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Is there any truth in the myth of the Bisley Boy
01:00 Mon 13th Aug 2001 | History
A. This is a legend that, essentially, Queen Elizabeth I died young and was replaced by a boy. Thanks to allycotton for the question, but the answer is no.< xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
Q. Be specific.
A. Bisley in Gloucestershire is home to a former royal hunting lodge, Over Court, where a nine-year-old Elizabeth was sent to escape the plague in London. Legend has it that she died there in 1542, on the eve of a visit by her father Henry VIII. Courtiers, fearing the King, tried to find a red-haired girl to take her place. They couldn't find one, so they used a local boy and dressed him in an elaborate costume.
Q. What, he never found out
A. Apparently not. He died in 1547 and was succeeded by Edward VI and Elizabeth's half-sister Mary before Elizabeth acceded in 1558.
Q. It's all so unlikely - why did such a myth gain credence
A. Elizabeth never married despite having many suitors. This was also an age of marriages that were arranged as alliances. Her spinster status was most unusual.
She also left strict instructions there should be no post-mortem examination on her death.
Q. And now the rumour has been revived
A. Yes. A television programme has been made on the subject, written by Lady Christopher Thynne. It is based around a Victorian vicar who claims he found Elizabeth's remains and reburied them. The Rev Thomas Keble told his family just before he died that, during building works at Over Court in 1870. he found an ancient stone coffin contained the skeleton of a young girl, aged about nine. She was dressed Tudor clothing.
Q. So what did he do with it
A. The vicar told his family that he had the remains reburied nearby, to avoid the grave becoming a ghoulish attraction. He felt if it was the princess, she should rest in peace. The vicar was a solemn man, not prone to humour or pranks. The new grave has never been found.
Q. But the myth goes on
A. Mrs Jessica Douglas Hulme, who lived at Over Court as a youngster, said her family have always believed the story to be true. 'As a child we played in Elizabeth's little flower garden around what legend has it was her stone coffin,' she said.
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By Steve Cunningham
