Being a beautiful, clever and articulate woman was what made Sarah Churchill the woman she was, however these
attributes in conjunction with her friendship with Queen Anne, lead to a massive quarrel and ultimately her dismissal
at the beginning of 1711.
Sarah was not afraid to speak her mind, but she was also unable to control her feelings when she did not get what she wanted.
Sarah was the wife of John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough, her quarrel with the queen resulted in the loss of her place in
court, her dismissal from her position as Mistress of the Robes among others, and the replacement in the queens affections
by Abigail Masham. Her husband's demand for the position of captain generalship for life was the straw that broke the
camel's back and he felt the toe of the royal boot twelve months following Sarah's ejection.
The Duke of Malborough, for Queen Anne at least, represented all that was wrong with the country at that time. The fall out from the Spanish succession crisis had hit England hard. The people of England had become very sick of the fighting and
they had also become sick of paying for it.
Sarah and John Churchill were shrewd, capable and wealthy and classic examples of those who got too big for their boots.
The Duke of Malborough died in the June of 1722 and was buried at Westminster Abbey. Sarah died on the 18th October 1744 at Marlborough House. Following her burial at her beloved Blenheim, John Churchill's body was taken from
his resting place and re interred alongside her.
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