ABSTRACT
The Herberts were a major force in literary patronage from 1551, when William Herbert became first Earl of Pembroke, until the death of his grandson, Philip, the fourth earl, in 1650. They were regularly associated with the Sidneys during the reigns of Elizabeth and James, and the presidency of the Council of Wales was held by Sir Henry Sidney and the first two earls of Pembroke. The first earl was a native Welsh speaker who had little familiarity with reading or writing English; however, his influence at court attracted the dedications of translations and religious works between 1552 and 1570. His son Henry was more thoroughly educated, and was addressed by translators and by authors of medical, poetic, and dramatic texts in Italian, Welsh, and English. In 1577, he married Philip Sidney’s sister, Mary, who attained considerable social distinction by becoming Countess of Pembroke. The Sidneys became her regular guests at Wilton House; and Simon Robson remarked that Pembroke and the two Sidney brothers, Philip and Robert, were united ‘in an indissoluble band of amitie and fraternitie’ (The Choise of Change 1585, dedication). This family intimacy was preserved during James’ reign by William, the third earl, and Robert Sidney, Earl of Leicester.
