The Tragic Fall of John Dudley

On this day in Tudor history, 21 October 1554, John Dudley, 2nd Earl of Warwick, died at Penshurst in Kent, just days after being released from the Tower of London.

The son of John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, and brother of Robert Dudley and Guildford Dudley, Warwick was born to power and promise. Knight of the Bath, Master of the Horse, and one of Edward VI’s glittering young courtiers, his rise seemed assured.

But the failed attempt to place Lady Jane Grey on the throne destroyed the family’s fortunes. Imprisoned, condemned for treason, and stripped of his titles, Warwick’s freedom came too late. He died in quiet disgrace at his brother-in-law Henry Sidney’s home, aged only in his twenties.

I’m historian and author Claire Ridgway, and today we remember the overshadowed John Dudley, Earl of Warwick.

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