W

hen Elizabeth I became Queen of England in 1558, she inherited from her half-sister Queen Mary a war and religion-torn country on the verge of bankruptcy, a nation “reinforced only in its conviction of feminine unfitness to rule” (quote from Elizabeth I by Anne Somerset).  It was an unpromising beginning, but Elizabeth was a brilliant politician, and she understood that what England needed was sparkle and pageantry.  A majestic Court, with herself as its shining star and her ladies as her foils, would be her backdrop for a renewed and empowered England.  Not all of her ladies were content to be mere background, though—and most of them didn’t care to emulate Elizabeth in her famous virginity.

By 1558, the structure of the Royal Household had become very elaborate, with a definite hierarchy of service.  There were the heights—the Ladies of the Bedchamber; the middle—the Ladies of the Privy Chamber; and the lowest (but still pretty good), the Ladies of the Presence Chamber.  The latter seem to have had no set duties except to attend on the Queen when she wanted to impress someone, such as a foreign ambassador.  The six unmarried Maids of Honor went with the Queen on her morning walks and to church services, clad in the regulation white and silver.  When the Queen took the throne, her old nursery maid Blanche Parry was named Chief Gentlewoman of the Privy Chamber, while a Mistress Elizabeth Eglionby had the unenviable task of shepherding the Maids of Honor.

Obtaining a place at Court was very difficult, with fierce competition whenever a position came open.  It was especially tough in Elizabeth’s time, as hers was the only household.  (When there was a King and a Queen, and presumably royal children, there were many more households with more attendants required).  In return for their services, the ladies received modest stipends.  Privy Chamber ladies got 34 pounds a year, while the Maids of Honor received 40 (as they were usually of very high families).  In addition, the Court was responsible for their room and board while they were on duty, and they had a lively social life and a measure of influence they wouldn’t have otherwise.

Not that life was all banquets and strolls in the garden!  Elizabeth was a very strict employer.  Ladies couldn’t be absent from Court without the Queen’s permission, which was hard to obtain (she was very possessive).  She also liked to berate her ladies, “her sarcastic tongue and withering wit…combined to render her an object of terror to her apprehensive attendants” (quote from Elizabeth I by Anne Somerset).  She also sometimes threw things at them in a fit of Tudor temper, which couldn’t have been much fun!

 

The housing was not the most luxurious.  The Maids of Honor lived in one dorm-style room, and a palace could only be lived in for a short time before the stench of so many inhabitants became overwhelming.  Several of the Queen’s ladies defied her by indulging in love affairs with her courtiers, and some (like her cousins Katherine Gray and Arbella Stuart) paid for it with stints in the Tower.

Despite all those drawbacks, the life of a lady-in-waiting gave upper-class women an opportunity they could find nowhere else.  They were at the very center of power in Renaissance England at a pivotal moment in history.  All the intrigue and glamour also makes it a terrific backdrop for novels!

 

Lettice_Knollys

Lady-in-Waiting to

Elizabeth I Queen of England

 

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Amanda McCabe’s The Winter Queen, a tale of royal plots, intrigue, passion, and Christmas festivities at the Court of Elizabeth I in 1564, introduces you to Rosamund, a lady-in-waiting to Elizabeth I.   You can read more about the book and find more historical research information www.ammandamccabe.com.

 

 

 

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