Elizabeth I’s Earliest Influences: New Discoveries Concerning Blanche Parry, Lady Troy, the Funeral Monuments and the Bacton Altar Cloth

No relevant history of Queen Elizabeth I, in any medium, can now claim accuracy without mention of Blanche Herbert, Lady Troy, and her niece Blanche Parry. Lady Troy provided a stable childhood for Elizabeth I and Edward VI. Blanche Parry was the constant companion and confidante of Elizabeth for fifty-six years and her position at the centre of the court was recognised. Blanche Parry’s close connection to Lord Burghley and Sir Robert Cecil was a key factor in cementing and facilitating their relationship with the Queen. This paper brings forward new discoveries from Blanche’s Bacton epitaph on the monument she commissioned, from the contemporary pronunciation of Elizabeth’s name, to the process of the Queen’s visual transformation to Gloriana. Further, Blanche’s probable role in facilitating, through finance, the publication of the Welsh Bible, and hence the preservation of the Welsh language, is now clear. These researches led to the discovery of an unrecorded ‘Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I’ in the United States and to the identification of the priceless Bacton Altar Cloth as the only known surviving material from the Queen’s 1,900 dresses.