Susan Tonge

Susan Clarencieux (* before 1510 as Susan White ; † after 1564), also known as Susan Tonge , was a lady-in-waiting and long-time friend of Queen Maria I Tudor .

Life

Susan Clarencieux was born around 1500, probably the youngest of four children of Richard White and Maud Tyrell. Your exact date of birth is not known.

Susan entered the household of Maria Tudor as a lady-in-waiting when she was sent to Wales as the prospective heir to the throne in 1525. In 1533, she lost her job when Mary's household was dissolved due to her refusal to accept the annulment of her parents' marriage and thus her own illegitimacy. At an unknown date before 1534, Susan Clarencieux married Thomas Tonge, who was named Clarenceux King of Arms in 1534 . From then on, Susan, whose actual married name was Tonge, was known as Susan Clarencieux because of her husband's official name. Susan's husband died in 1536. No children appear to have arisen from marriage, at least none who survived childhood.

When Maria Tudor's household was restored in 1536 after giving in to her father's demands, Susan returned to her service at Mary's request. At this point she was already a close confidante of Mary, which she would remain until her death.

After Mary's accession to the throne in 1553, Susan was appointed Mistress of the Robes (highest-ranking lady in waiting). She received no title, but generous land grants in Essex and some guardianship. When the queen was looking for a suitable husband, Susan Clarencieux strongly advised her to marry Philip II of Spain . During Mary's pseudo-pregnancy , Susan repeatedly confirmed her belief that she was expecting a child, although she expressed considerable doubts about her mistress's pregnancy to the French ambassador Antoine de Noailles. Susan earned a reputation for being devious and greedy for profit. This is shown in a report by the Venetian ambassador Giovanni Michieli, whom she persuaded to give the queen his carriage and the horses that went with it, which Maria then gave to Susan.

After Maria Tudor's death in 1558, she followed Jane Dormer, another lady-in-waiting to Mary, and her husband Gómez Suárez de Figueroa , who was a friend of Philip II, into exile in Spain. Since she is no longer mentioned in records after 1564, it can be assumed that she died around this time as a member of the household of Gómez Suárez de Figueroa.

literature

• David Loades: Intrigue and Treason: The Tudor Court 1547–1558. Longman (2004)
• Linda Porter: Mary Tudor: The First Queen. Piatkus (2009)
• Anna Whitelock: Mary Tudor: England's First Queen. Bloomsbury Publishing (2010)