ELIZABETH’S NEMESIS
Who was the ambitious Tudor noblewoman who proved to be a thorn in Gloriana’s side?
No, that’s not a portrait of Queen Elizabeth I, although she does look very similar. This fiery red hair, pale skin and haughty expression in fact belong to another of Tudor England’s most prominent women. Elizabeth Cavendish, more commonly known as Bess of Hardwick, who led a remarkable life for a woman in the 16th century, enduring tragedy and hardship with a defiant attitude that would see her become the second richest woman in England after Gloriana herself. But her success was not straightforward and many of her calculated decisions put her at odds with Queen Elizabeth, making her life precarious and, at times, dangerous. However, even before Elizabeth became queen in 1558, Bess was striving to better her life. From as young as 16 she began building her individual wealth and forging connections with the rich and powerful.
From modest beginnings
Bess was born Elizabeth Hardwick sometime between 1521 and 1527 to parents John Hardwick and Elizabeth Leeke. The family estate at the time of Bess’ birth was Hardwick Hall in Derbyshire, a humble manor house that had been the Hardwick family property since the 13th century. Though their estate had lots of land, the family finances were not as healthy as their holdings would suggest and when Bess’ father died in 1528 the situation worsened. Bess only had one brother out of her six siblings, and he was two at the time of his father’s death. Therefore, as the law dictated at the time, young James Hardwick became a ward of the king. A third of John Hardwick’s wealth eventually passed to his widow and the other two thirds was held by the Court.
Now supporting her four daughters (one had died after her father’s death), Elizabeth Hardwick remarried. Biographies of Bess suggest that at around the age of 12 she was sent away to live in the home of a family of higher standing. There Bess had better marriage prospects than if she had remained at home. At around age 15, she married her first husband. Robert Barlow was a member of the gentry and was only 13 at the time of their union. However, the marriage would not last long as Barlow died around a year after their wedding. Bess had outlived her first husband.
The black widow
The death of Bess’ first husband was the beginning of a pattern, with all of her husbands dying before her. Though this sounds like a series of tragedies for Bess, and on a personal level it almost certainly was, the deaths of her subsequent husbands would help Bess reach a level of wealth and status that was extraordinary for a woman of her time.
After being widowed for the first time, Bess’ next marriage saw her paired with an older man. At 20 years her senior, Sir William Cavendish was quite
