1559: Mary I believes that she is pregnant again. While this time Phillip was wary, he was also optimistic. The Queen, meanwhile, went through massive mood swings, at one point slapping a lady-in-waiting and at another screaming at her husband in court, telling him why he was ‘such an abhorrent creature’. While Phillip was offended, he also hoped that this was the craziness of a pregnant woman.
In April, Elizabeth has her baby, or should we say babies. Pregnant with twins, the Duchess’ labour is hard. But at the end she had two healthy children, Henry and Elizabeth. While Henry continues the trend of ‘the children look like Tudors’, Elizabeth bucks it, appearing to have inherited the appearance of the Habsburgs at their best.
After her pregnancy is over, Elizabeth is ordered by her sister to return to England to help with the pregnancy. While happy to be returning to her home country, she labours over the decision to bring her children. But ultimately it would be a wasted opportunity to show off in front of her sister. So she leaves for England in July. Arriving in late August she is immediately brought to her sister, who is crying foul. How dare Elizabeth have three children already! She spent over two hours screaming at her sister then, without warning, embraced her and started crying. The Queen was scared, unsure of both the pregnancy and her husband.
When she finally calmed down enough, Elizabeth asked for her children to be brought in. While Mary loved her nieces and nephews, little Elizabeth was her favourite by far. With the Habsburg colouring and a slightly visible Habsburg lip, she was a stunning child.
Finally, in October, Mary goes into actual labour. Not a phantom pregnancy as some had feared, the queen actually held an heir in her. But the worst came when, after 4 days, the baby was pulled out small and sickly. The Queen, who had been shocked herself when the labour came, did not do well and died within 3 days of the birth. The child, a boy named Phillip, died a mere week after his mother. And so the Lady Elizabeth became the Queen Elizabeth the First.