Bess The Commoner Queen – The Life and Times of Bess of Hardwick

A unique insight into the political intrigues of Elizabethan England, as witnessed first-hand by “Bess of Hardwick”. Bess was the closest female friend and Lady-in-Waiting to Elizabeth I and, at the same time, confidante to Mary Queen of Scots, whom Bess and her 4th husband (the Earl of Shrewsbury) kept under “house-arrest” for over 15 years until Mary’s execution. “Who’d ‘ave thought, this Derbyshire lass would one day be tab-hanging between two great queens?” Born a farmer’s daughter, Bess “the commoner queen” rose to become the richest woman in Elizabethan England. She created the Cavendish dynasty and became a maker of queens. Her grand-daughter, Arbella Stuart, was second-in-line to James I and groomed by Bess to become queen and Bess counts amongst her descendants our current Queen Elizabeth II and her heirs to the throne via Lady Diana Spencer.

This event takes place at St Nicholas Chapel PE30 1NH