10th of May, 1526 - 9th of March, 1541
William Tudor, Duke of Somerset (b.1493: d.1527)
The death of the Duke of Somerset in 1527, left the royal court in shambles. The Lord, who had been Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and Warden of the Scottish Marshes, along with over 20 other major and minor positions, had acted as the kingdom's military commander for over a decade at this point and would be known as a great knight and strategist. Aged only 34, the Duke had died of a heart attack during sword training, which was unexpected for the generally healthy man. His wife, now the Dowager Duchess of Somerset Elizabeth Stewart, would give birth early the next year to their final child, a second daughter that was named Margaret Tudor of Somerset. The Dowager Duchess, upon returning from her confinement, found herself marginalized by the royal court due to her Scottish heritage. Without the protection of her highly popular husband, the awkward and pale Scottish Princess withdrew from the public life completely, taking her daughters with her to Eltham Palace. Her son, unfortunately, would stay in the household of the Duke of York and became a ward of the King, although he did not do her the dishonour of stealing her dower.
The Queen of Scots, in the household of her future sisters-in-law, found the entirety of her situation bewildering. Having lost both her parents so quickly (one to the battlefield and one to marriage), been told she was to be married and be Queen of England. Having seemingly accepted this, Joan Stewart found herself both better treated than the Tudor Princesses and stifled. She wore elaborate, expensive gowns and had come to an age in what she could appreciate them, entering adolescence, but found her education lacking and in 1530 would send the King requests for better tutors to match her own advancing intellectualism. However, her needs would, in this regard, not really be met until her marriage in 1532, aged 16. However, it seen became obvious to everyone the Prince of Wales was more than just uninterested in his Scottish bride. He actively despised the Queen of Scots.
The young man, now entering his 20s, was a man who had grown up with an atmosphere of hate about the Scots. He despised the King of Scots who had wounded his uncle and attacked his father's kingdom. The Prince of Wales also seemed to have a cold relationship with his aunt, finding the Dowager Duchess of Somerset to be an unwelcome presence in his court when she visited, although he did recognize that she was family and thus would be at least polite in her presence. However, his attitude to his Princess of Wales early in their marriage was considered nasty even by his father, who in 1534 ordered the Prince to treat the Queen with more respect. However, he did not and despite impregnating two mistresses in these early years of his marriage, the Prince did not produce an heir with his bride. Indeed, she claimed to have been untouched, writing to the King complaining that, if her husband continued to refuse to do his husbandly duties, she would have to find another husband instead. And thus, in 1536, the King found himself ambushed by the Queen of Scots, who demanded an annulment from the Prince of Wales.
She did accommodate him on her next husband. Agreeing to marry a man of his choosing, she was not surprised to learn that he wished her to marry the Duke of York, only 2 years her senior and not nearly as prejudiced. In fact, it seems some form of silly romance had begun between the two and upon Papal dispensation in 1538 the two were married. Thus, the Prince of Wales was suddenly an available husband and the King searched for a rich bride. He considered the Princesses of Austria, Portugal and Spain, but his plans were ultimately foiled by the Prince's sudden, secret marriage to none other than his cousin, the Lady Margaret Howard. Born in 1519 as the eldest daughter of the Earl of Surrey, the son of the recently (in 1517) re-endowed Duke of Norfolk and son of Catherine of York, William Howard, the lady in question was known for her beauty and extremely foul-mouth. In fact, the normally demure and quiet Dowager Duchess of Somerset was to have called her "a great burden of a woman" and the Queen of England, Germaine de Foix, less known for her sweet character, was to call her in letters "my son's wife, the Prostitute of Wales".
While not actually a courtesan of any nature, the new Princess of Wales was a brash young woman with a talent to make every person in the room hate her immediately. She would call the Queen, known for her vanity, "old and worn" to her face in 1539 and in 1540 earnt the distaste of the Lady Yolande of Somerset by calling her "heavy and unattractive". While neither of these descriptions were wrong (in particular, the Lady Yolande would be 460 pounds at her death), they ignored the preferred arrangement of the court. Compliments and honeyed words were the norm, not rudeness. However, protected by her husband who adored her, the Princess of Wales spent much of her early marriage in a bubble where her every word was laughed at. Ultimately, this freedom would not last.
William Tudor, Duke of Somerset (b.1493: d.1527)
The death of the Duke of Somerset in 1527, left the royal court in shambles. The Lord, who had been Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and Warden of the Scottish Marshes, along with over 20 other major and minor positions, had acted as the kingdom's military commander for over a decade at this point and would be known as a great knight and strategist. Aged only 34, the Duke had died of a heart attack during sword training, which was unexpected for the generally healthy man. His wife, now the Dowager Duchess of Somerset Elizabeth Stewart, would give birth early the next year to their final child, a second daughter that was named Margaret Tudor of Somerset. The Dowager Duchess, upon returning from her confinement, found herself marginalized by the royal court due to her Scottish heritage. Without the protection of her highly popular husband, the awkward and pale Scottish Princess withdrew from the public life completely, taking her daughters with her to Eltham Palace. Her son, unfortunately, would stay in the household of the Duke of York and became a ward of the King, although he did not do her the dishonour of stealing her dower.
The Queen of Scots, in the household of her future sisters-in-law, found the entirety of her situation bewildering. Having lost both her parents so quickly (one to the battlefield and one to marriage), been told she was to be married and be Queen of England. Having seemingly accepted this, Joan Stewart found herself both better treated than the Tudor Princesses and stifled. She wore elaborate, expensive gowns and had come to an age in what she could appreciate them, entering adolescence, but found her education lacking and in 1530 would send the King requests for better tutors to match her own advancing intellectualism. However, her needs would, in this regard, not really be met until her marriage in 1532, aged 16. However, it seen became obvious to everyone the Prince of Wales was more than just uninterested in his Scottish bride. He actively despised the Queen of Scots.
The young man, now entering his 20s, was a man who had grown up with an atmosphere of hate about the Scots. He despised the King of Scots who had wounded his uncle and attacked his father's kingdom. The Prince of Wales also seemed to have a cold relationship with his aunt, finding the Dowager Duchess of Somerset to be an unwelcome presence in his court when she visited, although he did recognize that she was family and thus would be at least polite in her presence. However, his attitude to his Princess of Wales early in their marriage was considered nasty even by his father, who in 1534 ordered the Prince to treat the Queen with more respect. However, he did not and despite impregnating two mistresses in these early years of his marriage, the Prince did not produce an heir with his bride. Indeed, she claimed to have been untouched, writing to the King complaining that, if her husband continued to refuse to do his husbandly duties, she would have to find another husband instead. And thus, in 1536, the King found himself ambushed by the Queen of Scots, who demanded an annulment from the Prince of Wales.
She did accommodate him on her next husband. Agreeing to marry a man of his choosing, she was not surprised to learn that he wished her to marry the Duke of York, only 2 years her senior and not nearly as prejudiced. In fact, it seems some form of silly romance had begun between the two and upon Papal dispensation in 1538 the two were married. Thus, the Prince of Wales was suddenly an available husband and the King searched for a rich bride. He considered the Princesses of Austria, Portugal and Spain, but his plans were ultimately foiled by the Prince's sudden, secret marriage to none other than his cousin, the Lady Margaret Howard. Born in 1519 as the eldest daughter of the Earl of Surrey, the son of the recently (in 1517) re-endowed Duke of Norfolk and son of Catherine of York, William Howard, the lady in question was known for her beauty and extremely foul-mouth. In fact, the normally demure and quiet Dowager Duchess of Somerset was to have called her "a great burden of a woman" and the Queen of England, Germaine de Foix, less known for her sweet character, was to call her in letters "my son's wife, the Prostitute of Wales".
While not actually a courtesan of any nature, the new Princess of Wales was a brash young woman with a talent to make every person in the room hate her immediately. She would call the Queen, known for her vanity, "old and worn" to her face in 1539 and in 1540 earnt the distaste of the Lady Yolande of Somerset by calling her "heavy and unattractive". While neither of these descriptions were wrong (in particular, the Lady Yolande would be 460 pounds at her death), they ignored the preferred arrangement of the court. Compliments and honeyed words were the norm, not rudeness. However, protected by her husband who adored her, the Princess of Wales spent much of her early marriage in a bubble where her every word was laughed at. Ultimately, this freedom would not last.