Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick
Encyclopedia
Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick, KG (c. 1530 – 21 February 1590) was an English nobleman
and general, and an elder brother of Queen Elizabeth I's favourite
, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester. Their father was John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland
, who led the English government from 1550–1553 under Edward VI and unsuccessfully tried to establish Lady Jane Grey
on the English throne after the King's death in July 1553. For his participation in this venture Ambrose Dudley was imprisoned in the Tower of London
and condemned to death. Reprieved, his rehabilitation came after he fought for Philip II of Spain
(then England's king consort
) in the Battle of St. Quentin
.
On Queen Elizabeth's accession in November 1558 Dudley was appointed Master of the Ordnance
, in which capacity he was to unofficially assist William the Silent
in his struggle against Spain by delivering English weaponry. As the senior member of his family, Dudley was created Earl of Warwick
in December 1561. In 1562–1563 he commanded the army Elizabeth sent to Le Havre
to garrison the town and assist the Huguenot
s in the First French War of Religion
. This campaign ended in failure when the French belligerents agreed on a peace and the English surrendered because of the plague which was decimating their ranks. Dudley, who had acted honorably throughout, returned with a severe leg wound which was to hinder his further career and ultimately led to his death 27 years later. His last military engagement was against the Northern rebels
in 1569. From 1573 he served as a privy councillor.
Despite three marriages, Ambrose Dudley remained childless after the death of an infant daughter in 1552. This had serious repercussions for the survival of his dynasty, since his only surviving brother Robert equally died without legitimate issue. With him, Ambrose Dudley had a very close relationship, and in business and personal life they did many things together. Like Robert Dudley, Ambrose was a major patron
of the Elizabethan Puritan movement
and supported non-conforming
preachers in their struggle with the Church
authorities. Due to his homely way of life—and in contrast to the colourful Earl of Leicester—Ambrose Dudley became known to posterity as the "Good Earl of Warwick".
, later Viscount Lisle
, Earl of Warwick
and Duke of Northumberland
, and his wife Jane Guildford. The Dudleys had 13 children in all and were known for their Protestant leanings as well as for their happy family life. Ambrose Dudley and his brothers were trained by, among others, the mathematician John Dee
and the rhetorician Thomas Wilson
. In August 1549 Dudley went to Norfolk
with his father and his younger brother Robert to fight against the rebel peasant army of Robert Kett. Back in London, Dudley was knighted and married Anne Whorwood, daughter of William Whorwood
, deceased Attorney-General. In 1552 they had a daughter who died soon. Anne also died in 1552 of the sweating sickness
. Dudley soon married for the second time: Elizabeth Lady Tailboys (or Talboys, 1520–1563), who was a baroness in her own right with large possessions in Lincolnshire
and Yorkshire
.
After the death of King Edward VI
on 6 July 1553, John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, who had led the young King's government for the last three and a half years, tried to install his daughter-in-law Lady Jane Grey
on the English throne; she was the King's Protestant cousin to whom Edward had willed the Crown, bypassing his half-sisters Mary
and Elizabeth. When Mary Tudor asserted her right to the throne, an expedition against her base in East Anglia
became inevitable. Northumberland marched on 14 July, accompanied by his eldest sons, John
and Ambrose. Five days later the Privy Council
changed sides; on hearing this on 20 July, Northumberland, who had been staying at Cambridge, gave up and was arrested with his party the next day.
Ambrose Dudley was imprisoned in the Tower of London
with his father and his four brothers. All were attainted and condemned to death, but only the Duke and Guildford Dudley, the second youngest brother, were executed. After the natural death of John, the eldest brother, in October 1554, Ambrose Dudley was the family's heir; he remained longest in the Tower, being released late in 1554 after a plea by his wife, Lady Tailboys. On the whole, the brothers' release was brought about by their mother and their brother-in-law Henry Sidney
, who successfully lobbied the Spanish nobles around England's new king consort
, Philip of Spain
. Out of prison, in December 1554 or January 1555, Ambrose and Robert Dudley took part in one of several tournaments
held by Philip to celebrate Anglo-Spanish friendship.
Also in January 1555, Dudley's mother died, leaving him her lands, which Queen Mary allowed him to inherit despite his attainder. However, the Dudley brothers were only welcome at court as long as King Philip was there; later in 1555 they were even ordered out of London and the next year, in the wake of a conspiracy by their distant cousin Henry Sutton Dudley
, the French ambassador Antoine de Noailles
reported that the government was seeking to apprehend "the children of the Duke of Northumberland", who were said to be on the run. By January 1557, the brothers were raising personal contingents in order to fight for Philip II, who was now King of Spain. Ambrose, Robert, and Henry Dudley joined the Spanish forces in France and took part in the Battle of St. Quentin
, where Henry Dudley was killed. For these services the two surviving brothers were restored in blood by Act of Parliament in 1558. The cost of the campaign almost bankrupted Ambrose Dudley and his wife, however, so that they had to reduce their household significantly.
. Ambrose Dudley received the post of Master of the Ordnance
, though he pressed his influential brother to delay the appointment somewhat, so that he could not be held accountable for his predecessor's embezzlement of funds. When their attainder had been lifted in 1558, the Dudley brothers had renounced any rights to their father's possessions or titles. Yet on 25 and 26 December 1561 Ambrose Dudley was created Baron Lisle
and Earl of Warwick, and the next year received a large portion of the lands confiscated from the Duke of Northumberland. Warwick Castle
—which the Queen visited on her 1572 summer progress—became his seat, while the neighbouring Kenilworth Castle
became that of Robert Dudley. Like their father, Ambrose and Robert Dudley adopted the bear and ragged staff, the heraldic device of the medieval Earls of Warwick.
In 1562 the First War of Religion
started in France, and Elizabeth was under pressure from her Protestant councillors to help the Huguenots. These were in posssession of Le Havre
, which was besieged by the Catholic
Duke of Guise
, and offered it to the English in return for military help—later, they promised, they would exchange it for Calais
, which England had lost to France only in 1558. Elizabeth agreed to send 6,000 men to garrison Le Havre. Ambrose Dudley was chosen to lead the expedition in place of Robert Dudley, whom Elizabeth would not let go despite his strong desire to do so.
Warwick arrived at Le Havre in late October 1562. He was sceptical from the start as to the chances to hold Le Havre, writing: "I fear [you] are too much abused in the good opinion you have in the strength of this town". Elizabeth soon made it clear that she did not wish his army to engage in any active support for the Huguenot side, the purpose of the English contribution remaining somewhat obscure. In March 1563 the warring French agreed to a peace, while Elizabeth decided to hold on to Le Havre until Calais was returned to the English, as had been agreed with the Huguenot party. The reconciled French, however, turned jointly against the English garrison. Le Havre's fortifications would have needed major expansion and repair to withstand a prolonged siege. Still, Dudley tried his best until the town's walls were crumbling under French bombardment and the Queen permitted him to surrender honourably in July 1563 on account of the plague that was decimating his troops. Ambrose Dudley himself had been shot in the leg when parleying with the French and returned to England seriously ill. He wrote to his brother that he was happy "rather to end my life upon the breach than in any sickness. ... Farewell my dear and loving brother, a thousand times." Robert Dudley went to welcome him at Portsmouth
despite the plague and much to Elizabeth's annoyance.
Politically the expedition had been a disaster, yet Warwick gained recognition for his leadership since morale had been high and the civilian population had been treated with unusual respect. The Earl's rewards were the Welsh lordship of Ruthin
and the Order of the Garter
, which was awarded to him while still in France in April 1563. His war injury—which never properly healed—made him ineligible for posts like Lord President of the Council of the North
or Lord Deputy of Ireland
when they were suggested for him in the future. Elizabeth Lady Tailboys had also died while her husband was in France, and on 11 November 1565 Ambrose Dudley married for the third time. His bride was the 16-year-old Anne Russell
, daughter of Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford
. Robert Dudley, meanwhile Earl of Leicester
, had arranged the match. It was an extraordinary court event. In between tournaments and banquets, the bride was given away by the Earl of Leicester in the presence of the Queen; she later became one of Elizabeth's closest friends.
In November 1569 the Northern Rebellion broke out with the aim to install Mary, Queen of Scots (who was in English captivity) on the English throne. The Earl of Warwick was one of the commanders appointed to march against the revolt, which was disintegrating rapidly, though. Due to his bad health Warwick was soon allowed to return to his Midlands estates. In January 1570 Robert, Earl of Leicester saw his reconvalescent brother at Kenilworth and reported to Elizabeth: "all this hard weather [he] hath every day travelled on horse, Your Majesty's service hath made him forget his pain ... assuredly he is marvellous weary, though in my judgment it hath done his body much good".
As Master of the Ordnance Warwick presided over an increasingly important government department, which centrally managed the storage and commissioning of the state's artillery
, munitions, and small arms. Prince William of Orange
valued English cannons, and Warwick—who fervently believed in the international Protestant cause—seems willingly to have supplied him with what he wanted. The Spanish ambassador officially protested against this practice in 1576, since the weapons would have been used against Spanish rule in the Netherlands
. In 1573 Warwick was admitted to the Privy Council
. His attendance to business was quite regular until it declined sharply due to his deteriorating health in the 1580s. At the 1587 trial of Mary Stuart he acted as a commissioner and was asked by the Scottish Queen to plead for her with his brother, the absent Earl of Leicester. The day sentence was pronounced on her, Warwick did not attend.
Ambrose Dudley became one of the leading patrons of moderate Puritanism
, the principal concern of which was the furtherance of preaching. Discouraged by the official Church, this was largely dependent on private initiatives by influential noblemen. In 1567 the two Dudley earls, together with local gentry, founded a consortium which provided for "the preachers of the Gospel in the county of Warwick." Ambrose Dudley also helped the preacher John Field when he got into trouble over a subversive book he had published in 1565; and when he was imprisoned in 1572, Leicester and Warwick worked his transfer into comfortable confinement in a London alderman's house before he was released altogether by his patrons' means. Like his brother, Ambrose Dudley invested in exploration
and privateering voyages; in Martin Frobisher
's 1576 search for the Northwest Passage
he was the principal patron, although he contributed only the relatively modest sum of £
50.
The two Dudley brothers were on the closest personal terms and Ambrose said of Robert: "there is no man [that] knoweth his doings better than I myself", while Robert's recurrent phrase about Ambrose was: "him I love as myself". Elizabeth, who liked Warwick, loved to joke that he was neither as graceful nor as handsome as his brother—and stouter as well. Lacking a grand London residence of his own, Warwick had his suite of rooms in the palatial Leicester House
: "the Lord of Warwick's bedchamber, the Lord of Warwick's closet, the Lord of Warwick's dining parlour". In the administration of their lands the brothers shared their estate managers and lawyers, while their local affinities
consisted of the same gentry
families. Privately, they were "almost inseparable", passing time together whenever possible. When Robert Dudley had incurred the Queen's wrath while serving in the Netherlands as Governor-General
in 1586, Ambrose wrote to him: "if I were you ... I would go to the furthest part of Christendom rather than ever come into England again. ... Let me have your best advice what is best for me to do, for that I mean to take such part as you do."
Popularly the brothers equally figured as a pair, as is apparent from street talk reported to the authorities in March 1581: "My Lord of Warwick and my Lord of Leicester are traitors and come of traitor's blood, and if they had [had] right they had lost their heads so well as others for making away of King Edward." Ambrose Dudley entered tradition as the "Good Earl of Warwick"; this probably came about through his quiet life style, which contrasted with the colourful persona of his brother, the Queen's favourite
.
After his first marriage Ambrose Dudley remained childless. His second wife, Elizabeth Tailboys, suffered a phantom pregnancy
in 1555. Anne Russell, though nearly 20 years her husband's junior, turned out to be a congenial partner. Through their paternal grandmother the Dudley brothers descended from the famous 15th century earls, John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury
and Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick. The Beauchamp descent especially—which was represented by the earldom of Warwick—filled them with pride. Ambrose's childlessness deeply concerned the widowed Robert Dudley, who for many years dared not to remarry for fear of the Queen's displeasure, and eventually died without direct heirs himself in September 1588. Most of Leicester's estate—and debts—passed on to Warwick and encumbered his remaining lifetime. He also took care of his deceased brother's illegitimate teenage son Robert, who was his godson and whom Leicester had willed to inherit after Warwick's death.
From the 1570s the Earl of Warwick often resided at North Hall, his house in Northaw
, Hertfordshire
. He travelled little as he was often unable to move about, having "no use of his legs". At the end of January 1590 he finally had his gangrenous leg amputated; as a consequence he died at Bedford House in the Strand, London
on 21 February. Two days before, the diplomat Sir Edward Stafford
visited him and described his spasms and pain "which lasted him unto his death". He also saw the Countess sitting "by the fire so full of tears that she could not speak". The Earl of Warwick was buried in the Beauchamp Chapel of Collegiate Church of St Mary, Warwick
, in the vicinity of his ancestor Richard Beauchamp, his brother Robert, and his little nephew Robert Dudley, Lord Denbigh, Leicester's son who during his short life had been heir to both Dudley earldoms. Ambrose Dudley's widow commissioned his monument, but on her request was buried with her ancestors in Chenies
, Buckinghamshire
when she died in 1604.
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Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
and general, and an elder brother of Queen Elizabeth I's favourite
Favourite
A favourite , or favorite , was the intimate companion of a ruler or other important person. In medieval and Early Modern Europe, among other times and places, the term is used of individuals delegated significant political power by a ruler...
, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester. Their father was John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland
John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland
John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, KG was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady Jane Grey on the English throne after the King's death...
, who led the English government from 1550–1553 under Edward VI and unsuccessfully tried to establish Lady Jane Grey
Lady Jane Grey
Lady Jane Grey , also known as The Nine Days' Queen, was an English noblewoman who was de facto monarch of England from 10 July until 19 July 1553 and was subsequently executed...
on the English throne after the King's death in July 1553. For his participation in this venture Ambrose Dudley was imprisoned in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
and condemned to death. Reprieved, his rehabilitation came after he fought for Philip II of Spain
Philip II of Spain
Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....
(then England's king consort
King consort
King consort is an alternative title to the more usual "prince consort" - which is a position given in some monarchies to the husband of a reigning queen. It is a symbolic title only, the sole constitutional function of the holder being similar to a prince consort, which is the male equivalent of a...
) in the Battle of St. Quentin
Battle of St. Quentin (1557)
The Battle of Saint-Quentin of 1557 was fought during the Franco-Habsburg War . The Spanish, who had regained the support of the English, won a significant victory over the French at Saint-Quentin, in northern France.- Battle :...
.
On Queen Elizabeth's accession in November 1558 Dudley was appointed Master of the Ordnance
Master-General of the Ordnance
The Master-General of the Ordnance was a very senior British military position before 1855, when the Board of Ordnance was abolished.-Responsibilities:...
, in which capacity he was to unofficially assist William the Silent
William the Silent
William I, Prince of Orange , also widely known as William the Silent , or simply William of Orange , was the main leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish that set off the Eighty Years' War and resulted in the formal independence of the United Provinces in 1648. He was born in the House of...
in his struggle against Spain by delivering English weaponry. As the senior member of his family, Dudley was created Earl of Warwick
Earl of Warwick
Earl of Warwick is a title that has been created four times in British history and is one of the most prestigious titles in the peerages of the British Isles.-1088 creation:...
in December 1561. In 1562–1563 he commanded the army Elizabeth sent to Le Havre
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...
to garrison the town and assist the Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
s in the First French War of Religion
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
. This campaign ended in failure when the French belligerents agreed on a peace and the English surrendered because of the plague which was decimating their ranks. Dudley, who had acted honorably throughout, returned with a severe leg wound which was to hinder his further career and ultimately led to his death 27 years later. His last military engagement was against the Northern rebels
Rising of the North
The Rising of the North of 1569, also called the Revolt of the Northern Earls or Northern Rebellion, was an unsuccessful attempt by Catholic nobles from Northern England to depose Queen Elizabeth I of England and replace her with Mary, Queen of Scots.-Background:When Elizabeth I succeeded her...
in 1569. From 1573 he served as a privy councillor.
Despite three marriages, Ambrose Dudley remained childless after the death of an infant daughter in 1552. This had serious repercussions for the survival of his dynasty, since his only surviving brother Robert equally died without legitimate issue. With him, Ambrose Dudley had a very close relationship, and in business and personal life they did many things together. Like Robert Dudley, Ambrose was a major patron
Patrón
Patrón is a luxury brand of tequila produced in Mexico and sold in hand-blown, individually numbered bottles.Made entirely from Blue Agave "piñas" , Patrón comes in five varieties: Silver, Añejo, Reposado, Gran Patrón Platinum and Gran Patrón Burdeos. Patrón also sells a tequila-coffee blend known...
of the Elizabethan Puritan movement
History of the Puritans under Elizabeth I
The reign of Elizabeth I of England, from 1558 to 1603, saw the rise of the Puritan movement in England, its clash with the authorities of the Church of England, and its temporarily effective suppression in the 1590s by severe judicial means.-Background, to 1559:...
and supported non-conforming
Elizabethan Religious Settlement
The Elizabethan Religious Settlement was Elizabeth I’s response to the religious divisions created over the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and Mary I. This response, described as "The Revolution of 1559", was set out in two Acts of the Parliament of England...
preachers in their struggle with the Church
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
authorities. Due to his homely way of life—and in contrast to the colourful Earl of Leicester—Ambrose Dudley became known to posterity as the "Good Earl of Warwick".
Youth
Ambrose Dudley was the fourth son of Sir John DudleyJohn Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland
John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, KG was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady Jane Grey on the English throne after the King's death...
, later Viscount Lisle
Viscount Lisle
The title of Viscount Lisle has been created six times in the Peerage of England. The first creation, on 30 October 1451, was for John Talbot, 1st Baron Lisle. Upon the death of his son Thomas at the Battle of Nibley Green in 1470, the viscountcy became extinct and the barony abeyant.In 1475, the...
, Earl of Warwick
Earl of Warwick
Earl of Warwick is a title that has been created four times in British history and is one of the most prestigious titles in the peerages of the British Isles.-1088 creation:...
and Duke of Northumberland
Duke of Northumberland
The Duke of Northumberland is a title in the peerage of Great Britain that has been created several times. Since the third creation in 1766, the title has belonged to the House of Percy , which held the title of Earl of Northumberland from 1377....
, and his wife Jane Guildford. The Dudleys had 13 children in all and were known for their Protestant leanings as well as for their happy family life. Ambrose Dudley and his brothers were trained by, among others, the mathematician John Dee
John Dee
John Dee was a Welsh mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, occultist, navigator, imperialist, and consultant to Queen Elizabeth I.John Dee may also refer to:* John Dee , Basketball coach...
and the rhetorician Thomas Wilson
Thomas Wilson (rhetorician)
Thomas Wilson was an English diplomat, judge, and privy councillor in the government of Elizabeth I. He is now remembered for his Logique and The Arte of Rhetorique , an influential text...
. In August 1549 Dudley went to Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
with his father and his younger brother Robert to fight against the rebel peasant army of Robert Kett. Back in London, Dudley was knighted and married Anne Whorwood, daughter of William Whorwood
William Whorwood
Sir William Whorwood was Solicitor General from 1536 to 1540 and then Attorney General under Henry VIII until his death.He was a younger son of John Whorwood, one of a family of minor gentry, who had long lived at Compton in Kinver...
, deceased Attorney-General. In 1552 they had a daughter who died soon. Anne also died in 1552 of the sweating sickness
Sweating sickness
Sweating sickness, also known as "English sweating sickness" or "English sweate" , was a mysterious and highly virulent disease that struck England, and later continental Europe, in a series of epidemics beginning in 1485. The last outbreak occurred in 1551, after which the disease apparently...
. Dudley soon married for the second time: Elizabeth Lady Tailboys (or Talboys, 1520–1563), who was a baroness in her own right with large possessions in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
and Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
.
After the death of King Edward VI
Edward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
on 6 July 1553, John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, who had led the young King's government for the last three and a half years, tried to install his daughter-in-law Lady Jane Grey
Lady Jane Grey
Lady Jane Grey , also known as The Nine Days' Queen, was an English noblewoman who was de facto monarch of England from 10 July until 19 July 1553 and was subsequently executed...
on the English throne; she was the King's Protestant cousin to whom Edward had willed the Crown, bypassing his half-sisters Mary
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
and Elizabeth. When Mary Tudor asserted her right to the throne, an expedition against her base in East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
became inevitable. Northumberland marched on 14 July, accompanied by his eldest sons, John
John Dudley, 2nd Earl of Warwick
John Dudley, 2nd Earl of Warwick, KG, KB was an English nobleman and the heir of John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, leading minister and de facto ruler under Edward VI of England from 1550–1553. As his father's career progressed, John Dudley respectively assumed his father's former...
and Ambrose. Five days later the Privy Council
Privy council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...
changed sides; on hearing this on 20 July, Northumberland, who had been staying at Cambridge, gave up and was arrested with his party the next day.
Ambrose Dudley was imprisoned in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
with his father and his four brothers. All were attainted and condemned to death, but only the Duke and Guildford Dudley, the second youngest brother, were executed. After the natural death of John, the eldest brother, in October 1554, Ambrose Dudley was the family's heir; he remained longest in the Tower, being released late in 1554 after a plea by his wife, Lady Tailboys. On the whole, the brothers' release was brought about by their mother and their brother-in-law Henry Sidney
Henry Sidney
Sir Henry Sidney , Lord Deputy of Ireland was the eldest son of Sir William Sidney of Penshurst, a prominent politician and courtier during the reigns of Henry VIII and Edward VI, from both of whom he received extensive grants of land, including the manor of Penshurst in Kent, which became the...
, who successfully lobbied the Spanish nobles around England's new king consort
King consort
King consort is an alternative title to the more usual "prince consort" - which is a position given in some monarchies to the husband of a reigning queen. It is a symbolic title only, the sole constitutional function of the holder being similar to a prince consort, which is the male equivalent of a...
, Philip of Spain
Philip II of Spain
Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....
. Out of prison, in December 1554 or January 1555, Ambrose and Robert Dudley took part in one of several tournaments
Tournament (medieval)
A tournament, or tourney is the name popularly given to chivalrous competitions or mock fights of the Middle Ages and Renaissance . It is one of various types of hastiludes....
held by Philip to celebrate Anglo-Spanish friendship.
Also in January 1555, Dudley's mother died, leaving him her lands, which Queen Mary allowed him to inherit despite his attainder. However, the Dudley brothers were only welcome at court as long as King Philip was there; later in 1555 they were even ordered out of London and the next year, in the wake of a conspiracy by their distant cousin Henry Sutton Dudley
Henry Sutton Dudley
Henry Sutton Dudley, also known as Henry Dudley, was an English soldier, sailor, diplomat, and conspirator of the Tudor period....
, the French ambassador Antoine de Noailles
Antoine, 1st comte de Noailles
Antoine, 1st comte de Noailles became admiral of France, and was ambassador in England during three important years, 1553–1556, maintaining a gallant but unsuccessful rivalry with the Spanish ambassador, Simon Renard....
reported that the government was seeking to apprehend "the children of the Duke of Northumberland", who were said to be on the run. By January 1557, the brothers were raising personal contingents in order to fight for Philip II, who was now King of Spain. Ambrose, Robert, and Henry Dudley joined the Spanish forces in France and took part in the Battle of St. Quentin
Battle of St. Quentin (1557)
The Battle of Saint-Quentin of 1557 was fought during the Franco-Habsburg War . The Spanish, who had regained the support of the English, won a significant victory over the French at Saint-Quentin, in northern France.- Battle :...
, where Henry Dudley was killed. For these services the two surviving brothers were restored in blood by Act of Parliament in 1558. The cost of the campaign almost bankrupted Ambrose Dudley and his wife, however, so that they had to reduce their household significantly.
Serving Elizabeth I
With the accession of Elizabeth I in November 1558, Robert Dudley came into great favour and was made Master of the HorseMaster of the Horse
The Master of the Horse was a position of varying importance in several European nations.-Magister Equitum :...
. Ambrose Dudley received the post of Master of the Ordnance
Master-General of the Ordnance
The Master-General of the Ordnance was a very senior British military position before 1855, when the Board of Ordnance was abolished.-Responsibilities:...
, though he pressed his influential brother to delay the appointment somewhat, so that he could not be held accountable for his predecessor's embezzlement of funds. When their attainder had been lifted in 1558, the Dudley brothers had renounced any rights to their father's possessions or titles. Yet on 25 and 26 December 1561 Ambrose Dudley was created Baron Lisle
Baron Lisle
Baron Lisle was a title that was created five times in the Peerage of England during the Middle Ages and Tudor period. The most recent creation came in the Peerage of Ireland in 1758, when John Lysaght was made Baron Lisle, of Mountnorth in the County of Cork. He had previously represented...
and Earl of Warwick, and the next year received a large portion of the lands confiscated from the Duke of Northumberland. Warwick Castle
Warwick Castle
Warwick Castle is a medieval castle in Warwick, the county town of Warwickshire, England. It sits on a bend on the River Avon. The castle was built by William the Conqueror in 1068 within or adjacent to the Anglo-Saxon burh of Warwick. It was used as a fortification until the early 17th century,...
—which the Queen visited on her 1572 summer progress—became his seat, while the neighbouring Kenilworth Castle
Kenilworth Castle
Kenilworth Castle is located in the town of the same name in Warwickshire, England. Constructed from Norman through to Tudor times, the castle has been described by architectural historian Anthony Emery as "the finest surviving example of a semi-royal palace of the later middle ages, significant...
became that of Robert Dudley. Like their father, Ambrose and Robert Dudley adopted the bear and ragged staff, the heraldic device of the medieval Earls of Warwick.
In 1562 the First War of Religion
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
started in France, and Elizabeth was under pressure from her Protestant councillors to help the Huguenots. These were in posssession of Le Havre
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...
, which was besieged by the Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
Duke of Guise
Francis, Duke of Guise
Francis de Lorraine II, Prince of Joinville, Duke of Guise, Duke of Aumale , called Balafré , was a French soldier and politician.-Early life:...
, and offered it to the English in return for military help—later, they promised, they would exchange it for Calais
Calais
Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
, which England had lost to France only in 1558. Elizabeth agreed to send 6,000 men to garrison Le Havre. Ambrose Dudley was chosen to lead the expedition in place of Robert Dudley, whom Elizabeth would not let go despite his strong desire to do so.
Warwick arrived at Le Havre in late October 1562. He was sceptical from the start as to the chances to hold Le Havre, writing: "I fear [you] are too much abused in the good opinion you have in the strength of this town". Elizabeth soon made it clear that she did not wish his army to engage in any active support for the Huguenot side, the purpose of the English contribution remaining somewhat obscure. In March 1563 the warring French agreed to a peace, while Elizabeth decided to hold on to Le Havre until Calais was returned to the English, as had been agreed with the Huguenot party. The reconciled French, however, turned jointly against the English garrison. Le Havre's fortifications would have needed major expansion and repair to withstand a prolonged siege. Still, Dudley tried his best until the town's walls were crumbling under French bombardment and the Queen permitted him to surrender honourably in July 1563 on account of the plague that was decimating his troops. Ambrose Dudley himself had been shot in the leg when parleying with the French and returned to England seriously ill. He wrote to his brother that he was happy "rather to end my life upon the breach than in any sickness. ... Farewell my dear and loving brother, a thousand times." Robert Dudley went to welcome him at Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
despite the plague and much to Elizabeth's annoyance.
Politically the expedition had been a disaster, yet Warwick gained recognition for his leadership since morale had been high and the civilian population had been treated with unusual respect. The Earl's rewards were the Welsh lordship of Ruthin
Ruthin
Ruthin is a community and the county town of Denbighshire in north Wales. Located around a hill in the southern part of the Vale of Clwyd - the older part of the town, the castle and Saint Peter's Square are located on top of the hill, while many newer parts of the town are on the floodplain of...
and the Order of the Garter
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
, which was awarded to him while still in France in April 1563. His war injury—which never properly healed—made him ineligible for posts like Lord President of the Council of the North
Council of the North
The Council of the North was an administrative body originally set up in 1484 by king Richard III of England, the third and last Yorkist monarch to hold the Crown of England; its intention was to improve government control and economic prosperity, to benefit the entire area of Northern England...
or Lord Deputy of Ireland
Lord Deputy of Ireland
The Lord Deputy was the King's representative and head of the Irish executive under English rule, during the Lordship of Ireland and later the Kingdom of Ireland...
when they were suggested for him in the future. Elizabeth Lady Tailboys had also died while her husband was in France, and on 11 November 1565 Ambrose Dudley married for the third time. His bride was the 16-year-old Anne Russell
Anne Russell, Countess of Warwick
Anne Dudley , Countess of Warwick was an English noblewoman, and a lady-in-waiting and close friend of Elizabeth I. She was the third wife of Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick.-Family and marriage:...
, daughter of Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford
Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford
Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford, KG was an English nobleman, soldier and politician and godfather to Sir. Francis Drake.-Early life:...
. Robert Dudley, meanwhile Earl of Leicester
Earl of Leicester
The title Earl of Leicester was created in the 12th century in the Peerage of England , and is currently a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1837.-Early creations:...
, had arranged the match. It was an extraordinary court event. In between tournaments and banquets, the bride was given away by the Earl of Leicester in the presence of the Queen; she later became one of Elizabeth's closest friends.
In November 1569 the Northern Rebellion broke out with the aim to install Mary, Queen of Scots (who was in English captivity) on the English throne. The Earl of Warwick was one of the commanders appointed to march against the revolt, which was disintegrating rapidly, though. Due to his bad health Warwick was soon allowed to return to his Midlands estates. In January 1570 Robert, Earl of Leicester saw his reconvalescent brother at Kenilworth and reported to Elizabeth: "all this hard weather [he] hath every day travelled on horse, Your Majesty's service hath made him forget his pain ... assuredly he is marvellous weary, though in my judgment it hath done his body much good".
As Master of the Ordnance Warwick presided over an increasingly important government department, which centrally managed the storage and commissioning of the state's artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
, munitions, and small arms. Prince William of Orange
William the Silent
William I, Prince of Orange , also widely known as William the Silent , or simply William of Orange , was the main leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish that set off the Eighty Years' War and resulted in the formal independence of the United Provinces in 1648. He was born in the House of...
valued English cannons, and Warwick—who fervently believed in the international Protestant cause—seems willingly to have supplied him with what he wanted. The Spanish ambassador officially protested against this practice in 1576, since the weapons would have been used against Spanish rule in the Netherlands
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
. In 1573 Warwick was admitted to the Privy Council
Privy council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...
. His attendance to business was quite regular until it declined sharply due to his deteriorating health in the 1580s. At the 1587 trial of Mary Stuart he acted as a commissioner and was asked by the Scottish Queen to plead for her with his brother, the absent Earl of Leicester. The day sentence was pronounced on her, Warwick did not attend.
Private nobleman
History of the Puritans under Elizabeth I
The reign of Elizabeth I of England, from 1558 to 1603, saw the rise of the Puritan movement in England, its clash with the authorities of the Church of England, and its temporarily effective suppression in the 1590s by severe judicial means.-Background, to 1559:...
, the principal concern of which was the furtherance of preaching. Discouraged by the official Church, this was largely dependent on private initiatives by influential noblemen. In 1567 the two Dudley earls, together with local gentry, founded a consortium which provided for "the preachers of the Gospel in the county of Warwick." Ambrose Dudley also helped the preacher John Field when he got into trouble over a subversive book he had published in 1565; and when he was imprisoned in 1572, Leicester and Warwick worked his transfer into comfortable confinement in a London alderman's house before he was released altogether by his patrons' means. Like his brother, Ambrose Dudley invested in exploration
Exploration
Exploration is the act of searching or traveling around a terrain for the purpose of discovery of resources or information. Exploration occurs in all non-sessile animal species, including humans...
and privateering voyages; in Martin Frobisher
Martin Frobisher
Sir Martin Frobisher was an English seaman who made three voyages to the New World to look for the Northwest Passage...
's 1576 search for the Northwest Passage
Northwest Passage
The Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
he was the principal patron, although he contributed only the relatively modest sum of £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
50.
The two Dudley brothers were on the closest personal terms and Ambrose said of Robert: "there is no man [that] knoweth his doings better than I myself", while Robert's recurrent phrase about Ambrose was: "him I love as myself". Elizabeth, who liked Warwick, loved to joke that he was neither as graceful nor as handsome as his brother—and stouter as well. Lacking a grand London residence of his own, Warwick had his suite of rooms in the palatial Leicester House
Essex House (London)
Essex House was a house in London, built around 1575 for Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester and originally called Leicester House.The property occupied the site where the Outer Temple, part of the London headquarters of the Knights Templar, had previously stood , and was immediately adjacent to the...
: "the Lord of Warwick's bedchamber, the Lord of Warwick's closet, the Lord of Warwick's dining parlour". In the administration of their lands the brothers shared their estate managers and lawyers, while their local affinities
Vassal
A vassal or feudatory is a person who has entered into a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. The obligations often included military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain privileges, usually including the grant of land held...
consisted of the same gentry
Gentry
Gentry denotes "well-born and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past....
families. Privately, they were "almost inseparable", passing time together whenever possible. When Robert Dudley had incurred the Queen's wrath while serving in the Netherlands as Governor-General
Governor-General
A Governor-General, is a vice-regal person of a monarch in an independent realm or a major colonial circonscription. Depending on the political arrangement of the territory, a Governor General can be a governor of high rank, or a principal governor ranking above "ordinary" governors.- Current uses...
in 1586, Ambrose wrote to him: "if I were you ... I would go to the furthest part of Christendom rather than ever come into England again. ... Let me have your best advice what is best for me to do, for that I mean to take such part as you do."
Popularly the brothers equally figured as a pair, as is apparent from street talk reported to the authorities in March 1581: "My Lord of Warwick and my Lord of Leicester are traitors and come of traitor's blood, and if they had [had] right they had lost their heads so well as others for making away of King Edward." Ambrose Dudley entered tradition as the "Good Earl of Warwick"; this probably came about through his quiet life style, which contrasted with the colourful persona of his brother, the Queen's favourite
Favourite
A favourite , or favorite , was the intimate companion of a ruler or other important person. In medieval and Early Modern Europe, among other times and places, the term is used of individuals delegated significant political power by a ruler...
.
After his first marriage Ambrose Dudley remained childless. His second wife, Elizabeth Tailboys, suffered a phantom pregnancy
False pregnancy
False pregnancy or hysterical pregnancy, most commonly termed pseudocyesis in humans and pseudopregnancy in other mammals, is the appearance of clinical and/or subclinical signs and symptoms associated with pregnancy when the person or animal is not pregnant. Clinically, false pregnancy is most...
in 1555. Anne Russell, though nearly 20 years her husband's junior, turned out to be a congenial partner. Through their paternal grandmother the Dudley brothers descended from the famous 15th century earls, John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury
John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury
John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury and 1st Earl of Waterford KG , known as "Old Talbot" was an important English military commander during the Hundred Years' War, as well as the only Lancastrian Constable of France.-Origins:He was descended from Richard Talbot, a tenant in 1086 of Walter Giffard...
and Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick. The Beauchamp descent especially—which was represented by the earldom of Warwick—filled them with pride. Ambrose's childlessness deeply concerned the widowed Robert Dudley, who for many years dared not to remarry for fear of the Queen's displeasure, and eventually died without direct heirs himself in September 1588. Most of Leicester's estate—and debts—passed on to Warwick and encumbered his remaining lifetime. He also took care of his deceased brother's illegitimate teenage son Robert, who was his godson and whom Leicester had willed to inherit after Warwick's death.
From the 1570s the Earl of Warwick often resided at North Hall, his house in Northaw
Northaw
Northaw is a village in the Welwyn Hatfield district of Hertfordshire, England. It is part of the civil parish of Northaw and Cuffley, which was originally known as Northaw....
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
. He travelled little as he was often unable to move about, having "no use of his legs". At the end of January 1590 he finally had his gangrenous leg amputated; as a consequence he died at Bedford House in the Strand, London
Strand, London
Strand is a street in the City of Westminster, London, England. The street is just over three-quarters of a mile long. It currently starts at Trafalgar Square and runs east to join Fleet Street at Temple Bar, which marks the boundary of the City of London at this point, though its historical length...
on 21 February. Two days before, the diplomat Sir Edward Stafford
Edward Stafford (diplomat)
Sir Edward Stafford was an English MP, courtier and diplomat to France during the time of Elizabeth I.He was involved in abortive negotiations for a proposed marriage between Elizabeth and Francis, Duke of Anjou....
visited him and described his spasms and pain "which lasted him unto his death". He also saw the Countess sitting "by the fire so full of tears that she could not speak". The Earl of Warwick was buried in the Beauchamp Chapel of Collegiate Church of St Mary, Warwick
Collegiate Church of St Mary, Warwick
The Collegiate Church of St Mary is a Church of England parish church in the town of Warwick, England. It lies in the centre of the town just east of the market place. It is a member of the Greater Churches Group....
, in the vicinity of his ancestor Richard Beauchamp, his brother Robert, and his little nephew Robert Dudley, Lord Denbigh, Leicester's son who during his short life had been heir to both Dudley earldoms. Ambrose Dudley's widow commissioned his monument, but on her request was buried with her ancestors in Chenies
Chenies
Chenies is a village in the very eastern part of south Buckinghamshire, England, near the border with Hertfordshire. It is situated to the east of Chesham and the Chalfonts. Chenies is also a civil parish within Chiltern district....
, Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
when she died in 1604.
Ancestry
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