ABSTRACT
By the time that Jean de Simier arrived in England in January 1579 to negotiate a marriage between Anjou and Elizabeth both the protagonists were ready to treat the project as a serious proposition and not simply as a piece of matrimonial diplomacy. As far as Anjou was concerned, his fortunes in the Netherlands were at a very low ebb at the beginning of 1579, since his troops had deserted from lack of pay and his Catholic supporters in the southern provinces were defecting to Alexander Farnese, the prince of Parma, Don John’s able replacement as commander of the Spanish army.1 Henry III, moreover, showed no sign of backing his brother’s venture. It was only by marrying Elizabeth and involving her in the Dutch war that Anjou might obtain much-needed resources to finance a new army and regain his credibility with William of Orange and the northern provinces who were continuing the fight against Spain. It was therefore vital for his military and political ambitions that Simier’s mission was a success.2 Consequently, Anjou gave his envoy a large expense-account to cover his trip and costly presents of jewels to bestow upon the queen.3 For his part, Simier admirably rose to the occasion. As William Camden remarked, he was ‘a choice Courtier, a man throughly versed in Lovefancies, pleasant Conceits and Court-dalliance’, and Elizabeth was soon won over by his charm.4 By February 1579 he had become her ‘ape’, a nickname arising from a Latin pun on his name.5
