The Death of Amy Robsart - 08 September 1560
- thedudleywomen
- Sep 8
- 9 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
Amy Robsart, the only daughter and sole heir of Sir John Robsart, a Norfolk landowner, had been married to Robert Dudley, since May 1550, only days before she turned 18. The couple had likely met when Dudley, the fifth son of John Dudley, then the Earl of Warwick and member of Edward VI's Regency Council, had accompanied his father and older brothers to the county in August 1549, to help quell the local uprising known as 'Kett's Rebellion'. After negotiations between the two families, the young couple were married the following spring, on 05 May 1550, in the presence of the king at Richmond Palace, in what William Cecil, who would later become one of Dudley's fiercest critics, described as a "carnal marriage" (Skidmore, 2010; Paul, 2022).
Only three years into their marriage the couple were separated, when in July 1553 Dudley, along with all other male members of his family, were arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London on charges of high treason, for their roles in the attempted coup to place their in-law, Lady Jane Grey on the English throne. Despite being found guilty and being condemned to death, Dudley was released from the Tower fifteen months later, and later pardoned, with only his father and younger brother Guildford being victim to the executioner's axe. Further separation took place in the summer of 1557, when Dudley, along with his two surviving brothers Ambrose and Harry, accompanied Philip II of Spain to France, the men proving their loyalty to the monarchs who had granted them pardons. Whilst young Harry lost his life at the Siege of Saint-Quentin, their efforts were not in vain, as the two men, as along with their two surviving sisters Mary and Katherine, they were subsequently restored by Parliament in blood and able to secure a place back at court (Skidmore, 2010; Paul, 2022).
On the accession of Elizabeth I in November 1558, she intentionally and swiftly made changes to the Privy Council and members of her household, removing those who held strong Catholic views, including those who challenged her own legitimacy. The new queen replaced them with men and women who held the same religious beliefs and sympathies, as well as family members and those with whom she had longstanding acquaintances with, including the Dudley family. Robert Dudley, who on hearing the death of Mary I, had immediately travelled from the capital to her residence at Hatfield, Hertfordshire, was rewarded with his appointment as the queen's Master of Horse, a position previously held by his father and older brother. With the trusted position of Master of Horse, Dudley became responsible for travel arrangements, but also required a significant amount of personal contact with the monarch, him being the only man who could physically touch her.. His older brother Ambrose Dudley was appointed as Elizabeth's Master of Ordnance, with their sister Mary, Lady Sidney, additionally appointed to her household as a Lady of the Bedchamber (Gristwood, 2007).
Dudley's appointment to Elizabeth's household led to the couple spending more time, and the queen become more emotionally dependent on her Master of Horse; by the winter of 1559, Elizabeth's admiration for her 'favourite' could no longer be hidden. During the previous year, Dudley's influence within the court had risen, much to the chagrin of those envious of his relationship with the queen, but also weary of his political ambitions, the actions of his treacherous father not being forgotten. Whilst Dudley was being appointed properties, including Kew near Richmond, and Knole in Kent, he was becoming increasingly estranged with Amy, last having contact with her in the summer of 1559, when she visited the capital (Wilson, 1981; Hartweg, 2017).
At the end of 1559, after months of living separately, including at the homes of family and friends throughout the country, Amy took up a more permanent residence at Cumnor Place in Oxfordshire. In November 1559, Dudley had been appointed as Lord-Lieutenant of Windsor Castle, spending more time there, in particular when the royal court, were in residence. Therefore, Cumnor became the ideal location for his wife to take up residence, being only half a day's ride from Windsor. Cumnor, located on the boundary of Oxfordshire and Berkshire, is three miles west of the city of Oxford, and five miles from the town of Abingdon. Cumnor Place was originally built as a summer retreat for the Abbots of Abingdon in the 14th century; however, with the dissolution of the monasteries in the 1530s, it had been granted to Henry VIII's physician Dr George Owen, who made alterations and modernisations. His son, William Owen had more recently leased the property to Sir Anthony Foster, an old friend and now steward of Dudley, who subsequently made arrangements for Amy to move in to the hall (Wilson, 1981; Skidmore, 2010). Wilson (2005, p.355) describes Foster's home at Cumnor as not only being the residence for his own family, but also for "three single ladies who either did not choose or could not afford to rune their own establishments", which included Amy and Dr Owen's widow. Amy created her own small household, of around ten servants, including her attendant Mrs Picto, with male servants wearing the Dudley livery; she appears to have lived a quiet life at Cumnor, dining with the other women and the Fosters, and potentially local families, as well as likely attending prayer services and sermons (Hartweg, 2017).
On 08 September 1560, Amy sent away her household for the day, encouraging them to enjoy the first day of the local Abingdon Fair; she reportedly became angry and petulant when one of the other ladies who resided at Cumnor, Mrs Elizabeth Odingsells, refused to go, leading to a quarrel between the pair. Spending most of the day in a deserted house, she dined with elderly Mrs Owen, before parting ways. It was on the servants' return to the hall that evening that they found Amy, at the foot of a ground-floor staircase, which led to the long gallery, dead, with her neck obviously broken (Wilson, 2005; Skidmore, 2010).
Dudley was at Windsor when news of Amy's death reached him. On 09 September, Dudley wrote to Thomas Blount, his kinsman and steward, He informed Blount that he had been informed that Amy had likely died as a result of a fall down the stairs, although "the greatness and suddenness of the misfortune doth perplex me". Dudley requested his 'Cousin Blount' to "use all the devises and means you can possible for the learning of the truth”, including a request to call a Coroner and jury with the aim of a completing a 'thorough' examination of the evidence (Skidmore, 2010, p.203). Unbeknownst to him, a Coroner's Inquest had already opened this same day, at Cumnor, before the coroner John Pudsey, following his personal inspection of Amy's body. Jurors were assembled, "sworn to tell the truth at our request", but the inquest was "adjourned from the aforesaid ninth day onwards day by day very often..." (The National Archives, 2024).
By the time this letter had been composed, in the evening of 09 September, Blount was already enroute from Windsor to Cumnor; he had encountered 'Bowes', a retainer of Dudley's, who had been present at the discovery of Amy's body, whilst riding to Windsor to inform his master of the tragic news. Taking his own initiative, Blount headed to Oxfordshire, first to Abingdon and then Cumnor, to undertake his own investigation, providing regular updates to Dudley. Blount spoke the the staff at Cumnor, including Mrs Picto, who commented that she believed her death to be accidental - "very chance...neither done by man nor by herself" (Skidmore, 2010; Paul, 2022).
At this time, Dudley expressed concerns to Blount about the rumours that were being spread about the circumstances surrounding Amy's death, including the involvement of himself and the queen; this gossip is confirmed with correspondence between privy councillors, who talk about the "grievous and dangerous suspicion and muttering of the death of her which was the wife of my Lord Robert Dudley". Elizabeth, after being informed of Amy's death, ordered the court into mourning for a month, with Dudley himself taking leave from the court on 10 September, retreating to his new home at Kew (Hartweg, 2017; Folgerpedia, 2024).
Following her death, Amy's body was embalmed, being wrapped in cere cloth, with her coffin then discreetly taken to Gloucester College, Oxford. It was in the Great Hall of college, which had been decorated in black cloth and escutcheons of both Robsart and Dudley coats of arms, that her body lay in state, with mourners attending to pay their respects. On 22 September 1560, a procession accompanied the coffin the half-mile journey to the University Church of St Mary the Virgin, located in the centre of the city of Oxford. Described as a 'traditional aristocratic funeral', with rumours of it costing in excess of £2000, the funeral cortege was comprised of the Mayor of Oxford, university staff, a singing choir, poor men and women, heralds, and gentleman mourners, as well those ladies who had served Amy at Cumnor. Her elder half-brother John Appleyard walked infront of her coffin, carrying her banner of arms, the coffin being carried by eight yeoman. The chief mourner nominated for the ceremony was Lady Margarey Norris, a close friend of Elizabeth I. Dudley did not attend the service, as was tradition for a widow, having withdrawn to Kew (Skidmore, 2010; Folgerpedia, 2024).
Amy's funeral service was held at St Mary's Church, which had also been draped in black cloth and escutcheons. The was ceremony was overseen by Dr Francis Babington, Doctor of Divinity and Vice-Chancellor of University of Oxford. After the ceremony, Amy's body was buried within the church; it was reportedly buried near the chancel, although the exact location has been lost. A plaque was erected near the high altar in 1874, documenting her burial "in a vault...at the upper end of this quire" (Skidmore, 2010).
On 01 August 1561, the Coroner's Inquest was resumed at Cumnor, the same coroner and jurors being in attendance to the initial hearing, on 09 September 1560; It was subsequently recorded that Amy:
"being alone in a certain chamber...and intending to descent the aforesaid chamber by way of certain steps...accidentally fell precipitously down...to the very bottom of the same steps...and then sustained not only two injuries to her head...by reason of the accidental injury or of that fall and of Lady Amy's own body weight falling down...then broke her own neck...and then died instantly; and the aforesaid Lady Amy was found there and then without any other mark or wound on her body..."
The jurors ruled that "misfortune came to her death and not otherwise", declaring her death accidental, advising that they found no evidence of suspicious circumstances, including suicide or murder (The National Archives, 2024).
Years later, in 1567, Amy's half-brother John Appleyard raised concerns about the outcome of the Coroner's Inquest, questioning as to whether his brother-in-law had any involvement in or prior knowledge of her death. Dudley, now elevated to the peerage as 1st Earl of Leicester, once again sent Thomas Blount, who remained in his service, to investigate this matter. Blount meticulously went about his duties, interviewing witnesses, including Appleyard, before concluding these reports as a veiled attempt by his political rivals at court to bring around an unlawful prosecution. Appleyard was subsequently arrested, and a Star Chamber hearing in June 1567 ruled against these "slanderous reports", clearing Leicester of any wrongdoing (Skidmore, 2010).
Comments