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TWENTY-FOUR
The Great Hall of Hatfield Palace was packed with more people than it had ever held before. Bess knew almost everyone present. She stood laughing and talking with Robert Dudley and his beautiful sister Mary Sidney. Earlier she had received a kiss of greeting from Lord William Parr, Sir John Thynne, Sir Henry Brooke, William Herbert, the Earl of Pembroke, and a dozen other noblemen. Bess had forgotten she knew so many earls of the realm.
A pair of strong arms grabbed Bess from behind. She turned and cried out with delight. “Ambrose Dudley! God's feet, you were a pink-cheeked boy when last we met, and now you're an old man.”
“You still look and feel like a young girl, my beauty.”
Bess tapped him with her fan. “I'm almost”—she glanced at Robin—“I'm almost twenty-seven.”
Robin threw back his head and laughed at the private joke. They were all giddy with excitement. Bess had stayed up half the night with Elizabeth and her ladies. “I shall never sleep again!” the radiant young queen had declared. “The lights in my palaces will burn all night, and I shall dance until dawn. No more rules to follow! I, and no one else in my realm, shall make the rules.” Elizabeth stripped off her prim gray dress and threw it upon the fire. As it blazed up, her laughter held a hint of the hysteria she felt. “From this day forward my gowns will be magnificent and I shall change them a half dozen times a day.”
Bess drawled, “I pity your poor ladies of the bedchamber.” But completely understanding Elizabeth's intoxication, she prompted, “What about jewels?”
“God's feet, the Crown jewels now belong to me— and I shall wear every last one!”
Cat Ashley brought her a bedgown. “My lamb, you must get some sleep. Tomorrow you have to give your first address as queen.”
Elizabeth turned and stared at her, then her glittering eyes looked at each one in turn. “By Christ's precious blood, no one will ever say must to me again. I will have no mistress, and I will have no master, for as long as I may live!”
As Bess stood with the Dudleys awaiting their new queen, she knew exactly what to expect of Elizabeth. She would be vain and demanding and imperious, but she had an unshakable belief in her destiny and would make a glorious monarch. She was more shrewd and clever than any man breathing, and devious too. Bess was certain that Elizabeth had been born to be queen.
“Where the devil is she?” Robin demanded impatiently.
Bess smiled up at him. “It gives her pleasure to keep us waiting.”
At last Elizabeth made her appearance in the Great Hall, and the cheers were deafening. She did not hold up her hands to make them stop but stood basking in the tumultuous ovation. It lasted for a good half hour before the crowd stopped chanting, “Long live the queen.” Only then did Elizabeth begin to speak. Her composure was extraordinary. She was in complete control.
“This is the doing of the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes. I owe my allegiance and my Crown to the people of England. The burden that has fallen upon me maketh me amazed, and I have chosen the most worthy men in the realm to help me carry this burden. Today I appoint Sir William Cecil as my principal secretary of state and head of my privy council.
“My other councillors will be William Parr, Marquess of Northampton, and the earls of Arundel, Bedford, Derby, Pembroke, and Shrewsbury. Others will be chosen in good time.
“I appoint Lord Robert Dudley as my master of horse. I appoint Sir William St. Loe as captain of the queen's guard. William Paulet, Marquess of Winchester, remains as lord treasurer, and I appoint Sir Nicholas Bacon as lord keeper of the great seal.”
Bess was delighted. Bacon was Cecil's brother-in-law and a learned lawyer, who had been head of the Court of Augmentation. He had always accommodated the Cavendishes whenever William had wanted to exchange a piece of land.
Elizabeth continued, “I appoint Mistress Catherine Ashley as head lady-in-waiting and mistress of the robes. Today I appoint four new ladies-of-the-bedchamber: Lady Catherine Grey, Lady Mary Sidney, Lady Lettice Knollys, and Lady Elizabeth Cavendish.”
Bess was stunned. Elizabeth had rewarded everyone Bess knew with an important appointment, but Bess herself had never once thought of an official place in Elizabeth 's Court for herself! Bess wasn't even sure she wanted it. She had too much on her plate now; how would she juggle this appointment with all her other responsibilities? But of course Bess realized immediately that she could not turn it down. Doing so would be an unforgivable insult to Elizabeth. Bess was practical enough to understand that if she was ever to prosper again, it would be through royal patronage.
That evening, Bess was introduced to Lettice Knollys, who was the queen's Boleyn cousin. All the ladies Elizabeth had appointed thanked her profusely, then Bess summoned the courage to ask her first favor. “Your Majesty, may I return to Brentford to inform my family and see to my wardrobe?”
“Bess, your official duties won't begin until my coronation. By all means return home to see to your wardrobe. I already have my sewing women working day and night. When I enter London I have decided to wear royal purple velvet. I shall go straight to the Tower—to the Royal Apartments this time, of course. Cat's husband, John, is to be my master of the jewel house. It will take me a week to try on everything! We shall celebrate Christmas at my Palace of Westminster, and my coronation will take place in January, to symbolize a new year, a new reign.”
The following morning Bess returned to Brentford. Elizabeth was intoxicated by her new power and busy from dawn to dusk making plans. Bess knew she would not be missed. Elizabeth had dreamed and fantasized for years about this moment. The last thing the new queen wanted was advice from another woman.
Jane and Aunt Marcy sat entranced as Bess told them what had gone on at Hatfield. “Elizabeth appointed me a lady-of-the-bedchamber. I wish she hadn't. How on earth will I manage everything? I will have to live at Westminster Palace and go with the Court wherever Queen Elizabeth chooses. You and the children will have to live here at Brentford.”
Marcella clapped her hands. “It is exactly what you need, Bess. You belong at Court! You will thrive on being at the center of the universe. Elizabeth will gather about her the greatest men in the realm—where better to catch yourself a husband?”
“I will never marry again,” Bess said firmly.
“I know better,” Marcella contradicted.
Bess chose to ignore her prophesy. “I am not ambitious for myself, but my children are another matter entirely. My Court connections could be invaluable to them. Hell's teeth, if only I had money for their dowries.”
“You need a rich, indulgent husband,” Marcella pointed out. “Marriage is always the answer.”
“You've managed to avoid it all your life,” Bess said dryly.
