Violets are blue my dear, roses are red
Henry loved Anne but he chopped off her head.
They called her a witch and a sorceress too
Her web of six fingers as proof it was true.
She swore her own innocence till her last breath
Yet slice of the ax brought her to bloody death.
Some say she still haunts us, more angry than most
All guests at the Tower, beware of Anne’s ghost!
All eyes will be on St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle next Saturday, May 19, 2018 as Prince Harry ties the knot with his American princess, Meghan Markle.
The event has been dubbed the ‘wedding of the century’ – much in the same way the wedding of Harry’s parents, Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer back in 1981 was the ‘wedding of the (20th) century’. These nuptials, however, are filled with controversy.
In case you have been living under a rock, or missing the News, I will fill you in on the juicy details.
Former bad boy and beloved troublemaker Prince Harry – AKA Henry Charles Albert David Windsor, Prince of Wales – announced his engagement to American actress Meghan Markle on November 27, 2017. Harry’s former outrageous antics include underage drinking, pot smoking, dressing as a Nazi for a costume party, and being photographed naked after he lost at a game of ‘strip billiards’ in Las Vegas.
But now!
In making Meghan his bride, Harry the rebel is breaking with tradition, big time!
First of all, Meghan is an ‘older woman’. (Only by three years. But still.) Second of all, Meghan is a divorcee. (Not such a big deal, considering Harry’s father is also a divorcee who married a divorcee.) Meghan was an actress. (Gasp! Luckily she quit that scandalous profession.) She is an American, she is of mixed race and a commoner.
Meghan is not the first American commoner to enter the Royal Family. Before her there was Wallis Simpson, who in 1936 famously caused Kind Edward VIII to abdicate his throne in order to marry her. (Read more about Wallis Simpson HERE.)
Neither is Meghan the first woman of mixed race. Before her there was Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, who married King George III in 1761. Charlotte was a direct descendant of Margarita de Castro y Sousa, a black branch of the Portuguese Royal House. Harry is also a descendant of Queen Charlotte, so technically Harry is part black too. Albeit some 250 years past. (Read more about Queen Charlotte HERE.)
Perhaps the most controversial thing about Meghan is that she was raised Catholic. Prior to 2015, the law would have forbidden Harry from marrying outside the Anglican Church. The new law declared that the reigning monarch would be considered ‘defender of the faiths’ rather that ‘defender of The Faith’ (meaning only the Anglican Faith). Hence Catholicism is sort of okay. Although Henry VIII is perhaps turning in his grave. Read on.
Some people are welcoming this new, 21st century style marriage with open arms, while others have condemned it. And yet! There is one more, less talked about ‘controversy’ that everyone seems to be ignoring, except those of us who are (like me!) rabid Tudor fans.
The glaring elephant in the room here is… NOT Meghan’s background. Consider this: The royal wedding will occur on PRECISELY THE SAME DATE that QUEEN ANNE BOLEYN was BEHEADED AT THE TOWER OF LONDON!!
Cue eerie organ music.
What were they thinking? This is surely bad luck. The ghost of Anne has been known to haunt various locales in and around London. These include:
Was it unwise of Harry and Meghan to choose this ominous date? Are they stealing Anne’s thunder in doing so? Will there be consequences?
Maybe not. After all, Anne, like Meghan, was a bit of an ‘outsider’ herself when she decided to wed the still married King Henry.
Anne Boleyn became a lady in waiting in the court of Henry’s wife, Queen Catherine of Aragon, in 1521. Henry was anxious that Catherine (also an ‘older woman’ being six years Henry’s senior) was unable to bear him a son. By 1527 Henry was questioning the validity of his marriage and set his sights on the younger and presumably more fertile Anne.
Henry begged Catherine for a divorce. She said no way. Henry began a relationship with Anne, flaunting her in public and taking her on various outings. In the meantime he started bugging his religious people, Cardinal Wolsey in particular, to figure out a way that he could get a ‘legal’ divorce from Catherine. Wolsey petitioned the Pope. The Pope said no way. England was a Catholic county, divorce was impossible.
Henry and Anne got married anyway, in a secret ceremony which took place on November 14, 1532. Henry was of course, still married to Catherine.
Anne soon became pregnant. There was a second wedding service, which took place in London on January 25, 1533. Henry was of course, still married to Catherine. Eventually Henry decided to break from the Catholic Church and create his own church where he was essentially the Pope.
And you thought Prince Harry was controversial?
To make a long story short, Anne gave birth to a daughter Elizabeth, but ultimately failed to give Henry a son. So… Henry needed to get out of that marriage too. He got his legal counsel to nail Anne and several men on charges of adultery/ treason. These so-called adulterers even included Anne’s brother George Boleyn. All were arrested, taken to the Tower and executed. Anne was the last to die, thus leaving her to witness the long line of bloodbaths. She was beheaded on May 19, 1536.
But the restless spirit of Anne is far from dead. According to eye witness accounts, Anne has been known to haunt the Tower of London.
In one story, a Captain of the Tower Guard claimed he saw a light flickering in the Royal Chapel one night. The chapel was locked, so the Captain tried to find the source of the light by climbing up a ladder and looking inside. He then saw a wondrous sight; a procession of Knights and Ladies dressed in ancient costumes were parading around the chapel. Their leader, he claimed, resembled Anne Boleyn from the portraits he had seen. The procession soon disappeared.
In 1864, a soldier, on duty near the Lieutenant’s lodgings, made another sighting of Anne’s ghost. He claimed to have seen an intruder, the pale figure of a woman. He confronted her but when she refused to respond he plunged his bayonet into what he thought was her flesh.
To his complete shock, the weapon went straight through her. There was another witness to this event; an officer stationed in the Bloody Tower claimed to have seen the whole incident from his window and verified the soldier’s story.
Blickling Hall in Norfolk is believed by many historians to be Anne’s birthplace. Each year on May 19th, Anne is said to return to Blickling Hall in a carriage drawn by six headless horses and driven by a headless coachman. The carriage gallops up the driveway to reveal a headless Anne sitting inside. She is dressed in white and holds her severed head in her lap.
When the carriage reaches the front doors, Anne goes inside where she roams the halls until daybreak.
Also on May 19 Anne’s brother, George, has been seen being dragged across the countryside by four headless horses. His headless ghost then wanders around the grounds of the Blickling estate, pleading for justice.
Blickling Hall is also said to be haunted by their father, Sir Thomas Boleyn. (Sir Tom, it should be noted, dropped the ball on his own children, choosing not to come to their defense when they were accused of incest, adultery and treason. Instead he sided with Henry, mostly to save his own skin and stay in the King’s good favor.) Some say Thomas Boleyn is the driver of the coach that delivers Anne to Blickling Hall. After dropping Anne off at the front doors at midnight, Sir Thomas continues on. He is pursued by hoards of screaming demons who condemn him for his betrayal of his family. According to this legend, Sir Tom is forced, as his penance, to drive the spectral carriage over 12 bridges between Wroxham and Blickling for 1,000 years.
But Blickling Hall is safely far away. What about Windsor Castle, where the wedding of Harry and Meghan will actually take place?
Anne’s ghost has reportedly been seen standing at a window in the Dean’s Cloister of Windsor Castle. Henry VIII also haunts the castle — guests claim to have heard his footsteps echo along the corridors. Henry, who in life suffered ill health and a painful leg wound due to a jousting accident, has apparently brought these ailments with him to the afterlife. The ghost of Henry moans and groans as he miserably drags his ulcerated leg behind him through the hallways.
And that’s not all.
The ghost of Queen Elizabeth I haunts the Royal Library of Windsor Castle as well. Bess’ heels have been heard clicking along the floorboards in a steady gait. Her ghost then appears, passes through the library and disappears into an inner room.
Bess’ ghost has been seen standing at a window in the Dean’s Cloister, wearing a black dress with a black lace shawl. Since Anne has also been seen in the Dean’s Cloister, perhaps mother and daughter have reunited in the afterlife.
But all that is old history. Surely the date of Anne’s execution should have no bearing upon the date of this current wedding. Right?
It is interesting to note that Prince Harry is a descendant of Anne Boleyn. How so, you ask? Well…
It seems Queen Elizabeth II (Harry’s Grandma) is related to Anne Boleyn through the children of her sister, Mary. Mary Boleyn, we may recall, is famous for having an affair with King Henry before Anne came into the picture.
The Queen Mother (Harry’s Great Grandma) is descended from Catherine Carey, the daughter of Mary Boleyn.
Furthermore…
Catherine Carey was the mother of Lettice Knollys, the Countess of Essex. Lettice, who was Queen Bess’ cousin, was also her Lady in Waiting. Lettice made the great mistake of marrying Robert Dudley, Master of the Horse, who was Queen Bess’ favorite, and also rumored to be Bess’ lover.
And you thought Meghan Markle was controversial?
Needless to say, Bess disapproved of the marriage. Lettice was banished from court, never to return again. Bess, however, forgave Robert and restored his position.
But back to the blood line. Queen Elizabeth II, and hence Prince Harry, descend from the Boleyn line through Lettice Knollys. In further controversial news, a very high degree of probability exists that Mary Boleyn’s children, Catherine and Henry Carey, were the illegitimate children of Henry VIII. This is because Mary’s pregnancies coincided with the time she was having an affair with Henry.
Therefore: the current Queen of England can presumably claim descent from Henry VIII both through her patriarchal line (via Margaret Tudor who married James IV of Scotland) and through her matriarchal line by way of the Queen Mum.
Got that? Prince Harry descends from both the Boleyn and Tudor bloodlines. With all this haunting going on – perhaps it would have been wise for him to choose a less ominous day for his wedding…
Come what may, Meghan and Harry are very much in love, and they will be married next week. We wish them the best of luck!
What do you think of Meghan, Harry and the hauntings? Let me know in the comments below!
If you read my blog regularly you already know about my big obsession with Queen Elizabeth I. Born on this day, September 7, 1533, she was one of England’s greatest monarchs, successfully ruling for forty five years.
Bess, however, started out as an unlikely candidate for the throne. She was the daughter of King Henry VIII and Queen Anne Boleyn. With a shaky upbringing that included her dad Henry beheading her mother Anne when Elizabeth was just three years old, the girl went in and out of favor with the King. Her title changed often. The precocious child was aware of this, often questioning her caretakers:
“For why yesterday I was the Princess Elizabeth and today only Lady?”
When Henry died, Bess was third in line for the crown. Her brother Edward became king at the tender age of nine and ruled until his untimely death just six years later. Her older sister Mary then reigned for five years. Mary, a devout Catholic, was often at odds with Elizabeth, a staunch Protestant. When Mary died in 1558, Bess finally took the throne.
The new queen was twenty five years old, highly intelligent, tall, red haired, lovely and possessing much of her father’s strong will. Her status (bastard or not a bastard?) was still considered questionable. Nonetheless, Bess became a much beloved monarch.
Fun facts:
Elizabeth served time in the Tower of London, arrested for treason after she was wrongly accused of plotting to overthrow her sister Mary. It was, ironically, Phillip of Spain, Mary’s husband, who pled for Elizabeth’s release. His intentions were not entirely noble, as he knew his own wife was sickly and he planned to gain favor with Bess and wed her after Mary’s inevitable death. Needless to say, Bess refused him.
Her nicknames were Gloriana, Good Queen Bess and The Virgin Queen.
The Virgin Queen was also an astrological Virgo! She had many typical characteristics of the sign — pragmatism, good money management, discretion and concern for others.
Although most historians agree that Bess actually was a virgin, she had a long romantic involvement with her courtier and horse master Robert Dudley. This caused rumors and gossip. However, although there was great anticipation for her to be wed, Bess never married and produced no heirs. (At least not any legitimate heirs that we know about.)
The whiteness of her skin, as it appears in many portraits, was achieved through a makeup combination of eggshells and lead. (Yes lead! Its effects were apparently unknown at the time.)
She spoke Latin, French, German and Spanish.
She loved sweets. One of her favorite foods was sugar coated violets. Her dental health suffered because of this and Bess eventually had a mouth full of rotten teeth.
Regarding her so-called marriage plans, Bess was a master at bait and switch. She would often ‘consider’ marriage proposals, but only to gain political favor with a particular country. Once peace was established, she would send suitors on their merry way.
Bess often claimed she was ‘married to England’. She proved this to be true in her political actions. She once even tried to arrange a marriage between her cousin Mary Queen of Scots and her own love interest Robert Dudley — because she wanted Dudley to serve as a spy and keep track of the Scottish queen’s activities.
This suggestion caused the insulted Dudley to leave court in a huff. He then married Lettice Knollys, Bess’ cousin and lady in waiting. Lettice was banished form court for this union. Dudley, however, reconciled with the queen and served her for several more years.
What exactly was Queen Elizabeth’s aversion to marriage? Consider the circumstances. Her own father beheaded not only her mother, but also her cousin (Catherine Howard, Henry’s fifth wife) and several other kinsmen. Her relationship with Dudley was wrought with scandal and threats to her power. Sleazy Phillip of Spain tried to worm his way into her affections for political gain. My guess, she only ever equated marriage with danger. She saw it as an institution that threatened her realm and her life.
Bess was a lover of plays and supported Shakespearean drama. She herself was a musician, accomplished at the lute and virginals.
She, along with her secretary Sir Francis Walsingham, created the most notorious spy operation of Renaissance England. Walsingham undermined several plots to overthrow Elizabeth, including a Catholic scheme involving Mary Queen of Scots. Bess’ network of spies, which included Christopher Marlowe, often were turn coats — former Catholics who switched sides but remained savvy to Catholic networks and thus reported plans to Walsingham.
Bess was such a good spymaster, she even wore dresses to advertise the fact! Note this famous portrait:
Upon closer examination, we see that the detail of the fabric is decorated with tiny ears and eyes! This was to send the symbolic message: “I see and hear you” and more importantly “Don’t betray me.”
She never quite gave up her obsession for Robert Dudley. After her death, a letter was found among her most private belongings, hand written by Robert, with a note from Bess labeling it his last letter to her. She is said to have called out his name on her deathbed.
Elizabeth is still considered one of England’s best monarchs. Her great accomplishments include defeating the Spanish Armada, restoring prosperity to the realm and keeping relative peace in the country despite great religious divides. She died in 1603 of natural causes.
Elizabeth I has been portrayed by some of the world’s finest actresses, including Flora Robson, Bette Davis, Vanessa Redgrave, Glenda Jackson, Cate Blanchett, Judi Dench, Helen Mirren, and Anne-Mare Duff. This fun montage gives a sampling, hope you like it!
Happy Birthday Bess!
On May 19, 1536, Anne Boleyn, Queen of England and second wife of King Henry VIII, was executed by beheading, after being held prisoner in the Tower of London for four days and declared guilty of high treason. The formal charges against her were adultery, incest and plotting to kill the king. (Most historians agree these were bogus accusations.) However, Anne’s actual crime was miscarrying two babies and not being able to provide a male heir to succeed King Henry.
As we know, Anne had given birth to a daughter named Elizabeth who later became queen, one of the strongest monarchs ever to rule Great Britain. King Henry, of course, would never live to see this. Henry, in his quest to bear legitimate male heirs, notoriously married six times, broke with the Catholic Church and changed the trajectory of Great Britain’s future. He divorced two of his wives (Catherine of Argon and Anne of Cleves) and sent another two to the block — Anne Boleyn and her cousin Katherine Howard. All of these woman had committed the crime of not bearing a son.
Why all the fuss over a male heir?
Apparently, the laws had strictly adhered to a thing called ‘male preference primogeniture’ which meant, in essence, boys came first. Girls became rulers only if there were no available boys to take over.
Females had a slim right to the throne, but it was complicated: “Male-preference primogeniture accords succession to the throne to a female member of a dynasty if she has no living brothers and no deceased brothers who left surviving legitimate descendants. A dynast’s sons and their lines of descent all come before that dynast’s daughters and their lines. Older sons and their lines come before younger sons and their lines. Older daughters and their lines come before younger daughters and their lines.” — Wikipedia
This archaic practice was in effect for over 900 years. It began with the Norman Conquest and stayed strong all the way up to 2011 (yes, 2011!) when sixteen Commonwealth leaders finally agreed to change the succession laws. In 2013 a formal a act of parliament changed the established ‘male preference primogeniture’ to ‘absolute primogeniture’, thus allowing female babies an equal part in the royal heritage .
Great Britain, what took you so long?
If only they had been so enlightened 500 years earlier! They would have put an end to Henry’s worries, saved Anne’s head and certainly given Elizabeth a much easier reign…
As it turned out, Anne’s daughter ruled England for over forty years. She defeated the Spanish Armada, stabilized religion, avoided a lot of unnecessary wars and brought peace and prosperity to the land.
She was known as ‘Gloriana’ and ‘Good Queen Bess’.
Here is an interesting documentary about Anne’s execution. (Running time about 30 minutes.) Hope you get a chance to watch!
On January 25, 1533, King Henry VIII married his adulterous lover Anne Boleyn in a secret ceremony held in London and presided over by very few witnesses. Henry was, by all applicable laws, still married to his first wife Queen Catherine of Aragon. Anne Boleyn was pregnant. She would give birth to her only daughter Elizabeth on September 7 of that same year, approximately seven months after the wedding.
It was the shotgun wedding of a bigamist king and a pregnant lady in waiting. Oh, but what a king, and what a lady! The Pope never approved Henry’s divorce from Catherine of Aragon and Henry was excommunicated from the Catholic Church. This changed the direction of religion not only in England but much of Europe as well, as Protestant Reformations spread across the land.
Although Anne’s daughter Elizabeth would go on to become one of the most powerful monarchs of England, her status as ‘illegitimate bastard’ would always be in question. This led to great paranoia. Elizabeth was constantly in fear for her life and established a network of spies that would put the CIA, the FBI and the Mata Hari to shame.
Conventional wisdom would have surely suggested that this marriage was ill fated. Yet when they first met sparks flew. Henry and Anne were totally infatuated with each other, evident in Henry’s many love letters to her.
As you know, it ended badly. Just three years later, Henry charged Anne with adultery and treason. She was beheaded. While imprisoned in the Tower of London, Anne famously joked about her ‘little neck’ which would make the executioner’s task easy. At least she kept her wit and sense of humor till the end.
To say the King fancied me is an understatement. To say he loved or adored me is misleading as well. In truth, King Henry the Eighth was obsessed with me. Obsessed in a way most would consider quite unnatural. This of course was no fault of his own. He was but human. Yet his obsession would lead to the transformation of an entire empire.
It is true I was beheaded. But my kind never dies. We dwell in the weft and weave of all we once were. I am in the creaks of staircases, the plaster of palace walls, the jewels of the crown. My tale, albeit tragic, is one of pride and power.
My influence remains, even to this day. But I will start at the beginning.
Everything about King Henry was exciting. He was a man of risk and bold adventure. His palace was magnificent; floors of dark oak, velvet draperies and crystal chandeliers. He wore robes of sable, chains of gold, ruby rings. I was no stranger to luxury, having lived a good deal of my life in the French court where I served as a handmaiden to the Queen Mary and Princess Claude. When I came to Henry’s palace I determined I’d have the finery of a queen, for nothing else would do.
In my French education I had learned courtly ways, the manners and expectations of the high born. I knew, only too well, the fate of girls who gave favors to a king. Once bedded, never wedded. I liked to say that as a joke though it was not really funny. Such had been the fate of my sister Mary, a concubine, once mistress to the King, but later tossed aside with a bastard in her womb. Mary Boleyn is remembered as nothing more than a whore. I vowed such would never happen to me!
And so it was, when King Henry took a liking to me, I determined I would have no intimacy with him until he’d wed me in a proper church. In his lust Henry pursued me and I teased him. Oh how I teased him! For I knew the truth; a woman’s tease is the most powerful thing in all of this world.
One small problem was, of course, that Henry was already married. His first wife, Queen Catherine of Aragon, refused to grant him a divorce. Indeed, the Pope himself refused to grant Henry a divorce! And so Henry, after much distress and mounting desire for me, decided to finally break from the Church of Rome.
“Damn the Pope, damn them all,” he declared. “I will have you, Anne Boleyn! I will have you, even if I must create my own church in order to do so!”
And that was exactly what Henry did; he created his own religion, declared himself divorced from Catherine and became the sole ruler of both church and state. All this was, of course, the result of my masterful seduction.
We were wed far away from the palace at the white cliffs of Dover. After that, and only after that, did I agree to share Henry’s bed. It was then also that he noticed my sixth finger, the tiny web of flesh that grew from my hand.
I was an expert at hiding it, wearing long sleeves that slipped far past my wrists. It was an unsightly thing but it was my branding. It spoke of my true identity. Times being what they were, executions rampant, we witches lived in the shadows.
King Henry, however, was infatuated and made no matter of my finger. To him it was a mere peculiarity, a fetish. He invented ways to incorporate it in our sex play and I daresay it pleased him immensely.
Soon, much to Henry’s delight, I fell pregnant.
More than anything in the world, Henry wanted a son. A legitimate male child could be the only proper heir to the throne of England. So said the law. In his hope and anxiety Henry convinced himself that our child was a boy. And so, when my daughter, the red haired Elizabeth arrived in this world, wailing with a voice as big as the sea, Henry was mortified.
“The next child shall be male,” he said crisply. This even before he first held Elizabeth in his arms.
The next child. Ha! Little did my husband know, there would be no next child! I’d make sure of it. What followed were a series of miscarriages and stillbirths. With each one Henry despised me more.
A son. Oh, I could very well have given Henry a son! It took no more than a poultice of rooster’s blood placed under a man’s pillow for seven nights in a row. (After which he must be fed snake meat, precisely seven hours before the act of intercourse. Any proper witch knew this!) It was a simple spell. My own mother had used it to conceive my brother George. It worked without fail.
Why did I not use it, you ask? Why not indeed? I had the future of England in my very hands! But you see, that was precisely my reason; the future of England.
Three years passed and I bore no more children. It was then that Henry decided he’d need a new wife. He set his sights upon the Lady Jane Seymour. She was a mousy little thing, hardly a comparison to the likes of me. But my fate was already cast and I knew Jane would be Henry’s next wife.
There were many in the palace who turned against me. Many who spread lies and rumors. By then all knew of my sixth finger. They accused me of witchcraft, saying I had charmed the King into our very marriage.
It was true, of course, that I was a witch. That much I could not help, being born into the line of Howard on my mother’s side. Every female of the Howard line inherited some measure of the witch blood. I had been graced with plenty. My daughter Elizabeth had even more! For this reason I knew she must be queen. She would command the winds and the seas. With her psychic powers and gift of sight she would become the best spy in all the world. Elizabeth would use her power for goodness and treachery alike, for all is fair in love and war.
Once I had birthed Elizabeth nothing else mattered. In fact, I would have been quite content to age gracefully, take my place as consort, outlive my husband and watch my daughter rule gallantly.
But no. Henry would not have it.
He needed a reason to execute me and having nothing better to accuse me of, he chose adultery. For my part, I had always been faithful. And yet, Mark Smeaton, my court musician was accused of bedding me. This was quite outrageous! Master Smeaton was a lover of men, he cared only for men, that was plain as the day is long. He had not an inkling of interest in my flesh nor that of any woman. Despite this he was my good friend, keen to serenade me, frequently relaying the gossip of the palace. Such brought his downfall.
Another accused was my brother George. My own brother! Although I had lived at French court and I will admit to many peculiar tastes in the bed chamber — incest was certainly not among them! George was horrified.
Under the King’s law Mark and George were tortured, and torture back then was quite gruesome. The rack, thumbscrews, the iron maiden and strappado. The twisting and popping of fingers, pricking of blades, arms dislodged from sockets. Stretching of flesh till torsos were disfigured beyond recognition. Blood poured and wails of pain resounded until finally Mark and George confessed to vile acts they had never committed.
And me? My fate was to be the executioner’s block.
My husband, in his grudging mercy, had been kind enough to bring a skilled executioner from France; one so swift with a sword that my head would be gone before I realized he had sliced me. My death, however, would not be a true death. I knew this and made a joke of it till the very end.
Years later, when my daughter Elizabeth finally took her rightful place on the throne, she employed a magi by the name of Master John Dee.
This was much to my delight, for Master Dee, being skilled in all manner of conjuring and summoning, was one of the rare beings who could contact my spirit and allow my return to the earthly plane. And so it was I reunited with my Elizabeth! I appeared to her in the flesh, for the crossing of dimensions is quite easy if one has a proper conjurer. (The afterlife is not so very different from this life as humans know it; although it is a good deal easier and far more fun. )
Elizabeth had also employed a privy council, a collection of old gentleman, gray haired and sensible. From these she ostensibly took direction. Yet it was I who truly advised her.
It was I who told Elizabeth never to marry. A husband, I cautioned, would take all her power. And most likely her head as well! (You see I am quite the jester. Perhaps I missed my calling in life.) But in seriousness, Elizabeth would have no man to command her! And if any questioned this decision, she would merely claim she was ‘wed to England’. That silenced their criticisms.
It was I who advised Elizabeth on war and peace, economics and all matters of state. My daughter served a reign of over forty five years. During that time she brought England to glory, winning wars, sustaining a solvent treasury and establishing the strongest navy in all the world.
My only regret was that Elizabeth had birthed no legitimate heir. There had been babies born to her, oh yes! Boys and girls alike, delivered in secret, hidden by midwives. My daughter was a woman of passion. No virgin she, despite what historians claim. The Howard line was kept alive by Elizabeth! But upon her death the crown had no recognized successor. Elizabeth’s council decided upon James of Scotland. For my part I had no say in it.
Alas, James was a poor ruler, no friend of the people, certainly no diplomat. To make matters worse, James had put more witches to death than any other monarch in the history of Great Britain!
His line obviously could not be permitted to last! And so it was I cast a spell, and James’ sons were usurped from the throne. England was thrown into civil war. All this could have easily been avoided if only they had left a witch in charge! Foolish men.
Yet our power would be restored.
In the twentieth century, another great female would come to power. This woman would be descended through the line of Howard. (Leave the blood work and DNA to a genealogist. It is complicated! Suffice it to say, this is true and none should challenge me on this fact! )
This new queen would also serve a term of over forty five years. By the end of her reign England would once again be restored to peace and prosperity.
This new monarch would be called Elizabeth.
This post is in response to the Daily Prompt Obsessed
Histories and Mysteries 