Gender and Authority: Bess of Hardwick in Tudor History and Philippa Gregory’s The Other Queen

Abstract

Bess of Hardwick, daughter of a farmer, became one of the most influential women of the period after Queen Elizabeth I in the Elizabethan era.  She climbed in the social strata through her strategic marriages when women’s authority was limited. Her life as a successful builder, landowner, and political negotiator defied the traditional expectations of women of the period. This paper analyses the dynamic relationship between gender and authority through the life and actions of Bess of Hardwick in Tudor England. Through a close reading of Philippa Gregory’s historical novel The Other Queen, the paper examines Bess’s strategies for asserting authority in a rigid patriarchal society. It sheds light on how gender shaped her opportunities and experiences.