Elizabeth's Rival

by Nicola Tallis

Overview

A kinswoman to Elizabeth I, Lettice Knollys had begun the Queen’s glittering reign basking in favor and success. It was an honor that she would enjoy for two decades. However, on the morning of September 21st, 1578, Lettice made a fateful decision. When the Queen learned of it, the consequences were swift. Lettice had dared to marry without the Queen’s consent. But worse, her new husband was Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, the Queen’s favorite and one-time suitor.Though she would not marry him herself, Elizabeth was fiercely jealous of any woman who showed an interest in Leicester. Knowing that she would likely earn the Queen’s enmity, Lettice married Leicester in secret, leading to her permanent banishment from court. Elizabeth never forgave the new Countess for what she perceived to be a devastating betrayal, and Lettice permanently forfeited her favor. She had become not just Queen Elizabeth’s adversary. She was her rival. But the Countess’ story does not end there. Surviving the death of two husbands and navigating the courts of three very different monarchs: Henry VIII, Elizabeth I, and Charles I, Lettice’s story offers an extraordinary and intimate perspective on the world she lived in.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781681777146
Publisher:	Pegasus Books
Publication date:	03/06/2018
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	262,707
File size:	44 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Dr. Nicola Tallis’s debut book, Crown of Blood: The Deadly Inheritance of Lady Jane Grey, was published to wide praise in America and Britain. She has previously lectured at the University of Winchester and worked with Historic Royal Palaces and the National Trust. She lives in England.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations ix

Genealogical Tables xi

Dramatis Personae xiv

Timeline xxii

Author's Note xxiv

Introduction xxv

Prologue xxxi

1 Hiding Royal Blood 1

2 Darling to the Maiden Queen 19

3 Captive to the Charms of Lettice Knollys 38

4 The Goodliest Male Personage in England 57

5 Flirting with the Viscountess 78

6 Death with his Dart hath us Bereft 91

7 Faithful, Faultless, Yet Someway Unfortunate, Yet Must Suffer 107

8 His Paramour, or his Wife 119

9 Great Enmity 137

10 Up and Down the Country 153

11 A Marriage in Secret 165

12 One Queen in England 173

13 A She-Wolf 186

14 My Sorrowful Wife 200

15 Our Mistress's Extreme Rage 214

16 A Continual Fever 228

17 My Best Friend 246

18 Disgraced Persons 265

19 Some Wonted Unkind Words 277

20 The Arch-Traitor Essex 293

21 Mildly Like a Lamb 311

22 The Wars with Thunder, and the Court with Stars 324

Epilogue 334

Appendix 1 Epitaph to Lettice, Countess of Leicester 337

Appendix 2 Following in Lettice's Footsteps - Places to Visit 339

Notes and References 341

Bibliography 379

Acknowledgements 389

Index 391

Editorial Reviews

03/01/2018
The name Lettice Knollys (1543–1634) may be unfamiliar to many readers, but as Tallis (Crown of Blood) demonstrates in this excellent biography, this English countess is worthy of better recognition, especially among enthusiasts of Tudor history. Knollys's long and colorful life played out against the backdrop of Tudor politics and court intrigue, and she or her family were involved, for better or worse, in almost every significant event of Elizabeth I's reign. As the mother of Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, who was executed for treason in 1601, and as the lady-in-waiting who dared to marry the queen's favorite courtier Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, Knollys's life was inextricably connected to the monarch's in profound, often tragic, ways. Tallis's meticulous research and understanding of the intricacies of Elizabethan court life allow Knollys to emerge from undeserved obscurity to take center stage as a fearless, strong-willed woman who shared many of the characteristics of her royal rival, and who paid dearly for daring to follow her heart. VERDICT An eminently readable portrait of a fascinating woman. Highly recommended for readers of biography and Tudor history.—Sara Shreve, Newton, KS

Library Journal

03/05/2018
Tallis (Crown of Blood) has constructed a thorough first biography of Lettice Knollys that also serves as an excellent view of the Elizabethan era from a noblewoman’s perspective. For years the young Lettice was a close companion to Queen Elizabeth I, but this closeness was ruptured when, after the death of Lettice’s first husband, Walter Devereaux, Earl of Essex, Lettice secretly married Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, the queen’s “favorite”—one of “those individuals closest to the monarch, who entertained them, were loyal to them, and perhaps offered the most intimate personal connection outside of their family.” Lettice and the queen seldom met again during their lives, and Elizabeth never forgave Lettice for her perceived betrayal. The queen did not display the same lasting rancor toward Leicester, nor did it initially extend to other members of Lettice’s family; her firstborn son, Robert, was for a time the queen’s favorite after his stepfather’s death. Tallis uses Lettice’s 91-year life to showcase the scandals, wars, and rebellions that marked the end of the Tudors and the beginning of the Stuart monarchy. Tallis includes pictures, genealogies, a timeline, an extensive bibliography, and notes to round out this work, which is a great choice for historians and lay readers alike. Agent: Andrew Lownie, Andrew Lownie Literary. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

"Tallis brings this tragic teen to vivid life in her perceptive and thoughtful new book."

Christian Science Monitor

"Praise for Crown of Blood:

Tallis takes this thin slice of fact and serves it up as a full banquet, filling in history’s faint outline. The telling is by necessity speculative, since so little primary source material exists. Nevertheless, Tallis perseveres, presenting Jane as 'a spirited girl who demonstrated character, passion, talent and strength,' a serious bookworm who grew up in a household where new ideas flourished."

The New York Times Book Review

"Astunning debut from a young historian who deserves to be recognized as a major talent in her field. It's history as it should be written—vivid, colorful, and evocative."

Alison Weir

Tallis brings this tragic teen to vivid life in her perceptive and thoughtful new book.

The Christian Science Monitor

2018-01-22
Just when you thought there was nothing new to learn about Elizabethan England, Tallis (Crown of Blood: The Deadly Inheritance of Lady Jane Grey, 2016) tells the compelling story of Lettice Knollys (1543-1634), who was close to the queen for years but eventually became her rival.Lettice's mother, Katherine, was most likely the illegitimate daughter of Mary Boleyn and Henry VIII and so half sister to Elizabeth, then Lettice's aunt. Katherine and Elizabeth were raised together and were always very close. As queen, Elizabeth held Katherine and Lettice close to her at court. Both were favorites to the queen, but Lettice was not as wise as her mother and eventually married the queen's suitor, Robert Dudley. That was after her first marriage to Walter Devereux, a marriage that was happy and produced a number of children. Dudley was the only one who really came close to talking Elizabeth into marriage, but it was never to be. After 20 years of waiting, he fell in love with Lettice, now widowed, and they married secretly. The author gives us a number of reasons why he would dare incur the queen's wrath. Lettice offered marriage, heirs, and a stable domestic life, and they plunged ahead. It was a pleasant marriage, but Lettice seemed to throw her status up to the queen, infuriating her more. Dudley was eventually forgiven, but Lettice never was. For years, she sought forgiveness, hoping that her son might use his influence to bring it about. The fascinating connections between the great families of the period show what a small world it was; everyone was a cousin or spouse of someone connected to the queen. In her research, Tallis consulted many household records, correspondence, and a scandalous publication called Leicester's Commonwealth, printed by Dudley's enemies after his death. On the whole, the author provides an informative, well-crafted narrative and easily avoids the confusion of the nobility's many titles.Anyone who loves English royal history will enjoy this new take on a personality surprisingly little mentioned in the history books.

Kirkus Reviews