WEBVTT - The Maybe Queen Arbella

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of I Heart Radio

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<v Speaker 1>and Aaron Manky. Listener, discretion is advised. Once upon a

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<v Speaker 1>time there was a princess locked away. In this type

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<v Speaker 1>of story, it's always an evil older woman holding the

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<v Speaker 1>beautiful princess hostage. Right and Cinderella, it's the evil stepmother

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<v Speaker 1>who locks Cinderella in her bedroom so that the prince

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<v Speaker 1>won't try to fit the left behind glass slipper on

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<v Speaker 1>her perfect, tiny foot. Rapunzel was locked in a tower

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<v Speaker 1>by the witch who became her guardian, who stole her

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<v Speaker 1>away from her parents as payment for the vegetables they

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<v Speaker 1>stole from her garden. Sleeping Beauty is put to sleep

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<v Speaker 1>by a jealous and malevolent fairy for our Bella Stewart.

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<v Speaker 1>The captor was her grandmother, the formidable best of Hardwick, who,

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<v Speaker 1>through four advantageous marriages, had become the wealthiest woman in

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<v Speaker 1>England and second only to Queen Elizabeth herself. Queen Elizabeth

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<v Speaker 1>the First was famously cag about who would be her successor.

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<v Speaker 1>She hadn't named an air Arabella Stewart was a great

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<v Speaker 1>granddaughter of Margaret Tudor and in serious contention, and so

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<v Speaker 1>Arbella's grandmother, Bess of Hardwick, kept Arbella like a prize jewel,

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<v Speaker 1>secure and locked away. Arbella was incredibly well educated and

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<v Speaker 1>well read, taught and mannered, raised to believe that one

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<v Speaker 1>day she could be a queen. But Arabella didn't want

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<v Speaker 1>to be a queen, not really. She wanted what all

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<v Speaker 1>the princesses who are locked away in fairy tales want

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<v Speaker 1>a man to come and sweep her away. For Arabella,

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<v Speaker 1>marriage ment, freedom. But marriage gets complicated when you're in

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<v Speaker 1>line for the throne, when you're either a threat or

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<v Speaker 1>a pond depending on the day. Young Arabella Stewart I

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<v Speaker 1>had to take matters into her own hands, and it

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<v Speaker 1>had deadly consequences. I'm Danis Schwartz, and this is noble blood.

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<v Speaker 1>Heirs are always a tricky proposition for monarchs. On one hand,

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<v Speaker 1>their essential producing airs is the only real way of

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<v Speaker 1>ensuring your dynasty, of making sure your blood continues to

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<v Speaker 1>rule after you're gone. But as soon as you name

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<v Speaker 1>your successor, you have a target on your back. There

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<v Speaker 1>was probably no one who understood that better than Elizabeth

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<v Speaker 1>the First. Elizabeth had watched her sickly brother Edward become king,

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<v Speaker 1>followed by their sister Mary. Their father, King Henry the eighth,

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<v Speaker 1>had named in his will that Elizabeth then would follow

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<v Speaker 1>after Mary, and Mary was massively unpopular. She was Catholic

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<v Speaker 1>and took to burning Protestants up the stake. Almost as bad,

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<v Speaker 1>she married a Spaniard, and so even when Mary was queen,

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<v Speaker 1>people had started looking around the corner for who would

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<v Speaker 1>come next. There were a number of unsuccessful rebellions to

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<v Speaker 1>put Elizabeth on the throne before her time, and up

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<v Speaker 1>in Scotland, Elizabeth's first cousin, Mary, Queen of Scott's, was

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<v Speaker 1>overthrown in favor of her own son next in line,

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<v Speaker 1>who became King James the sixth. So Elizabeth understood what

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<v Speaker 1>a dangerous proposition it was to give unsatisfied subjects someone else,

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<v Speaker 1>someone better, maybe, to look forward to. And so as

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<v Speaker 1>Elizabeth grew older and it became apparent that the Queen

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<v Speaker 1>would not marry and produced children of her own, she

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<v Speaker 1>refused to name who would be the one to follow

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<v Speaker 1>her on the throne of England. She knew as soon

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<v Speaker 1>as she did she would seed some of her power.

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<v Speaker 1>She would become a royal lame duck. But someone would

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<v Speaker 1>need to be the next ruler of England. Young King

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<v Speaker 1>James of Scotland was the logical choice. A morning you. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>we're going to get into the family tree a little bit,

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<v Speaker 1>so bear with me. James's parents were Mary, Queen of Scott's,

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<v Speaker 1>and her husband, Lord Darnley. Both Mary and Darnley were

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<v Speaker 1>descendants of Henry the Eighth's older sister, Margaret Tudor, Mary

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<v Speaker 1>from her first husband and Darnley from her second. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>they were cousins, but that sort of thing was to

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<v Speaker 1>be expected. So their son, James's claim was pretty strong,

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<v Speaker 1>but he was also born in Scotland. He was a foreigner.

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<v Speaker 1>A lot of subjects wanted someone a little more homegrown.

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<v Speaker 1>Are Bella's Stewart's father was Lord Darnley's younger brother, which

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<v Speaker 1>meant that she was also a descendant of Margaret Tudor. Sure,

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<v Speaker 1>her claim was a little less strong than James, but again,

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<v Speaker 1>she was born in England and strength of family claim

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<v Speaker 1>wouldn't matter quite so much if Elizabeth explicitly declared that

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<v Speaker 1>she was her successor, and sometime times that's exactly what

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<v Speaker 1>it seemed like Elizabeth was going to do. But Arabella

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<v Speaker 1>was more valuable to Elizabeth as a possibility than a certainty,

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<v Speaker 1>especially as a threat to keep James the sixth and

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<v Speaker 1>check in case he began to get cocky or was

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<v Speaker 1>thinking about getting too mad about Elizabeth executing his mother Mary,

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<v Speaker 1>Queen of Scott's Arabella was right there as a reminder

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<v Speaker 1>that his ascension to the English throne wasn't guaranteed, and

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<v Speaker 1>as Elizabeth aged out of the marriageable range, she began

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<v Speaker 1>to dangle Arabella in front of foreign princes as a

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<v Speaker 1>marriage prospect, all the more valuable considering Arabella might be

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<v Speaker 1>the heir to England. But though a number of these

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<v Speaker 1>marriages were floated, none ever came to fruition, which meant

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<v Speaker 1>that Arabella remained in her grandmother's custody, kept safe and

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<v Speaker 1>far away, so that the idea of her could be

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<v Speaker 1>a diplomatic weapon in Elizabeth's arsenal. Once, when Arabella was

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<v Speaker 1>a teenager, she was summoned to the glittering court of

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<v Speaker 1>Elizabeth the First. It was the first time in her

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<v Speaker 1>life that Arabella was free of her grandmother's oppressive hard

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<v Speaker 1>Wick Hall. Arbella did everything she could to impress the

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<v Speaker 1>intimidating Queen, and she did well. Elizabeth called Arabella an

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<v Speaker 1>eaglet of her own kind, and even remarked to a

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<v Speaker 1>Venetian ambassador that Arabella might one day quote be as

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<v Speaker 1>she herself is. But then Arabella, tasting freedom for the

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<v Speaker 1>first time, did something a little unwise. She flirted. She

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<v Speaker 1>flirted with Robert Devereux, second Earl of Essex, one of

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<v Speaker 1>the Queen's favorites, and so Arbella was sent back home

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<v Speaker 1>to hard Wick Hall with a slap on her wrist

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<v Speaker 1>and a reminder, you are of noble blood and so

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<v Speaker 1>your body belongs to the crown. For ten years, Arabella

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<v Speaker 1>lived in all but exile at Hardwick Hall. It was

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<v Speaker 1>a decade of strict education, restricted walks and privileges, few visitors,

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<v Speaker 1>and fewer friends. Her only escape would be marriage, but

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<v Speaker 1>there was no indication that one would be coming at all.

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<v Speaker 1>In the prime of her life, she was a pond

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<v Speaker 1>put back safe in the box. Desperately lonely, Arabella did

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<v Speaker 1>the one thing she could to contact the outside world.

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<v Speaker 1>She wrote letters. She wrote increasingly mad, slightly frantic, seemingly

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<v Speaker 1>manic letters. She claimed in a letter to the Earl

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<v Speaker 1>of Hertford that she was engaged to his grandson, Edward Seymour.

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<v Speaker 1>Now the Seymours were also a noble family with valuable

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<v Speaker 1>royal blood. They were descendants of Mary Tutor, King Henry

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<v Speaker 1>the Eighth's younger sister. A match between Arabella and Edward

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<v Speaker 1>Seymour would definitely strengthened her claim to the English throne.

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<v Speaker 1>But that match, made behind the Queen's back, was all

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<v Speaker 1>but treason. Edward's grandfather reported the letter to the Queen.

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<v Speaker 1>Inquiries were made. The Queen's representative, Sir Henry Brunker, came

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<v Speaker 1>to Hardwick Hall to interrogate Arabella about the letter. Arabella

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<v Speaker 1>had never even met Edward Seymour. They weren't engaged. Why

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<v Speaker 1>had she written a treason this letter? Claiming otherwise? Brunker

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<v Speaker 1>sat with the young, lonely Arabella, sullen and staring up

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<v Speaker 1>at him with extraordinarily round eyes. He asked her questions,

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<v Speaker 1>She answered questions. Brounker concluded that she was just a

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<v Speaker 1>silly girl writing about flights of fancy. The letter wasn't treason,

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<v Speaker 1>It was the fantasy of a lonely girl using her imagination.

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<v Speaker 1>They all had a good laugh about that, and after

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<v Speaker 1>Brunker left, everyone forgot about Arabella again for a little while,

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<v Speaker 1>but her letters to the outside world didn't stop. They

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<v Speaker 1>became more manic, more outlandish. Arabella claimed that she had

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<v Speaker 1>a mysterious lover, that she was engaged and all but

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<v Speaker 1>married to someone in secret that no one knew about.

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<v Speaker 1>When pressed, she revealed that her mysterious fiance was none

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<v Speaker 1>other than her cousin, King James the sixth of Scotland.

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<v Speaker 1>There was no match between her and her cousin. Historians

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<v Speaker 1>argue about Arbella's letters, whether they're reckless or cunning. Maybe

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<v Speaker 1>an attempt to strong arm her own powerful marriage that

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<v Speaker 1>could position her favorably for the crown. Or maybe Arbella

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<v Speaker 1>was taken with madness, afflicted with the porphyria that affected

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<v Speaker 1>so many others, with royal blood that's swelling in the brain,

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<v Speaker 1>and mania that would come to incapacitate King George the

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<v Speaker 1>Third in more than a century's time. But maybe the

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<v Speaker 1>truth is sim blur than that. Maybe Arbella wrote outlandish

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<v Speaker 1>letters for a very simple reason, the same reason young

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<v Speaker 1>women today post things on the Internet that might not

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<v Speaker 1>be true, things that are inflammatory. Arbella was cut off

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<v Speaker 1>from the world and alone. Maybe she just wanted the

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<v Speaker 1>world to be reminded of her existence. Maybe she just

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<v Speaker 1>wanted someone to notice her. Eventually, Queen Elizabeth the First

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<v Speaker 1>died and King James the sixth of Scotland became King

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<v Speaker 1>James the First of England. And then something amazing happened.

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<v Speaker 1>James invited his cousin to court, and for the first

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<v Speaker 1>time in her life, Arbella got to live on her own.

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<v Speaker 1>She hated court, she hated the drunkenness and the promiscuity,

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<v Speaker 1>the handsome young boys vying for the King's attention, following

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<v Speaker 1>him back to his rooms. But she was free. At

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<v Speaker 1>least she was until she made a tragic mistake. For years,

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<v Speaker 1>Arabella had gently pressed King James to allow her to

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<v Speaker 1>get married. He dodged and demurred, And now Arabella was

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<v Speaker 1>thirty four years old, almost passing the age at which

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<v Speaker 1>should be able to have a child, and a terrible

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<v Speaker 1>realization dawned on her. The King didn't want her to

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<v Speaker 1>get married and have a child. Of course he didn't.

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<v Speaker 1>Any child of hers would be a potential rival for

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<v Speaker 1>opponents of his to rally behind as an alternate ruler.

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<v Speaker 1>That risk would only be compounded if Arabella was married

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<v Speaker 1>to someone of her status of dynastic significance with the

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<v Speaker 1>claim of his own. Arabella realized the truth she was

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<v Speaker 1>never going to be allowed to get married. Her own

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<v Speaker 1>existence was a threat, and that existence was tolerated barely.

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<v Speaker 1>But she could never be permitted to have children of

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<v Speaker 1>her own, and so Arabella took matters into her own hands.

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<v Speaker 1>Without the King's knowledge or consent, Arabella got married to

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<v Speaker 1>a man a decade her junior, a tutor descendant in

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<v Speaker 1>his own right, named William Seymour, the younger brother of

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<v Speaker 1>the Edward Seymour, Arabella had once written letters about marrying.

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<v Speaker 1>Their marriage was an act of treason, it was also

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<v Speaker 1>an act of love. William Seymour was thrown in the

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<v Speaker 1>Tower of London. Arabella was put under house arrest with

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<v Speaker 1>a man named Sir Thomas Perry. Fortunately, when you're rich

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<v Speaker 1>and noble, security isn't too tight. William and Arabella managed

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<v Speaker 1>a few conjugal visits together until rumors reached King James

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<v Speaker 1>that Arabella might be pregnant. The King was outraged. He

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<v Speaker 1>ordered Arabella be transferred north to Durham, where meetings with

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<v Speaker 1>her husband would be impossible. The days before her answer

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<v Speaker 1>were her last chance, Arabella and William needed to run

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<v Speaker 1>away to the continent to safety to be together. On

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<v Speaker 1>the day of her scheduled departure to Durham, Arabella told

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<v Speaker 1>her captor that she was too sick to move. She

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<v Speaker 1>lay in bed, refusing food and water, and said she

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<v Speaker 1>couldn't even support her own weight on her two legs.

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<v Speaker 1>If you want me to come with you to Durham,

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<v Speaker 1>she said, you'll have to carry me. Sir Thomas Perry

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<v Speaker 1>didn't know what to do. He summoned a doctor who

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<v Speaker 1>agreed that yes, the young woman's pulse was weak, and

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<v Speaker 1>Perry wrote to the king, who signed and permitted Arabella's

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<v Speaker 1>transfer to Durham delayed a few weeks. While the party

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<v Speaker 1>was distracted, Arabella put on hose, a man's doublet, a

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<v Speaker 1>black hat, a sword, and boots. She slipped away from

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<v Speaker 1>the house when no one was looking, disguised as a man.

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<v Speaker 1>She and a few loyal servants set out for the coast,

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<v Speaker 1>which she would meet with her husband and they together

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<v Speaker 1>would catch a ship to France. Arabella made it to Blackwater,

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<v Speaker 1>their meeting spot, without any trouble. She and William were

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<v Speaker 1>supposed to meet there at eight to catch a ferry

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<v Speaker 1>to Leith, from which they'd leave to Calais. Eight turned

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<v Speaker 1>to eight thirty, no sign of William. A thirty turned

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<v Speaker 1>to nine. Arabella's companions were getting restless. They pleaded with

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<v Speaker 1>her to just leave down the river with the friendship captain,

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<v Speaker 1>who was ready to take them just a little bit longer,

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<v Speaker 1>Arabella begged. At nine thirty, Arabella finally left the inn

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<v Speaker 1>they were staying at and slowly they made their way

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<v Speaker 1>down to Leith, where they boarded the boat they had

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<v Speaker 1>reserved to take them to France. But again William was

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<v Speaker 1>nowhere to be seen. Again, Arabella begged for the team

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<v Speaker 1>to linger just a little bit longer. The boat was boarded,

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<v Speaker 1>ready to go, and soon the winds were going to

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<v Speaker 1>change and keep them from leaving at all, but Arabella

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<v Speaker 1>refused to leave without her husband. William actually had made

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<v Speaker 1>his escape from the Tower of London as they had planned,

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<v Speaker 1>wearing an apron a wig and a big, bushy fake beard.

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<v Speaker 1>William had disguised himself as a caterer and made it

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<v Speaker 1>onto a horse, but there had been trouble and he

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<v Speaker 1>had been held up and hadn't been able to make

0:15:24.280 --> 0:15:27.400
<v Speaker 1>the rendezvous of Blackwater, and so he had found his

0:15:27.440 --> 0:15:29.960
<v Speaker 1>own ship to take him to leave, But when he

0:15:30.080 --> 0:15:33.000
<v Speaker 1>heard about the changing winds, he bribed the ship to

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<v Speaker 1>take him straight to Calais in France. He figured that

0:15:36.400 --> 0:15:40.280
<v Speaker 1>Arabella would meet him there. Williams escaped from the Tower

0:15:40.280 --> 0:15:43.240
<v Speaker 1>of London made its way to King James, who sent

0:15:43.320 --> 0:15:46.880
<v Speaker 1>his men to give chase. They didn't find William, but

0:15:47.040 --> 0:15:50.880
<v Speaker 1>they did find Arabella, still aboard her ship, waiting for

0:15:50.960 --> 0:15:54.720
<v Speaker 1>her husband, who was already gone. By then, the wind

0:15:54.760 --> 0:15:58.120
<v Speaker 1>had changed and they couldn't outrun the English ships coming

0:15:58.120 --> 0:16:03.080
<v Speaker 1>to capture her. The English ships fired and Arabella surrendered.

0:16:04.640 --> 0:16:08.240
<v Speaker 1>Arabella was imprisoned in the Tower of London, where she

0:16:08.320 --> 0:16:12.720
<v Speaker 1>fell ill and refused all food and care. She died

0:16:12.920 --> 0:16:18.280
<v Speaker 1>five years later, emaciated an alone a princess in a tower,

0:16:19.000 --> 0:16:23.200
<v Speaker 1>imagining that her husband would come and rescue her. He

0:16:23.320 --> 0:16:34.720
<v Speaker 1>never did lance it for this story of Arabella Stewart,

0:16:34.800 --> 0:16:37.800
<v Speaker 1>but stick around after a brief sponsor break to hear

0:16:37.880 --> 0:16:51.560
<v Speaker 1>a little bit more. For what it's worth. William Seymour

0:16:51.640 --> 0:16:55.360
<v Speaker 1>actually did get away to safety from France. He traveled

0:16:55.400 --> 0:16:58.720
<v Speaker 1>to Belgium and lived on the European continent for several years.

0:16:59.600 --> 0:17:03.000
<v Speaker 1>After the death of James the sixth, Seymour asked for

0:17:03.040 --> 0:17:06.199
<v Speaker 1>permission to return to England, which he was granted, and

0:17:06.280 --> 0:17:09.000
<v Speaker 1>eventually he went on to become a well respected member

0:17:09.000 --> 0:17:12.640
<v Speaker 1>of court. He had remarried and had at least eight children.

0:17:13.400 --> 0:17:17.680
<v Speaker 1>Funnily enough, Seymour's second wife was Francis Devereaux, the daughter

0:17:17.720 --> 0:17:23.000
<v Speaker 1>of Robert Devereaux, one of Elizabeth the first's favorites. Devereaux

0:17:23.080 --> 0:17:25.879
<v Speaker 1>had been that man that Arabella had been scolded for

0:17:25.960 --> 0:17:30.879
<v Speaker 1>flirting with at court a lifetime ago. About fifteen years

0:17:30.880 --> 0:17:34.359
<v Speaker 1>before Arabella Stewart made that ill fated decision to marry

0:17:34.400 --> 0:17:38.280
<v Speaker 1>William Seymour in spite of her family's wishes, William Shakespeare

0:17:38.280 --> 0:17:41.840
<v Speaker 1>wrote a play about similar circumstances. He wrote about a

0:17:41.840 --> 0:17:43.879
<v Speaker 1>woman in love with a man and a man in

0:17:43.960 --> 0:17:47.280
<v Speaker 1>love with a woman, a forced exile of fake's illness,

0:17:47.320 --> 0:17:50.720
<v Speaker 1>and a daring escape. It's a play where missed communication

0:17:50.800 --> 0:17:55.119
<v Speaker 1>and wrong timing his tragic consequences. I'm speaking, of course,

0:17:55.560 --> 0:17:59.760
<v Speaker 1>of Romeo and Juliet. But there's another slightly less well

0:17:59.840 --> 0:18:03.560
<v Speaker 1>known owned Shakespeare play in which a young, virtuous woman

0:18:03.680 --> 0:18:06.879
<v Speaker 1>of noble blood marries her lover, only to have that

0:18:07.000 --> 0:18:12.080
<v Speaker 1>marriage dismissed by the King. Coincidentally, like Arabella Stewart, the

0:18:12.160 --> 0:18:15.639
<v Speaker 1>young woman in the play named Imagen is also forced

0:18:15.640 --> 0:18:20.000
<v Speaker 1>to disguise herself as a man. That play is called Symboline,

0:18:20.040 --> 0:18:24.800
<v Speaker 1>and it was written in sixteen eleven. Sixteen eleven just

0:18:24.920 --> 0:18:28.760
<v Speaker 1>so happens to be the exact year that Arabella Stewart

0:18:29.040 --> 0:18:32.720
<v Speaker 1>made her daring escape to reunite with a man that

0:18:32.840 --> 0:18:39.600
<v Speaker 1>she was finally allowed to call her husband. Noble Blood

0:18:39.680 --> 0:18:42.720
<v Speaker 1>is a production of I Heart Radio and Aaron Mankey.

0:18:42.840 --> 0:18:45.439
<v Speaker 1>The show is written and hosted by Dana Schwartz and

0:18:45.520 --> 0:18:50.200
<v Speaker 1>produced by Aaron Mankey, Matt Frederick, Alex Williams, and Trevor Young.

0:18:50.800 --> 0:18:53.840
<v Speaker 1>Noble Blood is on social media at Noble Blood Tales,

0:18:54.160 --> 0:18:56.040
<v Speaker 1>and you can learn more about the show over at

0:18:56.119 --> 0:18:59.159
<v Speaker 1>Noble blood Tales dot com. For more podcasts from I

0:18:59.240 --> 0:19:02.960
<v Speaker 1>heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

0:19:03.160 --> 0:19:08.159
<v Speaker 1>or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. M