Jane Shore

Elizabeth "Jane" Shore (née Lambert) (c.1445 – c.1527) was one of the many mistresses of King Edward IV of England, one of three whom he described as "the merriest, the wiliest, and the holiest harlots" in his realm. She also became a concubine to other noblemen, including Edward's stepson, Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset, and William Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings, his close friend and adviser.

Born in London in about 1445, Elizabeth Lambert was the daughter of a prosperous merchant, John Lambert, and his wife Amy, who was the daughter of a well-off grocer named Robert Marshall. The name "Jane", which has sometimes been attached to her, was the invention of a 17th-century playwright (Heywood), because during the course of the sixteenth century, her real first name was omitted, then forgotten by authors.

Spending time in her father’s shop at a young age may have brought the young Elizabeth into contact with ladies of high rank. C J S Thompson's highly romanticised biography, The Witchery of Jane Shore, the Rose of London: The Romance of a Royal Mistress (1933) claimed that she was able to observe their behaviour and gain an understanding of the manners of those higher ranking than herself. She was thought to have been highly intelligent, and as a result received an education that was not usually associated with a person of her class. Thompson also claimed that her beauty earned her the title of “The Rose of London” – although this is not mentioned in contemporary sources.

She attracted many suitors, among them William Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings, friend and confidant of Edward IV. It is likely Hastings fell in love with Elizabeth Lambert before her marriage. His affection for her is apparent later in life by his continual protection of her. Her beauty was not the only characteristic that made her appealing for men. She was also admired for her pleasant, warm-hearted personality and her wit.

Such extreme attention made John Lambert desirous of finding his daughter a suitable husband. Such an opportunity presented itself with William Shore (d. 1494), a goldsmith and banker and common visitor to the Lambert home. He was approximately 14 or 15 years older than Jane. Though handsome and well-to-do, he never really won her affections. Their marriage was annulled in March 1476 after she petitioned for the annulment of her marriage on the grounds that her husband was impotent, which prevented her from fulfilling her desire to have children. Pope Sixtus IV commissioned three bishops to decide the case, and they granted the annulment.

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