Review: Bess of Hardwick: First Lady of Chatsworth by Mary S. Lovell

I bought this book after I visited Hardwick Hall in April, curious to find out more about the lady who had built it from scratch. I knew from other historical books that I’d read that Bess of Hardwick was a formidable woman, but until I read this I didn’t realise just how interesting and unique she was in the Tudor world.

What’s it about?

It’s a historical biography of Bess of Hardwick, who grew from being a relatively impoverished noble family to the richest and most powerful woman in the country, bar none but Queen Elizabeth I. She had four husbands, several children, fascinating grandchildren, difficult step-children and powerful friends. She was more than just a rich lady: she was the founder of a dynasty and ambitious for it.

So, what’s good about it?

Seriously, it’s worthy of a HBO series. Bess lived to the ripe old age of 81 and lived through the reigns of five monarchs (Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I, Elizabeth I and James I). She outlived four husbands and each time became successively wealthier- but had to fight for her rights each time. Her fourth marriage, to the Earl of Shrewbury, slowly descended into a bitter battle that included the Queen, William Cecil and Robert Dudley, the two most influential men at court, and centred around the custodianship of the infamous Mary, Queen of Scots. And she raised her granddaughter Arbella, a young woman who could have, quite plausibly, claimed the throne of England.

Eighty odd years of personal history is not an easy thing to write, but Mary S. Lovell does with extreme skill. I was carried along by Bess’ story, eager to know what she did next and admiring her more and more. It was interesting, it was well paced, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Any negative points?

Lovell doesn’t play more on Bess’ flaws- and, as an attempt to rehabilitate Bess’ reputation as a greedy shrew, I can see why- but there is an element of ruthlessness to Bess that I would have liked to see more of. I also found the section where Lovell goes into detail about the breakdown of Bess and Shrewsbury’s marriage a little hard to read, due to the fact that it mostly is played out between the letters between the two. Although the set of letters (from a historical viewpoint) is incredible to have so many, while reading it became a bit too easy to skim past.

TL;DR Bess is a fascinating woman with a long and interesting life that Lovell shows with great talent. One of the best historical biographies I’ve read in a long time- four and a half stars.