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Murder Victim or just Accident
Prone?
- Amy was the daughter of a
Norfolk knight named Sir John Robsart. She lived in Tudor times.
- At the age of 18, she married
Robert the son of Sir John Dudley who was later to become the all
powerful Earl of Warwick and Duke of Northumberland.
- The couple lived in Norfolk
until Robert helped his father put the Protestant Lady Jane Grey on
the throne. She only ruled for 9 days! Then Queen 'Bloody Mary' threw
Robert in the Tower of London.
- Amy lived in poverty until Robert
was allowed to make things up to the Queen in the foreign wars.
- When Queen Elizabeth I came to the
throne, she gave Dudley lots of presents, land and well-paid jobs. They
had been friends since they were kids. It was rumoured that the Queen
loved Dudley and wanted to marry him.
- Poor Amy was kept away from the
Royal Court, while her husband went to parties and had lots of fun.
- She liked to travel around and
visit their different manor houses. She often stayed with their friend,
William Hyde, at Throcking in Hertfordshire. Robert rarely visited.
- In 1560, she moved to Cumnor
Place in North Berkshire. This was the rented home of her husband's
accountant, Anthony Forster.
- One day, everyone in the house
went off to Abingdon Fair. Amy stayed at
home.
- When they all returned, they found
Amy dead at the bottom of the stairs! She had broken her neck.
- Dudley was at Windsor
Castle when he heard of his wife's death. He did not go to Cumnor,
and he did not attend her funeral.
- He did become Earl of
Leicester and Anthony Forster became rich enough to buy Cumnor Place.
- The Queen was now free to marry
Robert Dudley if she wanted to.
- Did Amy fall down the stairs? or
was she pushed? Was it murder? What do you think?
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