Dame Priscilla Jane Stephanie, Lady Roberts, ( Low; 4 September 1949 – 29 June 2021), known as simply Jane Roberts, was the Curator of the Print Room at

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a List of British royal residences, royal residence at Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, about west of central London. It is strongly associated with the Kingdom of England, English and succee ...

from 1975 and the

Royal Librarian The office of Royal Librarian, in the Royal Collection Department of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom, is responsible for the care and maintenance of the books and manuscripts in the Royal Library, a collection spread acr ...

from 2002 until her retirement in July 2013.

Background and education

Priscilla Jane Stephanie Low was the eldest daughter of Brigadier

Toby Low, 1st Baron Aldington Brigadier Toby Austin Richard William Low, 1st Baron Aldington, Baron Low, (25 May 1914 – 7 December 2000), known as Austin Richard William Low until he added "Toby" as a forename by deed poll on 10 July 1957, was a British Conservative Part ...

and his wife Araminta MacMichael. She was educated at

Cranborne Chase School Cranborne Chase School was an independent school, independent boarding school for girls, and was located in the English counties of Dorset and (later) Wiltshire, between 1946 and 1990. History Cranborne Chase School opened in 1946 at Crichel ...

Westfield College Westfield College was a small college situated in Hampstead, London, from 1882 to 1989. It was the first college to aim to educate women for University of London degrees from its opening. The college originally admitted only women as students and ...

(now part of

Queen Mary, University of London Queen Mary University of London (QMUL, or informally QM, and formerly Queen Mary and Westfield College) is a public research university in Mile End, East London, England. It is a member institution of the federal University of London. Today, ...

), and the

Courtauld Institute of Art The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. The art collection is known particularly for ...

Honours

Roberts was appointed a

Member of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

(MVO) in 1984. She was subsequently promoted to

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

(LVO) in 1995,

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

(CVO) in 2004, and to

Dame Commander ''Dame'' is a traditionally British honorific title given to women who have been admitted to certain orders of chivalry. It is the female equivalent of ''Sir'', the title used by knights. Baronetesses in their own right also use the title ''Da ...

(DCVO) of the same Order in 2013.

Personal life

On 13 December 1975, Jane Low married Sir Hugh Roberts, who was the Director of the

Royal Collection The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic List of British royal residences, royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King ...

and

Surveyor of the Queen's Works of Art The office of Surveyor of the King's/Queen's Works of Art in the Royal Collection Department of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom is responsible for the care and maintenance of the royal collection of works of art owned ...

until April 2010. She and her husband lived at

Adelaide Cottage Adelaide Cottage (formerly known as Adelaide Lodge) is a house in Windsor Home Park just east of Windsor Castle, in Berkshire. Built in 1831 for Queen Adelaide, it is currently the principal residence of the Prince and Princess of Wales. Des ...

, a

grace and favour A grace-and-favour home is a residential property owned by a monarch, government, or other owner and leased rent-free to a person as part of the perquisites of their employment, or in gratitude for services rendered. Usage of the term is chief ...

home near

Frogmore House Frogmore House is a 17th-century English country house owned by the Crown Estate. It is a historic Grade I listed building. The house is located on the Frogmore estate, which is situated within the grounds of the Home Park in Windsor, Berksh ...

Home Park, Windsor The Home Park, previously known as the Little Park (and originally Lydecroft Park), is a 2.65 km2 royal park near Windsor, Berkshire, administered by the Crown Estate of the United Kingdom. It is the private grounds of Windsor Castle. It lies m ...

. The couple had two daughters: Sophie Jane Cecilia Roberts (born 28 March 1978) and Amelia Frances Albinia Roberts (born 1982). She died on 29 June 2021, at the age of 71.

Works

*1979: ''Holbein''. Oresko Books *1985: ''Exhibition Catalogues Master Drawings in the Royal Collection'' *1987: ''Royal Artists''. Grafton *1989: ''Leonardo Da Vinci'' *1993: ''A King's Purchase'' *1993: ''Holbein and the Court of Henry VIII'' *1995: ''Views of Windsor: watercolours by Thomas and Paul Sandby'' *1997: ''Royal Landscape'' *1999: ''The King's Head: Charles I, King and Martyr'' *1999: ''Ten Religious Masterpieces from the Royal Collection: a Millennium celebration'' *2002: ''Royal Treasures'' (editor) *2004: ''George III and Queen Charlotte'' (editor) *2005: ''Unfolding Pictures: fans in the Royal Collection'' *2006: ''Queen Elizabeth II: a birthday souvenir album'' *2007: ''Five Gold Rings: a royal wedding souvenir album'' *2008: ''Charles, Prince of Wales: a birthday souvenir album''

References

External links

*
Photograph at Getty Images
English librarians British women librarians Alumni of Westfield College Alumni of the Courtauld Institute of Art Dames Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Daughters of barons Daughters of life peers Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London 1949 births 2021 deaths Royal Librarians Wives of knights {{library-bio-stub