Elizabeth Hoby

Portrait of Elizabeth Hoby, 1528 - 1609, hanging in the Great Hall at Bisham Abbey, Berkshire, UK.

Elizabeth, Lady Hoby (born 1528, Gidea Hall, Essex, England — died 1609, Bisham, Berkshire, England) (née Elizabeth Cooke; Elizabeth Hoby, later Lady Hoby, in her first marriage; Elizabeth, Lady Hoby as a widow and patroness; Lady Russell in her second marriage) was an English noblewoman.^[1] She was a highly placed influential member of Queen Elizabeth I's court and was known in her time for her refined poetry as well as her musical talent.^[2]

She is not to be confused with another Elizabeth Hoby of the Tudor period, the wife of her first husband Thomas Hoby's half brother, Philip Hoby. A portrait of this other Elizabeth by the artist Hans Holbein the Younger dates from the period 1536–1540 and is now in the Royal Collection.^[3]

Life

She was born Elizabeth Cooke, the third daughter of Anthony Cooke, who was tutor to Edward VI. Cooke educated his four daughters to a high level for his day.^[4] Elizabeth's sister Anne Bacon became a notable scholar. Elizabeth was proficient in Latin and French.

Elizabeth's first marriage was on 27 June 1558, to Thomas Hoby, of Bisham Abbey, Berkshire, noted as the translator of Baldassare Castiglione's The Book of the Courtier.^[1] In March 1566 he was knighted and became the English ambassador to France. The couple moved to Paris.^[4] Thomas died there in July. Elizabeth received a touching letter of condolence from Queen Elizabeth I.

Elizabeth had four children by Thomas Hoby: Edward (1560–1617), two girls who both died in childhood in 1571, and then another boy born after Thomas's death who was called Thomas Posthumus (1566–1640).^[1] She built a memorial chapel to her deceased husband in Bisham parish church Berkshire.^[1]

She was married again in 1574, to John, Lord Russell (d. 1584), eldest son and heir to Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford.^[1] She had two daughters by this second marriage, Anne and Elizabeth. A legend says she also had a son whom she so mistreated because of his slowness at lessons and blotting his copy-books that he died but this cannot be verified. The legend claims her repentant ghost haunts Bisham Abbey.^[1] John Russell's death in 1584, before that of his father, robbed her of the possibility of becoming the countess of Bedford.^[1]

Through her connections at court, her brother-in-law was William Cecil, Lord Burghley,^[4] and her nephew Robert Cecil,^[1] she became involved in litigation and disputes as she sought favours for herself and friends. Her son Thomas Posthumus became Burghley's protégé.^[1]

She was for a time favoured by the queen and in the Summer of 1592, she entertained the monarch at Bisham Abbey for six days and the Privy Council also met there.^[4] The queen was reputedly godmother to two of her children. By 1595 however she found she could only see the queen at church but by June 1600 she had regained favour when the queen attended her daughter's wedding at Blackfriers.^[1]

Elizabeth was known for her patronage of musicians, most notably of the composer John Dowland. She also translated A way of reconciliation touching the true nature and substance of the body and blood of Christ in the sacrament (printed in 1605)^[4] from the French and composed tomb inscriptions in Greek, Latin and English.^[2]

Later in life she became litigious and pursued grievances in law, not always successfully.^[1]

Notes

References

• Ford, David Nash (2001). "Elizabeth Cooke, Lady Hoby (1528-1609)". Royal Berkshire History. Retrieved 2009-04-24. 
• Priestland, Pamela (Sep 2004). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press,. pp. Russell [née Cooke], Elizabeth. Retrieved April 2009.  (subscription or free access with a UK library card number)
• Hays, Mary (1807). Female biography; or, Memoirs of illustrious and celebrated women, of all ages and countries: Alphabetically arranged. Fry and Kammerer. pp. 430–432.