Jane Dormer Duchess of Feria

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Jane Dormer Story 1538-1612
JANE DORMER, DUCHESS OF FERIA (1538 – 1612)
Jane Dormer painted by Anthony More
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Jane Dormer was born in the pretty English village of Heythrop, Oxfordshire, on
the 6 January 1538, into a moderately prosperous noble family of landowners
and wool merchants. She was the eldest daughter of Sir William Dormer and his
first wife, Mary Sidney, and her ancestry can be traced as far back as 1350 to
some of the most ancient and respected nobility of England.
Her father was a Member of Parliament for Buckinghamshire. Her mother was
the eldest daughter of Sir William Sidney, and other noble connections included
her paternal grandmother, Lady Jane Dormer, her brother-in-law, Sir William
Hungerford, and half-brother Robert Dormer, 1 st Baron Dormer of Wyng. Jane
was also a cousin to Mary Stuart.
Strict religious devotion permeated every aspect of Jane’s life, and her
dedication and obedience to her Catholic faith and her ‘almighty God’ goes a
good way to explaining why her life unfolded as it did.
Jane was Roman Catholic, like her father, even though her family was to be split
down the middle by the religious controversy caused by King Henry VIII’s break
with Rome. Sir William Dormer's family remained staunchly Roman Catholic,
however her mother, Mary Sidney, and Mary’s family, embraced the new religion
of Protestantism, which was sweeping England. Her mother died in 1542 and
Jane was raised outside this Protestant influence. Religious duties played a very
important part in every aspect of her daily life from a very early age till her
death. In fact, Jane believed that in England there were 3 types of professions –
Catholics, heretics and men of no religion - and she had no time for the latter
two.
Jane’s life is particularly interesting in that she lived under the reigns of four
monarchs - Henry VIII, Mary I, Elizabeth 1 and James I - and she maintained
close associations with each of these monarchs even when she no longer lived in
England. Much of her life was lived against the backdrop of religious and
political turbulence due to the horrendous warring and blood-letting between the
supporters of the Catholic and Protestant faiths. As a young adult, rather than
remain in her beloved England which she believed had become perverted and
corrupted, and in order to serve her Church and God freely, she married a
Spaniard and lived the rest of her life in Spain.
But even with such a distance between her and her homeland, Jane's continued
interest in the cause of Catholicism in England meant she continued to have
regular correspondence with members of the Catholic aristocracy; and over the
years she and Elizabeth I corresponded and she received letters from four Popes
and numerous other religious and political contacts. Jane’s life was chronicled,
apparently at her request, in the biography “Duchess of Feria”, by her servant
Henry Clifford, who entered her service in 1603 and served her devoutly till her
death in 1612. He obviously held a position of great trust and authority over a
long period with Jane, and was privy to both the private and public aspects of
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her life. He must also have been loved as a friend as it was he who put her
precious rosary beads in her hands as she lay dying, and it was he who the
family entrusted with the funeral arrangements.
Jane was often described as attractive. The Earl of Nottingham, when he was
ambassador in Spain, described Jane as the fairest and sweetest woman in the
world, and said that the whole court admired and respected her, not only
because she was so well thought of by the Queen, but in her own right.
Jane, has been variously described in historic accounts as a devout and pious
Catholic, just and prudent, virtuous, modest, kindly and generous, a remarkable
beauty, tall of stature, with a sweet disposition, a woman of extreme simplicity
and beauty of character. Though often complimented on her looks, she
abhorred vanity and flattery. An early portrait of Jane as the Duchess of Feria in
Spain shows her to be beautiful young woman, arrayed in all the splendour of
the court of Spain. In a later portrait, painted after the death of her husband,
still an attractive woman, she appears in the plain and severe religious habit
which she wore throughout the remaining years of her widowhood.
During her lifetime she appears to have earned the confidence, respect and
affection of everyone she met, whether it was as a wife, mother, or widow; at
home or abroad; as mistress of a large household, in her zealous work with
Catholic exiles whilst in Spain; in her domestic relations with the society she
lived in, or in her public and private devotions.
With her strong aristocratic English lineage it would not be unreasonable to

expect that it would be Jane’s destiny to marry one of her highly eligible English
suitors. Jane chose however, to marry Don Gomez Suarez de Figueroa of
Cordova, Duke of Feria, a close confidante of Phillip II and his first ambassador
to Elizabeth I's court.
This choice was perhaps based partly on love, but it was also a prudent political
and religious decision by Jane. The Duke was a devout Catholic, highly
respected both in Spain and by the English Catholic aristocracy. In marrying the
Duke, Jane was able to live in Spain, far away from the turbulence of the
warring Catholics and Protestants and the demise of Catholic supremacy in
England. It was a match favoured and encouraged by Queen Mary. Mary
believed that Jane deserved a very good husband, and, until the Duke of Feria
appeared on the scene, she felt there was no man worthy of her.
Unlike many exiles Jane was never regarded as a political dissident. On the
accession of King James it was even suggested that she return to England to
become one of Queen Anne’s ladies-in-waiting, and she herself wrote to the
King, expressing her loyalty.
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However Jane never returned to England. She died in Spain without ever
playing the leadership role that others wished to thrust upon her, and which she
would have undoubtedly been capable of handling.
Jane’s early life
Jane learnt from a very young age it was her duty to serve God and she did this
happily and with great dedication.
From the age of four she cheerfully went to chapel, was well behaved and happy
to fall to her knees to bless herself, to learn her prayers and have religious
books and beads in her hands. Before she was seven she had learnt to read the
Primer, or the Office of our Blessed Lady, in Latin; and from that age to her
death at 74 she did this daily.
When she was four Jane’s mother died and her adored paternal grandmother,
Lady Jane Dormer, herself an ardent and pious Roman Catholic, (Queen Mary
referred to her as “the sustainer of the Catholic faith”) undertook her upbringing.
It is obvious that Jane and her grandmother were very close and very alike.
Jane’s strength of character, commitment to her faith and devotion to social
causes were a mirror of her grandmother’s traits. Even when Jane served
Queen Mary she never neglected her duty and obedience to her grandmother.
Jane’s connections with royalty began early when she became playmate to
young Edward VI whilst her maternal grandfather was a tutor to the prince.
Edward VI grew very fond of Jane and is reported to have said after having
beaten her at cards "now your king is gone Jane I shall be good enough for you."
Edward died of tuberculosis, in April 1552, aged fifteen.
As Jane grew older she joined the household of the Princess, Lady Mary Tudor.
Working and living in the house of the Catholic Princess was considered a most
suitable vocation befitting an honourable young noblewoman like Jane, who
favoured the life of piety and devotion.
And when Mary became Queen, despite an age gap of over twenty years, Jane at
just 16, became one of Queen Mary’s closest, favoured and most loyal friends
and confidantes. She later became Queen Mary’s Maid of Honour and an
extraordinary bond grew between them which existed right up until Mary’s
death. They were inseparable friends and Jane often shared Mary’s bedchamber,
read the Office of our Blessed Lady together, and even chopped up her dinner
meat for her.
When Jane was unwell and could not attend to the Queen, Mary fussed over her
well-being more like a mother or sister, rather than the Queen. In August 1558,
in Queen Mary’s last days when she was very ill herself, Jane also became ill and
needed to go to London to get treatment. Queen Mary would not let her go by
barge but sent her by land, in her own litter, and with her own physician to
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attend her. The Queen followed shortly after and on her arrival in London she
immediately asked about Jane’s health and for Jane to visit her.
Jane was in Mary's service during all the years of her reign, and was actually
with her when she died. She was in fact, one of the few friends who remained
with Mary to the end. Most of her other attendants had already made their way
to Hatfield, to pay their respects to the Princess Elizabeth who would presently
be in power. Jane held such a special place of trust within Mary’s heart that
while she was tending the dying Queen, she was entrusted with the precious
royal jewels, which she then handed on to Queen Elizabeth.
Throughout her life Jane was often heard mentioning the pure and clean soul of
Queen Mary her former mistress, who had given her an untainted, chaste and
innocent education, one devoid of sluttish terms or foul, unchaste words.
The accession of Elizabeth I and Jane’s marriage
Jane’s remarkable beauty and sweet disposition meant that her hand in
marriage was sought by several English noblemen, among them Edward
Courtenay, Earl of Devonshire, the Duke of Norfolk, and the Earl of Nottingham.
However on Mary’s advice she made her own Spanish match by marrying Don
Gomez Suarez de Figueroa of Cordova, Duke of Feria, a close confidante of Philip
II and his first ambassador to Elizabeth I's court. (The Duke of Feria, in his last
will and testament, mentions that Jane had refused greater matches than him in
her own country.)
Jane and the Don had first met on Philip's arrival in England in 1554 and though
Queen Mary had strongly encouraged the match, it had been postponed to await
Phillip's return to the country after campaigns abroad. Mary wanted to give the
match all the pomp and ceremony possible. However, before Philip was due to
return Mary died after a second false pregnancy, and probably therefore of
ovarian cancer, at St. James's Palace on 17 November 1558.
When Elizabeth I ascended the English and Irish throne on 17 November 1558 it
was a turning point in the history of Jane Dormer.
The Count of Feria, who had returned to England on hearing of Mary’s illness,
strongly urged Jane to marry him, anticipating that Elizabeth’s ascendency to
the throne would mean that Catholic supremacy was now at an end, and
consequently his stay in England would not last. His fears were confirmed when
he learned that Elizabeth’s coronation ceremony would not be in strict
accordance with the Catholic religion. In a public rejection of anticipated
Protestant elements in the coronation service he refused to be present, even
though he was the Spanish ambassador and Elizabeth I personally entreated him
to attend.
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Jane and Don were married on 29 December 1558. At Philip’s command, Don
Gomez Suarez de Figueroa of Cordova, Duke of Feria, prepared to leave the
country, and after arranging for his wife Jane, now the Countess of Feria, to
follow him at a later date, he set out for Flanders in May 1559. At Jane’s
suggestion he took leave of the Queen, and in the face of much opposition, had
members of certain religious orders, including the Carthusian monks of Sheen,
the nuns of St Bridget of Sion, and the Dominican nuns of Dartford, accompany
him.
Although the Duke of Feria, was replaced as Spanish ambassador in 1559, the
Countess of Feria remained in England till July 1559 when Don Juan de Ayala
arrived to escort her to Flanders.
Interestingly, and not unexpectedly, there are two quite differing accounts of her
farewell interview with Queen Elizabeth – the Catholic writers talk of her being
rudely slighted by the Queen, the Protestant writers wrote of her being received
with marked affection.
Jane was pregnant and was accompanied on her trip to Flanders by her paternal
grandmother and six attendant gentlewomen. The journey was a triumphal
progress with the English party being officially received by the Governors and a
military salute from all the towns on their way.
At the end of August at the invitation of Philip’s sister, the Duchess of Parma,
the Countess rested at Mechlin, where she gave birth to a son Laurence
(Lorenzo,) on 28 September. This was the name of his grandfather, Count of
Feria and Marquis of Pliego, as it was the custom that the family heirs retain the
names of Gomez and Laurence.
Jane stayed at Mechlin till March when her grandmother left her to settle at
Louvain and the Countess then left with her husband for Spain.
On her way to Spain, Jane visited Mary Queen of Scots where she was welcomed
warmly. Their love, mutual respect and friendship endured their lifetimes, the
Queen was often to be heard praising Jane affectionately, and they corresponded
regularly.
In fact, when Jane’s husband, the Duke, died in 1571, Mary was a prisoner in
England, and she wrote to the Catholic Majesty and His Holiness the Pope
beseeching them to ask for the Duchess to return to live in England because she
could do much there for the service of God, for her Church and for her Majesty.
Mary pleaded that living in the English climate would allow Jane to enjoy better
health as its climate was more agreeable to her natural constitution than that of
Spain’s. Mary also pleaded that she would benefit greatly from the comfort of
having Jane near to her in such difficult times. A return to England was never to
eventuate.
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Living in Spain as a Duchess
Jane’s arrival in Toledo, Spain was a grand and majestic affair watched by the
whole city. The King and Queen of Spain and her new husband, the Duke,
watched from a window, as she rode in on a magnificently attired horse with rich
crimson velvet regalia, garnished with studs and fringes of gold. Behind her
rode her six ladies in waiting, her twenty pages and most of the court, all
resplendent in rich liveries...
She was received warmly by the King and Queen of Spain, and she was given a
welcoming jewel by the Queen, who, along with the Court and people of Spain,
is said to have greatly admired her beauty and her warm nature.
After resting in the court for a short time Jane moved to Zaffra, to her husband’s
estate in Estramadura, where she was finally able to begin her life as the
Duchess of Feria and wife of the Duke.
At first she found living in a hot climate difficult for her health and she had little
physical strength to do anything other than attend to her own health needs and
prayers. However little by little she began to feel stronger and she began to
work hard at being a loving, respectful and wise wife and partner for the Duke.
He in turn loved her dearly and found her to be a perfect wife. She was his
solace - supportive, faithful and wise, able to plan carefully for the family’s
future needs, as well as always being sweet and pleasing company.
Interestingly the Duke had caused his own mother great displeasure when,
against her wishes, he married Jane. His mother had wanted him to marry the
only daughter of his elder brother Don Pedro, who had died young. Such a
marriage would have ensured she would not lose the title of Marquess of Pliego,
an estate of which she was heir. In revenge and cajoled by his mother, his
younger brother married the daughter instead, putting the estate in dispute
between the two brothers when their mother died. Though the Duke’s mother
initially resented Jane, the Duchess never held a grievance towards her mother-
in-law and continued to treat her with respect and mildness, which later made
the Marquess feel guilty at the way she had treated Jane.
About five years into their marriage Jane gave birth to another son, Don Pedro,
who sadly died after just three months.
The Duke and Duchess were a pious and devout couple and served their Church
faithfully and zealously, the Duke working hard to advance the cause of the
Fathers of the Society of Jesus.
Together they founded and built the monastery of our Lady de Monte-Virgine,
situated half a league from the town of Villalva. They were patrons of the order
of St Francis and during the holy week and other principal feasts of the year they
provided food to the religious, serving it themselves and eating with the lay
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friars. They were greatly loved by their tenants and the Catholics in, and
beyond their estate, and provided relief, support, alms and works of charity to
those in need, both in their own estate and later to the estate of their son, the
younger Duke.
The Duchess was a compassionate champion of exiled and destitute English

Catholics, with the Cardinal of Rhemes calling the Duchess another Queen
Helena, for the compassion, charity and affection she displayed to her distressed
countrymen.
She worked tirelessly to help others less fortunate and was recognised as “a foot
to the lame, an eye to the blind, a staff to the week, a true mother of orphans,
and a patroness of widows.” Her house became a refuge for banished priests
and English Catholic gentlemen; and once she procured the release of thirty-
eight Englishmen, prisoners in Seville, who had been taken in the West Indies
and sentenced to die, and a merchant who had been accused of assisting them.
Together Jane and her husband visited hospitals, feeding the sick and diseased,
wiping their sores and cleansing their wounds. They gave their advice and
support freely, and provided the needy with allowances to sustain them until
they could get back on their feet. On the many occasions when money was
scarce, and they were stretched in providing for themselves, they would put the
needs of those less fortune before their own. The Duke was heard to tell his
steward "I have plate, pawn it; and let not these men lack."
Both the Duke and Duchess were very strongly principled and unlike others of
nobility whose wealth had increased notably through taking bribes, they
abhorred this behaviour and refused to sully the name and honour of their family
with such practices.
The Duke served as Council of State, was Captain of the Spanish Guard, and had
regular private consultations and intimate conferences with the King, who
regarded him highly.
A typical day in Jane’s life
Jane detested idleness and this can be quite clearly seen in how she lived her
daily life.
Though it is difficult to understand how she fitted anything else into her days
and weeks with her strict devotion and attention to her religious duties, Jane
was either working, reading, learning Spanish, attending to the affairs of her
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home, corresponding, being the hospitable host to friends and strangers who
frequently dropped in on her, and returning these visits. (As she got older she
often was said to complain that these visits were a burdensome task for her,
even though she continued with them.)
She laboured willingly for the poor, visiting them and helping them in any way
she could. She was a skilled needlewoman, creating elaborate dressings and
ornaments for the altar and priests; and she sewed and hemmed sheets for the
hospital until her eyesight began to fail in later life.
A typical day saw her rise early, and usually for an hour between seven and
eight o’clock, a little later in winter, she went into her oratory where she heard
mass given by her Chaplain. If her second Chaplain was also at home, she also
heard mass from him and from any priests or religious men who happened to be
visiting. She daily read the Office of the Holy Cross and the Holy Ghost; at
certain times the whole Office of the Dead; and the Gradual Psalms; and on
special feasts the whole Office of the Breviary. She never omitted to say the
general litanies, and other litanies, as the day and time required. Weekly, and at
certain feasts of the year, she read the holy Sacraments of the Confession and
Communion; and she heard High Mass at the monastery of St Dominic, or of the
Angels. These religious affairs were long and solemn and in the Holy week she
spent the latter four days in ten to eleven hours of religious devotion and prayer.
Even as she aged and with failing eyesight, she spent many hours reading
Spanish spiritual and religious books, and when she found it difficult to read
herself, her servants read to her.
After mass she called together her servants responsible for advising her in her
business affairs and determined what should be done in respect to these affairs
that day.
Death of the Duke
The Duke and Duchess were a particularly happy couple, and were devoted to
each other. However this happiness was to be cut short when the Duke fell
seriously ill with a violent fever in August 1571, as he was preparing to
undertake the government of the Low Countries. Jane lovingly tended him, day
and night, seeking expert physician’s help and trying all types of medicinal
remedies. The King sent to Guadaloupe for a specialist physician to attend him,
and friends and servants rallied around.
However, only twelve years, eight months, and ten days into their marriage, on
the 8th of September, 1571, on the feast of the Nativity of our Blessed Lady,
early in the morning at the Escurial, the Duke died. In Jane’s eyes and those of
the King and his constituents, God had taken this good Christian Duke to live
with the blessed Saints and receive the eternal reward for the good work he had
carried out in his lifetime.
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The Duke had been held in high esteem by the King who publicly commended
him as a true gentleman, and a noble and able assistant to Philip his son; a man
who served his country admirably. The King felt his death so heavily that he
shed tears, something which he had never been seen to do before, except at the
death of his son, Don Carlos.
Following the Duke’s death tributes poured in, and many notable English
Catholics wrote to the Duchess conveying their great sadness at his passing, as
did His Holiness Pope Pius Quintus.
Moreover, the English Catholics felt that with the Duke’s death they had lost a
staunch and zealous supporter of their faith, a man who could quite possibly
have assisted with the restitution of the Catholic religion enabling it to once
again rule supreme in England.
Jane was left grieving, a distraught widow, young, alone, far from her home,
friends and family; and with the sole care and charge of the estate of both the
duchy, the estate over which she and the Duke had jurisdiction, and her son
Laurence, who was not yet twelve.
However Jane found inner strength, and continued to carry out her duties and
responsibilities for the estate, her people and her son’s upbringing. On his
deathbed the Duke had asked Jane to undertake three promises - that she
would ensure that his soul be prayed for, his son to be taken care of and brought
up Christianly in the fear of God, and his debts honoured.
It was clear that the Duke not only loved her dearly but also greatly respected
her and this love and respect was made quite clear in his will. He made her
responsible for the sole tutelage of their son and governess of his estate; and
gave counsel to his son to love and obey her, explaining how fortunate he was to
have not only a prudent, careful mother, but one who was also a notable
teacher from whom he could learn a great deal.
Honouring the Duke’s wishes
Jane complied with her dying husband’s first wish by ensuring that large alms
were given to pray for his soul in all the monasteries and parishes about the
Escurial and in Madrid. Perpetual memories were founded for prosperity around
the Duke’s estate and in many religious houses. Jane continued with these
observances and remembrances for the forty years she was to spend as a widow
and in her will asked that her grandson, the Duke, always remember with
respect his grandfather, his father and herself and observe, with special
solemnity, the anniversary of each of their deaths.
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She lavished love, care, attention and education on her son and counselled him
on the principles and foundations of wisdom, virtue and excellence, so that he
would be able to live a happy, highly respected and successful life and be a good
Christian. On the death of his father, the King had honoured Laurence by giving
him the Encomienda of Segura de la Sierra, one of the richest grants or
benefices attached to a military order in Spain, an honour which his father had
received before him.
Jane was quite a disciplinarian and hard task master when it came to the
management of both her son and grandson’s education.
Their first exercise, before eight in the morning, was to hear Mass. Then their
master read them a lesson before breakfast. They were then set a task, which
they were to complete or repeat to their master before dinner. The Duchess
always checked with the master that their task had been carried out
satisfactorily before dinner was served. They were praised if they had achieved
their designated task, and there was usually some reward for their diligence. If
their task was not completed satisfactorily however, they were all punished, the
Duchess included, with dinner being delayed, and the possibility of the meat
being spoiled through overcooking until the lesson had been learned.
Jane worked conscientiously and prudently and in her lifetime managed to pay
off the combined debts of both her own estate and the debts of the Count Don
Pedro his elder brother, leaving the estate’s finances unencumbered for her
grandson, the Duke. She was always considered prudent with money concerns.
In 1603 her son, then the Viceroy of Sicily, wanted to buy the land adjoining his
estate, but needed the sale to go through urgently before another buyer could
purchase it. Jane managed to borrow 14,000 ducats from a friend and raised the
remaining 26,000 ducats of the 40,000 ducats required for the sale from her
tenants on the Duke’s estate; all this was done within the day, even though she
had to despatch a messenger who had to travel over a hundred miles with the
letter and cash deposit. She promised the tenants and friend repayment within
four months and she faithfully honoured this agreement. The transaction was
approved without security and was based solely on a letter written by Jane to
the Governor of the Duke’s estate and the tenants, explaining how and when she
proposed to repay them. This loan was a testament to how much love, respect
and trust the others had in her.
Her charitable and benevolent practices
Jane continued with the charitable and benevolent practices that she and the
Duke had shared - giving bread and money to the poor religious monasteries
and hospitals of Madrid, and bread and eggs to the Order of St. Francis. On
Sundays and holy days she would send a whole supper to the Order of St.
Francis. She was particularly devoted to this Order and she wore the habit of
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the Third Order of St. Francis under her outer garment all her life. She also had
a monastery for the St. Francis's Order built and had it completely furnished.
She was also responsible for building and maintaining the monasteries of Monte-
Virgine of that Order, Descalgos Recollects, and Santa Marina in Zafra, Nuns of
the Order of St. Clare. She had the St. Onophrio de la Lapa, our Lady del
Rosario of St. Dominic, repaired and furnished these and others with rich
ornaments, costly pictures and devout figurines and holy ornaments in the
memory of her late husband, the Duke.
Jane had a beautifully ornate Church built for those of her faith which had an
oratory at the end of the gallery, from which the congregation could hear and
see Mass at the high altar; and she continued to be a patron and defender of the
Fathers of the Society of Jesus, as did her son Laurence in adulthood.
Money was handed out to the poor who asked at her door, and many poor
widows and orphans were sustained for life through her charity. She never
refused help to those in need, no matter whether they were Catholic, English
priests or complete strangers.
Even at the end of her life Jane bequeathed everything she owned to
monasteries, apart from her household furniture which she left to her grandson
and a few remembrances which were left to friends and servants.
Life without the Duke
As was the custom for widows in Spain to show respect for their dearly departed
husband, Jane permanently rid her wardrobe and home of all ostentatious
clothes and furniture. She spent the rest of her life without vanity, wearing the
plainest and cheapest of clothes made from plain, coarse black cloth and avoided
wearing ostentatious clothes of silk or lace or silver or gold jewellery. Her family
home was very simply furnished.
She managed the estate prudently until her son could take over his
responsibilities and then she continued to help him. She governed her house
with great religious reverence, was kind to her servants paying them
appropriately and always on time, arranged for medical assistance when they
were unwell, and allowed all her servants time off daily to attend Mass.
Her grandfather, grandmother and mother had all died before she had become a
widow and her father, who had remarried and had children, had died soon after
– and she daily prayed for their souls. She had a beautiful tomb erected in
honour of her beloved grandmother and gave the monastery which housed it a
hundred florins of rent for posterity.
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She gave her cherished sister, Lady Hungerford, who had been badly treated by
her husband, support, love and counsel.
In time her son Laurence had his own son and Jane lavished the same attention,
love, care and religious instruction on her grandchild. When her grandson, the
Duke was honoured with the knighthood and habit of St. James, and solemnly
invested in the church of St. Dominic in Madrid, she congratulated him proudly.
But she also reminded him that he was now a man and that in taking this habit
and oath he had entered into many new obligations all of which bound him to be
a faithful and valorous knight in the service of his almighty God and his Church.
Jane never considered marrying again abiding the law of the time which said "A
woman passing to second vows neglects the three best things — God, the
memory of her deceased husband, and the love of her children."
Jane was a woman of extreme modesty who abhored and detested all impurities
and unclean words and she would boldly reprove anyone whom she thought had
crossed the line of politeness and decorum. Once, when told that certain women,
who did not have the best reputation, had entered her grandson’s coach, she
refused to ever ride in that coach again.
Her modest graceful manner and virtuousness was held in very high respect in
England and the English nobility were reported as saying that they wished that
she might for a time live in her own country to be an example of imitation to
their own great ladies. The King and Queen of Spain often visited her for her
advice and to pray with her.
But at aged 70 her Christian patience and confidence in her almighty God was
again to be tested with the death of her much loved son, Lawrence. His death
left a gaping hole in her heart and could have left her financially destitute, had
he not left her an allowance from the Encomienda of Segura in his will.
Throughout her life Jane maintained contact with friends and associates in
England and the persecution of Catholics in her country caused her constant
concern and sadness. Yet she continually prayed to her God, putting her faith in
him and trusting him to deliver England into Catholic hands.
Jane’s life comes slowly to an end
Jane had been suffering pain in her left breast, and had bound her arm in a sling
to avoid moving the breast quickly. On St, Bernard's day, the 20th of August,
1609, she broke her arm in a slight accident. It was initially mended inexpertly
by a bone-setter and required resetting by the King’s own physician. However,
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Jane was still suffering immense pain and eight days later a bone-setter living
outside of Spain was called for. He unbound Jane’s arm and found the cracked
bone stood out and was not fixed in its place. He dressed it and rebound it but
Jane, who was now 72 years old, went to bed lying in one position for if she
turned or moved suddenly the pain was excruciating. Even in pain Jane
remained admirably quiet, tolerant and patient, praying to God.
She remained in bed for forty days and when she finally got up the first thing
she did was to take a pilgrimage to the chapel of our Blessed Lady at a
monastery of the Dominicans called Atocha, a place of worship and devotion.
However she grew weaker and, as was the custom of the time, her doctors had
bled her. Growing still weaker she prepared for her death. She settled up
outstanding matters of her estate, organising her will to ensure that the little
possessions she owned be given to the poor of Madrid and the poor
monasteries; she gave two hundred ducats to the poor of the town of Zaphra,
and a very charitable benevolence to the monasteries there; she also enabled all
her servants to remain in her house for two months, with a financial provision to
do so, so that they had time to provide for themselves.
She then organised for her coffin to be made.
She was bedridden for almost twelve months before her death, racked with pain
throughout her body, especially in left breast and the arm that had been broken.
Once, when taking her little grand-daughter in her arms, the pain in her arm
was so bad that she fainted, and from then on she couldn’t lift the arm again. In
all of this her memory remained sharp and she remained in high spirits.
Notwithstanding the pain she was suffering she still showed compassion to
others - only three days before her death she arranged for a master carpenter
who felt that he had not been appropriately paid for the timber-work he had
done on the Church of Sta. Marina to be compensated.
And the pain did not stop her from attending to her religious duties attentively.
When she could no longer leave her bed, it was arranged with the blessing of the
Archbishop of Toledo, that her oratory be moved so that she could see the altar
through the passage that entered into her chamber, and hear Mass, which was a
great comfort for her. She was able to do this right up until the day she died, on
the morning of her death she heard Mass for the last time.
Father Ribadeneira, a wise, learned and ancient Father of the Society, dedicated
his book “Dc los Santos Estravagantes” to her. His last message to her was "
Commend me much to the Duchess, and tell her that shortly we shall see each
other in Paradise.” She had this message repeatedly read to her in her last days
and took extraordinary consolation from it. Father Ribadeneira was to die not
long afterwards.
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Shortly before her final hour her two little granddaughters were brought to her.
She gave them her blessing and a little after nine o clock on the night of the
23rd of January, 1612, she slipped quietly and peacefully into death.
A dignified woman to the very end, the last thing that she said was to her maid
who attended at her bed's feet, bidding her to make sure that when she died her
bedclothes would be arranged so as to decently cover her body.
Jane was laid on a pallet dressed in a poor Franciscan habit, which had been a
holy good Friar’s garment, and which she had kept for many years for the
purpose of being her outward shroud, and with a scapular of St. Dominic's
Order. Her face was uncovered and her hands were held up close together, as if
praying. In this peaceful repose many remarked how beautiful she looked.
Jane Dormer, Duchess of Feria, had been loved by many and held
in very high esteem by everyone, rich and poor, who came into
contact with her. She had led a laudable and exemplary Christian
life.
Notes to the reader
The following notes are meant to give the reader a feeling for what life
was like in Jane’s time. They are not by any means all encompassing or
comprehensive, but a simple coverage of what it would have been like
to live in England and Spain in the 1500 and 1600s.
1. LIFE IN ENGLAND IN THE TIME OF JANE
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At the time Jane Dormer left the country in 1558 England probably had a
population of less than three and a half million. The largest town, London had a
population of around 200,000.
Tudor towns were dirty, smelly and crowded. There were no sewers and no
drains. Rubbish such as rotting vegetables, offal and dirty water were thrown in
the streets. In some towns every man was supposed to clean the street in front
of his house once a week but it is unlikely many people bothered! Rats and other
vermin were common.
England was an agricultural society and most of the population lived and worked
in the country and small rural villages and towns. Farming was very labour
intensive. But, larger towns and cities were growing rapidly and commerce was
becoming a more important part of the economy.
Wealth was based almost exclusively on land holdings in the hands of the
aristocracy and the landed gentry. The aristocracy was an important part of the
system of government and acted as an extension to the power of the crown.
There were two principal sources of power: the Crown and the Church.
Whilst there was a parliament, it was not the democratic institution we know
today and the system of government would be best described as a dictatorship.
The parliament served in an advisory capacity and had some influence but was,
Page 16 of 28
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in effect, subservient to the power of the crown because the sovereign could
bestow or withdraw the privileges of the members of parliament.
There were no central law enforcement institutions or organized public service or

administrators answerable to the crown. The crown relied upon the aristocracy
to implement its laws and maintain order and could bestow or withdraw these
privileges and rights at will. The monarch used the aristocracy, the gentry and
local town councils to administer the law and maintain civil order.
The law of the times was harsh and somewhat arbitrary. Imprisonment was not
part of the penal system. People were held in prison only pending trial.
Punishments ranged from fines, flogging, enforced slavery, branding, mutilation,
hanging or burning. If they were lucky the executioner might strangle the
unfortunate offender before they were burnt.
The nobility had titles, power and wealth generally through their ownership of
huge amounts of land. Below them were the gentry and rich merchants.
Gentlemen owned large amounts of land and they were usually educated and
had a family coat of arms. A growing middle class comprised yeomen and
craftsmen and increasingly, merchants. Yeomen owned their own land. They
could be as wealthy as gentlemen but they worked alongside their men. Yeomen
and craftsmen were often able to read and write. Below the yeomen were the
tenant farmers who leased their land from the rich. At the bottom of the social
and economic scale were wage labourers who were usually illiterate and very
poor.
2. Life in Spain in the time of Jane Dormer
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King Philip 11 of Spain
Jane lived in Spain during the reign of King Philip II, and during this time Spain
reached the peak of its influence and power as the foremost Western European
power. Philip directed explorations all around the world and colonized territories
in all the known continents.
Philip's foreign policies were determined by a combination of Catholic fervour

and dynastic self-interest. He considered himself by default the chief defender of
Catholic Europe, both against the Ottoman Turks and against the forces of
theProtestant Reformation. He never relented from his war against what he
regarded as heresy, preferring to fight on every front at whatever cost rather
than countenance freedom of worship within his territories.
Spanish control and the Counter-Reformation, a movement within the Catholic

Church to reform itself in the wake of the Protestant Reformation, achieved a
boost in 1554, when Philip married Queen Mary in a political union, however she
died childless in 1558 before the union could revitalize the Catholic Church in
England.
Spain was not a single monarchy with one legal system, but instead a federation
of separate realms, each jealously guarding its own rights against those of the
Crown of Castile, a union of the monarchies and parliaments of the kingdoms of
Castile and Toledo and the kingdoms of Leon and Galicia. In practice, Philip,
even though he was King, often found his authority overruled by local
assemblies, and his word less effective than that of local lords.
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Despite its immense dominions, Spain was a poor country with a sparse
population that yielded a limited income to the crown. Philip faced major
difficulties in raising taxes, the collection of which was largely farmed out to local
lords. He was able to finance his military campaigns only by taxing and
exploiting the local resources of his empire. Though the flow of income from the
New World proved vital to his militant foreign policy, his exchequer faced
bankruptcy several times.
Inflation throughout Europe in the sixteenth century was a broad and complex
phenomenon, with the flood of bullion from the Americas arguably being the
main cause of it in Spain, along with population growth, and government
spending. Under Philip's reign, Spain saw a fivefold increase in prices. Due to
inflation and a high tax burden for Spanish manufacturers and merchants,
Spanish industry was harmed and much of Spain’s wealth was spent on imported
manufactured goods by an opulent, status-oriented aristocracy and wars.
Philip's regime severely neglected farming in favor of sheep ranching, thus

forcing Spain to import large amounts of grain and other foods by the mid-
1560s. Presiding over a sharply divided conservative class structure, the Church
and the upper classes were exempt from taxation, while the tax burden fell
disproportionately on the classes engaged in trade, commerce, and industry.
Due to the inefficiencies of the Spanish state structure, industry was also greatly
over-burdened by government regulations.
On a positive note Philip's reign saw a flourishing of cultural excellence in Spain,

the beginning of what is called the Golden Age, creating a lasting legacy in
literature, music, and the visual arts.
3. Queen Mary I (Bloody Mary)
Mary Tudor was born on February 18, 1516. She was the only surviving child of
King Henry VIII’s first wife, Catherine of Aragon. Henry doted on Princess Mary
when she was little, calling her “the greatest pearl in the kingdom”. The
Princess received an excellent education, and was carefully sheltered.
In 1522 Henry arranged Mary’s betrothal to Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.

Charles was an adult, and Mary was just 6 years old; the marriage was planned
for when she was 12. Mary had met Charles and liked the idea of marrying him.
But in 1525 Charles broke off the engagement so that he could marry Princess
Isabella of Portugal. That same year Henry sent Princess Mary to live in Wales,
as was traditional for the King’s heir.
Early in 1527 the Princess returned to live at her father’s court and celebrated
her new engagement to a son of the French King. But Henry VIII’s attitude
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towards Mary and her mother had started to change. He had decided that God
disapproved of his marriage to Catherine; why else had the queen failed to
produce healthy male children. And he had fallen in love with Anne Boleyn, who
was to become his second wife.
Soon Mary learned that Henry wanted to annul his marriage to her mother; to
do this he needed the Pope’s permission. While he waited for permission he
continued to treat Catherine as his Queen and Mary as his heir. But Mary’s
legitimacy was now in doubt, making her less valuable on the marriage market.
The French engagement was broken off and no other match was arranged for
her; although her father’s advisors did consider marrying her to King Henry’s
illegitimate son Henry Fitzroy, though this did not eventuate.
Henry grew increasingly angry at Catherine’s resistance to end their marriage.

Finally in 1531 he sent Catherine away from the court, and after being shuffled
from palaces and castles, the Queen ended up a prisoner at Kimbolton Castle,
near Huntingdon.
Realising that the Pope would never grant his divorce, Henry split from the
Catholic Church, established the Church of England, leading to the English
Reformation, had his marriage declared invalid, and married Anne Boleyn. Anne
gave birth to a daughter, Princess Elizabeth in 1533.
Mary was now officially called a ‘bastard’, but like her mother she refused to
accept her change in status. Henry was incensed by his daughter’s defiance and
threatened to have her executed if she did not stop referring to herself as a
Princess. When Mary was 18, her household was disbanded and she was sent to
live in Princess Elizabeth’s household where she was treated very badly.
Catherine and Mary were not permitted to visit each other, and Catherine died of
natural causes, possibly cancer, in 1536 without seeing her daughter again.
Mary was now alone. Four months after Catherine’s death, her greatest enemy,
Anne Boleyn, was toppled from power. Falsely accused of adultery she was
executed. Anne had hated Mary and had stated that she wanted her dead. With
Anne gone Henry treated Mary a little more kindly and his third, fourth and six
wives were all well disposed towards Mary. However she got on less well with his
fifth wife, the teenage Katherine Howard. Although she never regained her
former status or her father’s affection, Mary was now once again a part of the
Royal family.
At first she got on well with the King’s other children, however as Elizabeth and
Edward grew up, their Protestant views put them at odds with Mary, who never
swayed from her devout Catholicism. After Henry’s death in 1547, Mary’s nine
year old half brother, became King Edward VI. As King, the highly religious
Edward strongly disapproved of his elder sister Mary's ardent Catholicism and
Page 20 of 28
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criticised Mary about her beliefs. Edward VI, however, was to contract measles
and smallpox when he was 14 and this left him very weak. In 1553 when he
was just 15, he died of tuberculosis. On his deathbed he disinherited Mary in
favour of their teenage cousin, Lady Jane Grey.
John Dudley, the Duke of Northumberland and a strong Protestant, was the
young king’s protector. Edward had put a great deal of trust in Dudley, who
encouraged the boy King to write his will and to name Lady Jane Grey as his
successor. Lady Jane herself had no desire to be Queen.
Dudley had great aspirations for himself and had devised a plan in which his son,
Guilford Dudley and the young Lady Jane Grey would be married, in turn giving
him the power he craved.
Within days, Princess Mary received word that her brother was ill and that he
requested to see her. Unaware that he had already passed away, she left for
London and straight into Dudley's plan to capture and imprison her, allowing
Jane to take the throne unchallenged.
However, while enroute, the plan became known to Mary and she escaped to
Norfolk allowing her time to create her own scheme of gaining the crown.
With public sentiment behind her, Mary brought her own troops to move in on
London. In response, Dudley gathered his own regiment and set out to meet
her. In fear for her life, Lady Jane Grey demanded that the Tower remain locked.
Mary's following proved too strong for her opponents and by the next night it
was clear that she was the victor. Jane's supporters fled the tower to save their
heads leaving Jane abandoned. Mary claimed the throne unopposed and Lady
Jane Grey faced the criminal charges without the support of those who put her in
power. She was locked away in the Tower and was executed the following year.
After a lifetime of sorrow and danger the 37 year old Mary Tudor was the most
powerful person in England.
Soon after her accession Mary considered marrying Prince Philip of Spain, the
son of her former fiancé Emperor Charles V, and eleven years her junior.
Though worried about the age difference Mary was convinced by her envoys that
Philip was a mature, stable adult who would help her protect her kingdom.
Mary’s subjects however were alarmed to learn of her engagement to the
Spanish prince, and feared that England would become part of Spain. However
Mary had no intention of turning the country over to Philip.
He arrived in England on July 20 1554 and met Mary for the first time in on July
23. Mary liked Phillip from the start and he treated her kindly, though he
Page 21 of 28
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possibly found her unattractive. The men who had accompanied him to England
later described Mary as old, badly dressed, and almost toothless. However the
wedding took place two days later, and two months later Mary’s doctors advised
her that she was pregnant.
In December a law was passed that allowed Bishops of the Church of England to
sentence heretics to death by burning. Almost 300 people were burned alive
during Mary’s reign, with her full approval, earning her the nickname of “Bloody
Mary”.
By the summer of 1555 it was apparent that Mary was no longer pregnant, if
indeed she had ever been, and Mary was bitterly disappointed.
Phillip left England for Spain, promising Mary that he would return soon. He
didn’t come back until March 1557 and Mary missed him terribly. During his
absence he had become King of Spain. After a few months he left to go to war
and Mary never saw him again – she was to die before his return.
After Philip’s departure Mary suffered another humiliating false pregnancy, and
she became depressed and paranoid. Adding to her misery was the French
conquest of the city of Calais, which had been in English hands for over 200
years.
Tortured by loneliness and unhappiness Queen Mary fell ill, and died on
November 17 1558.
3. The Church and its powerful presence in Jane’s life
It is not possible to understand Jane’s life without understanding two important

things. The first is just how important her Catholic faith was to her. In fact, if
any one quality appears to have defined Jane it was that she was a devoutly
religious woman.
This allegiance to her faith never faltered – not even when her mother’s side of
the family turned to the new Protestant faith, or when there was turbulence
within society and the monarchy, forcing her and her husband to flee to Spain.
Page 22 of 28
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The second point is that the Church had a powerful, political and turbulent
omnipresence for all who lived during Jane’s lifetime. This can be seen in each
of the three monarch’s reigns under which she lived.
In 1547, Henry VIII died and was succeeded by his son, Edward VI. Since
Edward was still a child, rule passed to a regency council dominated by
Protestants, who attempted to establish their faith throughout the country.
During this time Princess Mary remained faithful to Roman Catholicism but found
it necessary to worship in private in her own chapel.
Edward VI died of tuberculosis at the age of 15. He had excluded both his
sisters, Mary and Elizabeth from the line of succession in his will, fearing that if
the Crown did go to Mary she would restore Catholicism and undo the many
reforms implemented by him and Henry VIII. Law of the time dictated that he
had to disinherit both sisters, even though Elizabeth embraced the Church of
England faith. However, this exclusion contradicted the Act of Succession of
1544 and Mary was rightfully restored to the throne.
During Mary I’s reign (19 July 1553 - 17 November 1558) she restored England
to Roman Catholicism. Mary persuaded Parliament to repeal the Protestant
religious laws passed by Henry VIII. Protestants were persecuted and a number
were executed as heretics. Many fled for their own safety to Protestant states in
Europe. Mary had almost 300 religious dissenters burned at the stake in the
Marian Persecutions, earning her the sobriquet of "Bloody Mary".
However, all this changed on the death of Mary and the accession of her
successor and half-sister Elizabeth I in 1558. Elizabeth reigned from 17
November 1558 until her death on 24 March 1603. She had been educated as a
Protestant and it was only a matter of time before she reversed the religious
changes of Mary, sweeping aside Roman Catholicism. Her coronation was a
signal for many Protestant refugees to return to their homeland. One of her first
moves as queen was to support the establishment of an English Protestant
Church, of which she became the Supreme Governor. This Elizabethan Religious
Settlement held firm throughout her reign and later evolved into today's Church
of England.
James VI & I was King of Scots as James VI from 1567 to 1625, and King of
England and Ireland as James I from 1603 to 1625.
He became King of Scotland as James VI on 24 July 1567, when he was just

thirteen months old, succeeding his mother Mary, Queen of Scots. Regents
governed during his minority, which ended officially in 1578, though he did not
gain full control of his government until 1581. On 24 March 1603, as James I, he
succeeded the last Tudor monarch of England and Ireland, Elizabeth I, who died
without having children.
Shortly into his rule James 1 faced a failed assassination attempt by a group of
provincial English Catholics in what has become known as The Gunpowder
Conspiracy of 1605 (also known as Powder Treason or The Gunpowder Plot).
Page 23 of 28
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The plot intended to kill the King, his family and most of the Protestant
aristocracy by blowing up the Houses of Parliament during the State Opening on
5 November 1605. The conspirators had also planned to abduct the royal
children (who were not present in Parliament) and lead a popular revolt in the
Midlands.
The Gunpowder Plot reinforced James's oppression of non-conforming English

Catholics; and he sanctioned harsh measures for controlling them. In May 1606,
Parliament passed the Popish Recusants Act requiring every citizen to take an
Oath of Allegiance denying the Pope's authority over the King. James was
conciliatory towards Catholics who took the Oath of Allegiance, and he tolerated
crypto-Catholicism even at court. However, in practice he enacted even harsher
measures against Catholics than were laid upon them by Elizabeth. James was at
first strict in enforcing conformity towards the Puritan clergy, but this became
less apparent as his reign wore on. A notable success of the Hampton Court
Conference of January 1604, which was a meeting between the King and the
representatives of the Church of England, was the commissioning of a new
translation and compilation of approved books of the Bible. This new Bible,
which was completed in 1611, confirmed the divine right of Kings to rule and to
maintain the social hierarchy, and became known as the King James Bible.
In Scotland, James attempted to bring the Scottish kirk "so neir as can be" to
the English church and re-establish the episcopacy, a policy which met with
strong opposition. James was to leave the Church in Scotland divided at his
death, a source of future problems for his son.
It was against this tumultuous backdrop that Jane lived her life and
explains simplistically why she and her husband, both devout Catholics,
thought it wise, if not necessary, to move to Spain following the death
of Mary I.
Sources and for further information
Numerous resources were researched to develop this story. Many of them

were extremely laborious to read or, like the biography of Jane Dormer,
written in old English and quite labour intensive to translate. The
biography itself was the most comprehensive source of information, and
though undeniably it may be considered a somewhat biased account of
Jane’s life and the Catholic/Protestant struggle, it must be considered a
valuable record of her life and the times in which she lived.
If you are interested in pursuing your own research on Jane Dormer the
following sources would be worthwhile checking.
Page 24 of 28
Draft 1
1. The life of Jane Dormer, Duchess of Feria by Clifford, Henry
Published in 1887, Burns and Oates, limited (London)
2. http://www.archive.org/stream/lifejanedormerd00stevgoog/lifejanedo
rmerd00stevgoog_djvu.txt
This is a digital copy of the book above that was preserved for generations on library
shelves before it was carefully scanned by Google. It has survived long enough for
the copyright to expire and the book to enter the public domain.
Marks and notations present in the original volume appear in this file - a reminder of
this book's long journey from the author to the publisher and finally to the reader
generations later.
3. Warwickshire County Record Office
DORMER OF GROVE PARK
Reference CR 895
Covering dates 14th Century - 19th Century
Held by Warwickshire County Record Office
Extent 22 series
Source of DEPOSITED IN THE WARWICK COUNTY RECORD OFFICE AT

acquisition THE SHIRE HALL, WARWICK THE 10th NOVEMBER, 1964.
Creators Dormer family of Grove Park, Warwickshire
Administrative history:
DOCUMENTS BELONGING TO THE RIGHT HON. THE LORD DORMER RELATING

TO THE DORMER FAMILY AND THE GROVE PARK ESTATE
Documents re: the Duchess of Feria and Dormer families [no ref. or date]
These documents are held at Warwickshire County Record Office

Page 25 of 28
Draft 1
Parcel containing notes and extracts from documents concerning the Duchess
of Feria, and the Dormer family possibly materials for a book, with a few original
documents included CR 895/61 c1852-1854
Small packet of "Manuscripts and drawings relating to the Dormer family and
the life of the Duchess of Feria -- lent by the executors of the late Canon
Estcourt to assist in preparing the life of the Duchess of Feria for publication.
1888" CR 895/62 late 19th cent
Miscellaneous papers and a notebook of Canon E. Estcourt relating to the

Duchess of Feria, with some original papers of the Tichborne family, also
summonses to the coronations of William IV and Victoria CR 895/63 c1830-
1850
Packet of papers containing extracts from various sources relating to the

Duchess of Feria CR 895/64 c1850
Packet of rough notes and pedigree material on the Dormer and related
families CR 895/65 c1850
Extracts from a source described as "Willis MS" relating to Dormer coats of

arms CR 895/66 c1850
Packet of larger papers, including printed material relating to Catholic

emancipation, 1791. Printed papers about an action of ejectment relating to an
estate in Bucks., between John Dormer, Esq., and Samuel Berington, 1738.
Fragment of a book containing notes about Lord Dormer killed at the first battle
of Newbury, and other members of the family, early 19th c. Copies of 2
documents in Hungarian, said to be an agreement between Count John Buttler
and his sister, 1799, and also his will, 1845. Copy of the Dormer coat of arms
with an inscription made at the time of the death in Hungary of John Dormer
aged 66 in 1796. Official release of Joseph Dormer from his service as lieutenant
after 6 years service in the Imperial Austrian army, 1827 CR 895/67 c1738-
1845
Page 26 of 28
Draft 1
4. Dictionary of National Biography Volume 28

http://thepeerage.com/p3066.htm
5. The Death-Beds of "Bloody Mary" and "Good Queen Bess" by Robert

Hugh Benson, M.A.
http://archives.nd.edu/episodes/visitors/rhb/essays03.htm
6. thePeerage.com Jane Dormer

http://www.thepeerage.com/p32866.htm
____________________
6. Tudor Place Jane Dormer
http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/DORMER.htm
______________________________________________________________________
7. Jane Dormer
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Dormer
8. Transactions of the Royal Historical Society Jane Dormer
http://books.google.com.au/books?
id=E_WXPJH5kAcC&pg=PA199&lpg=PA199&dq=Jane+Dormer+Duchess+of+F
eria&source=bl&ots=FwGZ3W2s5i&sig=QN6RQdqjV99eutMJIfAdUl5aefI&hl=en
&ei=PmrWSr3sDYOOswOI9cXdAg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=
3&ved=0CBAQ6AEwAjgK#v=onepage&q=Jane%20Dormer%20Duchess%20of
%20Feria&f=false
______________________________________________________________
Dictionary of National Biography by Sir Leslie Stephen Jane Dormer
id=zqOfU_Ckag8C&pg=PA247&lpg=PA247&dq=Jane+Dormer+Duchess+of+Feria&sourc
e=bl&ots=6CoU-gBMEA&sig=ADuSywUOH0qYmUImJftzlOoNiJU&hl=en&ei=8miPSui1E4-
eswPkzqQM&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6#v=onepage&q=&f=false
Page 27 of 28
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A historical dictionary of British women by Routledge Jane Dormer
id=pDtEe4FKolUC&pg=PA138&lpg=PA138&dq=Jane+Dormer+Duchess+of+Feria&source
=bl&ots=ZvEQN76R1h&sig=l3i54aCk6h3o1_zPqyZldhm40n8&hl=en&ei=nFeGSqL0BY2os
gONlPGhBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false
The Religious Orders in England, Volume 3 by David Knowles
id=D2AcSW3N6ssC&pg=PA227&lpg=PA227&dq=J+Stevenson+(ed)
+The+Life+of+Jane+Dormer&source=bl&ots=bAK_Rameub&sig=SUClzxlyqx5tA
ar_Da6C6VGadOQ&hl=en&ei=jG7WSo21Eo3GsQOHj6naAg&sa=X&oi=book_resul
t&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CBUQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=J%20Stevenson
%20(ed)%20The%20Life%20of%20Jane%20Dormer&f=false
Page 28 of 28

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Jane Dormer Story 1538-1612