Princess Elizabeth
Many of the poems written by Elizabeth provide a glimpse into her life as a Princess engaged for a fight over the right to the throne of England with her half-sister Mary. Some of the poems were written while Mary had her sister—still merely Princess Elizabeth—imprisoned and these poems are only known because they were—as their titles indicate—written on a wall.
Mary Stuart
Elizabeth’s half-sister is star of at least one poem and the title situates her as her foe. Indeed, Mary Stuart becomes through metaphor “the daughter of debate” instilling discord through England. Subtle imagery casts Mary in a dubious light that at the very same time casts suspicion upon Elizabeth’s own oft-repeated claims that she is free from suspicion of plotting her sister’s overthrow.
Philip II of Spain
In that very same poem in which Mary is cast as the “daughter of debate” in relation to the internal struggle in England between Catholicism and Protestantism, there is a veiled reference to someone almost universally identified the Catholic Philip II of Spain: “No foreign banished wight shall anchor in this port.”
Fortune
Although only metaphorical, Fortune must be considered a major character running throughout nearly ever poem by Elizabeth. She often speaks of Fortune as though it were a spectral visitor playing an active role in determining the vagaries of her own fate.
François de Valois, Duke of Alençon & Anjou
Francois, Duke of Anjou, is often considered the titular character in what is perhaps her most famous poem “On Monsieur’s Departure.” This poem is a declaration of the emotional heartbreak she feels as Queen because she does not have the freedom to openly express her true feelings for the men who would court her.
Robert Dudley
Unless, of course, the actual target of “On Monsieur’s Departure" was really Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester. Dudley remained close to Elizabeth all his life and was nearly a life-long suitor of the Queen and some scholars and academics suggest that the poem was directed toward him and not the Duke of Enjou.
