Category: Elizabeth I - Meandering Through Time

Execution of a Favourite.

8/5/2016

Death of Sir Robert Deveraux

On the 25th of February 1601 Robert Devereux, second earl of Essex, was executed for treason. He was a soldier and politician and one of Queen Elizabeth I's favourites. This made no difference to the queen when it came to signing his death warrant, she showed no regret in executing Essex like she had fourteen years earlier with the execution of her cousin, Mary, Queen of Scots.

Elizabeth knew Essex very well, at the peak of their friendship she had lavished gifts and lands on him for he appealed to
her flirtatious nature. He could be charming, he was handsome and intelligent and in 1586 he had been the queens constant companion, so much so that one of his servants is said to have remarked

"my lord is at cardes or one game or another with her, that he commeth not to his owne lodginge tyll the birdes
singe in the morninge"

But there was another side to Essex, he could be argumentative, moody, difficult and very impulsive. It was this last fault that lead, eventually, to his death. Being the queens favourite had caused divisions, some courtiers gathered under Robert Cecil and others under Devereux. Elizabeth tried hard to calm the tension within her court but Essex was all prestige and glory, charging around the court full of self importance. He had returned from Ireland without permission and later bust into the queens bedchamber whilst she was dressing and at one time, during an argument, drawn his sword on her. His arrogance caused him to take no advice from his friends, he overstepped the mark once to often.

Devereux was interrogated in the Tower of London and then confined elsewhere. It was during this confinement that his
ideas of a 'military coup' were probably planned. He later put his plans into action leading over two hundred soldiers through London. He was captured and interrogated again but this time his crimes brought him into the courtroom at Westminster Hall on the 19th February. He was accused of high treason, found guilty and sentenced to death, his death warrant signed the next day.

Four days later the Earl of Essex, climbed the scaffold and famously said:

“My sins are more in number than the hairs on my head. I have bestowed my youth in wantonness, lust and uncleanness;
I have been puffed up with pride, vanity and love of this wicked world’s pleasures. For all which, I humbly beseech my Saviour Christ to be a mediator to the eternal Majesty for my pardon, especially for this my last sin, this great, this bloody, this crying, this infectious sin, whereby so many for love of me have been drawn to offend God, to offend their sovereign, to offend the world. I beseech God to forgive it us, and to forgive it me – most wretched of all.”

In the courtyard of Tower Green, only a small gathering watched as Essex's head was separated from his body.

He was later buried at the chapel of St Peter ad Vincula.

Anne Boleyn meeting with Matthew Parker

28/4/2016

In the last week of April 1536 Anne Boleyn met with her chaplain, Matthew Parker. According to Parker, Anne had asked him to look after her daughter, the Princess Elizabeth.

In this illustration entitled Anne Boleyn Commending the Princess Elizabeth to the care of Matthew Parker, we can see that Anne Boleyn is standing in front of a portrait of Henry VIII, she is holding a book of prayer and seems to be lecturing Parker, who is kissing the hand of Princess Elizabeth.

Two young women watch from behind a half open door in background, who do they represent? Ladies in waiting who actually cared for Ann or those whose idol gossip cost Ann here life?

Before the end of April, all the men suspected of being involved with Ann had been arrested including her brother George.

Ann was unaware of the charges being brought against them, did she, I wonder, have any idea at this point in time of the seriousness of the situation?

Death of Elizabeth I

24/3/2016

At three o'clock in the afternoon of the 24th March 1603, Henry Tudor's mighty dynasty, that had been founded on a field in Leicestershire in 1485, came to an end after just 118 years.

Henry VII's granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth I, died at the age of six-nine after forty-four years on the throne, she may have not been the male heir her father desired, but she was certainly the next best thing. Elizabeth was spirited, feisty and intelligent and her reign would be known as the Golden Age.

Elizabeth is said to have died on cushions on the floor of her private rooms,

" mildly like a lamb, easily like a ripe apple from a tree… "

Elizabeth's body was first buried in the same vault as that of her grandfather, but was moved in 1606 to its present position alongside King James I.

The inscriptions are in Latin and translated they read:

"Sacred to memory: Religion to its primitive purity restored, peace settled, money restored to its just value, domestic rebellion quelled, France relieved when involved with intestine divisions; the Netherlands supported; the Spanish Armada vanquished; Ireland almost lost by rebels, eased by routing the Spaniard; the revenues of both universities much enlarged by a Law of Provisions; and lastly, all England enriched. Elizabeth, a most prudent governor 45 years, a victorious and triumphant Queen, most strictly religious, most happy, by a calm and resigned death at her 70th year left her mortal remains, till by Christ's Word they shall rise to immortality, to be deposited in the Church, by her established and lastly founded. She died the 24th of March, Anno 1602 of her reign the 45th year, of her age the 70th. To the eternal memory of Elizabeth queen of England, France and Ireland, daughter of King Henry VIII, grand-daughter of King Henry VII, great-grand-daughter to King Edward IV. Mother of her country, a nursing-mother to religion and all liberal sciences, skilled in many languages, adorned with excellent endowments both of body and mind, and excellent for princely virtues beyond her sex. James, king of Great Britain, France and Ireland, hath devoutly and justly erected this monument to her whose virtues and kingdoms he inherits"

On the base of the monument are the lovely words in reference to Elizabeth and her half sister Mary:

"Partners in throne and grave, here we sleep, Elizabeth and Mary, sisters, in hope of the Resurrection."

Lady Elizabeth Fitzgerald by Steven van der Muelen

7/2/2016

In the October of 1552, as the widow of Sir Anthony Browne, Elizabeth remarried. Her husband was Edward Clinton, Lord Clinton, from Scrivelsby in Lincolnshire, who had succeeded Thomas Seymour as Lord Admiral.

In this painting dated to 1560, Elizabeth was Lady Clinton. It now resides at the National Gallery of Ireland in Dublin.

Fair Geraldine, as he is commonly known, was famous for her beauty, this name is said to have derived from a poem by Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, who it has been said was hoping to improve her chances of a good marriage by praising her heritage and her beauty.

In his poem Lay of the Last Minstrel Walter Scott, writes of Geraldine:

"Fair all the pageant but how passing fair
The slender form, that lay on couch of Ind!
O'er her white bosom strayed her hazel hair,
Pale her dear cheek, as if for love she pined;
All in her night-robe loose, she lay reclined,
And, pensive, read from tablet eburnine
Some strain that seemed her inmost soul to find: --
That favoured strain was Surrey's raptured line,
That fair and lovely form, the Lady Geraldine."

Death of Sir Walter Raleigh

29/10/2015

Sir Walter Raleigh, one time favourite of Queen Elizabeth I, was six foot tall and handsome, a heroic adventurer, a poet and a wit to boot.

Raleigh spent his childhood in a small village not far from East Budleigh on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon. History tells us he studied at Oriel College Oxford and in the Middle Temple in London, however at his trial in 1603 he stated that he had never studied law. He quickly came to prominence and then to court and was knighted in 1585.

In all his years in court he is said to have retained his strong West Country accent.

In 1592, Raleigh fell from grace when the queen found out he had secretly married Elizabeth Throckmorton, one of her maids of honour. The queen was so angry she had both husband and wife imprisoned in the Tower of London. Later on his release, Raleigh attempted to gain favour and set off on an unsuccessful expedition to find El Dorado, the fabled City of Gold.

Elizabeth died in 1603 and Raleigh soon found that her successor, King James I, was not keen on him either, and that same year he was accused of plotting against the king and sentenced to death, but this was later reduced to life imprisonment.

Raleigh's notes and drawings of the Nile delta.

Another one of Raleigh's talents was writing, in 1614 during his 12 years in the Tower of London, he began his History of the World, he only completed one volume, in it he stated:

"O eloquent, just and mightie death, whom none could advise, thou hast perswaded."

I expect when writing this he didn't imagine it would come so soon.

In 1616 James sent Raleigh to Guiana in a search for gold but two years later he accused of inciting war between Spain and England, James re issued the first death sentence. Sir Walter Raleigh was beheaded outside the Palace of Westminster on 29th October 1618. It has been said, as he stood before the block at the Tower of London, he asked to see the axe that was to behead him and of it he said.

"This is a sharp medicine, but it is a physician for all diseases."

Once executed, Raleigh's head was embalmed and presented to his wife, she is said to have carried it with her at all times until she died. Accounts of the beheading record that the head was placed in a red bag, and that it and his body, wrapped in his nightgown, were taken away in a mourning coach by his widow.

www.theguardian.com/education/2018/oct/28/walter-raleigh-bag-severed-head-gory-mystery?CMP=share_btn_tw

The bag found in West Horsley Place. Photograph: The Mary Roxburghe Trust

Edward Courtenay

18/9/2015

On the 18th September 1556, Edward Courtenay, Earl of Devon died in Padua, Italy.

A number of 'ailments' have been suggested as the cause of the Earl's death, fever, syphilis, falling down a flight of stairs, even poisoning.

Edward Courtenay had Yorkist blood flowing through his veins, his grandmother was Catherine of York, daughter of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville. Catherine had married William Courtenay, Earl of Devon by 1496.

In 1538, at the age of twelve, Edward joined his parents Henry Courtenay, Marquess of Exeter and Gertrude Blount in the Tower of London. His father was suspected of being in cahoots with Reginald Pole and Gertrude accused of encouraging the traitorous behaviour of her husband. Henry Courtenay was executed at the end of 1539 and his wife released at the start of the following year, however Edward was to remain a prisoner, he would remain in the Tower of London for fifteen years. He was finally released on the 3rd August 1553.

After his release his fortunes improved, he was considered as a possible husband for Henry VIII's daughter Mary and when she married Phillip of Spain he set his sights on Elizabeth who would later become Elizabeth I. Edward and Elizabeth suspected of being involved in the rebellion of Thomas Wyatt and others who were fearing persecution under Mary's rule.
They were both imprisoned, when no evidence was found they were both released and Courtenay fled the country.

I've always wondered why this family, as a possible threat to the Tudor dynasty, were not hunted down like that of the family
of George Duke of Clarance's for instance, Henry VIII had no qualms about seeing off the aged Margaretin Pole and
Henry VII had executed Edward's grandfather.

Maybe, this new generation didn't consider the Yorkists as much of a treat anymore?

Words on the engraving of Courtenay above state:

En! puer ac insons et adhuc juvenilibus annis,
Annos bis septem carcere clausus eram,
Me pater his tenuit vinclis quae filia solvit,
Sors mea sic tandem vertitur a superis.

Behold! a guiltless boy and still in his youthful years,
during twice-seven years had I been shut in prison,
the father held me in these chains which the daughter released,
thus at last is my fate being changed by the gods above."

Interestingly, in this engraving Courtenay stands in front of a crumbling castle, whats the significance of that do you think?

Elizabeth I at Tilbury 9th August 1588

20/6/2015

On the 9th of August in 1588, Queen Elizabeth I gave her famous Tilbury speech.

youtu.be/T3Bq1h728X0

That year saw a great fleet of ships set sail from Spain for England.
Known as the Spanish Armada they were a large invasion force, who under the Duke of Parma had every intention of overthrowing protestant England. A combination of things such as Sir Francis Drakes fire ships and a turn in the weather saw a total disaster for the Spanish.

At Tilbury Elizabeth arrived wearing a silver breastplate and from her horse delivered one of the most famous speeches in history in front of her assembled troops, this speech has always been said to have been rousing and defiant and contains this one famous line

"I know I have the body of a weak, feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a king of England too"

It is this one line that comes to mind when we think of Elizabeth and the Spanish Armada.

The Tilbury Speech

"My loving people, We have been persuaded by some that are careful of our safety, to take heed how we commit our selves to armed multitudes, for fear of treachery; but I assure you I do not desire to live to distrust my faithful and loving people. Let tyrants fear. I have always so behaved myself that, under God, I have placed my chiefest strength and safeguard in the loyal hearts and good-will of my subjects; and therefore I am come amongst you, as you see, at this time, not for my recreation and disport, but being resolved, in the midst and heat of the battle, to live and die amongst you all; to lay down for my God, and for my kingdom, and my people, my honor and my blood, even in the dust. I know I have the body of a weak, feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a king of England too, and think foul scorn that Parma or Spain, or any prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of my realm; to which rather than any dishonor shall grow by me, I myself will take up arms, I myself will be your general, judge, and rewarder of every one of your virtues in the field. I know already, for your forwardness you have deserved rewards and crowns; and We do assure you on a word of a prince, they shall be duly paid. In the mean time, my lieutenant general shall be in my stead, than whom never prince commanded a more noble or worthy subject; not doubting but by your obedience to my general, by your concord in the camp, and your valor in the field, we shall shortly have a famous victory over these enemies of my God, of my kingdom, and of my people."

Elizabeth's words come down to us from a letter dated 1623. Accepted as being authentic, the document below was found
in a letter from Leonel Sharp to the Duke of Buckingham. In 1588, Sharp was chaplain to Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex and
claimed to have present when Elizabeth delivered her speech.

In his letter he wrote

"I remember in '88 waiting upon the Earl of Leicester at Tilbury camp, and in '89, going into Portugal with my noble master, the Earl of Essex, I learned somewhat fit to be imparted to your grace.The queen lying in the camp one night, guarded with her army, the old treasurer, Burleigh, came thither and delivered to the earl the examination of Don Pedro, who was taken and brought in by Sir Francis Drake, which examination the earl of Leicester delivered unto me to publish to the army in my next sermon. The sum of it was this.Don Pedro, being asked what was the intent of their coming, stoutly answered the lords: What, but to subdue your nation and root it out.Good, said the lords, and what meant you then to do with the catholics? He answered, We meant to send them (good men) directly unto heaven, as all that are heretics to hell. Yea, but, said the lords, what meant you to do with your whips of cord and wire? (Whereof they had great store in their ships.) What? said he, we meant to whip you heretics to death that hare assisted my master's rebels and done such dishonour to our catholic king and people. Yea, but what would you have done, said they, with their young children? They, said he, which were above seven years old should hare gone the way their fathers went, the rest should have lived, branded in the forehead with the letter L for Lutheran, to perpetual bondage.This, I take God to witness, I received of those great lords upon examination taken by the council, and by commandment delivered it to the army.The queen the next morning rode through all the squadrons of her army, as armed Pallas, attended by noble footmen, Leicester, Essex, and Norris, then lord marshall, and divers other great lords. Where she made an excellent oration to her army, which the next day after her departure, I was commanded to re-deliver to all the army together, to keep a public fast. Her words were these"

Sharp then goes on write the most famous version of the Tilbury speech.

There is another version of the speech dated to 1612 by William Leigh, a clergyman and royal tutor, who is now remembered
for his series of sermons 'Queene Elizabeth Paraleld' which is said to includes the first published written record of Elizabeth's speech.

"Come on now, my companions at arms, and fellow soldiers, in the field, now for the Lord, for your Queen, and for the Kingdom. For what are these proud Philistines, that they should revile the host of the living God? I have been your Prince in peace, so will I be in war; neither will I bid you go and fight, but come and let us fight the battle of the Lord. The enemy perhaps may challenge my sex for that I am a woman, so may I likewise charge their mould for that they are but men, whose breath is in their nostrils, and if God do not charge England with the sins of England, little do I fear their force… Si deus nobiscum quis contra nos? (If God is with us, who can be against us?)

To celebrate this great victory medals were struck, embossed on them the words Flavit Jehovah et Dissipati Sunt and Homo proponit ed Deus disponit. In other words Jehovah blew with his wind and they were scattered and Man proposes and God disposes.

The Tilbury Speech

18/3/2015

The year 1588 saw a great fleet of ships set sail from Spain for England. Known as the Spanish Armada, they were a large invasion force, who under the Duke of Parma had every intention of overthrowing protestant England. A combination of events such as Sir Francis Drakes fire ships and a turn in the weather saw a total disaster for the Spanish.
Accepted as being authentic the document below, dated during the reign of James I, was found in a letter from Leonel Sharp, a courtier and royal chaplain to the Duke of Buckingham. It is Queen Elizabeth's famous speech made to her troops at Tilbury.

Elizabeth arrived wearing a silver breastplate and from her horse delivered one of the most famous speeches in history.

"My loving people, we have been persuaded by some that are careful of our safety, to take heed how we commit our selves to armed multitudes, for fear of treachery; but I assure you I do not desire to live to distrust my faithful and loving people. Let tyrants fear, I have always so behaved myself that, under God, I have placed my chiefest strength and safeguard in the loyal hearts and good-will of my subjects; and therefore I am come amongst you, as you see, at this time, not for my recreation and disport, but being resolved, in the midst and heat of the battle, to live and die amongst you all; to lay down for my God, and for my kingdom, and my people, my honour and my blood, even in the dust. I know I have the body but of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a king of England too, and think foul scorn that Parma or Spain, or any prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of my realm; to which rather than any dishonour shall grow by me, I myself will take up arms, I myself will be your general, judge, and rewarder of every one of your virtues in the field. I know already, for your forwardness you have deserved rewards and crowns; and We do assure you in the word of a prince, they shall be duly paid you. In the mean time, my lieutenant general shall be in my stead, than whom never prince commanded a more noble or worthy subject; not doubting but by your obedience to my general, by your concord in the camp, and your valour in the field, we shall shortly have a famous victory over those enemies of my God, of my kingdom, and of my people."

Coronation of Elizabeth I

15/1/2015

The Golden Age Arrives

It was almost a month, following the burial of Mary, that Elizabeth, the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, was crowned queen of England, her coronation took place on the 15th January 1559.

The day before, the crowded streets of London saw the fourth of five pageants take place where Elizabeth was seen by the public carried through the streets on a golden litter.

This fourth pageant represented the contrast between the previous reign of Mary's and the forthcoming one of the new queen. During the penultimate event a bible was presented to Elizabeth. Taking the bible, Elizabeth kissed it and laid it on her breast causing much whooping within the large crowd. This action would lead to the fifth pageant where Elizabeth would be portrayed as Deborah, an old testament prophet, who 'rescued the House of Israel' and went on to rule for forty years.

During this final festivity, Elizabeth said to the Lord Mayor:

"And whereas your request is that I should continue your good lady and be Queen, be ye ensured that I will be as good unto you as ever Queen was unto her people. No will in me can lack, neither do I trust shall there lack any power. And persuade yourselves that for the safety and quietness of you all I will not spare if need be to spend my blood. God thank you all."

Elizabeth had always been popular with the English people and this event, which turned out to be very successful, proved how happy the English people were to see her take the throne.

Elizabeth's coronation took place on the Sunday in Westminster Abbey, and was said to be a

"clever compromise between the Catholic practices that existed and the Protestant ones that she intended to introduce."

Although Elizabeth was crowned by a Catholic bishop in Latin, other parts of the service were read twice in both Latin and English. Following this Elizabeth stepped out from the abbey and faced her people with her crown, orb and sceptre as Queen Elizabeth I of England.

The original 1559 coronation portrait has been lost but we can see what Elizabeth looked like in her coronation robes in a copy dated 1600. It is in miniature form by an unknown artist which is held in a private collection.

Symbolism: The Rainbow Portrait and Thomas More's Family Portrait

29/9/2014

Non Sine Sole Iris - No Rainbow without the Sun

Even though I have spent many a happy hour gazing at historical images and can always be found with my head in one history book or another I have to admit that I find symbolism in historical works of art quite daunting. I think the main problem for me is not symbolism itself but the use of everyday items that have a symbolic reference and the question of what its saying, who it's aimed at and would the vast majority of people at the time really get its point?

I suppose its all a form of propaganda of which the Tudor Rose is an excellent example. This symbol appears in many images of Elizabeth I, and proves the importance of symbolism, she, like her father and grandfather needed to reinforce their right to the throne of England and must have seriously thought it a brilliant way of getting their point across. I have read of a portrait of Elizabeth, aged only fourteen, which was a gift to her brother Edward VI, where her finger is marking the page of a book is representative of her Protestantism, did children so young as these two monarchs really understand all this?

A common item such as a sieve in Tudor times represented virginity, did every Tudor courtier and foreign visitor know that? The thorn-less rose is another example of virginity and ermine is a symbol of purity and virtue. In one painting of Elizabeth we can see a snake or serpent on the sleeve of her dress which has a heart-shaped ruby in its mouth. The serpent is thought to represent wisdom and the ruby Elizabeth’s heart, all this is said to imply that the Queen’s wisdom controls her emotions.
My favourite of all has to be the use of eyes and ears, which can be seen in the image above, they have been stitched into the gown of Elizabeth's dress and evidently represent omniscience meaning that Elizabeth was able to hear and see all. I honestly looked at it as just a fabric pattern and missed the meaning totally, how many of people of Elizabeth's day had to spend hours looking for hidden meanings in all her paintings, and why did they not know all these things about her anyway?

Another portrait, painted by Hans Holbein, that is full to bursting with symbolism is a wonderful portrait of Thomas More's family from the reign of Elizabeth's father Henry VIII. More was at the height of his career when he commissioned this painting which features twelve people one of which is John Clements. Who is Clements? The symbolism within the painting points to the answer, but I need not go into this myself

I will leave it to the expert......

http://mattlewisauthor.wordpress.com/.../leslau-holbein.../