A bit of ruff
I am delighted to report that Bess Throckmorton, the woman who served Queen Elizabeth I, married Sir Walter Ralegh, who rode the rollercoaster that was the Tudor and Stuart era, and whose soundtrack should surely be ‘I will survive’, lives again – in digital form. The picture above is, probably, Bess as a young woman – and a detail of the painting lies at the heart of the political and sexual triangle formed by Bess, Sir Walter, and the Queen. (However, when I was interviewed by the Daily Telegraph about Elizabeth: The Golden Age, which has its own historically implausible take on that triangle, the best I could come up with is that the film might have an ’emotional truth’ to it…) If you want to know more, take a look at http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bess-Life-Lady-Ralegh-Walter-ebook/dp/B00SZ4JF2W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1423494584&sr=8-1&keywords=bess+endeavour and if you are feeling kind and generous, spend £2.99 on a bit of ruff, and if you are feeling even more kind and generous (and you like what you have read), offer a one-line review on amazon…
Bess was the fore-runner to the eight women I’m writing about now, so it’s really satisfying to see her re-emerge again in this way, thanks to the publishers, the Endeavour Press. And, even more importantly, it gives me a chance to put up a picture of Bess’ favourite swashbuckler with hang-ups, the greatest poet of his time, and a man confident enough in his sexuality to wear pearl earrings the size of goose eggs – I give you Sir Walter Ralegh.
shadowofthecourtesan 