Women Friends of Queen Elizabeth

Abstract

When many people think about Queen Elizabeth and her relationships with others they think about her relationships with the men at her court. But she was also close to some women, and these relationships were clearly important. But since Elizabeth was the queen, these friendships were never equal. She may well have felt most comfortable when she was with her women, but Elizabeth could never fully relax, nor could she fully trust and confide in any of the women she cared about. She learned early that to keep safe she had to keep her own counsel. The women around her, too, knew that the queen could get angry with them with impunity and also had to deal with her moods and moments of selfishness. While most of her close friends served her at court, some, such as Marjorie Williams Norris, did not. Some were related to Elizabeth through her mother Anne Boleyn. She cared deeply for cousins Katherine Carey Knollys, Lady Knollys, and Katherine Carey Howard, Countess of Nottingham. Elizabeth had known some of her friends since childhood, such as Kat Ashley and Blanche Parry. And some became dear to her after she ascended the throne, such as Dorothy Stafford and Ann Russell Dudley, Countess of Warwick.