After the banquet where my betrothal is announced the duke of York decides that the court will move. This time it is to a castle in Norwich, a part of England I have not yet been to. I find that I greatly love it there. Fotheringay castle is a property of the Duke of York and some of the lambs around it are also his. I found the people on the land enchanting and they welcome me even more now that they've learned I am engaged to the son of the Duke.
"Do you suppose we will have to go back to Italy?" Ria questions nervously when I break the news to her and my ladies in waiting.
"Of course not," I reassure her, "you are to be part of my husband and I's household when we marry. Till then we will remain in a separate household. The agreement between your parents and my household was that you would remain in my custody and care until I can find you a proper sitter. Seeing as you are not yet 12 you will be staying with me for a long time Maria."
She gives a wide smile before saying, "Well that's a relief!"
Everyone seems to brighten up the news of my engagement. I hear nothing from the queen, who is probably furious she was unable to orchestrate a match for me with one of her French relatives. However, I do hear from Jakarta. She has delivered her baby and is now out of confinement at Grafton. She plans to stay till early November when the baby, named Margaret after the long suffering queen, is a little over a month old and then go back to the service of the queen, who is still living with her young son and her sleeping husband at Windsor Castle.
My dearest Elizabeth is visiting us and all of us are eager for news. I understand that you are now engaged to the son of the deck of York and that you like this match and have consented to it. As much as it may complicate family matters I wish for you to know that with all my heart I am happy that you are happy. I wish for you to know that as your family member I am always by your side no matter what and that I wish you happiness in this great marriage. It is a marriage of your choosing, something a lot of young girls will not be able to have, and so I am happy for you.
I admit that despite the comfortability of Fotheringay I find myself missing Grafton more and more. It has been more than a year since I was last there and I find myself longing for my cousins again. The Yorks try their best to assuage my homesickness but even they know that my family has been on my mind.
"It gets better dear," Alice Montagu tells me gently one day after she sees me crying in my private chapel.
I wiped the tears from my eyes and say, "How did you deal with leaving your parents and family?"
She shrugs. "My mother died when I was a little older than you and my father died fighting in France. I was lucky to have a husband like Richard who is there to comfort me. You will be lucky to. I see the way young Edward looks at you, he is besotted."
I blush and try to hide my embarrassment. Soon the arrangements for my betrothal are set. I am official given Compton Castle, Chatsworth House, Bolton Hall, Lismore Castle, Watermouth Castle, Wressle Castle, Herstmonceux Castle, Croft Castle, Hampton Court, Hever Castle, Ashton Hall, and Chillingham Castle, which have been mine since I was recognized as an heir to the throne but not officially given because of the chaos surrounding the kings illness. My life is also to increase, my 5000 marks a year going from 10,000 marks a year simply on the rents I will now collect from the castles and their surrounding cities. It is a way of giving me more money and not dipping into the Royal treasury.
Other parts of the negotiation are also agreed-upon. If I were to die without giving birth to children my properties in England would revert to Edward and my properties and rates in Burgundy would revert to my uncle Charles who is next in line to the dukedom after me. I agree on this. It makes the most sense. The Burgundians will not stand for being ruled over by an English man and the English would surely not like a burgundy and to hold property within their borders.
YOU ARE READING
The White Countess - The White Queen
Historical FictionElisabetta "Eliza" de' Medici is only 13 years old when she becomes one of the most important people in Europe. The death of her mother leaves her the heir apparent to the Duchy of Burgundy, and her father's inability to care for her after the death...
