Book Review: Queen Elizabeth I's Governess: The Real Kat Ashley by Rosemary Griggs

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Some of the most intriguing people in Tudor history are those who stood outside the spotlight. Katherine 'Kat' or Kate Ashley is one of these. Best known as the governess and confidante of Queen Elizabeth I, she played a pivotal role in the future queen's life, yet is overshadowed by more famous figures around her. 

In Queen Elizabeth I's Governess: The Real Kat Ashley, Rosemary Griggs sets out to change that with a thoroughly researched and engaging biography.

I particularly liked the extracts from letters and contemporary accounts, as researching someone like Kat Ashley is a real challenge. Much of her life has to be inferred from the correspondence of others. It takes persistence and an historian's instinct to piece together fragments into a convincing narrative.

The structure of the book reflects those challenges. The first part sets the scene, exploring on the Tudor world and the Ashley family, providing some context for a woman whose early life remains largely undocumented. Part two picks up the pace as Kate enters Princess Elizabeth's household. 

Rosemary Griggs paints a convincing and nuanced portrait of a woman who was more than a governess. Kate Ashley was a teacher, mentor, protector and trusted companion, remaining loyal through some of the most dangerous years of Elizabeth's life. The chapters covering the Thomas Seymour affair are well handled, presenting the available evidence with balance.

The last part of the book shifts gear again as Elizabeth becomes queen. Kate Ashley appears less frequently in the surviving records, but Rosemary Griggs demonstrates how her influence remained significant.

This biography serves as a reminder of how people behind the scenes often shaped events in ways that are easily overlooked. Rosemary Griggs deserves credit for the painstaking research that underpins this book, as well as for producing a narrative that remains accessible throughout.

Queen Elizabeth I's Governess: The Real Kat Ashley is recommended for anyone interested in Tudor history. More importantly, it allows Kate Ashley the recognition she deserves, transforming her from a familiar name in the footnotes into a remarkable woman whose influence on England's greatest queen must not be underestimated.

Tony Riches

I would like to thank the publishers, Pen and Sword History, for providing a review copy of this book.

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About the Author

Author and speaker Rosemary Griggs has been researching Devon's sixteenth-century history for years. She has discovered a cast of fascinating characters and an intriguing network of families whose influence stretched far beyond the West Country. She loves telling the stories of the forgotten women of history — the women beyond the royal court; wives, sisters, daughters and mothers who played their part during those tumultuous Tudor years: the Daughters of Devon. Her novel A Woman of Noble Wit tells the story of Katherine Champernowne, Sir Walter Raleigh’s mother, and features many of the county’s well-loved places. The Dartington Bride, published March 2024, is the extraordinary tale of Lady Gabrielle Roberda Montgomery who travelled from France to Elizabethan England to marry into the prominent and well-connected Champernowne family. Rosemary creates and wears sixteenth-century clothing, a passion which complements her love for bringing the past to life through a unique blend of theatre, history and re-enactment. Her appearances and talks for museums and community groups all over the West Country draw on her extensive research into sixteenth-century Devon, Tudor life and Tudor dress, particularly Elizabethan. Out of costume, Rosemary leads heritage tours of the gardens at Dartington Hall, a fourteenth-century manor house and now a a historic visitor destination, events venue and thriving community of businesses, colleges and more. You can find out more on Rosemary’s website:  https://rosemarygriggs.co.uk/ and follow her on Bluesky and Twitter @RAGriggsauthor