I’ve just written an article over at The Anne Boleyn Files, entitled “Anne Boleyn: The Mother”, looking at Anne’s short time as Elizabeth’s mother, which you may be interested in reading – click here.

It’s hard to know whether Elizabeth had any memories of her mother at all, with her mother dying when Elizabeth was just 2 years and 8 months, but perhaps she did remember those times between January 1536 and the beginning of May 1536 when Anne spent a lot of time playing with her. What we do know is that Anne’s memory was important to Elizabeth and I have written before about Anne’s influence on her daughter and how Elizabeth had a special locket ring which contained a miniature of her mother. Elizabeth never spoke publicly of her mother but that ring shows us how important Anne Boleyn was to Elizabeth.

There are various women who had an influence on Elizabeth when she was growing up and when she was a young woman, and Elizabeth once wrote:-

“We are more bound to them that bringeth us up well, than to our parents, for our parents do that which is natural for them, that is bringeth us into the world, but our bringers up are a cause to make us live well in it.”

and while she was referring to Kat Ashley in this letter, these words could actually refer to many people in Elizabeth’s life.

But who do you think was more of a mother to Elizabeth? Vote in the poll below:-

Which woman was a mother figure to Elizabeth I?polls

By the way, make sure that you read historian Linda Porter’s article “Last But Not Least: The Enduring Fascination of Katherine Parr” over at The Anne Boleyn Files.

Happy Mother’s Day for Sunday for all those mothers in the UK and other countries celebrating on the 14th. Have a great day!