. Robert's fortunes rose and fell, and he often found himself and his new wife scrambling to different relatives homes and living on funds from his brothers. Everything changed when Elizabeth took the throne and Robert's star rose to new heights. He became inseparable from the Queen and many suggest they had a long-standing affair. BUT, he was married and much as most of the men in Elizabeth's orbit hated him, he hung on like a burr to his position and rumors abounded that he would marry her eventually.
So, where does that leave the inconvenient wife, Amy Robsart? Elizabeth refused to allow her to come to court. Was she depressed enough to kill herself over her "one-sided " love for her husband? Did Elizabeth and Robert get rid of her? Was she dying of a "breast malady" that frightened Cecil enough to order her murder to cast suspicion on Robert and foil his plans of remarrying Elizabeth? Hartweg leaves no stone unturned- she presents all the evidence, backing everything up with reliable facts. Forthright and precise, this was an excellent book that gave a wonderful picture into Elizabeth's court, bringing all the players out of the shadows. The conclusion- read it for yourself and play the game of CSI Elizabethan style.
So, where does that leave the inconvenient wife, Amy Robsart? Elizabeth refused to allow her to come to court. Was she depressed enough to kill herself over her "one-sided " love for her husband? Did Elizabeth and Robert get rid of her? Was she dying of a "breast malady" that frightened Cecil enough to order her murder to cast suspicion on Robert and foil his plans of remarrying Elizabeth? Hartweg leaves no stone unturned- she presents all the evidence, backing everything up with reliable facts. Forthright and precise, this was an excellent book that gave a wonderful picture into Elizabeth's court, bringing all the players out of the shadows. The conclusion- read it for yourself and play the game of CSI Elizabethan style.
July 30, 2018
I've always been intrigued by the mystery of Amy Robsart, the unfortunate wife of Queen Elizabeth I's alleged lover, Robert Dudley, who died after apparently falling down a short flight of stairs in September 1560. Amy Dudley's death caused a scandal across half of Europe, yet although Robert Dudley was widely suspected, the truth of what happened is debated to this day.
This fascinating book by Dudley specialist Christine Hartweg explores Amy's death from every conceivable angle. Every surviving letter and document is analysed in the context of the time - and contrasted with interesting use of modern clinical and statistical evidence about on such falls.
I was unaware that the coroner's report was wrongly filed under 1561 instead of 1560 and was only discovered by chance in 2008 by Steven Gunn, who was studying accidental Tudor deaths. The last sentence states (in Latin) that 'Lady Amy in the manner and form aforesaid by misfortune came to her death and not otherwise.'
There is also a full exploration of the many myths and stories about her over the centuries, with a discussion of the possible motives of their authors. These range from scheming foreign ambassadors to Dudley's many enemies and Sir Walter Scott's historical novel Kenilworth (published in 1821).
Did Amy fall and break her neck by accident? Was it suicide? or could she have been pushed or poisoned? If she was murdered, who might have been responsible? Has her death changed the course of English history? You will have to read the book and draw your own conclusion. Highly recommended.
Tony Riches
This fascinating book by Dudley specialist Christine Hartweg explores Amy's death from every conceivable angle. Every surviving letter and document is analysed in the context of the time - and contrasted with interesting use of modern clinical and statistical evidence about on such falls.
I was unaware that the coroner's report was wrongly filed under 1561 instead of 1560 and was only discovered by chance in 2008 by Steven Gunn, who was studying accidental Tudor deaths. The last sentence states (in Latin) that 'Lady Amy in the manner and form aforesaid by misfortune came to her death and not otherwise.'
There is also a full exploration of the many myths and stories about her over the centuries, with a discussion of the possible motives of their authors. These range from scheming foreign ambassadors to Dudley's many enemies and Sir Walter Scott's historical novel Kenilworth (published in 1821).
Did Amy fall and break her neck by accident? Was it suicide? or could she have been pushed or poisoned? If she was murdered, who might have been responsible? Has her death changed the course of English history? You will have to read the book and draw your own conclusion. Highly recommended.
Tony Riches
October 22, 2023
Amy Robsart, wife of Robert Dudley who was a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I.
Was it murder? Was it suicide? Was it simply a terrible, but not uncommon accident? Her cause of death is an historical mystery and leads to a few big historical 'what if' questions.
If Amy Robsart had died in less questionable circumstances, would England have had a King Robert?
If Robert had married Elizabeth, would there have been surviving children and a Tudor Dudley heir, negating the later need for a Stuart on the throne? Without the Stuart kings, would there then have been The Interregnum, or a Glorious Revolution? Without the Glorious Revolution, it's possible no Hanoverian line entered the English monarchy except perhaps as a source of brides. Without the Hanoverian kings, would England have lost the American colonies?
These questions remain as 'what if', and the answers as unknowable as the true cause of Amy Robsart being found at the bottom of the stairs on that fateful day on which English history has seemingly pivoted.
This book on the life and death of Amy Robsart and its aftermath is short and to the point. It is not a full biography of Amy Robsart and the Dudley clan. As well (and to the benefit of the subject matter and the reader), there are no fluffing out statements of imagined events or conversations, and no flights of imaginative fancy where the reader is taken on several pages of author conjecture.
Instead, Christine Hartwig has stuck to the available evidence, drawn reasonable conclusions from the same, and used that evidence to refute or support several historical conjectures.
Don't mistake 'short' for 'empty of content'. There is a lot of information contained within this book, and Christine Hartwig has done a very good job in presenting it and remaining fairly unbiased.
A very good addition to the library of any reader of English history.
Was it murder? Was it suicide? Was it simply a terrible, but not uncommon accident? Her cause of death is an historical mystery and leads to a few big historical 'what if' questions.
If Amy Robsart had died in less questionable circumstances, would England have had a King Robert?
If Robert had married Elizabeth, would there have been surviving children and a Tudor Dudley heir, negating the later need for a Stuart on the throne? Without the Stuart kings, would there then have been The Interregnum, or a Glorious Revolution? Without the Glorious Revolution, it's possible no Hanoverian line entered the English monarchy except perhaps as a source of brides. Without the Hanoverian kings, would England have lost the American colonies?
These questions remain as 'what if', and the answers as unknowable as the true cause of Amy Robsart being found at the bottom of the stairs on that fateful day on which English history has seemingly pivoted.
This book on the life and death of Amy Robsart and its aftermath is short and to the point. It is not a full biography of Amy Robsart and the Dudley clan. As well (and to the benefit of the subject matter and the reader), there are no fluffing out statements of imagined events or conversations, and no flights of imaginative fancy where the reader is taken on several pages of author conjecture.
Instead, Christine Hartwig has stuck to the available evidence, drawn reasonable conclusions from the same, and used that evidence to refute or support several historical conjectures.
Don't mistake 'short' for 'empty of content'. There is a lot of information contained within this book, and Christine Hartwig has done a very good job in presenting it and remaining fairly unbiased.
A very good addition to the library of any reader of English history.
May 8, 2020
4 stars doesn't necessarily mean I agreed with the author but I thought there wasn't much fault with her writing or research.This was both well researched and written and presented facts fairly and for the short work it is was nicely done and I would very much recommend to someone looking for info on this particular subject in Tudor history.
May 29, 2020
This is an excellent book for history buffs, especially those intrigued by Elizabethan England.
The book examines the theories surrounding the death of Amy Robsart, wife of Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester, who was very close to and purported to be a great love interest of Queen Elizabeth 1. Amy herself, aside from questions surrounding her death, remains a relatively obscure person in history. She died under questionable circumstances at the age of 28. Many close to the Queen expected Robert to be chosen as her husband after the death of his wife. However, Queen Elizabeth seemed to awaken to the potential for scandal and reminded unmarried for her entire life.
Amy was found dead at the foot of a staircase in September 1560. She was alone in her home. Much was debated about the cause of her death: accident? murder? suicide? Illness was also suspected (breast cancer), which could have weakened her and caused the fall. Her death was eventually decreed an accident, but much remains unknown and historians remain suspicious.
Christine Hartweg’s writing is clear and clean, and this is one of the best researched books I have ever read. However—and this is my fault not the author’s—I was expecting to be swept away by a piece of historical fiction, built upon the little known facts about Amy’s death and expanded into an Elizabethan England drama.What I didn’t expect was a heavily footnoted, historical treatise. Again, my fault. Didn’t do my own research.
So I repeat: great book for a history buff interested in examining what is known and what is still being discussed about the death of Amy Robsart.
The book examines the theories surrounding the death of Amy Robsart, wife of Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester, who was very close to and purported to be a great love interest of Queen Elizabeth 1. Amy herself, aside from questions surrounding her death, remains a relatively obscure person in history. She died under questionable circumstances at the age of 28. Many close to the Queen expected Robert to be chosen as her husband after the death of his wife. However, Queen Elizabeth seemed to awaken to the potential for scandal and reminded unmarried for her entire life.
Amy was found dead at the foot of a staircase in September 1560. She was alone in her home. Much was debated about the cause of her death: accident? murder? suicide? Illness was also suspected (breast cancer), which could have weakened her and caused the fall. Her death was eventually decreed an accident, but much remains unknown and historians remain suspicious.
Christine Hartweg’s writing is clear and clean, and this is one of the best researched books I have ever read. However—and this is my fault not the author’s—I was expecting to be swept away by a piece of historical fiction, built upon the little known facts about Amy’s death and expanded into an Elizabethan England drama.What I didn’t expect was a heavily footnoted, historical treatise. Again, my fault. Didn’t do my own research.
So I repeat: great book for a history buff interested in examining what is known and what is still being discussed about the death of Amy Robsart.
February 26, 2020
A very good book with a lot of information from contemporary sources. I learned a lot about Amy.
September 8, 2020
Well researched
May 18, 2023
Short, sweet, and to the point; but don’t let that fool you. There’s a lot of great information in here and the author does a great job showing the evidence and discussing all theories.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews