jane dormer duchess of feria

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Jane Dormer Story 1538-1612

JANE DORMER, DUCHESS OF FERIA (1538 – 1612)

Jane Dormer painted by Anthony More

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Jane Dormer was born in the pretty English village of Heythrop, Oxfordshire, on

the 6 January 1538, into a moderately prosperous noble family of landowners and wool merchants. She was the eldest daughter of Sir William Dormer and his first wife, Mary Sidney, and her ancestry can be traced as far back as 1350 to some of the most ancient and respected nobility of England.

Her father was a Member of Parliament for Buckinghamshire. Her mother was the eldest daughter of Sir William Sidney, and other noble connections included her paternal grandmother, Lady Jane Dormer, her brother-in-law, Sir William Hungerford, and half-brother Robert Dormer, 1st Baron Dormer of Wyng. Jane was also a cousin to Mary Stuart.

Strict religious devotion permeated every aspect of Jane’s life, and her dedication and obedience to her Catholic faith and her ‘almighty God’ goes a good way to explaining why her life unfolded as it did.

Jane was Roman Catholic, like her father, even though her family was to be split down the middle by the religious controversy caused by King Henry VIII’s break with Rome. Sir William Dormer's family remained staunchly Roman Catholic, however her mother, Mary Sidney, and Mary’s family, embraced the new religion of Protestantism, which was sweeping England. Her mother died in 1542 and Jane was raised outside this Protestant influence. Religious duties played a very important part in every aspect of her daily life from a very early age till her death. In fact, Jane believed that in England there were 3 types of professions – Catholics, heretics and men of no religion - and she had no time for the latter two.

Jane’s life is particularly interesting in that she lived under the reigns of four monarchs - Henry VIII, Mary I, Elizabeth 1 and James I - and she maintained close associations with each of these monarchs even when she no longer lived in England. Much of her life was lived against the backdrop of religious and political turbulence due to the horrendous warring and blood-letting between the supporters of the Catholic and Protestant faiths. As a young adult, rather than remain in her beloved England which she believed had become perverted and corrupted, and in order to serve her Church and God freely, she married a Spaniard and lived the rest of her life in Spain.

But even with such a distance between her and her homeland, Jane's continued interest in the cause of Catholicism in England meant she continued to have regular correspondence with members of the Catholic aristocracy; and over the years she and Elizabeth I corresponded and she received letters from four Popes and numerous other religious and political contacts. Jane’s life was chronicled, apparently at her request, in the biography “Duchess of Feria”, by her servant Henry Clifford, who entered her service in 1603 and served her devoutly till her death in 1612. He obviously held a position of great trust and authority over a long period with Jane, and was privy to both the private and public aspects of her

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life. He must also have been loved as a friend as it was he who put her precious rosary beads in her hands as she lay dying, and it was he who the family entrusted with the funeral arrangements.

Jane was often described as attractive. The Earl of Nottingham, when he was ambassador in Spain, described Jane as the fairest and sweetest woman in the world, and said that the whole court admired and respected her, not only because she was so well thought of by the Queen, but in her own right.

Jane, has been variously described in historic accounts as a devout and pious Catholic, just and prudent, virtuous, modest, kindly and generous, a remarkable beauty, tall of stature, with a sweet disposition, a woman of extreme simplicity and beauty of character. Though often complimented on her looks, she abhorred vanity and flattery. An early portrait of Jane as the Duchess of Feria in Spain shows her to be beautiful young woman, arrayed in all the splendour of the court of Spain. In a later portrait, painted after the death of her husband, still an attractive woman, she appears in the plain and severe religious habit which she wore throughout the remaining years of her widowhood.

During her lifetime she appears to have earned the confidence, respect and affection of everyone she met, whether it was as a wife, mother, or widow; at home or abroad; as mistress of a large household, in her zealous work with Catholic exiles whilst in Spain; in her domestic relations with the society she lived in, or in her public and private devotions.

With her strong aristocratic English lineage it would not be unreasonable to expect that it would be Jane’s destiny to marry one of her highly eligible English suitors. Jane chose however, to marry Don Gomez Suarez de Figueroa of Cordova, Duke of Feria, a close confidante of Phillip II and his first ambassador to Elizabeth I's court.

This choice was perhaps based partly on love, but it was also a prudent political and religious decision by Jane. The Duke was a devout Catholic, highly respected both in Spain and by the English Catholic aristocracy. In marrying the Duke, Jane was able to live in Spain, far away from the turbulence of the warring Catholics and Protestants and the demise of Catholic supremacy in England. It was a match favoured and encouraged by Queen Mary. Mary believed that Jane deserved a very good husband, and, until the Duke of Feria appeared on the scene, she felt there was no man worthy of her.

Unlike many exiles Jane was never regarded as a political dissident. On the accession of King James it was even suggested that she return to England to become one of Queen Anne’s ladies-in-waiting, and she herself wrote to the King, expressing her loyalty.

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However Jane never returned to England. She died in Spain without ever playing the leadership role that others wished to thrust upon her, and which she would have undoubtedly been capable of handling.

Jane’s early life

Jane learnt from a very young age it was her duty to serve God and she did this happily and with great dedication.

From the age of four she cheerfully went to chapel, was well behaved and happy to fall to her knees to bless herself, to learn her prayers and have religious books and beads in her hands. Before she was seven she had learnt to read the Primer, or the Office of our Blessed Lady, in Latin; and from that age to her death at 74 she did this daily.

When she was four Jane’s mother died and her adored paternal grandmother, Lady Jane Dormer, herself an ardent and pious Roman Catholic, (Queen Mary referred to her as “the sustainer of the Catholic faith”) undertook her upbringing. It is obvious that Jane and her grandmother were very close and very alike. Jane’s strength of character, commitment to her faith and devotion to social causes were a mirror of her grandmother’s traits. Even when Jane served Queen Mary she never neglected her duty and obedience to her grandmother.

Jane’s connections with royalty began early when she became playmate to young Edward VI whilst her maternal grandfather was a tutor to the prince. Edward VI grew very fond of Jane and is reported to have said after having beaten her at cards "now your king is gone Jane I shall be good enough for you." Edward died of tuberculosis, in April 1552, aged fifteen.

As Jane grew older she joined the household of the Princess, Lady Mary Tudor. Working and living in the house of the Catholic Princess was considered a most suitable vocation befitting an honourable young noblewoman like Jane, who favoured the life of piety and devotion.

And when Mary became Queen, despite an age gap of over twenty years, Jane at just 16, became one of Queen Mary’s closest, favoured and most loyal friends and confidantes. She later became Queen Mary’s Maid of Honour and an extraordinary bond grew between them which existed right up until Mary’s death. They were inseparable friends and Jane often shared Mary’s bedchamber, read the Office of our Blessed Lady together, and even chopped up her dinner meat for her.

When Jane was unwell and could not attend to the Queen, Mary fussed over her well-being more like a mother or sister, rather than the Queen. In August 1558, in Queen Mary’s last days when she was very ill herself, Jane also became ill and needed to go to London to get treatment. Queen Mary would not let her go by barge but sent her by land, in her own litter, and with her own physician to

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attend her. The Queen followed shortly after and on her arrival in London she immediately asked about Jane’s health and for Jane to visit her.

Jane was in Mary's service during all the years of her reign, and was actually with her when she died. She was in fact, one of the few friends who remained with Mary to the end. Most of her other attendants had already made their way to Hatfield, to pay their respects to the Princess Elizabeth who would presently be in power. Jane held such a special place of trust within Mary’s heart that while she was tending the dying Queen, she was entrusted with the precious royal jewels, which she then handed on to Queen Elizabeth.

Throughout her life Jane was often heard mentioning the pure and clean soul of Queen Mary her former mistress, who had given her an untainted, chaste and innocent education, one devoid of sluttish terms or foul, unchaste words.

The accession of Elizabeth I and Jane’s marriage

Jane’s remarkable beauty and sweet disposition meant that her hand in marriage was sought by several English noblemen, among them Edward Courtenay, Earl of Devonshire, the Duke of Norfolk, and the Earl of Nottingham. However on Mary’s advice she made her own Spanish match by marrying Don Gomez Suarez de Figueroa of Cordova, Duke of Feria, a close confidante of Philip II and his first ambassador to Elizabeth I's court. (The Duke of Feria, in his last will and testament, mentions that Jane had refused greater matches than him in her own country.)

Jane and the Don had first met on Philip's arrival in England in 1554 and though Queen Mary had strongly encouraged the match, it had been postponed to await Phillip's return to the country after campaigns abroad. Mary wanted to give the match all the pomp and ceremony possible. However, before Philip was due to return Mary died after a second false pregnancy, and probably therefore of ovarian cancer, at St. James's Palace on 17 November 1558.

When Elizabeth I ascended the English and Irish throne on 17 November 1558 it was a turning point in the history of Jane Dormer.

The Count of Feria, who had returned to England on hearing of Mary’s illness, strongly urged Jane to marry him, anticipating that Elizabeth’s ascendency to the throne would mean that Catholic supremacy was now at an end, and consequently his stay in England would not last. His fears were confirmed when he learned that Elizabeth’s coronation ceremony would not be in strict accordance with the Catholic religion. In a public rejection of anticipated Protestant elements in the coronation service he refused to be present, even though he was the Spanish ambassador and Elizabeth I personally entreated him to attend.

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Jane and Don were married on 29 December 1558. At Philip’s command, Don Gomez Suarez de Figueroa of Cordova, Duke of Feria, prepared to leave the country, and after arranging for his wife Jane, now the Countess of Feria, to follow him at a later date, he set out for Flanders in May 1559. At Jane’s suggestion he took leave of the Queen, and in the face of much opposition, had members of certain religious orders, including the Carthusian monks of Sheen, the nuns of St Bridget of Sion, and the Dominican nuns of Dartford, accompany him.

Although the Duke of Feria, was replaced as Spanish ambassador in 1559, the Countess of Feria remained in England till July 1559 when Don Juan de Ayala arrived to escort her to Flanders.

Interestingly, and not unexpectedly, there are two quite differing accounts of her farewell interview with Queen Elizabeth – the Catholic writers talk of her being rudely slighted by the Queen, the Protestant writers wrote of her being received with marked affection.

Jane was pregnant and was accompanied on her trip to Flanders by her paternal grandmother and six attendant gentlewomen. The journey was a triumphal progress with the English party being officially received by the Governors and a military salute from all the towns on their way.

At the end of August at the invitation of Philip’s sister, the Duchess of Parma, the Countess rested at Mechlin, where she gave birth to a son Laurence (Lorenzo,) on 28 September. This was the name of his grandfather, Count of Feria and Marquis of Pliego, as it was the custom that the family heirs retain the names of Gomez and Laurence.

Jane stayed at Mechlin till March when her grandmother left her to settle at Louvain and the Countess then left with her husband for Spain.

On her way to Spain, Jane visited Mary Queen of Scots where she was welcomed warmly. Their love, mutual respect and friendship endured their lifetimes, the Queen was often to be heard praising Jane affectionately, and they corresponded regularly.

In fact, when Jane’s husband, the Duke, died in 1571, Mary was a prisoner in England, and she wrote to the Catholic Majesty and His Holiness the Pope beseeching them to ask for the Duchess to return to live in England because she could do much there for the service of God, for her Church and for her Majesty. Mary pleaded that living in the English climate would allow Jane to enjoy better health as its climate was more agreeable to her natural constitution than that of Spain’s. Mary also pleaded that she would benefit greatly from the comfort of having Jane near to her in such difficult times. A return to England was never to eventuate.

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Living in Spain as a Duchess

Jane’s arrival in Toledo, Spain was a grand and majestic affair watched by the whole city. The King and Queen of Spain and her new husband, the Duke, watched from a window, as she rode in on a magnificently attired horse with rich crimson velvet regalia, garnished with studs and fringes of gold. Behind her rode her six ladies in waiting, her twenty pages and most of the court, all resplendent in rich liveries...

She was received warmly by the King and Queen of Spain, and she was given a welcoming jewel by the Queen, who, along with the Court and people of Spain, is said to have greatly admired her beauty and her warm nature.

After resting in the court for a short time Jane moved to Zaffra, to her husband’s estate in Estramadura, where she was finally able to begin her life as the Duchess of Feria and wife of the Duke.

At first she found living in a hot climate difficult for her health and she had little physical strength to do anything other than attend to her own health needs and prayers. However little by little she began to feel stronger and she began to work hard at being a loving, respectful and wise wife and partner for the Duke. He in turn loved her dearly and found her to be a perfect wife. She was his solace - supportive, faithful and wise, able to plan carefully for the family’s future needs, as well as always being sweet and pleasing company.

Interestingly the Duke had caused his own mother great displeasure when, against her wishes, he married Jane. His mother had wanted him to marry the only daughter of his elder brother Don Pedro, who had died young. Such a marriage would have ensured she would not lose the title of Marquess of Pliego, an estate of which she was heir. In revenge and cajoled by his mother, his younger brother married the daughter instead, putting the estate in dispute between the two brothers when their mother died. Though the Duke’s mother initially resented Jane, the Duchess never held a grievance towards her mother-in-law and continued to treat her with respect and mildness, which later made the Marquess feel guilty at the way she had treated Jane.

About five years into their marriage Jane gave birth to another son, Don Pedro, who sadly died after just three months.

The Duke and Duchess were a pious and devout couple and served their Church faithfully and zealously, the Duke working hard to advance the cause of the Fathers of the Society of Jesus.

Together they founded and built the monastery of our Lady de Monte-Virgine, situated half a league from the town of Villalva. They were patrons of the order of St Francis and during the holy week and other principal feasts of the year they provided food to the religious, serving it themselves and eating with the lay

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friars. They were greatly loved by their tenants and the Catholics in, and beyond their estate, and provided relief, support, alms and works of charity to those in need, both in their own estate and later to the estate of their son, the younger Duke.

The Duchess was a compassionate champion of exiled and destitute English Catholics, with the Cardinal of Rhemes calling the Duchess another Queen Helena, for the compassion, charity and affection she displayed to her distressed countrymen.

She worked tirelessly to help others less fortunate and was recognised as “a foot to the lame, an eye to the blind, a staff to the week, a true mother of orphans, and a patroness of widows.” Her house became a refuge for banished priests and English Catholic gentlemen; and once she procured the release of thirty-eight Englishmen, prisoners in Seville, who had been taken in the West Indies and sentenced to die, and a merchant who had been accused of assisting them.

Together Jane and her husband visited hospitals, feeding the sick and diseased, wiping their sores and cleansing their wounds. They gave their advice and support freely, and provided the needy with allowances to sustain them until they could get back on their feet. On the many occasions when money was scarce, and they were stretched in providing for themselves, they would put the needs of those less fortune before their own. The Duke was heard to tell his steward "I have plate, pawn it; and let not these men lack."

Both the Duke and Duchess were very strongly principled and unlike others of nobility whose wealth had increased notably through taking bribes, they abhorred this behaviour and refused to sully the name and honour of their family with such practices.

The Duke served as Council of State, was Captain of the Spanish Guard, and had regular private consultations and intimate conferences with the King, who regarded him highly.

A typical day in Jane’s life

Jane detested idleness and this can be quite clearly seen in how she lived her daily life.

Though it is difficult to understand how she fitted anything else into her days and weeks with her strict devotion and attention to her religious duties, Jane was either working, reading, learning Spanish, attending to the affairs of her home,

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corresponding, being the hospitable host to friends and strangers who frequently dropped in on her, and returning these visits. (As she got older she often was said to complain that these visits were a burdensome task for her, even though she continued with them.)

She laboured willingly for the poor, visiting them and helping them in any way she could. She was a skilled needlewoman, creating elaborate dressings and ornaments for the altar and priests; and she sewed and hemmed sheets for the hospital until her eyesight began to fail in later life.

A typical day saw her rise early, and usually for an hour between seven and eight o’clock, a little later in winter, she went into her oratory where she heard mass given by her Chaplain. If her second Chaplain was also at home, she also heard mass from him and from any priests or religious men who happened to be visiting. She daily read the Office of the Holy Cross and the Holy Ghost; at certain times the whole Office of the Dead; and the Gradual Psalms; and on special feasts the whole Office of the Breviary. She never omitted to say the general litanies, and other litanies, as the day and time required. Weekly, and at certain feasts of the year, she read the holy Sacraments of the Confession and Communion; and she heard High Mass at the monastery of St Dominic, or of the Angels. These religious affairs were long and solemn and in the Holy week she spent the latter four days in ten to eleven hours of religious devotion and prayer.

Even as she aged and with failing eyesight, she spent many hours reading Spanish spiritual and religious books, and when she found it difficult to read herself, her servants read to her.

After mass she called together her servants responsible for advising her in her business affairs and determined what should be done in respect to these affairs that day.

Death of the Duke

The Duke and Duchess were a particularly happy couple, and were devoted to each other. However this happiness was to be cut short when the Duke fell seriously ill with a violent fever in August 1571, as he was preparing to undertake the government of the Low Countries. Jane lovingly tended him, day and night, seeking expert physician’s help and trying all types of medicinal remedies. The King sent to Guadaloupe for a specialist physician to attend him, and friends and servants rallied around.

However, only twelve years, eight months, and ten days into their marriage, on the 8th of September, 1571, on the feast of the Nativity of our Blessed Lady, early in the morning at the Escurial, the Duke died. In Jane’s eyes and those of the King and his constituents, God had taken this good Christian Duke to live with the blessed Saints and receive the eternal reward for the good work he had carried out in his lifetime.

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The Duke had been held in high esteem by the King who publicly commended him as a true gentleman, and a noble and able assistant to Philip his son; a man who served his country admirably. The King felt his death so heavily that he shed tears, something which he had never been seen to do before, except at the death of his son, Don Carlos.

Following the Duke’s death tributes poured in, and many notable English Catholics wrote to the Duchess conveying their great sadness at his passing, as did His Holiness Pope Pius Quintus.

Moreover, the English Catholics felt that with the Duke’s death they had lost a staunch and zealous supporter of their faith, a man who could quite possibly have assisted with the restitution of the Catholic religion enabling it to once again rule supreme in England.

Jane was left grieving, a distraught widow, young, alone, far from her home, friends and family; and with the sole care and charge of the estate of both the duchy, the estate over which she and the Duke had jurisdiction, and her son Laurence, who was not yet twelve.

However Jane found inner strength, and continued to carry out her duties and responsibilities for the estate, her people and her son’s upbringing. On his deathbed the Duke had asked Jane to undertake three promises - that she would ensure that his soul be prayed for, his son to be taken care of and brought up Christianly in the fear of God, and his debts honoured.

It was clear that the Duke not only loved her dearly but also greatly respected her and this love and respect was made quite clear in his will. He made her responsible for the sole tutelage of their son and governess of his estate; and gave counsel to his son to love and obey her, explaining how fortunate he was to have not only a prudent, careful mother, but one who was also a notable teacher from whom he could learn a great deal.

Honouring the Duke’s wishes

Jane complied with her dying husband’s first wish by ensuring that large alms were given to pray for his soul in all the monasteries and parishes about the Escurial and in Madrid. Perpetual memories were founded for prosperity around the Duke’s estate and in many religious houses. Jane continued with these observances and remembrances for the forty years she was to spend as a widow and in her will asked that her grandson, the Duke, always remember with respect his grandfather, his father and herself and observe, with special solemnity, the anniversary of each of their deaths.

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She lavished love, care, attention and education on her son and counselled him on the principles and foundations of wisdom, virtue and excellence, so that he would be able to live a happy, highly respected and successful life and be a good Christian. On the death of his father, the King had honoured Laurence by giving him the Encomienda of Segura de la Sierra, one of the richest grants or benefices attached to a military order in Spain, an honour which his father had received before him.

Jane was quite a disciplinarian and hard task master when it came to the management of both her son and grandson’s education.

Their first exercise, before eight in the morning, was to hear Mass. Then their master read them a lesson before breakfast. They were then set a task, which they were to complete or repeat to their master before dinner. The Duchess always checked with the master that their task had been carried out satisfactorily before dinner was served. They were praised if they had achieved their designated task, and there was usually some reward for their diligence. If their task was not completed satisfactorily however, they were all punished, the Duchess included, with dinner being delayed, and the possibility of the meat being spoiled through overcooking until the lesson had been learned.

Jane worked conscientiously and prudently and in her lifetime managed to pay off the combined debts of both her own estate and the debts of the Count Don Pedro his elder brother, leaving the estate’s finances unencumbered for her grandson, the Duke. She was always considered prudent with money concerns. In 1603 her son, then the Viceroy of Sicily, wanted to buy the land adjoining his estate, but needed the sale to go through urgently before another buyer could purchase it. Jane managed to borrow 14,000 ducats from a friend and raised the remaining 26,000 ducats of the 40,000 ducats required for the sale from her tenants on the Duke’s estate; all this was done within the day, even though she had to despatch a messenger who had to travel over a hundred miles with the letter and cash deposit. She promised the tenants and friend repayment within four months and she faithfully honoured this agreement. The transaction was approved without security and was based solely on a letter written by Jane to the Governor of the Duke’s estate and the tenants, explaining how and when she proposed to repay them. This loan was a testament to how much love, respect and trust the others had in her.

Her charitable and benevolent practices

Jane continued with the charitable and benevolent practices that she and the Duke had shared - giving bread and money to the poor religious monasteries and hospitals of Madrid, and bread and eggs to the Order of St. Francis. On Sundays and holy days she would send a whole supper to the Order of St. Francis. She was particularly devoted to this Order and she wore the habit of the Third Order of St. Francis under her outer garment all her life. She also had a monastery for the St. Francis's Order built and had it completely furnished.

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She was also responsible for building and maintaining the monasteries of Monte-Virgine of that Order, Descalgos Recollects, and Santa Marina in Zafra, Nuns of the Order of St. Clare. She had the St. Onophrio de la Lapa, our Lady del Rosario of St. Dominic, repaired and furnished these and others with rich ornaments, costly pictures and devout figurines and holy ornaments in the memory of her late husband, the Duke.

Jane had a beautifully ornate Church built for those of her faith which had an oratory at the end of the gallery, from which the congregation could hear and see Mass at the high altar; and she continued to be a patron and defender of the Fathers of the Society of Jesus, as did her son Laurence in adulthood.

Money was handed out to the poor who asked at her door, and many poor widows and orphans were sustained for life through her charity. She never refused help to those in need, no matter whether they were Catholic, English priests or complete strangers.

Even at the end of her life Jane bequeathed everything she owned to monasteries, apart from her household furniture which she left to her grandson and a few remembrances which were left to friends and servants.

Life without the Duke

As was the custom for widows in Spain to show respect for their dearly departed husband, Jane permanently rid her wardrobe and home of all ostentatious clothes and furniture. She spent the rest of her life without vanity, wearing the plainest and cheapest of clothes made from plain, coarse black cloth and avoided wearing ostentatious clothes of silk or lace or silver or gold jewellery. Her family home was very simply furnished.

She managed the estate prudently until her son could take over his responsibilities and then she continued to help him. She governed her house with great religious reverence, was kind to her servants paying them appropriately and always on time, arranged for medical assistance when they were unwell, and allowed all her servants time off daily to attend Mass.

Her grandfather, grandmother and mother had all died before she had become a widow and her father, who had remarried and had children, had died soon after – and she daily prayed for their souls. She had a beautiful tomb erected in honour of her beloved grandmother and gave the monastery which housed it a hundred florins of rent for posterity.

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She gave her cherished sister, Lady Hungerford, who had been badly treated by her husband, support, love and counsel.

In time her son Laurence had his own son and Jane lavished the same attention, love, care and religious instruction on her grandchild. When her grandson, the Duke was honoured with the knighthood and habit of St. James, and solemnly invested in the church of St. Dominic in Madrid, she congratulated him proudly. But she also reminded him that he was now a man and that in taking this habit and oath he had entered into many new obligations all of which bound him to be a faithful and valorous knight in the service of his almighty God and his Church.

Jane never considered marrying again abiding the law of the time which said "A woman passing to second vows neglects the three best things — God, the memory of her deceased husband, and the love of her children."

Jane was a woman of extreme modesty who abhored and detested all impurities and unclean words and she would boldly reprove anyone whom she thought had crossed the line of politeness and decorum. Once, when told that certain women, who did not have the best reputation, had entered her grandson’s coach, she refused to ever ride in that coach again.

Her modest graceful manner and virtuousness was held in very high respect in England and the English nobility were reported as saying that they wished that she might for a time live in her own country to be an example of imitation to their own great ladies. The King and Queen of Spain often visited her for her advice and to pray with her.

But at aged 70 her Christian patience and confidence in her almighty God was again to be tested with the death of her much loved son, Lawrence. His death left a gaping hole in her heart and could have left her financially destitute, had he not left her an allowance from the Encomienda of Segura in his will.

Throughout her life Jane maintained contact with friends and associates in England and the persecution of Catholics in her country caused her constant concern and sadness. Yet she continually prayed to her God, putting her faith in him and trusting him to deliver England into Catholic hands.

Jane’s life comes slowly to an end

Jane had been suffering pain in her left breast, and had bound her arm in a sling to avoid moving the breast quickly. On St, Bernard's day, the 20th of August, 1609, she broke her arm in a slight accident. It was initially mended inexpertly by a bone-setter and required resetting by the King’s own physician. However, Jane was still suffering immense pain and eight days later a bone-setter living

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outside of Spain was called for. He unbound Jane’s arm and found the cracked bone stood out and was not fixed in its place. He dressed it and rebound it but Jane, who was now 72 years old, went to bed lying in one position for if she turned or moved suddenly the pain was excruciating. Even in pain Jane remained admirably quiet, tolerant and patient, praying to God.

She remained in bed for forty days and when she finally got up the first thing she did was to take a pilgrimage to the chapel of our Blessed Lady at a monastery of the Dominicans called Atocha, a place of worship and devotion.

However she grew weaker and, as was the custom of the time, her doctors had bled her. Growing still weaker she prepared for her death. She settled up outstanding matters of her estate, organising her will to ensure that the little possessions she owned be given to the poor of Madrid and the poor monasteries; she gave two hundred ducats to the poor of the town of Zaphra, and a very charitable benevolence to the monasteries there; she also enabled all her servants to remain in her house for two months, with a financial provision to do so, so that they had time to provide for themselves.

She then organised for her coffin to be made.

She was bedridden for almost twelve months before her death, racked with pain throughout her body, especially in left breast and the arm that had been broken. Once, when taking her little grand-daughter in her arms, the pain in her arm was so bad that she fainted, and from then on she couldn’t lift the arm again. In all of this her memory remained sharp and she remained in high spirits.

Notwithstanding the pain she was suffering she still showed compassion to others - only three days before her death she arranged for a master carpenter who felt that he had not been appropriately paid for the timber-work he had done on the Church of Sta. Marina to be compensated.

And the pain did not stop her from attending to her religious duties attentively. When she could no longer leave her bed, it was arranged with the blessing of the Archbishop of Toledo, that her oratory be moved so that she could see the altar through the passage that entered into her chamber, and hear Mass, which was a great comfort for her. She was able to do this right up until the day she died, on the morning of her death she heard Mass for the last time.

Father Ribadeneira, a wise, learned and ancient Father of the Society, dedicated his book “Dc los Santos Estravagantes” to her. His last message to her was " Commend me much to the Duchess, and tell her that shortly we shall see each other in Paradise.” She had this message repeatedly read to her in her last days and took extraordinary consolation from it. Father Ribadeneira was to die not long afterwards.

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Shortly before her final hour her two little granddaughters were brought to her. She gave them her blessing and a little after nine o clock on the night of the 23rd of January, 1612, she slipped quietly and peacefully into death.

A dignified woman to the very end, the last thing that she said was to her maid who attended at her bed's feet, bidding her to make sure that when she died her bedclothes would be arranged so as to decently cover her body.

Jane was laid on a pallet dressed in a poor Franciscan habit, which had been a holy good Friar’s garment, and which she had kept for many years for the purpose of being her outward shroud, and with a scapular of St. Dominic's Order. Her face was uncovered and her hands were held up close together, as if praying. In this peaceful repose many remarked how beautiful she looked.

Jane Dormer, Duchess of Feria, had been loved by many and held in very high esteem by everyone, rich and poor, who came into contact with her. She had led a laudable and exemplary Christian life.

Notes to the reader

The following notes are meant to give the reader a feeling for what life was like in Jane’s time. They are not by any means all encompassing or comprehensive, but a simple coverage of what it would have been like to live in England and Spain in the 1500 and 1600s.

1. LIFE IN ENGLAND IN THE TIME OF JANE

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At the time Jane Dormer left the country in 1558 England probably had a population of less than three and a half million. The largest town, London had a population of around 200,000.

Tudor towns were dirty, smelly and crowded. There were no sewers and no drains. Rubbish such as rotting vegetables, offal and dirty water were thrown in the streets. In some towns every man was supposed to clean the street in front of his house once a week but it is unlikely many people bothered! Rats and other vermin were common.

England was an agricultural society and most of the population lived and worked in the country and small rural villages and towns. Farming was very labour intensive. But, larger towns and cities were growing rapidly and commerce was becoming a more important part of the economy.

Wealth was based almost exclusively on land holdings in the hands of the aristocracy and the landed gentry. The aristocracy was an important part of the system of government and acted as an extension to the power of the crown.

There were two principal sources of power: the Crown and the Church.

Whilst there was a parliament, it was not the democratic institution we know today and the system of government would be best described as a dictatorship.

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The parliament served in an advisory capacity and had some influence but was, in effect, subservient to the power of the crown because the sovereign could bestow or withdraw the privileges of the members of parliament.

There were no central law enforcement institutions or organized public service or administrators answerable to the crown. The crown relied upon the aristocracy to implement its laws and maintain order and could bestow or withdraw these privileges and rights at will. The monarch used the aristocracy, the gentry and local town councils to administer the law and maintain civil order.

The law of the times was harsh and somewhat arbitrary. Imprisonment was not part of the penal system. People were held in prison only pending trial. Punishments ranged from fines, flogging, enforced slavery, branding, mutilation, hanging or burning. If they were lucky the executioner might strangle the unfortunate offender before they were burnt.

The nobility had titles, power and wealth generally through their ownership of huge amounts of land. Below them were the gentry and rich merchants. Gentlemen owned large amounts of land and they were usually educated and had a family coat of arms. A growing middle class comprised yeomen and craftsmen and increasingly, merchants. Yeomen owned their own land. They could be as wealthy as gentlemen but they worked alongside their men. Yeomen and craftsmen were often able to read and write. Below the yeomen were the tenant farmers who leased their land from the rich. At the bottom of the social and economic scale were wage labourers who were usually illiterate and very poor.

2. Life in Spain in the time of Jane Dormer

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King Philip 11 of Spain

Jane lived in Spain during the reign of King Philip II, and during this time Spain reached the peak of its influence and power as the foremost Western European power. Philip directed explorations all around the world and colonized territories in all the known continents.

Philip's foreign policies were determined by a combination of Catholic fervour and dynastic self-interest. He considered himself by default the chief defender of Catholic Europe, both against the Ottoman Turks and against the forces of theProtestant Reformation. He never relented from his war against what he regarded as heresy, preferring to fight on every front at whatever cost rather than countenance freedom of worship within his territories.

Spanish control and the Counter-Reformation, a movement within the Catholic Church to reform itself in the wake of the Protestant Reformation, achieved a boost in 1554, when Philip married Queen Mary in a political union, however she died childless in 1558 before the union could revitalize the Catholic Church in England.

Spain was not a single monarchy with one legal system, but instead a federation of separate realms, each jealously guarding its own rights against those of the Crown of Castile, a union of the monarchies and parliaments of the kingdoms of Castile and Toledo and the kingdoms of Leon and Galicia. In practice, Philip, even though he was King, often found his authority overruled by local assemblies, and his word less effective than that of local lords.

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Despite its immense dominions, Spain was a poor country with a sparse population that yielded a limited income to the crown. Philip faced major difficulties in raising taxes, the collection of which was largely farmed out to local lords. He was able to finance his military campaigns only by taxing and exploiting the local resources of his empire. Though the flow of income from the New World proved vital to his militant foreign policy, his exchequer faced bankruptcy several times.

Inflation throughout Europe in the sixteenth century was a broad and complex phenomenon, with the flood of bullion from the Americas arguably being the main cause of it in Spain, along with population growth, and government spending. Under Philip's reign, Spain saw a fivefold increase in prices. Due to inflation and a high tax burden for Spanish manufacturers and merchants, Spanish industry was harmed and much of Spain’s wealth was spent on imported manufactured goods by an opulent, status-oriented aristocracy and wars.

Philip's regime severely neglected farming in favor of sheep ranching, thus forcing Spain to import large amounts of grain and other foods by the mid-1560s. Presiding over a sharply divided conservative class structure, the Church and the upper classes were exempt from taxation, while the tax burden fell disproportionately on the classes engaged in trade, commerce, and industry.

Due to the inefficiencies of the Spanish state structure, industry was also greatly over-burdened by government regulations.

On a positive note Philip's reign saw a flourishing of cultural excellence in Spain, the beginning of what is called the Golden Age, creating a lasting legacy in literature, music, and the visual arts.

3. Queen Mary I (Bloody Mary)

Mary Tudor was born on February 18, 1516. She was the only surviving child of King Henry VIII’s first wife, Catherine of Aragon. Henry doted on Princess Mary when she was little, calling her “the greatest pearl in the kingdom”. The Princess received an excellent education, and was carefully sheltered.

In 1522 Henry arranged Mary’s betrothal to Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. Charles was an adult, and Mary was just 6 years old; the marriage was planned for when she was 12. Mary had met Charles and liked the idea of marrying him. But in 1525 Charles broke off the engagement so that he could marry Princess Isabella of Portugal. That same year Henry sent Princess Mary to live in Wales, as was traditional for the King’s heir.

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Early in 1527 the Princess returned to live at her father’s court and celebrated her new engagement to a son of the French King. But Henry VIII’s attitude towards Mary and her mother had started to change. He had decided that God disapproved of his marriage to Catherine; why else had the queen failed to produce healthy male children. And he had fallen in love with Anne Boleyn, who was to become his second wife.

Soon Mary learned that Henry wanted to annul his marriage to her mother; to do this he needed the Pope’s permission. While he waited for permission he continued to treat Catherine as his Queen and Mary as his heir. But Mary’s legitimacy was now in doubt, making her less valuable on the marriage market. The French engagement was broken off and no other match was arranged for her; although her father’s advisors did consider marrying her to King Henry’s illegitimate son Henry Fitzroy, though this did not eventuate.

Henry grew increasingly angry at Catherine’s resistance to end their marriage. Finally in 1531 he sent Catherine away from the court, and after being shuffled from palaces and castles, the Queen ended up a prisoner at Kimbolton Castle, near Huntingdon.

Realising that the Pope would never grant his divorce, Henry split from the Catholic Church, established the Church of England, leading to the English Reformation, had his marriage declared invalid, and married Anne Boleyn. Anne gave birth to a daughter, Princess Elizabeth in 1533.

Mary was now officially called a ‘bastard’, but like her mother she refused to accept her change in status. Henry was incensed by his daughter’s defiance and threatened to have her executed if she did not stop referring to herself as a Princess. When Mary was 18, her household was disbanded and she was sent to live in Princess Elizabeth’s household where she was treated very badly. Catherine and Mary were not permitted to visit each other, and Catherine died of natural causes, possibly cancer, in 1536 without seeing her daughter again.

Mary was now alone. Four months after Catherine’s death, her greatest enemy, Anne Boleyn, was toppled from power. Falsely accused of adultery she was executed. Anne had hated Mary and had stated that she wanted her dead. With Anne gone Henry treated Mary a little more kindly and his third, fourth and six wives were all well disposed towards Mary. However she got on less well with his fifth wife, the teenage Katherine Howard. Although she never regained her former status or her father’s affection, Mary was now once again a part of the Royal family.

At first she got on well with the King’s other children, however as Elizabeth and Edward grew up, their Protestant views put them at odds with Mary, who never swayed from her devout Catholicism. After Henry’s death in 1547, Mary’s nine year old half brother, became King Edward VI. As King, the highly religious

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Edward strongly disapproved of his elder sister Mary's ardent Catholicism and criticised Mary about her beliefs. Edward VI, however, was to contract measles and smallpox when he was 14 and this left him very weak. In 1553 when he was just 15, he died of tuberculosis. On his deathbed he disinherited Mary in favour of their teenage cousin, Lady Jane Grey.

John Dudley, the Duke of Northumberland and a strong Protestant, was the young king’s protector. Edward had put a great deal of trust in Dudley, who encouraged the boy King to write his will and to name Lady Jane Grey as his successor. Lady Jane herself had no desire to be Queen.

Dudley had great aspirations for himself and had devised a plan in which his son, Guilford Dudley and the young Lady Jane Grey would be married, in turn giving him the power he craved.

Within days, Princess Mary received word that her brother was ill and that he requested to see her. Unaware that he had already passed away, she left for London and straight into Dudley's plan to capture and imprison her, allowing Jane to take the throne unchallenged.

However, while enroute, the plan became known to Mary and she escaped to Norfolk allowing her time to create her own scheme of gaining the crown.

With public sentiment behind her, Mary brought her own troops to move in on London. In response, Dudley gathered his own regiment and set out to meet her. In fear for her life, Lady Jane Grey demanded that the Tower remain locked. Mary's following proved too strong for her opponents and by the next night it was clear that she was the victor. Jane's supporters fled the tower to save their heads leaving Jane abandoned. Mary claimed the throne unopposed and Lady Jane Grey faced the criminal charges without the support of those who put her in power. She was locked away in the Tower and was executed the following year.

After a lifetime of sorrow and danger the 37 year old Mary Tudor was the most powerful person in England.

Soon after her accession Mary considered marrying Prince Philip of Spain, the son of her former fiancé Emperor Charles V, and eleven years her junior. Though worried about the age difference Mary was convinced by her envoys that Philip was a mature, stable adult who would help her protect her kingdom. Mary’s subjects however were alarmed to learn of her engagement to the Spanish prince, and feared that England would become part of Spain. However Mary had no intention of turning the country over to Philip.

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He arrived in England on July 20 1554 and met Mary for the first time in on July 23. Mary liked Phillip from the start and he treated her kindly, though he possibly found her unattractive. The men who had accompanied him to England later described Mary as old, badly dressed, and almost toothless. However the wedding took place two days later, and two months later Mary’s doctors advised her that she was pregnant.

In December a law was passed that allowed Bishops of the Church of England to sentence heretics to death by burning. Almost 300 people were burned alive during Mary’s reign, with her full approval, earning her the nickname of “Bloody Mary”.

By the summer of 1555 it was apparent that Mary was no longer pregnant, if indeed she had ever been, and Mary was bitterly disappointed.

Phillip left England for Spain, promising Mary that he would return soon. He didn’t come back until March 1557 and Mary missed him terribly. During his absence he had become King of Spain. After a few months he left to go to war and Mary never saw him again – she was to die before his return.

After Philip’s departure Mary suffered another humiliating false pregnancy, and she became depressed and paranoid. Adding to her misery was the French conquest of the city of Calais, which had been in English hands for over 200 years.

Tortured by loneliness and unhappiness Queen Mary fell ill, and died on November 17 1558.

3. The Church and its powerful presence in Jane’s life

It is not possible to understand Jane’s life without understanding two important things. The first is just how important her Catholic faith was to her. In fact, if any one quality appears to have defined Jane it was that she was a devoutly religious woman.

This allegiance to her faith never faltered – not even when her mother’s side of the family turned to the new Protestant faith, or when there was turbulence within society and the monarchy, forcing her and her husband to flee to Spain.

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The second point is that the Church had a powerful, political and turbulent omnipresence for all who lived during Jane’s lifetime. This can be seen in each of the three monarch’s reigns under which she lived.

In 1547, Henry VIII died and was succeeded by his son, Edward VI. Since Edward was still a child, rule passed to a regency council dominated by Protestants, who attempted to establish their faith throughout the country. During this time Princess Mary remained faithful to Roman Catholicism but found it necessary to worship in private in her own chapel.

Edward VI died of tuberculosis at the age of 15. He had excluded both his sisters, Mary and Elizabeth from the line of succession in his will, fearing that if the Crown did go to Mary she would restore Catholicism and undo the many reforms implemented by him and Henry VIII. Law of the time dictated that he had to disinherit both sisters, even though Elizabeth embraced the Church of England faith. However, this exclusion contradicted the Act of Succession of 1544 and Mary was rightfully restored to the throne.

During Mary I’s reign (19 July 1553 - 17 November 1558) she restored England to Roman Catholicism. Mary persuaded Parliament to repeal the Protestant religious laws passed by Henry VIII. Protestants were persecuted and a number were executed as heretics. Many fled for their own safety to Protestant states in Europe. Mary had almost 300 religious dissenters burned at the stake in the Marian Persecutions, earning her the sobriquet of "Bloody Mary".

However, all this changed on the death of Mary and the accession of her successor and half-sister Elizabeth I in 1558. Elizabeth reigned from 17 November 1558 until her death on 24 March 1603. She had been educated as a Protestant and it was only a matter of time before she reversed the religious changes of Mary, sweeping aside Roman Catholicism. Her coronation was a signal for many Protestant refugees to return to their homeland. One of her first moves as queen was to support the establishment of an English Protestant Church, of which she became the Supreme Governor. This Elizabethan Religious Settlement held firm throughout her reign and later evolved into today's Church of England.

James VI & I was King of Scots as James VI from 1567 to 1625, and King of England and Ireland as James I from 1603 to 1625.

He became King of Scotland as James VI on 24 July 1567, when he was just thirteen months old, succeeding his mother Mary, Queen of Scots. Regents governed during his minority, which ended officially in 1578, though he did not gain full control of his government until 1581. On 24 March 1603, as James I, he succeeded the last Tudor monarch of England and Ireland, Elizabeth I, who died without having children.

Shortly into his rule James 1 faced a failed assassination attempt by a group of provincial English Catholics in what has become known as The Gunpowder Conspiracy of 1605 (also known as Powder Treason or The Gunpowder Plot). The

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plot intended to kill the King, his family and most of the Protestant aristocracy by blowing up the Houses of Parliament during the State Opening on 5 November 1605. The conspirators had also planned to abduct the royal children (who were not present in Parliament) and lead a popular revolt in the Midlands.

The Gunpowder Plot reinforced James's oppression of non-conforming English Catholics; and he sanctioned harsh measures for controlling them. In May 1606, Parliament passed the Popish Recusants Act requiring every citizen to take an Oath of Allegiance denying the Pope's authority over the King. James was conciliatory towards Catholics who took the Oath of Allegiance, and he tolerated crypto-Catholicism even at court. However, in practice he enacted even harsher measures against Catholics than were laid upon them by Elizabeth. James was at first strict in enforcing conformity towards the Puritan clergy, but this became less apparent as his reign wore on. A notable success of the Hampton Court Conference of January 1604, which was a meeting between the King and the representatives of the Church of England, was the commissioning of a new translation and compilation of approved books of the Bible. This new Bible, which was completed in 1611, confirmed the divine right of Kings to rule and to maintain the social hierarchy, and became known as the King James Bible.

In Scotland, James attempted to bring the Scottish kirk "so neir as can be" to the English church and re-establish the episcopacy, a policy which met with strong opposition. James was to leave the Church in Scotland divided at his death, a source of future problems for his son.

It was against this tumultuous backdrop that Jane lived her life and explains simplistically why she and her husband, both devout Catholics, thought it wise, if not necessary, to move to Spain following the death of Mary I.

Sources and for further information

Numerous resources were researched to develop this story. Many of them were extremely laborious to read or, like the biography of Jane Dormer, written in old English and quite labour intensive to translate. The biography itself was the most comprehensive source of information, and though undeniably it may be considered a somewhat biased account of Jane’s life and the Catholic/Protestant struggle, it must be considered a valuable record of her life and the times in which she lived.

If you are interested in pursuing your own research on Jane Dormer the following sources would be worthwhile checking.

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1. The life of Jane Dormer, Duchess of Feria by Clifford, Henry

Published in 1887, Burns and Oates, limited (London)

2. http://www.archive.org/stream/lifejanedormerd00stevgoog/ lifejanedormerd00stevgoog_djvu.txt

This is a digital copy of the book above that was preserved for generations on library shelves before it was carefully scanned by Google. It has survived long enough for the copyright to expire and the book to enter the public domain.

Marks and notations present in the original volume appear in this file - a reminder of this book's long journey from the author to the publisher and finally to the reader generations later.

3. Warwickshire County Record Office

DORMER OF GROVE PARK

Reference CR 895

Covering dates 14th Century - 19th Century

Held by Warwickshire County Record Office

Extent 22 series

Source of

acquisition

DEPOSITED IN THE WARWICK COUNTY RECORD OFFICE AT THE

SHIRE HALL, WARWICK THE 10th NOVEMBER, 1964.

Creators Dormer family of Grove Park, Warwickshire

Administrative history:

DOCUMENTS BELONGING TO THE RIGHT HON. THE LORD DORMER RELATING TO

THE DORMER FAMILY AND THE GROVE PARK ESTATE

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http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/archon/searches/locresult_details.asp?LR=187


http://www.archive.org/stream/lifejanedormerd00stevgoog/lifejanedormerd00stevgoog_djvu.txt

http://www.archive.org/stream/lifejanedormerd00stevgoog/lifejanedormerd00stevgoog_djvu.txt

http://openlibrary.org/a/OL2497558A/Clifford,-Henry

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Documents re: the Duchess of Feria and Dormer families [no ref. or date]

These documents are held at Warwickshire County Record Office

Parcel containing notes and extracts from documents concerning the Duchess

of Feria, and the Dormer family possibly materials for a book, with a few original

documents included CR 895/61 c1852-1854

Small packet of "Manuscripts and drawings relating to the Dormer family and

the life of the Duchess of Feria -- lent by the executors of the late Canon Estcourt

to assist in preparing the life of the Duchess of Feria for publication. 1888" CR

895/62 late 19th cent

Miscellaneous papers and a notebook of Canon E. Estcourt relating to the

Duchess of Feria, with some original papers of the Tichborne family, also

summonses to the coronations of William IV and Victoria CR 895/63 c1830-

1850

Packet of papers containing extracts from various sources relating to the

Duchess of Feria CR 895/64 c1850

Packet of rough notes and pedigree material on the Dormer and related

families CR 895/65 c1850

Extracts from a source described as "Willis MS" relating to Dormer coats of

arms CR 895/66 c1850

Packet of larger papers, including printed material relating to Catholic

emancipation, 1791. Printed papers about an action of ejectment relating to an

estate in Bucks., between John Dormer, Esq., and Samuel Berington, 1738.

Fragment of a book containing notes about Lord Dormer killed at the first battle

of Newbury, and other members of the family, early 19th c. Copies of 2

documents in Hungarian, said to be an agreement between Count John Buttler

and his sister, 1799, and also his will, 1845. Copy of the Dormer coat of arms

with an inscription made at the time of the death in Hungary of John Dormer

aged 66 in 1796. Official release of Joseph Dormer from his service as lieutenant

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after 6 years service in the Imperial Austrian army, 1827 CR 895/67 c1738-

1845

4. Dictionary of National Biography Volume 28http://thepeerage.com/p3066.htm

5. The Death-Beds of "Bloody Mary" and "Good Queen Bess" by Robert Hugh Benson, M.A.

http://archives.nd.edu/episodes/visitors/rhb/essays03.htm

6. thePeerage.com Jane Dormer http://www.thepeerage.com/p32866.htm

____________________6. Tudor Place Jane

Dormer

http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/DORMER.htm

______________________________________________________________________7. Jane Dormer

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Dormer

8. Transactions of the Royal Historical Society Jane Dormer

http://books.google.com.au/books?id=E_WXPJH5kAcC&pg=PA199&lpg=PA199&dq=Jane+Dormer+Duchess+of+Feria&source=bl&ots=FwGZ3W2s5i&sig=QN6RQdqjV99eutMJIfAdUl5aefI&hl=en&ei=PmrWSr3sDYOOswOI9cXdAg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CBAQ6AEwAjgK#v=onepage&q=Jane%20Dormer%20Duchess%20of%20Feria&f=false

______________________________________________________________

Dictionary of National Biography by Sir Leslie Stephen Jane Dormer

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http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/DORMER.htm

http://www.thepeerage.com/p32866.htm

http://archives.nd.edu/episodes/visitors/rhb/essays03.htm

http://thepeerage.com/p3066.htm

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http://books.google.com.au/books?id=zqOfU_Ckag8C&pg=PA247&lpg=PA247&dq=Jane+Dormer+Duchess+of+Feria&source=bl&ots=6CoU-gBMEA&sig=ADuSywUOH0qYmUImJftzlOoNiJU&hl=en&ei=8miPSui1E4-eswPkzqQM&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6#v=onepage&q=&f=false

A historical dictionary of British women by Routledge Jane Dormer

http://books.google.com.au/books?id=pDtEe4FKolUC&pg=PA138&lpg=PA138&dq=Jane+Dormer+Duchess+of+Feria&source=bl&ots=ZvEQN76R1h&sig=l3i54aCk6h3o1_zPqyZldhm40n8&hl=en&ei=nFeGSqL0BY2osgONlPGhBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false

The Religious Orders in England, Volume 3 by David Knowles

http://books.google.com.au/books?id=D2AcSW3N6ssC&pg=PA227&lpg=PA227&dq=J+Stevenson+(ed)+The+Life+of+Jane+Dormer&source=bl&ots=bAK_Rameub&sig=SUClzxlyqx5tAar_Da6C6VGadOQ&hl=en&ei=jG7WSo21Eo3GsQOHj6naAg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CBUQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=J%20Stevenson%20(ed)%20The%20Life%20of%20Jane%20Dormer&f=false

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