Lady Jane Ruthven or Lady Jean Ruthven, (died 1668), of noble Scottish descent, was a

lady-in-waiting A lady-in-waiting (alternatively written lady in waiting) or court lady is a female personal assistant at a Royal court, court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking nobility, noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was o ...

at the

court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...

Queen Christina of Sweden Christina (; 18 December O.S. 8 December">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 8 December1626 – 19 April 1689), a member of the House of Vasa, was Monarchy of Sweden, Queen of Sweden from ...

. She served as ''

hovfröken A maid of honour is a junior attendant of a queen in royal households. The position was and is junior to the lady-in-waiting. The equivalent title and office has historically been used in most European royal courts. Tudors and Stuarts Traditi ...

'' (

maid of honour A maid of honour is a junior attendant of a queen in royal households. The position was and is junior to the lady-in-waiting. The equivalent title and office has historically been used in most European royal courts. Tudors and Stuarts Traditi ...

) to the queen. Ruthven was a daughter of the Scottish general

Patrick Ruthven, 1st Earl of Forth Patrick Ruthven, 1st Earl of Forth and Earl of Brentford ( – 2 February 1651) was a professional soldier and diplomat from Perthshire in Scotland. He spent nearly 30 years in the Swedish army, reaching the rank of lieutenant general before re ...

, who was in Swedish service from 1609 to 1637, and Jane Henderson. She was also the maternal niece of General John Henderson. Her father and uncle were both in Swedish service, and she kept in contact with the latter after he left Sweden. She had Roman Catholic sympathies through her mother and uncle. With some exceptions, such as

Ebba Sparre Ebba Larsdotter Sparre (1626 – 19 March 1662) was a Swedish lady-in-waiting, noblewoman and favourite of Queen Christina of Sweden. The intimate nature of her relationship with the queen has led to historical interpretations that the two wome ...

, Jane Ruthven and Louise van der Nooth, Queen Christina showed little interest in her female courtiers, and mentions them only to express contempt over their femininity and portray herself as more masculine than them. In 1639 she mentions her attitude toward her ladies in waiting in regard to Beata Oxenstierna and her daughter, maid of honor Märta Ulfsparre: "The Mistress of the Robes Lady Beata Oxenstierna and her daughter arrived just now. The more of them that comes here the worse it is".Eva Österberg, ed. (1997). ''Jämmerdal & Fröjdesal. Kvinnor i stormaktstidens Sverige''. Stockholm: Atlantis AB. ; p. 321 Ruthven belonged to a small circle of female favorites. It is known that the English ambassador

Bulstrode Whitelocke Sir Bulstrode Whitelocke (6 August 1605 – 28 July 1675) was an English lawyer, writer, parliamentarian, and one of the commissioners of the Great Seal during the Interregnum. Early life He was the eldest son of Sir James Whitelocke and ...

cultivated her company because of her influence at the Swedish court. Before July 1661, she married James Forrester, 2nd

Lord Forrester The title Lord Forrester was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1633 for George Forrester, 1st Lord Forrester, Sir George Forrester, Bt who had already been created a baronet in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia in 1625. When his only son died, ...

Corstorphine Corstorphine (Scottish Gaelic: ''Crois Thoirfinn'') ( ) is an area of the Scottish capital city of Edinburgh. Formerly a separate village and parish to the west of Edinburgh, it is now a suburb of the city, having been formally incorporate ...

References

* Eva Österberg, red (1997). Jämmerdal & Fröjdesal. Kvinnor i stormaktstidens Sverige. Stockholm: Atlantis AB.
Network North: Scottish Kin, Commercial And Covert Associations in Northern ... Steve Murdoch
* http://www.thepeerage.com/p20500.htm#i204995 {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruthven, Jane Swedish ladies-in-waiting Swedish maids of honour 17th-century Swedish nobility 17th-century Scottish women Emigrants from the Kingdom of Scotland Immigrants to Sweden Daughters of Scottish earls Forrester 1668 deaths People from the Swedish Empire Christina, Queen of Sweden Swedish royal favourites Court of Christina, Queen of Sweden 17th-century Swedish women