Dorothy Stafford

Dorothy Stafford

Dorothy Stafford, Lady Stafford ( October 1, 1526 - September 22, 1604 ) was an English nobleman and influential person at the court of Queen Elizabeth I.

family

Dorothy Stafford was born on October 1, 1526, the youngest daughter of Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford and Lady Ursula Pole . Her maternal grandmother, Margaret Pole, 8th Countess of Salisbury , was executed for treason in 1541 on the orders of King Henry VIII . Margaret, who was the last surviving member of the Plantagenet dynasty , gave Dorothy and her siblings a claim to the English throne. Through her paternal grandfather, Dorothy was able to trace her lineage back to Anne of Gloucester , making her the first noblewoman to be named by all of King Edward III's younger sons . descended from. Dorothy had about 13 siblings, 12 of whom are known names. She and her sister Susan were raised in the household of their aunt Elizabeth Stafford, Duchess of Norfolk. Dorothy was Elizabeth's favorite niece, who was generous towards her and gave her rich gifts.

Life

Marriage to William Stafford

In 1545 Dorothy Stafford married her distant cousin Sir William Stafford , the second son of Sir Humphrey Stafford and his first wife Margaret Fogge. William Stafford's first wife, Mary Boleyn , Anne Boleyn's older sister , had died in July 1543. Mary Boleyn had previously been married to William Carey , with whom she had a son, Henry , and a daughter, Catherine . William Stafford had at least two children with Mary, but they both died young.

Dorothy Stafford and Sir William Stafford had three sons and three daughters.

On September 23, 1545 Sir William Stafford was knighted by Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford , during the Rough Wooing in Scotland .

Dorothy Stafford and her family were convinced Protestants and went during the reign of Mary I. into exile in Geneva . They were friends with the Protestant reformer John Calvin , who became the godfather of their youngest son John. William Stafford died on May 5, 1556 and Dorothy moved to Basel with her children .

At the court of Elizabeth I

After Elizabeth I ascended the throne, Dorothy and her children returned to England in January 1559, where they were received at court. Calvin had spoken out strongly against her departure because he wanted to keep his godson in Switzerland. In 1563 Dorothy was appointed Mistress of the Robes Elisabeths and exercised much influence at the royal court. She used her influence on the queen to promote her friends and acquaintances. In 1569, Matthew, Parker , Archbishop of Canterbury , sought benefices for a colleague and wrote to her to have "a good word" with the Queen on this matter. In 1576 she broke her leg in a riding accident, but quickly recovered. Two years later, Dorothy used her influence to secure the prestigious post of English ambassador to France for her eldest son, Sir Edward Stafford.

Dorothy retained her post at court until the Queen's death in 1603, after having served her for 40 years. Her eldest daughter, Elizabeth Stafford, had been a Lady of the Bedchamber of Elizabeth, and her son-in-law Richard Drake served as the Queen's stable master. Her late husband's stepchildren, Henry and Catherine Carey, also held influential positions at court.

death

Dorothy died on September 22, 1604 and was buried in St. Margaret's Church in Westminster . Her tomb is in the north aisle of the church. The inscription on the tomb reads:

Here lyeth ye Lady Dorothee Stafford, wife & widowe to Sir Willm. Stafford, Knight, daughter to Henrye, Lo [rd] Stafforde, ye only sun of Edward ye last Duke of Buckingham. Her mother was Ursula, daughter to ye Countesse of Salisburye, ye only daughter to George, Duke of Clarence, brother to King Edward ye 4th. She continued a true widdowe from ye age of 27 till her death. She served Q. Elizabeth 40 years lying in her bedchamber, esteemed of her, loved by all, doing good to all she coulde to every body, never hurted any a continual remembr [an] cer of the sutes of the poor, as she lived a religious life in great reputation of honor and vertue in ye world. So she ended in continual fervent meditation & harty prayer to God at ye wh [ich] instant (as all her life) so after her death she gave liberally to ye poore, and died aged of 78 years ye 22 of September 1604. In whose remembrance Sr. Edwarde Stafford her sonne hath caused ys memorial of her to be set up in ye same forme & place as she herself long since required him.

progeny

From her marriage to William Stafford, Dorothy Stafford had three sons and three daughters:

• Sir Edward Stafford (* 1552; † 1604) ∞ 1. Roberta Chapman († 1578); ∞ 2. Douglas Sheffield (* 1547; † 1608)
• William Stafford (* 1554; † 1612) ∞ Anne Gryme († 1612)
• Sir John Stafford of Marlwood Park (January 1556 - September 28, 1624) ∞ 1. Bridget Clopton († March 1574); ∞ 2nd Millicent Gresham († 1602)
• Elizabeth Stafford (1546 - February 6, 1599) ∞ 1. Sir William Drury (1550 - 1590); ∞ 2. Sir John Scott.
• Ursula Stafford (* 1553) ∞ Richard Drake († July 11, 1603)
• Dorothy Stafford, presumably died in childhood

Individual evidence

1. ^ Barbara Jean Harris: Edward Stafford, Third Duke of Buckingham, 1478-1521 . S. 73 .
2. ↑ ^{a b} Lady Dorothy Stafford. Retrieved March 21, 2020 . 
3. ^ Anne Somerset: Ladies in Waiting . New York 1984, p. 66 .