Henrietta Maria and the English Civil Wars

Michelle White

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9780754639428
• eBook ISBN: 9781351930970
• Edition: 1
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: World History
• Index: History

The influence exercised by Queen Henrietta Maria over her husband Charles I during the English Civil Wars, has long been a subject of interest. To many of her contemporaries, especially those sympathetic to Parliament, her French origins and Catholic beliefs meant that she was regarded with great suspicion. Later historians picking up on this, have spent much time arguing over her political role and the degree to which she could influence the decisions of her husband. What has not been so thoroughly investigated, however, are issues surrounding the popular perceptions of the Queen that inspired the plethora of pamphlets, newsbooks and broadsides. Although most of these documents are polemical propaganda devices that tell us little about the actual power wielded by Henrietta Maria, they do throw much light on how contemporaries viewed the King and Queen, and their relationship. The picture created by Charles and Henrietta's enemies was one of a royal household in patriarchal disorder. The Queen was characterized as an overly assertive, unduly influential, foreign, Catholic queen consort, whilst Charles was portrayed as a submissive and weak husband. Such an image had wide political ramifications, resulting in accusations that Charles was unfit to rule, and thus helping to justify Parliamentary resistance to the monarch. Because Charles had permitted his Catholic wife to interfere in state matters he stood accused of threatening the patriarchal order upon which all of society rested, and of imperilling the Church of England. In this book Michelle White tackles these dual issues of Henrietta's actual and perceived influence, and how this was portrayed in popular print by those sympathetic and hostile to her cause. In so doing she presents a vivid portrait of a strong willed woman who had a profound influence on the course of English history.

Chapter 1
The Queen Ascendant (1625-35)

Spanning the period from the time of queen's arrival in England in 1625 to the death of Lord Treasurer Richard Weston in 1635, this chapter explores Charles and Henrietta's personal and court relationship as well as the relationship the queen was developing (or failing to develop) with her and her husband's subjects. Henrietta did not always occupy a recognized position of importance at court, and throughout the late 1620s and early 1630s key factors account for this. An additional element of this chapter is an examination of contemporary perceptions of the queen. What kind of public image was Henrietta projecting during the early part of Charles's reign? How were her actions interpreted and discussed? What impact, if any, would these early opinions of the queen have upon perceptions of her during the civil wars? It is to these issues we must now turn.

The first, and most obvious, reason for Henrietta's weak political position at court during her first years in England was her youth. When the young bride landed at Dover on 22 June 1625, she was only fifteen years old, still very much a child physically and emotionally. Charles was nine years her senior and doubtless this disparity in ages contributed to the poor relations between the royal pair.

In addition to her tender age there was also the interference of her courtiers. According to the articles of the marriage treaty, Henrietta and all her household were permitted the free practice of the Catholic religion; and, in addition to her Lady of the Stool, Madame Jeanne de Saint-Georges and her other French ladies-in-waiting, a bishop and 20 priests accompanied her to England.¹ This group exerted a powerful influence on the young queen, a fact that did not go unnoticed by the concerned king.

The couple's early married life was far from happy and, as far as Charles was concerned, this was largely due to his wife's French entourage and the "ill crafty councell" they were giving her.² Charles blamed them for diverting Henrietta from forming any affection for him and his people³ and believed they "interposed in a bad spirit" between him and his queen consort.⁴ In a letter to his mother-in-law and the French king, Charles explained that he could "no longer suffer those that I know to be cause and fomenters of these humours, to be about my wife any longer."⁵ Thus, on 26 June 1626-in one fell swoop-the king dismissed them all, including all the clergy in attendance upon her.⁶

This was a devastating blow for the queen but, to her great delight, the courtiers did not depart quietly. The Bishop of Mende, the head of Henrietta's ecclesiastical retinue, declared to Charles that he would not leave a country to which he had been assigned (almost as an ambassador) unless ordered to do so by the king of France. Nevertheless, Charles warned that if the bishop and the queen's other servants would not leave, he would use force-which he did. Within a few days, the yeoman of the guard proceeded to the queen's apartments and threw them all out, locking the doors behind them.⁷

A month later, however, they were still seen milling about London, finding one excuse after another to delay their departure. On 7 August 1626 Charles, whose wrath had not abated, sent instructions to George Villiers, the first duke of Buckingham, to get them out of England by as expedient a means as possible, writing: "other-ways force them away; drivying them away lyke so manie wyld beastes, until ye have shipped them; and so the Devill go with them! Lett me heare no answer but of the performance of my command."⁸ This time they obeyed. Though Charles's initial orders were for the dismissal of all Henrietta's French servants, in the end she was permitted to keep a nurse, a cook, a baker, a painter, a tailor, a priest, and a lady-in-waiting named Madame Vantelet-a surprising, and somewhat significant, victory for the young queen.⁹

Members of the queen's French household, however, were not entirely to blame for the couple's early marital discord; nor were they solely responsible for the queen's inability to act independently. Another person stood firmly in the way: George Villiers, the duke of Buckingham, Charles's nature was such that his full confidence and affection could only be bestowed upon one person at a time and Henrietta (as well as just about everyone else at court) knew that Buckingham held the first place in Charles's heart and counsels. Buckingham, of course, had been the highly unpopular, though favourite courtier of Charles's father, James I, so Charles and George had had a long association. Indeed, it has been argued that after die heir to the throne (Prince Henry) died in 1610, George became something of a seasoned mentor to Charles. Their journey to Spain in 1623 solidified their friendship and by 1625 Buckingham enjoyed the distinguished position of being the king's chief counsellor and confidant, advising Charles on the conduct of diplomacy and war, and his stormy relations with his new bride; but this would not last for long.¹⁰

On 23 August 1628 the dagger of John Felton suddenly ended George Villiers's dazzling career.¹¹ Charles's grief was profound and lasting but for Henrietta, though the news was certainly shocking, it could not have been too unwelcome. "La reine d'Angleterre," wrote the Count of Tillières, whose wife had been an intimate friend of Henrietta,

fut une des personnes qui gagnèrent le plus à sa mort. La roi son mari avoit une grande inclination pour elle, mais il avail été empêché de la lui faire paraître par les artifices du due de Buckingham, craignant que la bonne volonté que le roi avail pour elle ne ruinât celle qu 'il avoit pour lui.¹²

Henrietta showed all due respect to Buckingham's memory but, as one of her friends wrote to the earl of Carlisle, her lamentations were "rather out of discretion than out of a true sensation of his death. I need not tell you that she is glad of it for you must imagine as much."¹³ Henrietta might well have rejoiced privately over the duke's death but her public behaviour was impeccable, extending even to a condolence call to Buckingham's widow and mother.¹⁴

Thereafter there was no one to check the growth of affection between Charles and Henrietta. With Buckingham gone, Charles turned more and more to Henrietta for companionship and affection and their relationship flourished. The king eventually became so completely captivated by Henrietta that perceptive courtiers, such as Thomas Cary, soon concluded that he had "wholly made over al [sic] his affections to his wife."¹⁵ By Christmas 1628 it was known that the queen was pregnant and on 10 May 1629 she gave birth to her first son at Greenwich Palace. But, as was wretchedly commonplace at the time, the delivery proved difficult and within the day the newborn died.

Aged just eighteen Henrietta was becoming a woman, hardened by experience. When her mother Queen Marie de Medici proposed sending her a bishop from France to offer her counsel and support in her grief-ridden state she replied that she was no longer a child.¹⁶ Later, when the royal couple was reunited at Oatlands, after a short separation, the future King Charles II was conceived. Following the heir to the throne's birth on 29 May 1630, Henrietta's mother sent her a little heart for good luck and a chair to ensure her daughter got plenty of rest. In a thank-you letter to his mother-in-law, Charles lovingly remarked:

Thank God, she is so careful of herself that I have no need to use other authority than that of love. The only dispute that now exists between us is that of conquering each other by affection, both esteeming ourselves victorious in following the will of each other.¹⁷

More children followed and, in the end, the especially fecund marriage would produce nine children in total-of which three tragically died young.¹⁸ Soon a contented family life built up to be portrayed and enshrined forever in the paintings of Anthony Van Dyck. Afterwards, the queen remarked that she was the happiest and most fortunate of queens for not only had she every pleasure her heart could desire, she had a husband who adored her.¹⁹ Indeed, as the death of Buckingham gave Henrietta ascendancy over her husband's heart so too did it help pave the way for her growing political influence.

Even though Charles was never to raise another great favourite, this did not stop ambitious courtiers from trying to fill Buckingham's shoes. Soon after the duke's death, the scramble for honour and position at court commenced and a recognized phenomenon of the new court was the queen's elevated position and active presence, with a concomitant possibility of patronage in her household.²⁰ Interestingly, after the duke's assassination a number of his clients transferred their service and allegiance to the queen.²¹ Both Buckingham's personal gentlemen-in-waiting Henry Rich (the earl of Holland) and George Goring (later, first earl of Norwich-hereafter referred to as the elder Goring, so as to not confuse him with his son also named George) became great favourites of Henrietta. The former served as her High Steward, and the latter (for a time) as her Vice Chamberlain and Master of the Horse.²² Henry Jermyn (later, first earl of St. Albans) who had been a client of Rich's, also served at some point as Vice Chamberlain and Master of the Horse to the queen.²³ The court poet William Davenant, who entered the scene during the time of Buckingham, also found his way into the queen's service,²⁴ as did Walter (Wat) Montague-another of Buckingham's former employees.²⁵ This group is generally considered to have represented the 'proFrench' faction at court, committed to a French alliance against Spain in an effort to restore the Palatinate.

As this group assembled around the queen, a 'pro-Spanish' faction (committed to maintaining peace with that country) came together around the earl of Portland, Richard Weston, Charles's Lord Treasurer.²⁶ Although Weston's wife and daughter were Catholic (and himself converted on his deathbed), Henrietta never liked the man. She resented the Lord Treasurer's enforcement of laws which prohibited English Catholics from attending mass at her chapels; she begrudged his tight control over royal expenditure; and, she regarded him as a competitor for influence with the king.²⁷ On...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Dedication
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• List of Illustrations
• Note on Dates, Currencies, and Quotations
• List of Abbreviations
• Chronology
• Introduction: Henrietta Maria in Historical Perspective
• 1 The Queen Ascendant (1625-35)
• 2 The Influential Queen (1635-42)
• 3 Championing the King's Cause (1642-43)
• 4 In the News: Henrietta Maria and English Civil War News Culture
• 5 The Queen at Oxford (1643-44)
• 6 Exile and Defeat: The Queen in France (1644-49)
• Conclusion
• Epilogue
• Bibliography
• Index