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  Robert Radcliffe

Robert Radcliffe, Earl of Sussex

Dates from 1593 | Object number: I.36

Robert Radcliffe became Earl of Sussex in 1593. This portrait was probably painted to commemorate his first appearance in a tournament at Windsor the same year. Radcliffe took part in many jousts at Elizabeth’s court from 1594 to 1602.

Did you know?

• The helmet is fitted with a huge and complex crest of ostrich feathers. His fashionable clothing is decorated with expensive jewels. Radcliffe is dressed for foot combat in plain Greenwich armour, his legs unprotected because the combat took place over a barrier. He holds a spear and a sword for the two-part contest.

• His motto in the top right corner ‘Amando et Fidando Troppo son rovinato’ means ‘Loving and trusting overmuch I am ruined’. Radcliffe had inherited debts from his uncle and father and owed Queen Elizabeth a lot of money.

Elizabethan armours

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