Good morning, we are looking at a little-known figure from Tudor History. She was called Bess of Hardwick and she was an important figure in Tudor England. This is part of the Secrets of the National Trust Series and this episode is about Bess of Hardwick and the spectacular hall she built. The run time for this documentary is 41:06.
Bess of Hardwick came from humble beginnings to become the second most powerful woman in England behind Queen Elizabeth I. She created one of the most spectacular houses in England. Her last husband would make her the Countess of Shrewsbury. She was Mary Queen of Scot’s jailer. She was at the center of Elizabethan politics. Her granddaughter Arabella Stuart would eventually end up being imprisoned in the Tower of London. Who was this woman to leave behind such a legacy? Bess of Hardwicks’s story begins at the spectacular house she built. It was a marvel of Elizabethan Britain. She retired here after living a spectacular life. Wish sheer determination and advantageous marriages she pulled herself up to the highest level of society. She was Queen Elizabeth I’s confidant. Bess may have been a woman limited by life in the 16th Century, however, she did not let those limitations stop her. Hardwick Hall is evidence of this and it inspired the rhyme, “Hardwick Hall more glass than wall.” Before the advent of glass, windows were covered by shudders. Bess would allow light into her home and this would demonstrate her power to the world. With each marriage, she moved up the ladder in society. The story begins ad a building not too far from Hardwick Hall. This house was where she was born. As she married, she inherited more houses and more money. When her last husband died, she was left wealthy. She retreated to her childhood home intent on upgrading the family home. She left her home as a poor noble and returned to a wealthy woman. She would be nicknamed “Building Bess.” She had fled from Chatsworth House after a dispute with her husband. Her husband was Mary Queen of Scot’s jailer and was deep in debt. Her husband did not appreciate her building Chatsworth Hall and spending money. So he brought in soldiers and she was forced to flee. This did not stop her from building at Hardwick. The old house is now in ruins, but the new house was being worked on at the same time. The new house was adorned with her initials and countess coronet throughout the house. The great hall would have been richly decorated with her tapestries and the fireplace was adorned with her coat of arms with the coronet. She wanted it known that she was a countess, it would be something that you would not be able to forget if you were in the presence of Bess of Hardwick. Bess of Hardwick also included the coat of arms of Elizabeth in her quarters. However, her granddaughter Arabella Stuart would run afoul of the crown and would eventually be imprisoned. Bess would have built up a grand estate around Hardwick Hall, and a show host explores the mill Bess had built to make flour for bread. The mill would have made flour for the big house and the estate workers. Flour was the sustenance of the nation. The wealthy would have had white bread while the lower classes had brown whole-grain bread. The mill was restored and continued to grind grain into flour for the bread. To continue to learn more about Bess of Hardwick and her extraordinary house continue to watch this episode to find out more. It was a rather interesting tour of Hardwick Hall seeing places that the public does not see. The hosts were shown more than Lucy Worsley did in the History of the Home Series. The house only hints at the extraordinary woman who built it. Lucy mentioned that she was reminded of a “footballer’s wife” who married well and got all the money. You had the same sense of that phrase in this episode. This episode would be better for a history fun day and for research purposes and not for the history classroom setting.
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