Jean Ker, Countess of Roxburghe facts for kids
Jean Ker, born Jean Drummond (around 1585–1643), was an important Scottish lady at court. She worked for Anne of Denmark, who was the Queen of Scotland and England.
Jean Drummond was the daughter of Patrick Drummond, 3rd Lord Drummond and Elizabeth Lindsay.
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Working for the Queen
Jean Drummond was a gentlewoman in Queen Anne's household. This meant she was a lady-in-waiting and a close helper. In 1602, she even helped care for the young Prince Charles at Dunfermline Palace. Prince Charles was slow to learn to walk. So, a special wooden stool with wheels was made for Jean Drummond to help him practice.
In 1603, King James VI of Scotland also became King of England. Queen Anne wanted to take her son, Prince Henry, to London. Jean Drummond was with the Queen at Stirling Castle on May 10, 1603. The Queen had a disagreement with the Master of Mar and Marie Stewart, Countess of Mar about Prince Henry.
Life in England
Jean Drummond often bought fine linen and lace for the Queen's clothes. In September 1603, the court moved to Winchester to avoid the plague in London. The Queen ordered new clothes for Jean and other Scottish ladies who had traveled with her. These ladies included Anne Livingstone and Margaret Hartsyde. Before her marriage, Queen Anne also gave Jean Drummond some of her old clothes as gifts.
In November 1603, the Spanish ambassador invited some Scottish ladies to dinner. He wanted to see "natural beauties." Jean Drummond and Anna Hay were among them. They received gifts like gold chains and fancy Spanish leather gloves.
Jean Drummond and Anna Hay were important members of the Queen's household. They each had two footmen to help them.
In October 1605, the King's council suggested cutting down on food for the royal households. Jean Drummond had a special food allowance, more than most other ladies at court. This showed she was highly favored by the Queen.
In 1607, there were talks about Jean marrying Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll. She wrote to her cousin, Duncan Campbell of Glenorchy, about it. She wasn't very keen on being a second wife, especially because of his financial situation. So, the marriage plans did not go ahead.
Queen's Entertainment and Poetry
Jean Drummond was part of The Masque of Beauty, a special play performed in January 1608. An Italian poet in London, Antimo Galli, wrote poems about the event. He even wrote a poem praising Jean, calling her "Giovanna." The poem celebrated her friendship with the Queen.
Sickness at Court
In June 1609, Jean Drummond and Lady Fleetwood were with David Abercromby, a Queen's servant, as he was dying. He told them his wishes for his will. David Abercromby had worked with the goldsmith George Heriot on the Queen's jewels.
Sadly, other ladies of the Queen also died that summer. In November 1610, one of Jean Drummond's maids died from the plague at Greenwich Palace. The Queen quickly moved to Whitehall to avoid getting sick. Soon after, Jean Drummond's living quarters were taken down.
Helping Others at Court
Jean Drummond had an important role in the Queen's household. She signed financial papers. For example, in 1609, she approved a payment of £500 to the Queen's jeweler, George Heriot. In 1612, she approved payments for the Queen's four French musicians.
Because she was so close to the Queen, Jean Drummond could help others. Arbella Stuart thanked Jean for speaking to the Queen on her behalf. Arbella hoped Jean would help the Queen convince the King to "weigh my cause aright." Jean wrote back that the Queen had given Arbella's request to King James. But he only said Arbella "had eaten of the forbidden tree," meaning she had done something wrong. Arbella Stuart sent Jean Drummond, who was in charge of the Queen's clothes, some gloves she had embroidered herself for the Queen. The Queen then sent Arbella a gift, showing she still favored her.
In May 1608, Jean Drummond wrote to Thomas Hamilton, a King's lawyer in Scotland. She mentioned telling the Queen that King James had paid him for his silver mine at Hilderston. She congratulated him on this good fortune and on the birth of his daughter. She had asked if Queen Anne would be a godparent, but the Queen said no. Hamilton's daughter was named Anna, after the Queen.
Jean also wrote to Hamilton about the Queen's business. She mentioned the case of Margaret Hartsyde, a Queen's servant, who was on trial in Edinburgh. The Queen wanted Hartsyde to be found guilty and punished severely.
Helping Lord Balmerino
Lord Balmerino got into trouble for old charges. In December 1608, he thought Jean Drummond was helping him. Jean was encouraging Queen Anne to speak up for Balmerino. But King James stepped in. He made Jean understand that helping Balmerino would put her friend Alexander Seton, a high-ranking official, at a disadvantage. Balmerino was found guilty of treason in March 1609. He was sentenced to a harsh punishment, but it was not carried out. This was because Queen Anne, at Jean Drummond's urging, spoke up for him. Balmerino was eventually released from prison.
Spanish Connections
Spanish diplomats also saw Jean Drummond as a way to influence the Queen. She received a regular payment from Spain. In 1604, she was given a fancy hair ornament with 75 diamonds. In 1611, the Spanish ambassador wrote that a Catholic priest was secretly staying at Queen Anne's court, pretending to be Jean Drummond's servant.
In 1615, the English ambassador in Madrid looked into the gifts Jean received from Spain. He reported to King James that she had received some jewels and a basin and ewer (a type of jug and bowl) around the time of her marriage. He found nothing to suggest she had done anything wrong.
Queen's Art and Friendship
In November 1611, Jean Drummond talked about the Queen's reputation. She compared the Queen being happy among "harmless pictures in a paltry gallery" to a powerful Earl's "great employments in fair rooms." This showed that Queen Anne enjoyed her art collection in smaller, private spaces.
When Prince Henry died in 1612, Jean Drummond and other members of the Queen's household were given mourning clothes. In 1612 and 1613, Jean helped her friend Anne Livingstone. Anne was trying to get her husband recognized as the Earl of Eglinton. Jean successfully convinced the Queen to speak to King James on her friend's behalf.
Countess of Roxburghe
Jean Drummond married Robert Ker, 1st Lord Roxburghe on February 3, 1614. Their wedding was held at Somerset House and attended by the King and Queen. People heard that the Queen would pay for the celebrations. The wedding feast and a special play were said to have cost the Queen £3000. It was a chance for the Queen to show off the newly decorated Somerset House.
There was another celebration the next day for the Lord Mayor of London and other important officials. The Earl of Rutland gave the couple a wedding gift of a fancy gilt bowl, a cover, and candlesticks.
After her marriage, she continued to sign letters as "Jane Drummond." In those days, married women in Scotland usually kept their own family names.
Queen Anne had a portrait of Jean at Oatlands. Mary Seton, who used to be a maid for Mary, Queen of Scots, wrote to Jean in September 1614.
Jean was with the Queen when she was sick at Greenwich Palace in May 1615. She wrote to her husband that the doctor was telling the King about the Queen's illness. The Queen's foot was swollen, and she had been sitting in a chair all day.
In March 1616, King James gave her £3000. This was to thank her for her long and loyal service to the Queen. In January 1617, she was a godmother to Elizabeth Gordon, the daughter of Sir Robert Gordon.
Leaving the Court
In 1617, Queen Anne asked Jean to leave the court. This happened after it was found out that Jean's husband wanted to be appointed a high-ranking official for Prince Charles, without telling the Queen.
On May 10, 1617, Jean signed a receipt as "Jane Roxbrough." This was for a payment of £500, part of the King's £3,000 gift to her. This gift was "in consideration of long and faithful service done to the Queen." Lord Roxburghe came to the Queen's household in August 1617, and Jean left the court. Her leaving worried the ambassadors from Spain and Venice. They had relied on Jean, who was Catholic, as a trusted friend of the Queen.
Lady Anne Clifford mentioned that Jean was pregnant and traveled to Scotland in a special covered carriage. Lucy, Countess of Bedford, was sad that her friend had returned to Scotland. In October 1617, she wrote that Jean's absence made her "perfectly hate the court."
Life in Scotland
Records of Jean and her husband's spending from 1619 to 1630 fill many pages. They mention her home at East Roxburgh, a townhouse in Edinburgh, and Broxmouth near Dunbar.
She gave clothes to her friend Margaret Seton, Lady Dudhope. She also visited her at Dudhope in Dundee. Her husband bought pistols for Lord Roxburghe from a gunsmith in Dundee, and Jean gave him a tip. Her step-daughter, Isobel Ker, married Margaret Seton's son.
Her household records show spices and food items like cinnamon, ginger, and sugar almonds bought in Edinburgh. These were sent to East Roxburgh, along with materials for clothes. She bought fabrics for herself, her husband, her nieces and nephews, and her servants. In July 1619, she gave money to a boy walking on stilts on Soutra Hill who said he was going all the way to London.
In a letter from May 1622, she mentioned being afraid to sail across the River Forth from Leith. She had never done it before and was going to a christening in Fife. However, an earlier trip in 1619 to Dudhope Castle involved crossing the Forth. In July 1623, she traveled with the Viscount Lauderdale to Drummond Castle to stay with her brother John Drummond, 2nd Earl of Perth.
Royal Governess Again
In 1630, King Charles I wanted to appoint Jean as governess to his son, the Prince of Wales (later King Charles II). But this was not allowed because of her religion. So, the Countess of Dorset was chosen instead.
However, a year later, Lady Roxburghe was appointed governess to Princess Mary. Later, in 1641, she also became governess to Prince Henry and Princess Elizabeth.
In 1642, Jean traveled with Princess Mary to The Hague after Mary married Prince William of Orange. On the way back from the Netherlands, a royal ship sank in bad weather. A silk dress believed to belong to Jean was found in the shipwreck off the Dutch island of Texel in 2014. However, this idea has since been questioned.
When she returned to England, Jean was replaced as Princess Mary's governess. But she continued to be governess to Prince Henry and Princess Elizabeth in 1642. She also hosted Lilias Drummond, her niece, at her house in London. Lilias married James Murray, 2nd Earl of Tullibardine in May 1643.
Jean Ker, Countess of Roxburghe, died on October 7, 1643. She was buried in Holyrood Abbey.
Her husband's will from 1650 mentioned a diamond and ruby chain. It also mentioned a locket with a tiny portrait of Anne of Denmark, surrounded by diamonds. The main diamond was heart-shaped. He also owned a "valentine set with diamonds" with a crown and a picture of Charles I of England when he was the Duke of York. These jewels were likely gifts to his wife from the Queen.
Family Life
Jean's first son died in 1616. A daughter was christened in April 1616. Queen Anne of Denmark and Lucy, Countess of Bedford, were the godparents.
Her son, Henry Kerr, married Margaret Hay. Henry Kerr joined the Scottish Covenanters, who were against the King. On May 20, 1639, Jean wrote from Whitehall. She expressed her sadness about her son joining the Covenanters. Henry Kerr died in 1643, leaving three or four daughters. His widow, Margaret Hay, later married the Earl of Cassilis.
