Elizabeth Blount
First Mistress of Henry VIII
Elizabeth was born somewhere between 1498 and 1502 to Sir John Blount and Catherine Pershall of Kinlet, Bridgnorth. Not much is known of her childhood, except her reputation that she received from her beauty. Elizabeth nickname was Bessie
As a young girl, Elizabeth was welcomed to court as a lady-in-waiting to her majesty Queen Catherine. It was probably then that she caught the King's eye. In either 1514 0r 1515, Elizabeth became the King's mistress. Their relationship lasted for 8 years.
Mistress to the King of England
She lasted longer as the King's mistress then any other mistress. She was acknowledged as the Royal Mistress.
At the end of 1518, Elizabeth found herself with the King's child. This was the first time that a mistress of Henry had found herself with child. In June 1519, Elizabeth gave birth to a son named after his father: Henry.
Elizabeth had done what the Queen could not do; give the King a son.
Little Henry was given the surname of FitzRoy to signify that he was a Royal bastard. Later on he was made Duke of Richmond and Somerset and Earl of Nottingham. It was even suggested that the King was planning to make him is heir if the Queen did not give him a son.
After Henry's birth, the affair ended. It proved that the King was capable of fathering healthy sons. Elizabeth Blount prompted a popular saying, "Bless 'ee, Bessie Blount", often heard during and after this period.
The affair with Mary Boleyn began shortly afterwards. Elizabeth withdrew from court taking her infant son with her.
In 1522 she was married to Gilbert Tailboys. She isn't recorded as a figure in the Tudor court after she left. With her husband she had three children: Elizabeth (1520 - 1563), George (1522 - 1539) and Robert (1523 - 1541).
They were married between 1533 and 1535. This union produced three daughters: Bridget (1536 - ?), Katherine (1538 – 1621) and Margaret (1539 - 1603).
After Henry's birth, the affair ended. It proved that the King was capable of fathering healthy sons. Elizabeth Blount prompted a popular saying, "Bless 'ee, Bessie Blount", often heard during and after this period.
The affair with Mary Boleyn began shortly afterwards. Elizabeth withdrew from court taking her infant son with her.
Later Life
In 1522 she was married to Gilbert Tailboys. She isn't recorded as a figure in the Tudor court after she left. With her husband she had three children: Elizabeth (1520 - 1563), George (1522 - 1539) and Robert (1523 - 1541).
In 1530, she was left a widow when her husband died leaving her very comfortable. Her son, Henry, died in July 1536 of tuberculosis.
After the death of her husband, Elizabeth Blount was wooed in 1532 by Lord Leonard Gray. However she married Edward Fiennes, a younger man whose Lincolnshire lands adjoined hers.
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| Elizabeth's funeral brass |
For a short time, she was a lady-in-waiting to Queen Anne (of Cleves), but left because she contracted some health problems at the time of the marriage's annulment. Blount returned to her husband's estates, where she died from consumption.
In conclusion, Bessie was the first woman to give the King a son and possibly an heir to his throne. This woman helped prove that the King was capable of fathering healthy and living children. If things have had been different and her Henry hadn't died she could of possibly been the King's mother. But, the Royal family would be very different and English history would be altered.
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