Dorothy Cromwell (; c.1620 – 5 January 1675) was the wife of the second

Lord Protector Lord Protector (plural: ''Lords Protector'') is a title that has been used in British constitutional law for the head of state. It was also a particular title for the British heads of state in respect to the established church. It was sometime ...

Richard Cromwell Richard Cromwell (4 October 162612 July 1712) was an English statesman who served as Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland from 1658 to 1659. He was the son of Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell. Following his father ...

, who succeeded to the post in 1659 following the death of his father,

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...

Life

Dorothy or Dorothea Maijor was the daughter of Richard Maijor, Esq of

Hursley Hursley is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Hampshire, England with a population of around 900 in 2011. It is located roughly midway between Romsey and Winchester on the A3090. Besides the village the parish includes th ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

. In 1649 Richard Cromwell married Dorothy Maijor. He and his wife continued to stay at Richard Maijor's estate at Hursley. During the 1650s they had nine children, five of whom survived to adulthood. After Richard fled the country, Dorothy remained loyal to him and spent fifteen years of her life awaiting his return, only to die on 5 January 1675.

Duties

Although very little of her is known and published, she was known to be present at her husband's investment ceremony at

Westminster Hall Westminster Hall is a medieval great hall which is part of the Palace of Westminster in London, England. It was erected in 1097 for William II (William Rufus), at which point it was the largest hall in Europe. The building has had various functio ...

and may have been called 'protectress', though it appears she undertook very few duties during Richard's short nine-month reign.

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Maijor, Dorothy 1620s births 1675 deaths 17th-century English women People from the City of Winchester Year of birth unknown Year of birth uncertain Cromwell family Richard Cromwell