Girl on the Golden Coin: A Novel of Frances Stuart Read online

  The author and publisher have provided this e-book to you for your personal use only. You may not make this e-book publicly available in any way. Copyright infringement is against the law. If you believe the copy of this e-book you are reading infringes on the author’s copyright, please notify the publisher at:

  us.macmillanusa.com/piracy.

  To Kevin,

  Dalton, and Delani.

  Without you, all is nothing.

  Map was provided by Knowledge Quest, Inc. You can find more historical maps on their Web site at www.knowledgequestmaps.com.

  CONTENTS

  Title Page

  Copyright Notice

  Dedication

  Map of Europe, c. 1660

  Dramatis Personae

  Epigraph

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  Chapter 54

  Chapter 55

  Chapter 56

  Chapter 57

  Chapter 58

  Chapter 59

  Chapter 60

  Chapter 61

  Chapter 62

  Chapter 63

  Chapter 64

  Chapter 65

  Chapter 66

  Chapter 67

  Epilogue

  Author’s Note

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Copyright

  DRAMATIS PERSONAE

  England

  Royal House of Stuart

  King Charles I of England—Descendant of the Fourth High Steward of Scotland

  Henrietta Maria de Bourbon of France—Married into the Stuart royal family as queen to Charles I

  Their children:

  King Charles II—The restored king, no legitimate heir

  Catherine of Bragança—Queen to Charles II

  James Stuart, Duke of York—Later crowned King James II of England

  His wives:

  Anne Hyde, first Duchess of York—Died before daughters Mary and Anne succeeded to the throne

  Mary of Modena, second Duchess of York—Became queen when James became king, son denied succession to the throne

  Princess Henriette Anne Stuart—Married into the French royal house of Bourbon as duchess to Philippe of France, Duc d’Orléans

  Henry, Duke of Gloucester—Died just after the Restoration

  Prince Rupert of the Rhine—Nephew to Charles I

  The Blantyre Stuarts

  Walter Stuart, First Lord Blantyre—Descendant of the Fourth High Steward of Scotland

  Walter Stuart, Master of Blantyre—Nephew of Frances, recipient of Lennoxlove Estate

  The Honorable Mr. Walter Stuart—Youngest son of the first Lord Blantyre, physician

  Mrs. Sophia Stuart—His wife, of unknown parentage

  Their children:

  Frances Teresa Stuart—Queen Catherine’s maid of honor

  Sophia Stuart—Married Henry Bulkely

  Anne—Their daughter, wed Duke of Berwick, illegitimate son of James II

  Walter Stuart—Served Lord Douglas’s regiment, volunteer on the Montague

  The Lennox Stuarts

  Charles Stuart, third Duke of Richmond and sixth Duke of Lennox— Descendant of the Fourth High Steward of Scotland, possessed numerous additional titles

  His wives:

  Elizabeth Rogers—Died after the Restoration, daughter died young

  Margaret Banister—Died without children

  Frances Stuart

  His retainers:

  Roger Payne—The steward

  Lee—A footman

  Ludovic, Seigneur d’Aubigny—The duke’s uncle

  The Hamiltons

  Elizabeth Hamilton—Maid of honor to Queen Catherine, wed the Chevalier de Gramont,

  George Hamilton—Admirer of Frances Stuart, wed Frances Jennings

  Anthony Hamilton—Author of the Gramont Memoirs

  The Hydes

  Henry Hyde, Earl of Clarendon—Lord chancellor to King Charles II

  His children:

  Anne Hyde—Married James, Duke of York of the Royal house of Stuart

  Henry Hyde, Lord Cornbury—Lord Chamberlin to Queen Catherine

  The Jermyns

  Sir Thomas Jermyn—Nonresident governor of Jersey, father to Earl of St. Albans

  Henry Jermyn, First Earl of St. Albans—Vice-chamberlain to Queen Henrietta Maria

  Henry Jermyn the younger—Nephew of the Earl of St. Albans

  The Villiers

  George Villiers, first Duke of Buckingham—Reputed lover of James I and Charles I

  His children:

  Lady Mary Villiers—Sister to the second Duke of Buckingham

  George Villiers, second Duke of Buckingham—Son of the first duke

  Mary Fairfax, Duchess of Buckingham—The second duke’s wife

  Barbara Villiers—Granddaughter to the older half brother of the first duke, wife of Roger Palmer, first official mistress to Charles II

  Eleanor Villiers—Daughter of the first Duke of Buckingham’s half brother

  Other Courtiers and Characters

  Queen Catherine’s ladies:

  Lady Sanderson—Mother of the maids of honor:

  Katherine Boynton

  Simona Cary

  Mademoiselle La Garde

  Jane Middleton

  Helene Warmestry

  Winifred Wells

  Elizabeth Frasier—Queen Catherine’s dresser

  Lady Mary Scroope—Queen Catherine’s dresser, mistress of Henry Bennet

  Lady Mary Wood—Queen Catherine’s dresser

  Maids of honor to Anne Hyde, Duchess of York:

  Arabella Churchill—Mistress to James II, their son became Duke of Berwick

  Frances Jennings—Married George Hamilton

  Henry Bennet, later Lord Arlington—Secretary of state to Charles II

  Earl of Carlingford—Irish peer

  Earl of Chesterfield—Upbraided his countess after her affair with the Duke of York

  Samuel Cooper—Miniaturist painter

  Oliver Cromwell—Protector of the Commonwealth, death prompted the Restoration

  Moll Davies—Actress

  Nell Gwynn—Actress

  Louise de Kéroüaille—Maid of honor to Duchesse d’Orléans; second offic
ial mistress to Charles II; their son is ancestor to Lady Diana Spencer, Princess of Wales

  Sir William Killigrew—Vice-chamberlain to Queen Catherine, Member of Parliament

  Elizabeth Mallett—Northern heiress, married John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester

  Admiral Sir William Penn—Member of Parliament and admiral in the Royal Navy

  William Penn—Son of Admiral Penn, founder of Pennsylvania

  Samuel Pepys—Diarist and secretary to the Admiralty

  John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester—Rake, kidnapped and later married Elizabeth Mallett

  Roettier—Engraver to Charles II

  Gilbert Sheldon—Bishop of London, Archbishop of Canterbury

  Prudence Pope—Quaker maid fictionalized as daughter to historical figure Mr. Pope

  Mary—Fictional Catholic maid given to Frances Stuart by the Queen Mother

  Sir Isaac Newton—Scientist

  France

  The House of Bourbon

  Henrietta Maria de Bourbon—Daughter of Henri IV of France and Marie de’ Medici, sister to Louis XIII, aunt of King Louis XIV, queen to Charles I of England

  Anne of Austria—Married into the house of Bourbon as queen to Louis XIII of France

  Her sons:

  Louis XIV of France

  Marie-Thérèse of Spain—First cousin and queen consort to Louis XIV; their great-grandson succeeded to the throne

  Philippe of France

  Henriette Anne Stuart—First cousin and duchess to Prince Philippe, Duc d’Orléans

  De Gramonts

  Philibert, Chevalier de Gramont—Married Elizabeth Hamilton

  Guy Armand de Gramont, Comte de Guiche—Nephew of Philibert, Chevalier de Gramont

  Other Courtiers and Characters

  Nicolas Foquet—Superintendent of finances

  Father Cyprien of Gamache—Capuchin friar serving Queen Henrietta Maria

  Chevalier de Lorraine—Lover of the Duc d’Orléans

  Lully—Composer

  Cardinal Mazarin—Advisor to Anne of Austria, possible biological father of Louis XIV

  Molière—Playwright

  Françoise-Athénaïs de Rochechouart-Mortemart—Maid of honor to Queen Marie-Thérèse, later Marquise de Montespan, called Athénaïs, second maîtresse-en-titre to Louis XIV

  Louise de La Vallière—Maid of honor to Henriette Anne, Duchesse d’Orléans, first maîtresse-en-titre to King Louis XIV

  UPON THE GOLDEN MEDAL

  Our guard upon the royal side!

  On the reverse our beauty’s pride!

  Here we discern the frown and smile,

  The force and glory of our isle.

  In the rich medal, both so like

  Immortals stand, it seems antique;

  Carved by some master, when the bold

  Greeks made their Jove descend in gold,

  And Danaë wond’ring at their shower,

  Which falling, storm’d her brazen tower.

  Britannia there, the fort in vain

  Had batter’d been with golden rain;

  Thunder itself had fail’d to pass;

  Virtue’s a stronger guard than brass.

  —Edmund Waller

  PROLOGUE

  Richmond House, Whitehall Palace London

  July 1688

  Fireworks from St. James’s Park lit the night sky as I stood outside my home, Richmond House, the finest at Whitehall Palace, and waited for one of my oldest friends. He was the Earl of Clarendon now that his father, the old lord chancellor of England, had died in exile. But I would always remember my friend as simply Lord Cornbury, one of the gallants in my reigning circle when Whitehall belonged to the Merry Monarch.

  I glanced down at my niece, Anne, as she sat on the portico, studying the Britannia side of a copper farthing. She knew it was my image on that coin. She knew why, too. Light crackled and rained overhead, and chatter from my guests, who’d come to celebrate the birth of a newborn prince, carried from my bay windows. Anne flipped the coin over to the king’s profile. “Was it this exciting when King Charles the Second was restored to the throne?”

  “You know I wasn’t in England then.”

  “Tell me the story again.”

  I knelt beside her so my skirts draped into a silk puddle around me and recited the tale she’d come to cherish. “I was about your age, ten years. Exiled English Royalists filed into the great hall of the Queen Mother’s French château to greet our king, who’d been forced to wander Europe since we’d lost the civil wars. I told my father I was hungry. He studied me with the sharp eye natural to a royal physician and said in his Scottish brogue, ‘Ye know there’s nothin’ to be had. But when the king is restored to ’is throne, it will change everythin’ for us.’

  “‘What need have I for a king?’ I’d asked.

  “‘You’ve Stuart blood in ye’r veins, lass. Ye’r fortune, if ye ever have any, will begin and end with the Stuart royals.’

  “And when Charles the Second of England, Scotland, and Ireland filled the doorway, he was the tallest man I had ever seen. Behind me someone spoke, just loud enough for me to hear. ‘Let us see if we can fool him.’ A shove between my shoulders propelled me forward. ‘Your Majesty, here is your sister, Henriette Anne!’

  “The hall fell silent. King Charles appeared before me on one knee, lifting my chin to catch my eye. I should have dipped a deep curtsy to show reverence. It was a subject’s duty. Everyone in the hall waited in silence to see if the king would fall for this little jest. Then he pulled me close and kissed me. Laughter. The room shook with it. The king glanced around, then back at me.

  “He knew. The edges of my vision blackened. I had not curtsíed. What punishment might he dole out for such disrespect? He stood and then … laughed. I forgot my hunger that day. For the first time, I hoped he got his kingdom back for his own sake, not only for mine. Three years later, he did.” I stood at last, shaking out my silks and ending my story, though there was so much more to tell.

  Anne sighed, content. “I want to have a life like yours. To become a duchess and provide for my family.”

  God, please let her path be nothing like mine. “One must be clever to marry a duke.” She glared at me and I laughed. “I’m sure you will, someday.”

  Then my friend appeared, trudging through the Bowling Green looking more strained than I’d ever seen him. Almost. He presented his leg and bowed low. “Your Grace.”

  “You don’t seem in a celebratory mood.”

  “Nor is London. Nobody believes King James really has a son. Rather, they don’t want to believe it.”

  “They know this prince will be raised a Catholic, and they haven’t the stomach for another Catholic rule.”

  “It’s just as our late king predicted. Men are already stirring up talk.” He hesitated, glanced at Anne.

  “She’s trustworthy. Go on.”

  “They want to depose King James. You’ll have to choose a side. I know you disagree with his policies, but it’s no small thing to side against a king.” He paused as he registered my expression. All our years of intrigue in the glittering court at Whitehall seemed to pass between us. “Though, when it comes to the courage to reject a king, you’ve proven that you have it.”

  He was right in more ways than he could know. It was no small thing. Yet he only knew of one king I’d rejected.

  CHAPTER 1

  Palais Royal, Paris

  March 1661

  “Settle, Frances,” my mother whispered over her shoulder. “Don’t draw attention to yourself.”

  Henry Jermyn, Earl of St. Albans, who rarely deigned to look directly upon me, glanced in my general direction, seemingly displeased.

  I was straining my eyes in the candlelight, searching the wedding guests in the gallery of the Palais Royal, seeking out one English duke in particular. Now I fell back on my heels and slouched. I had gotten a good look at the guests waiting for the royal couple to return from the chapel. The French nobles, in impeccable silks and jew
els, politely averted their eyes from the chipped murals of our dilapidated palace walls. No jewel hung from my neck, only a blue silk ribbon. A gift from my older cousin Princess Henriette Anne, it was the prettiest thing I owned. Members of the exiled English court, like me, wore sensible clothes, repurposed with outdated lace. Although we weren’t exiles anymore, now that King Charles had possession of his kingdom. Most of the members of our court had returned home—at least those who had something to return to. Our monarch had won his throne and restored place and power to as many Royalist families as he could, but my family had no prior claim on anything. My father was the third son of the first Lord Blantyre in Scotland. Third sons get nothing: no title, no estate, not even the right to be styled “Sir.” A third son’s eldest daughter gets even less, and when my father died two years ago, his death left me with less than less. My family was still in France with the Queen Mother because we had nowhere else to go.

  At last I spotted the one powdered face that was neither French nor exile. George Villiers, second Duke of Buckingham, was King Charles’s lifelong friend. His clothes were not repurposed. His brown woven-silk doublet and pantaloons, embroidered with scrolls of gold thread, glimmered in the candelabra’s light. Favor with King Charles had gained him much with the Restoration: income rights, property, and court offices. He’d escorted Princess Henriette Anne back from her recent visit to England, and he’d gained popularity at the French court, too. After her wedding, he would return home to his wealth and his duchess. I had to talk to him. Tonight.

  Buckingham glanced at me, as if he sensed my stare. I felt a blush creep up my cheeks. He muttered to the French ladies in his circle. Then he moved across the hall toward our threesome, scabbard flashing at his hip. He spoke directly to St. Albans. “I expect your court will follow me to England shortly, now that Princess Henriette Anne is married.”

  St. Albans shook his head. “The Queen Mother will delay her return.”

  “Parliament will never cough up her allowance while she’s on French soil. If you expect her to pay you for your loyal service, you’ll encourage her to sail soon.”

  St. Albans was the Queen Mother’s lord chamberlain and the only courtier she kept in comfort. Though he wasn’t as ostentatious as Buckingham, his black silk ensemble certainly wasn’t shabby. “She’s not one brought to heel easily.”