Bess of Hardwick

Bess of Hardwick
Countess of Shrewsbury
Bess of Hardwick, Countess of Shrewsbury, by Rowland Lockey, 1592 in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery, London
Born	c. 1527
Died	13 February 1608
Buried	All Saints Church, Derby
Noble family	Hardwick
Spouse(s)	Robert Barley Sir William Cavendish Sir William St Loe George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury
Issue	Frances Cavendish Temperance Cavendish Henry Cavendish William Cavendish, 1st Earl of Devonshire Charles Cavendish Elizabeth Stuart, Countess of Lennox Mary Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury Lucrece Cavendish
Father	John Hardwick
Mother	Elizabeth Leeke

Elizabeth Cavendish, later Elizabeth Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury (née Hardwick; c. 1521  – 13 February 1608), known as Bess of Hardwick, of Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire, was a notable figure of Elizabethan English society. By a series of well-made marriages, she rose to the highest levels of English nobility and became enormously wealthy. Bess was reportedly a shrewd businesswoman, increasing her assets with business interests including mines and glass-making workshops.

She was married four times. Her first husband was Robert Barley (or Barlow), who died aged about 14 or 15 on 24 December 1544.^[3] Her second husband was the courtier Sir William Cavendish. Her third husband was Sir William St Loe. Her last husband was George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury, sometime keeper to the captive Mary, Queen of Scots. An accomplished needlewoman, Bess joined her husband's captive charge at Chatsworth House for extended periods in 1569, 1570, and 1571, during which time they worked together on the Oxburgh Hangings.

In 1601, Bess ordered an inventory of the household furnishings, including textiles, at her three properties at Chatsworth, Hardwick, and Chelsea, which survives. In her will she bequeathed these items to her heirs to be preserved in perpetuity. The 400-year-old collection, now known as the Hardwick Hall textiles, is the largest collection of tapestry, embroidery, canvaswork, and other textiles to have been preserved by a single private family. Bess is also well known for her building projects, the most famous of which are Chatsworth, now the seat of the Dukes of Devonshire (whose family name is Cavendish as they descend from the children of her second marriage), and Hardwick Hall.