The Restoration and Charles II’s reign are often linked with vices
such as gambling, drinking, and, of course, women and sex.
The 11-year period of republican experiments in Britain
ended on May 30, 1660,
when King Charles II returned to London.
Since 1649, when the authoritarian Cromwellian regime
beheaded his father, he lived in exile.
Now was a moment of political upheaval but also moral restraint.
Oliver Cromwell, meantime, was a model of purity and religious adherence.
Yet all of this ended suddenly when Charles II, the “Merrie Monarch,”
returned to the throne.
Among the numerous renowned “favourites” the King is said to have had over
the years, the initial mistress of his new reign has been passed
down as one of the most infamous and possessive.
But was she?
Can the truth be separated from the urban legend at this time?
We’ll find out now as we look back at the life of one of England’s
most daring mistresses, Barbara Palmer.
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Because the struggle for power was a revolution, its conclusion
triggered a period of extremes in many aspects of English and British society.
There is truth to the claim that “the scale of England’s values shifted
from persecution to liberty, more or less instantly.
Ex-Parliamentarians mourned the loss of their austere values,
while the rest of society celebrated with relative impunity.
The arts prospered, and liberalism flourished during the Restoration period.
Following the Great Fire of London,
architect Sir Christopher Wren created a spectacular new St. Paul’s.
Earl of Rochester stunned audiences with his blatantly
erotic poems, and Samuel Pepys kept a detailed diary.
It was also when influential political thinkers
like Thomas Hobbes and John Locke published their seminal works.
After the upheaval of the English Revolution
and the Succession crisis, new vitality and life swept over the country,
ushering in a period marked by theatre, drama, and romance.
The King, then 30 years old, played a significant role in this.
In contrast to his religious father and Cromwell, Charles II
enjoyed indulging in every vice.
Yet when Charles was still in exile, his notoriety as a womanizer persisted,
occasionally bordering on depravity.
Some of Charles’ subjects became concerned, that his natural instinct
towards gratification sometimes distracted him from the important stuff
of ruling or allowed undesirable characters to wield undue influence,
despite the fact that he was immensely likeable.
Barbara Palmer was born into the affluent and aristocratic Villiers family in 1640.
Barbara’s great-uncle, George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, was a firm favourite
and suspected lover of King James I; therefore,
the family had experience providing royal admirers.
Many people despised Buckingham; rumours of jealousy and scandal followed him
as they would later follow Barbara, ending with an angry soldier
stabbed him to death.
Barbara’s side of the family was was quite poor due to the tragic
loss of her father during the Civil Wars when she was still a young girl,
the family kept a low profile
throughout her childhood and the remainder of the republic.
But Barbara blossomed into a stunning beauty over time, as seen
by the numerous paintings that survive of her;
Peter Lely, Charles II’s court painter, is said to have
exclaimed, “she is above the power of art.”
Barbara’s sexual vocation began at a young age,
as her liaison with Lord Chesterfield was widely reported while she was only 15.
After this, she wed Roger Palmer, a Roman Catholic member of the aristocracy.
His father was reportedly warned him he would become the most miserable
man in England if he married Barbara.
Roger was a quiet and retiring writer, which was scarcely a good fit
for one of the most renowned libertines of the era.
Evidently, Roger didn’t take the warning seriously
because the couple tied the knot in 1659
and then travelled to Holland the following year to see King Charles II.
The latter had been exiled but was making preparations
for his triumphant comeback.
Charles and Barbara had their
initial encounter and began their relationship in Holland.
He was 29, and she was 20.
Both had dated others before
but it was apparent they hit it off right away.
Although the start date of their affair is unknown, Charles
II seems to have ended that evening on the day he rode triumphantly
through London in 1660, in her bed.
From then on, Barbara elevated her status
until she was essentially a queen without a crown.
We have numerous first-hand reports of Barbara from court members,
including the well-known diarist Samuel Pepys, who lived
just across the street from Barbara and her henpecked husband, Roger.
It’s clear that Pepys is smitten by her appearance
because he raved over her in 1661,
writing, “I can never sufficiently adore her beauty.”
He also kept track of how often the King visited her.
Anne, Charles, Henry, Charlotte, and George were all born to Barbara
during the first five years of the new King’s reign.
Peter Lely, whom she had persuaded the King to hire as a court painter
in 1661, paid her back many times by painting portraits of the monarch
up until Lely died in 1680, but it didn’t come cheap!
Lely was demanding £40 for a half-length image.
Barbara was given the respect Charles considered she deserved; by doing so,
he made her husband Roger the unhappy Earl of Castlemaine.
And from then on, Barbara was addressed as Countess or Lady Castlemaine
and showed the respect due to a lady of such
a high rank.
Having children with another man and devoting so much effort
and time to her romance with the King would naturally strain any marriage,
and that’s exactly what happened in Barbara’s case.
In 1662, things came to a head when Roger demanded that Charles,
the second child of Barbara and the King, be baptized as a Catholic rather
than in the King’s preferred religion of the Protestant Church of England.
Barbara agreed, but a few days later, in the presence of Charles
II, she had the baby re-baptized as a Protestant.
There were several heated arguments as Roger discovered
what had happened, and eventually, he moved to France,
never to see Barbara again, dissolving the marriage.
The couple never divorced formally and remained legally married
until Roger died in 1705.
Lady Castlemaine could now focus all of her attention
on winning back the King’s affection and stirring up more drama at the palace.
When Charles II wed Catherine of Braganza, Princess
of Portugal, in 1661, it only bolstered Barbara’s position.
Catherine lacked the vivacity and humour that Charles yearned for,
and Barbara’s status as “the curse of the nation”
was likely solidified by an unpleasant event soon after the wedding.
Barbara knew
that it would be advantageous to have a formal position at court
and a steady income, so she insisted that Charles designate her
his new wife’s principal lady of the bedchamber.
When choosing her household, Queen Catherine saw Barbara’s
name on the list and recoiled in horror.
The enraged mistress immediately confronted Charles, who overrode the Queen
and appointed Barbara despite being reprimanded by his mistress.
The unhappy Queen became irritated and even fainted
as her new ladies-in-waiting were introduced to her.
And although Charles threatened to dismiss all of Catherine’s Portuguese retainers
and leave her friendless at a foreign court if she did not accept Barbara
After so much resistance, she eventually agreed with Barbara’s appraisal.
It was great news for Barbara; her status was assured
after Charles delivered his dramatic blow to his new bride.
Barbara remained on top for the next few years.
Although She wasted over half a million pounds
and had to destroy the beautiful Nonsuch Palace to pay off her debts.
Many ministers and ladies-in-waiting lost their jobs
because of her, causing much disharmony throughout the general population.
And even the once-admirer Pepys disapproved of the mutual recriminations
she now encouraged.
Unfortunately, Barbara’s time
in office was cut short though perhaps not surprisingly.
Earl of Rochester described Charles II as “restless he rolls about from whore
to whore, a Merrie Monarch, scandalous and destitute”
because of his constant need to find new mistresses.
By 1663, the King had fallen in love with yet
another, this time Lady Frances Stuart.
Barbara needed to make haste and took her under her wing to keep her power.
It was as though Barbara’s competitive nature seems to have been fueled by this,
as there are numerous anecdotes from this period about Barbara
donning the most jewels and most lavish attire of any lady in the court.
Barbara’s greatest rival, Edward Hyde, Earl of Clarendon,
one of Charles II’s oldest friends and chief adviser, was removed
from power in 1667 for speaking out against the King’s foreign policy.
Despite sleeping with the King less and becoming increasingly unpopular
for her indulgence, Barbara was still powerful enough to see him removed.
Hyde was held responsible for the 1665 defeat in the Second Dutch War
and made to feel guilty for the entire mess.
Yet this would prove to be her final victory, as Barbara’s
might now quickly began to wane.
Barbara’s downfall is a mystery,
although it probably has to do with her promiscuity.
During her tenure at court, Barbara became even less
devoted to Charles than he had been to her,
and there have been hints that she had other partners.
In 1672, she tried to get Charles to admit the fatherhood
of her youngest child, and this was when things got very sticky.
Barbara threatened to bash the babies brains out
if the King did not treat the child as his own,
despite the King’s protests that he could not be the child’s father
because he had not slept with her in months.
In a moment of fear, the King knelt down and begged
Barbara’s pardon, which, while earning his last child
a title and money, served Barbara no benefits.
Following this episode, she began to appear in court much less frequently.
The King showered his gifts and honours on the likes of Nell Gwyn,
and he ultimately chose to spend his time with his other new mistresses
because they were more conducive to his wit and charm.
By the time they were both in their thirties, Barbara had become too
oppressive, abusive, and old to hold his interest.
As her status in court continued to decline,
she left for Paris in 1676.
Despite her extramarital affairs,
she and the King remained friendly until the King’s death.
Despite moving back to England
by 1680, Barbara enjoyed renewed fame in her senior years.
She was already in her sixties when she wed a man ten years her junior
almost solely for financial reasons; he turned out to be a bigamist.
Barbara divorced him quickly and then went back into obscurity and poverty.
By her death in 1709, her once-beautiful appearance
had been severely marred by oedema (fluid retention), ultimately claiming her life.
So, how should we interpret this popular royal favourite,
who has both enthralled and repulsed the country?
She was ambitious and sought control.
Barbara and Charles’ handling of poor Queen Catherine was deplorable.
In contrast, we also have a picture from centuries ago
of a stunningly gorgeous woman who fought tooth
and nail to seize and hold her control over a king
who was famously even notoriously tricky to keep, and amused.
Nothing in Barbara’s documented life suggests a lady yearning for public
praise; her lack of concern for what others thought may just well have been
her greatest virtue.