Elizabeth I of England had a close friendship with one of her ambassadors. Photo / Getty Images
Elizabeth I of England had a close friendship with one of her ambassadors. Photo / Getty Images
She is known as the Virgin Queen, a monarch who took a vow of chastity upon her ascension to the throne, insisting she was "married" to her country.
But the love life of Queen Elizabeth I has long been the subject of great speculation amid rumours of various secret liaisons.
Now, Dr Estelle Paranque, a historian and Tudor expert, claims to have discovered evidence of an intimate relationship between the monarch and a French ambassador, to whom she grew close when he moved to the UK.
Bertrand Salignac de la Mothe Fénélon, a French nobleman and experienced diplomat, was sent to England in November 1568, where he was to remain for seven years.
According to letters he sent back to the French court, uncovered by Dr Paranque, he quickly fell into the Queen's favour, and she gave him the unusual and somewhat scandalous privilege of access to her private chambers. He was, claims the historian, soon to be found constantly by her side.
La Mothe Fénélon wrote that Queen Elizabeth often had "a very jovial and happy face" when she was around him, whether they were hunting, dining or discussing politics together.
Her admiration appeared to have been reciprocated. He wrote to King Charles IX of France of her hunting prowess, describing his awe when he saw her hunting "fallow deer with a crossbow."
Crossbows were viewed as powerful weapons, often used by soldiers and nobles, and required significant upper-body strength; they were not usually used by women.
La Mothe Fénélon also, unusually, wrote of her good looks, telling French court in a letter, writing one day that she greeted him, "having decorated her court, being herself well dressed and looking as a wonder.
He remarked on the fact that she was "better dressed than usual"
Dr Paranque said: "I think what's happened is that he admired her and I think that we can be a bit suspicious about the fact that maybe he had a crush on her. He liked spending time with her.
Portrait of Elizabeth I of England (Greenwich, 1533-London, 1603). Photo / Getty Images
"It's very clear that he enjoyed having after dinner conversations with her, she spoke to him for a long time.
"She also blamed him for having forgotten her when he hadn't seen her for a long time.
"It was not really the sort of ambassadorial rhetoric. They definitely had a friendship.
"Also in my book, it's striking the ways in which he described her to his masters, to the French rulers, he said she was a rock which is a very strong word and said she looked a wonder, and that she's magnificent."
After enjoying his company at dinner, the Queen frequently took him to her private chamber to seek his advice on political matters, such as her concerns about her rival for the throne, Mary, Queen of Scots.
Their meetings were secretive; he writes: "the next day I was going to find the said Lady, who drew me off in a corridor aside."
As well as having the usual official diplomatic discussions, the two discussed private matters while hunting, during snatched conversations in corridors and in the corner of her private chamber.
On 18th January 1572, the French ambassador wrote to Catherine de Medici that "she ordered me to bring a stool, and led me to sit next to her in a corner of her private chamber."
Dr Paranque said: "These secret locations where no one else was invited further demonstrate that Elizabeth and La Mothe Fénélon did not want their friendship to be discovered. Maybe she was confessing something personal? We cannot be sure, but La Mothe Fénélon's tone indicates these interactions were not considered entirely proper behaviour."
During these conversations, they discussed a potential marriage to Henri, Duke of Anjou, older brother of François, Duke of Alençon.
Dr Paranque added: "In many ways, by being the intermediate between Henri and Elizabeth, the French ambassador ended up being the one wooing the Queen."
Her book, Elizabeth I of England through Valois Eyes, Power, Representation, and Diplomacy in the Reign of the Queen, 1558–1588, is available to order online now.
