Sweet Robin

A Biography of Robert Dudley Earl of Leicester 1533-1588

By Derek Wilson

1981

First Published

4.00

Average Rating

355

Number of Pages

10H50M

Audio Length

Few chroniclers have had a good word to say for Robert Dudley. Both his father and grandfather were executed for treason, he himself was imprisoned in the Tower of London as a young man, and his first wife died in suspicious circumstances. Yet he was the only man that "good Queen Bess" ever loved. When the young Elizabeth came to the throne in 1558, she brought Robert Dudley to court, making him her Master of the Horse and her closest confidant. Men were jealous of his influence, mistrustful of his charm and good looks, scandalized that the son and grandson of traitors should come near to being their king. In a book that is as readable as it is authoritative and closely researched, Derek Wilson traces Leicester's life and his struggle for power with Secretary Cecil; his patronage of writers, scholars and actors; his support of the Puritans; his term as Governor of the Low Countries; his marriages and affairs. He puts into perspective the appalling libels which were circulated about him and, above all, throws fresh light on his ever-changing relationship with the Queen, which remained constant for over thirty years, and left her broken-hearted at his death.

Avg Rating

4.00

Number of Ratings

5 STARS

28%

4 STARS

48%

3 STARS

20%

2 STARS

1 STARS

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Author

Derek Wilson

Author · 32 books

Derek Wilson has been a writer of historical fiction and non-fiction for 50 years. His much acclaimed prize-winning works have largely centred on 16th and 17th century Europe. He has used various pen names for his fiction, his current Thomas Treviot Tudor crime series being written under the name D.K. Wilson. The first 2 books in this series - The First Horseman and The Traitor's Mark are based on real unsolved Tudor mysteries and have received enthusiastic plaudits. Readers have favourably compared this innovative series with the books of C.J. Sansom and S.J. Parris. Recent non-fiction triumphs include The Plantagenets, Holbein: Portrait of an Unknown Man, and Charlemagne: a Biography. Derek Wilson graduated from Cambridge and spent several years travelling and teaching in Africa before becoming a full-time writer and broadcaster in 1971. He has frequently written and appeared on radio and television and is popular as a public speaker having appeared at several literary festivals,British Museum, Hampton Court Palace, The British Library and other prestigious venues.