Philippa Carr - Saraband for Two Sisters

There was a good deal of talk at the table and we learned that these men from London were disturbed by the influences at work in the country. The King’s popularity was fast waning. He had, it seemed, not the gifts to make him a darling of the public. He was a good and faithful husband—rare in kings—but he did not know how to govern, and his wife, Henrietta Maria, frivolous and strictly Catholic, did nothing to endear herself to the people.

That he had dismissed Parliament and governed without one was an indication of the King’s determination to be accepted as the ruler selected by God. He was implying that he did not need a parliament, when he was quite capable of making laws. The people had accepted so much from him, but, it was the general verdict, they were getting restive and they would not go on in this way.

He was alienating the people not only through religion but through irresponsible taxation, which was a direct threat to property.

One of the main topics was, of course, ship money, of which we had heard so much. Fearful of war with the Spaniards or Dutch or both, Charles had commanded that the main ports supply ships for the defence of England. To build these ships money was needed and ship money was invented.

A rumbling protest broke out throughout the land. The Puritans, the Protestants and the Catholics all felt themselves persecuted and stood against the King; Charles had alienated Scotland when he allowed himself to be crowned in Edinburgh by five bishops in white rochets and copes of gold, a ceremony which was attended by much pomp, for this offended the plain Scots and diverted their sympathy from him.

I remembered vividly the conversation at dinner one evening when they talked about the frivolity of the Queen and the King’s growing love for her.

My mother thought that it showed goodness in the King and she said that a monarch’s happy family life would be an inspiration to the families of the country.

My father smiled at her tenderly and replied: ‘There have been happy families before this King came to the throne, my love. To have found the ideal companion, to have learned the true secret of living, which is to give happiness to others when happiness will come to the giver unasked, is something which we all may have if we are determined to get it.’

‘But it is so easy to lose the opportunity to gain that happiness. What if I had lost you?’

There was a sudden shadow between them and I knew instinctively that it was the return of Senara which had reminded them that their happiness might not be secure.

One of the gentlemen from London said: ‘It would be well for the country if the King were less under the influence of his wife. It was the greatest mistake to deal with William Prynne as they did.’

‘What happened to William Prynne?’ asked Bersaba.

‘I forget that remote in the country as you are you miss these things,’ replied the gentleman. ‘Prynne wrote a book against stage plays.’

‘Why should he be against such plays?’ demanded my mother. ‘What harm do they do?’

‘It was Prynne’s opinion that plays are unlawful, because they engender immorality and have been condemned by the scriptures.’

‘But is this so?’ asked my mother.

‘Prynne produced evidence to prove his case.’

‘He is a killjoy,’ said my mother. ‘Miserable himself and wanting everyone else to be the same!’

‘That may be,’ put in my father, ‘but every man should have the privilege of stating his views.’

‘That is what many think,’ put in our guest. ‘A man may be wrong or right but he must be given leave to air his opinions. Those who don’t agree snap their fingers at him; those who do applaud. There are certain to be those who are ready to take sides.’

‘On what grounds was he sent to the Star Chamber?’ asked my mother.

‘This is where the King is foolish in his fondness for the Queen,’ was the answer. ‘Prynne attacked the women who appeared on the stage, for in his opinion although stage plays in themselves are wicked, the greatest sin of all is for a woman to appear on the stage. Now the Queen loves the play—to witness it and to take part in it—and she and her ladies have recently performed William Montague’s Shepherd’s Paradise, so the attack appears to be on her personally and on the King too for that matter, for he took great pleasure in watching and applauding the play. And for this Prynne is sent to prison, but first set in the pillory and deprived of his ears.’

‘His ears!’ cried my mother, deeply shocked.

‘Ah madam,’ said our guest, ‘you live in this peaceful spot. Pray God it may always remain so. But there are changes creeping over our country and they are such that the people will not endure.’

I was trying to imagine what a man looked like without his ears, and I felt a sudden pain and fear such as I had never known before.

When I rode out I noticed that the people of the countryside seemed thoughtful. It was as though a cold wind had started to blow across the country from Whitehall, so steadily, so relentlessly that we were even feeling it at Trystan Priory.

We had been home for two weeks when my father was called to Plymouth to discuss the next voyage. My mother begged to go with him, leaving our brother Fennimore in charge of the household.

‘We shall not be away long,’ my mother assured us, and when they rode off together I thought she looked like a bride setting out on her first journey with her new husband. The house seemed different without her. We were accustomed to my father’s absences so that did not affect us so much—but the house without her seemed somehow bereft.

After we had bade them farewell in the courtyard, Bersaba and I climbed to the turrets and watched them from there until they had disappeared from sight.

‘When I am married I shall be just like our mother,’ I told Bersaba.

‘You will not,’ answered my sister, ‘because you are not like our mother.’

‘I mean I shall have a husband who thinks I am as young and beautiful after thirty years of marriage as I was on the day he first saw me.’

‘You are not going to marry a blind man?’

‘You know what I mean. Father thinks that of our mother.’

‘There are not many like them.’

Sadly, I agreed with her.

‘Mind you, it would be dull if they were. I want my marriage to be different from that. Theirs is hardly exciting.’

‘I don’t think anyone could ever have a more exciting moment than our mother when she hears his ship is sighted.’

‘It would greatly depend on what excitement meant to you,’ Bersaba pointed out.

‘Oh, you can never accept things as they are. You always have to probe and dig about and spoil them.’

‘I like to know the truth,’ observed my sister. ‘I wonder what’s happening at Castle Paling?’

‘It’s odd that we haven’t heard.’

‘Do you think they will be asked here?’

‘Not until Father goes. He clearly didn’t like Senara. She tried to stop his marrying our mother. She was jealous … She didn’t want anything to come between her and our mother. She loved her so.’

‘I’ll suggest that she wanted to be the one to marry first.’

‘It must have been exciting then. I wish we could read our mother’s journal. It will be all about Senara and her mother and Grandfather when he was young. Have you started writing, Bersaba?’

‘No,’ said Bersaba shortly.

‘Are you going to?’

‘When I’ve something that’s exciting enough to put down.’

‘Well, don’t you reckon Senara’s return with Carlotta is?’

‘It remains to be seen.’ She hesitated. Then she said: ‘I’ll tell you something. I swear someone from Paling will be over soon.’