While the Tudors might not have celebrated New Year’s day as the actual start of the new year, they did call it that and exchange presents on that day. I have done some posts about this before – including one showing how Henry’s New Year gifts to Anne changed drastically once she became his wife (from jewelry to the Tudor equivalent of household appliances …), and another about the Tudor equivalent of tipping your mail carrier – but this will be my first one for Elizabeth (and yes, this was one of the key books I went out to buy as I rebuilt my library after the fires).
We know a lot more about Elizabeth’s gift exchanges than we do about Henry’s (thank you, Jane Lawson, for finding and assembling them so well!), and with so many of Elizabeth’s gift rolls preserved, we can really see trends. A huge one that stands out is the size of the gifts to Robert and Ambrose Dudley.
First, some context. New Year’s gift exchanges were quite regimented. While some gifts to the Queen might be personal, gifts were just about always measured in ounces of plate. To keep potential resentments low, people’s titles and class largely determined how many ounces that would be, though there was always room to send a message of particular favor.
In Elizabeth’s first gift exchange, which occurred a little more than a month after her accession, Robert and Ambrose received gifts largely in line with others at their level. With “lords” (as opposed to Earls, Barons and miscellaneous Gentlemen) getting between 20 and 35 ounces, Ambrose got 17 and Robert got 30 (while giving a “remnant of black satin” and a “fair chain set with pearls” respectively). But in a little more than ten years, they were dominating the lists: while the 1571 records show that Earls in general (which they were by then) averaged around 30 ounces, Robert got 132 (you read that right) and Ambrose 112. By way of further contrast, William Cecil (Elizabeth’s most important minister throughout her reign who would only become a baron later that year) received 35 ounces that year and in fact never received more than 41 ounces in any of the exchanges (though his wife often also received 35 ounces so their combined take was not quite so far off…).
Interestingly, some of this favoritism for the Dudleys survived Elizabeth’s discovery that Robert had married her cousin (arguably niece) Lettice Knollys…though the gap admittedly narrowed between the Dudleys and the rest of the court. The year immediately preceding Robert’s death, he received 132 ounces, which was surpassed by the combined 156 received by Ambrose and Anne Dudley.. Still, nothing even came close to Elizabeth’s annual gifts to Christopher Hatton, all in the 400 ounces range. Talk about sending a message!
Speaking of messages, thank you all all for being part of my Tudor world; thank you for your wonderful support: the likes, shares, reviews, comments, feedback, and other hugs. I wish you all a happy, healthy, meaningful, and Tudor-filled 2026.
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