Review: Mistress of Dartington Hall by Rosemary Griggs

1587. England is at war with Spain. The people of Devon wait in terror for King Philip of Spain’s mighty armada to unleash untold devastation on their land.

Roberda, daughter of a French Huguenot leader, has been managing the Dartington estate in her estranged husband Gawen’s absence. She has gained the respect of the staff and tenants who now look to her to lead them through these dark times.

Gawen’s unexpected return from Ireland, where he has been serving Queen Elizabeth, throws her world into turmoil. He joins the men of the west country, including his cousin, Sir Walter Raleigh, and his friend Sir Francis Drake, as they prepare to repel a Spanish invasion. Amidst musters and alarms, determined and resourceful Roberda rallies the women of Dartington. But, after their earlier differences, can she trust Gawen? Or should she heed the advice of her faithful French maid, Clotilde?

Later Roberda will have to fight if she is to remain Mistress of Dartington Hall, and secure her children’s inheritance. Can she ever truly find fulfilment for herself?

My Review

This is the first time I read a book in this series, and I admit it took me a while to get up to speed. The author has done a good job feeding us the back story, but I’m sure I lost the emotional significance of Roberda’s terrible treatment by her husband Gawen. When he returns in this book, somewhat chastened, she rediscovers her tattered love for him and does her best to put the past behind them. She manages to fool herself despite the unforgiving comments of her dear friend and servant Clotilde:

‘It’s a fine time for you to be bearing another child. The forces of Spain are about to rain down on us!’ Clotilde threw her hands up into the air. There was an uneasy silence before she spoke again. ‘But it is only to be expected after your joyful reunion at Christmas.’ The derision in her voice cut me to the quick. She went on, turning the knife in a raw wound. ‘I don’t suppose it will be the last. Mark me well! Bearing his children will wear you down. It is the best way for a man to keep his wife in her place.’ She picked up her skirts and bustled away like a hen with ruffled feathers, leaving me speechless.

Many babies do follow, and Clotilde’s words come true with a vengeance. But Roberda is made of stern stuff, and manages to keep body and soul together—and the rest of the household—through challenging events that could easily have torn the family and estate apart. This is during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and the story starts just as England is threatened by the Spanish Armada. We meet Sir Francis Drake and Walter Raleigh, both friends of the family, and grit our teeth as Gawen pushes Roberda aside, taking back control of Darlington as though his wife has no value. She makes a good brood mare, though! Ultimately, she finds herself on her own, and must bring the estate back from the brink of disaster, despite heavy interference from unscrupulous relatives of her husband.

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Meet Rosemary Griggs

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, set in Tudor Devon, is the story of the life of Katherine Champernowne, Sir Walter Raleigh’s mother. The Dartington Bride, follows Lady Gabrielle Roberda Montgomery, a young Huguenot noblewoman, as she travels from war-torn France to Elizabethan England to marry into the prominent Champernowne family. Mistress of Dartington Hall, set in the time of the Spanish Armada, continues Roberda’s story.

Rosemary is currently working on her first work of non-fiction — a biography of Kate Astley, childhood governess to Queen Elizabeth I, due for publication in 2026.

Rosemary creates and wears sixteenth-century clothing, and brings the past to life through a unique blend of theatre, history and re-enactment at events all over the West Country. Out of costume, Rosemary leads heritage tours at Dartington Hall, a fourteenth-century manor house that was home of the Champernowne family for 366 years.