Kat Ashley

Katherine Ashley (née Champernowne; circa 1502 – 18 July 1565), also known as Kat Ashley or Astley, was the first close friend, governess, and Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Elizabeth I of England. She was the aunt of Katherine Champernowne, who was the mother of Sir Humphrey Gilbert from her first marriage and Walter Raleigh by her second marriage. Parentage Katherine Champernowne's parentage is not known for certain. There are two principal candidates for her father. One is Sir Philip Champernowne, although there is a 1536 letter from Kat to Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex which makes reference to her father as having "much to do with the little living he has". At the time of her birth, Sir Philip's wife, Catherine Carew, was sixteen years of age. However, no contemporary records refer to Kat Ashley and Joan Denny - Sir Philip's daughter - as being sisters.