Ambrosia Sidney, Duchess of Wiltshire

## Ambrosia Malfoy (née Sidney)

**Ambrosia Malfoy, Duchess of Wiltshire** (née **Sidney**) (21 June, 1650 - 2 August, 1689) was the wife of Saturnius Malfoy, 10th Duke of Wiltshire. She was by marriage a member of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Malfoy, and by birth a member of the Sidney family. She became betrothed to Saturnius at the age of thirteen and the couple had thirteen children together, including Lady Aurelia Malfoy, mistress to Charles II, King of England, Lady Lavinia Malfoy, wife of Cepheus Black II, and Lucius Malfoy, 11th Duke of Wiltshire.

## Biography

### Early life

Ambrosia Sidney was born on 21 June, 1650, in Pembroke, Pembrokeshire, Wales. She was a member of the Sidney family, and was raised on the family estate. It is very likely that she had recent muggle ancestry. She did not attend Hogwarts, rather, she was instructed in the magical arts by a tutor, and prepared for marriage.

Ambrosia Sidney, married Saturnius Malfoy, in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England, on 10 January, 1665, when she was 14 years old. She was recognised as "Duchess of Wiltshire" in the muggle world, which greatly pleased her father.

Over the course of eleven years, Ambrosia Malfoy gave birth to thirteen children, eight of whom survived infancy. The first child, Aurelia (1665–1717), was born a little less than a year after the wedding. The child's sex caused great disappointment and so would the births of Hermia (1667-1700), Portia (1668-1713), Drusilla (1669-1723), Ophelia (1670-1677), Aquila II (1671-1677), Cosette (1672-1679), and twins Lucinda (1673-1734) and Florinda (1673-1745). Ambrosia continued to pray that a boy would be born, but was disappointed once more with the birth of Saturnina (1674-1681). One more girl was born, Lavinia (1675-1745), before the birth of Ambrosia's favourite child, Lucius Malfoy I (1676-1760).

### Later life

Ambrosia grew to believe that pureblooded wizards were superior over muggles and other wizards. Her husband Saturnius was received at Court in 1680 during the reign of Charles II, and her eldest daughter, Aurelia, was eventually became one of his mistresses, and sent off to become one of Catherine of Braganza's Ladies of the Bedchamber. Saturnius originally forbade Aurelia from returning to court, but she stood her ground, and might have really been in love with the king.

Despite their espousal of pure-blood values and their strong belief in wizards' superiority over Muggles, the Malfoys had always drawn a sharp distinction between poor Muggles and those with wealth and authority; they had historically been associated with high-born Muggle circles, such as royalty (William the Conqueror and Queen Elizabeth I being notable examples) and aristocracy, which, in part, resulted in their vast collection of Muggle treasures and works of art.

This is why Ambrosia's husband strongly opposed the Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, which was introduced in 1692. He truly enjoyed being in the atmosphere of King Charles II and later King James II, despite Charles's lack of respect for his eldest daughter, Aurelia.

#### Secret plot to install the Malfoys onto the throne of England

The Malfoy's strong opposition of the Statute was, in short, due to the fact that the law would force them to withdraw from this enjoyable sphere of social life. Saturnius and Ambrosia quietly withdrew from court life and lived comfortably in Wiltshire from then on, Saturnius becoming a Governor for the Board of Hogwarts.

On 30 Jul, 1700, Ambrosia's husband accompanied the Headmaster to Kensington Palace to deliver Prince William, Duke of Gloucester his Hogwarts letter. A conflict ensued, leading Saturnius to pressure their daughter, Lavinia, and son-in-law, Cepheus Black, to take in the young Prince, who had been presumed dead by his mother, Queen Anne of Great Britain. It is unclear exactly why Ambrosia's husband, Saturnius, was so keen on hosting the Prince, but it is rumoured that while a courtier of Queen Anne's father, King James II, he interacted with Anne, which may have resulted in him fathering the only successful pregnancy that the Queen ever had.

Nobody was keen to believe this, however, as Saturnius eventually allowed his grand-daughter to marry William, who became known as William Stuart, "The Mudblood King." If this rumour was true, it would have meant that the union of Viola Black and William Stuart was incestuous, as in that of a niece and an uncle.

This plot remains little known of modern ears, as the modern descendants of Viola Black and William Stuart are often misrepresented as the descendants of Viola's father, Cepheus, and Saturnius's daughter, Lavinia.

## Issue

Ambrosia Sidney married Saturnius Malfoy aged fourteen, and they had thirteen children together. They were:

* **Lady** **Aurelia Malfoy** (1 Aug 1665 - 19 Jun 1717) had illegitimate issue with Charles II, King of England
* **Lady** **Hermia Ollerton** (née **Malfoy**) (15 Jul 1667 - 30 May 1700) m. Bartemius Ollerton, had issue.
* **Lady Portia Black** (née **Malfoy**) (13 Jun 1668 - 11 Apr 1713), m. Regulus Black II, had issue.
* **Lady Drusilla Rosier** (née **Malfoy**) (10 Jun 1669 - 16 Aug 1723) m. Septimus Rosier, had issue.
* **Lady Ophelia Malfoy** (14 Jul 1670 - 11 Jan 1677), died young
* **Lady Aquila Malfoy II** (13 Jul 1671 - 19 Apr 1684), died young
* **Lady Desdemona Rowle** (née **Malfoy**)(23 Jul 1672 - 11 Apr 1751), twin, m. Theophilius Rowle, had issue.
* **Lady Cosette Malfoy** (23 Jul 1672 - 15 Jun 1679), twin, died young
* **Lady Lucinda Malfoy** (11 Aug 1673 - 4 Nov 1734), twin
* **Lady Florinda Malfoy** (11 Aug 1673 - 2 Jun 1745), twin
* **Lady Saturnina Malfoy** (13 Jun 1674 - 11 Dec 1681), died young
* **Lavinia Black** (née **Malfoy**) (15 Mar 1675 - 4 Jun 1745) m. Cepheus Black II, had issue.
* **Lucius Malfoy I, 10th Duke of Wiltshire** (9 Jun 1676 - 10 Jan 1760) m. Cecilia of France, Duchess of Wiltshire. Had issue.
	+ **Lady Ambrosia Malfoy** (12 May 1702 - 19 Jan 1710), died young.
	+ **Lady Philomena Lovegood** (née **Malfoy**) (2 Mar 1703 - 11 Dec 1767) m. Octavius Lovegood, had issue.
	+ **Maximillius Malfoy, 12th Duke of Wiltshire** (13 May 1705 - 18 Jan 1794) m. his half-aunt Helena FitzRoy, had issue.

## Etymology

Ambrosia means "favored food or drink of the gods," from Latin *ambrosia*, from Greek *ambrosia* "food of the gods."

*Malfoy* translates to "bad faith" in French.