marguerite "meg" anne welles, lady welles
the nightingale
Marguerite Anne Welles, named for Marguerite of Navarre and Anne Boleyn, was born into a glittering world of splendor that masked dark swirlings underneath. Her parents were of a modest upbringing, from families with enough money and influence to place them in an acceptable place in their respective countries’ nobility, but not so high that greatness was ever expected to be thrust upon them. Henry Welles was the youngest son of an earl, spending much of his time at his family’s estate in the country until his father found him a placement at the court of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. French-born Colette Clement secured a place in the court of Navarre as a girl, one of many young noblewomen to receive training under the tutelage of the great Marguerite. Navarre was where the events that led up to their daughter’s life began.
Colette Clement and Anne Boleyn became fast friends; both possessed intelligence, cunning, and wit that charmed those around them, and Anne’s ferocious nature was often balanced with Colette’s heart of gold. The remained thick as thieves through their travels, which eventually brought them to the court of Henry VIII, where Anne caught the soon-to-be-infamous royal’s eye.
The two women were once again members of the same royal court, except this time, it was Anne who was queen. Colette served by her friend’s side, rejoicing in her victories and mourning her tragedies. Colette and Henry wed not long after the King and Anne; the friends fell pregnant nearly a month apart in the fall of 1533, and the ever-idealistic Colette called it a blessing from God - their daughters would grow up together as their mothers had.
The first years of little Meg’s life were idyllic; her parents had married for love, and were as attentive to their daughter as their duties could possibly allow. Though they tried for more children, it proved futile; this would disappoint nobles who yearned for more power and prestige, but the Welleses were content with the child and life that they had. They shielded Meg from as much as they could, sending her to Hatfield House with the King and Qeeen’s blessing to be raised alongside Princess Elizabeth. Meg’s earliest memories featured not only Princess Elizabeth and their playmates, other noble children, but Prince William and his companions as well. Elizabeth’s parents would visit on occasion, and Meg delighted in nothing more than bobbing a tiny curtsy to the queen, all the while searching behind Anne for a glimpse of her mother’s smile, warm as sunshine.
The year 1540 brought a painful change; all of a sudden, Henry and Colette did not visit. Notes to them, in Meg’s untidy, childish, penmanship, went unanswered. The Welleses had fallen victim of the sweating sickness, leaving Meg an orphan at the age of six. Her father’s family had all predeceased him and nobody knew anything of Colette’s family in France; in a great act of kindness, Queen Anne petitioned the King to take Meg on as a ward of the crown, protecting the few interests that her late father left behind and further securing a place in Elizabeth’s household.
Though deeply saddened by the loss of her parents, Meg continued to bloom in the Princess’ household. She seemed to balance the young royal, as their mothers had done for each other, and with access to the greatest education a woman could come by, she blossomed into a kind, intelligent young woman. She buried herself in books, both academic and otherwise, losing herself in fanciful stories of young lovers and faraway lands. She admired the Princess and her mother, the Queen, and tried to learn all she could from being in their presence.
Henry VIII’s death flipped England’s world upside down; in a flurry of activity and protocol, Elizabeth’s household returned to court for her brother William’s coronation. As she stood with Elizabeth’s other ladies as the crown was lowered onto William’s head, she could see both sibling’s demeanors shift; they had all known this day would come, but perhaps not so soon. All of a sudden, they were children no more; the days of frolicking in the gardens at Hatfield House were over, and a new era was dawning.
Meg is fiercely loyal to Elizabeth and her family; she is extremely aware of how fortunate she is to have grown up in their care, and for her proximity to royals as a member of minor nobility. She cares for the Boleyn-Tudor siblings as if they were her own, and for Anne as she would a second mother, as the Dowager Queen was now her only connection to her own parents and lineage. Though subject to Elizabeth’s strict guidelines, Meg still dreams of her ideal life - swept into a beautiful romance, making a true love marriage match, living peacefully and happily with her loved ones by her side.
