Robert Dudley

Timeline

1. 1581–1585The Hague · South HollandFrom 1581 Leicester played a key role in the anti-Spanish war in the Netherlands; after the assassination of the Prince of Orange in 1584 the situation was critical; following the Treaty of Nonsuch in 1585 Elizabeth formally appointed him Governor of the Dutch Republic, crossing the sea with six thousand English troops in an attempt to unify command of the Dutch-English forces against Spain, but he was plagued by suspicion from the Dutch provinces and a shortage of funds.
2. 1586–1588Zutphen · GelderlandIn 1586 Leicester won a partial victory at the Battle of Zutphen but failed to consolidate it; that same year he was rebuked by the queen for accepting the title of Governor of the Netherlands without authorization; in 1587 he withdrew to England, still participating in Privy Council decisions. On the eve of the Armada crisis in 1588 he died of illness at Leicester House on 4 September, aged about fifty-six, deeply mourned by the queen.