Frances Teresa Stuart by Sir Peter Lely, 1662-65.

Frances Teresa Stewart, Duchess of Richmond and Lennox (1648-1702) was a prominent member of the Court of the Restoration and a mistress of Charles II. For her great beauty she was known as La Belle Stuart and served as the model for an idealised, female Britannia. Sir Peter Lely (14 September 1618 - 30 November 1680) was a painter of Dutch origin. ... // Events January 17 - Englands Long Parliament passes the Vote of No Address, breaking off negotiations with King Charles I and thereby setting the scene for the second phase of the English Civil War. ... Events March 8 - William III died; Princess Anne Stuart becomes Queen Anne of England, Scotland and Ireland. ... King Charles II, the first monarch to rule after the English Restoration. ... Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was the King of England, King of Scots, and King of Ireland from 30 January 1649 (de jure) or 29 May 1660 (de facto) until his death. ... Britannia on a 2005 £2 coin. ...

The daughter of Walter Stewart, or Stuart, a physican in Queen Henrietta Maria's court, and a distant relative of the ruling dynasty, she was born in exile in Paris, but was sent to England in 1663 after the restoration by Charles I's widow Henrietta Maria to act as maid of honour at Charles II's wedding and subsequently as lady-in-waiting to his new bride, Catherine of Braganza. Walter Stewart may refer to: Walter Stewart (1931-2004), Canadian journalist This human name article is a disambiguation page — a list of pages that might otherwise share the same title, which is a persons or persons name. ... Queen Henrietta Maria (November 25, 1609 – September 10, 1669) was Queen Consort of England, Scotland and Ireland (June 13, 1625 - January 30, 1649) through her marriage to Charles I. The U.S. state of Maryland (in Latin, Terra Mariae) was so named in her honour by Cæcilius Calvert, son... City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Tossed by the waves, she does not sink) Location Coordinates Time Zone CET (GMT +1) Administration Country France Région ÃŽle-de-France Département Paris (75) Subdivisions 20 arrondissements Mayor Bertrand Delanoë  (PS) (since 2001) City Statistics Land... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... // Events Prix de Rome scholarship established for students of the arts. ... Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, King of Ireland, and King of Scots from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. ... Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was the King of England, King of Scots, and King of Ireland from 30 January 1649 (de jure) or 29 May 1660 (de facto) until his death. ... Catherine of Braganza [1] (25 November 1638 – 30 November 1705) (Catherine Henrietta, in Portuguese Catarina Henriqueta de Bragança), was the queen consort of King Charles II of England. ...

She had numerous suitors, including the Duke of Buckingham and Francis Digby, son of the Earl of Bristol, whose unrequited love for her was celebrated by Dryden. Her beauty appeared to her contemporaries to be only equalled by her childish silliness; but her letters to her husband, preserved in the British Museum, are not devoid of good sense and feeling. The king's infatuation was so great that when the queen's life was despaired of in 1663, it was reported that he intended to marry Stewart, and four years later he was considering the possibility of obtaining a divorce to enable him to make her his wife. This was at a time when Charles feared he was in danger of losing her the possibility of her ever being his mistress, her hand being sought in marriage by Charles Stewart, Duke of Lennox To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... George Digby, 2nd Earl of Bristol (<22 February 1612 - 20 May 1677), eldest son of the 1st earl. ... John Dryden John Dryden (August 9, 1631 – May 12, 1700) was an influential English poet, literary critic, and playwright who dominated the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the period came to be known as the Age of Dryden. ... The centre of the museum was redeveloped in 2000 to become the Great Court, with a tessellated glass roof by Buro Happold and Foster and Partners surrounding the original Reading Room. ... Charles Stewart, 3rd Duke of Richmond, 6th Duke of Lennox KG (March 7, 1639–December 1672) was the son of George Stewart, 9th Seigneur dAubigny and Katherine Howard, daughter of Theophilus Howard, 2nd Earl of Suffolk. ...

The great diarist Samuel Pepys records that she was the greatest beauty ever I saw ; the King was similarly taken with her, and at several points in his reign it was feared that he would succumb sufficiently to marry her. Portrait of Samuel Pepys by John Hayls. ...

She eventually married the Duke of Richmond and Lennox, also a Stuart, in March 1667. It is possible she had to elope to do so, after being discovered with him by a rival for the King's affections, Lady Castlemaine. Charles Stewart, 3rd Duke of Richmond, 6th Duke of Lennox KG (March 7, 1639–December 1672) was the son of George Stewart, 9th Seigneur dAubigny and Katherine Howard, daughter of Theophilus Howard, 2nd Earl of Suffolk. ... Barbara Villiers, by Sir Peter Lely. ...

The now Duchess of Richmond, however, soon returned to court, where she remained for many years; and although she was disfigured by smallpox in 1669, she retained her hold on the king's affections. It is certain, at least, that Charles went on to post the Duke to Scotland and then to Denmark as Ambassador, where he died in 1672. Smallpox (also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera) was a highly contagious viral disease unique to humans. ... Motto: , traditionally rendered in Scots as Wha daur meddle wi me?[1] and in English as No one provokes me with impunity. ...

Following the war with the Dutch, Charles had a commemorative medal cast, in which her face was used as a model for Britannia; this subsequently became customary for medals, coins and statues, and is still the case for some of the copper coinage of the United Kingdom.

The duchess was present at the birth of James Francis Edward Stuart, son of James II, in 1688, being one of those who signed the certificate before the council. She died in 1702, leaving a valuable property to her nephew Lord Blantyre, whose seat of Lethington was renamed Lennoxlove after her. James Francis Edward Stuart, the Old Pretender Prince James Francis Edward Stuart or Stewart (June 10, 1688 – January 1, 1766) was a claimant of the thrones of Scotland and England (September 16, 1701 – January 1, 1766) and is commonly referred to as The Old Pretender. ... James VII of Scotland and James II of England (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) became King of Scots, King of England, and King of Ireland on 6 February 1685, and Duke of Normandy on 31 December 1660. ... Lennoxlove House. ...

References

• Gilbert Burnet, History of my own Time (6 vols., Oxford, 1833)
• Edmund Ludlow, Memoirs, 1625-72, edited by C. H. Firth (2 vols., Oxford, 1894). (R. J. M.).
• Jules J. Jusserand, A French Ambassador at the Court of Charles II (London, 1892);
• Memoirs of Beauties of the Court of Charles II, with their Portraits (2nd ed., Lohdon, 1838)
• Memoire of Grammont, translated by Boyer, edited by Sir W. Scott (2 vols., London, 1885, 1890); Anna Jameson,
• Samuel Pepys, Diary, 9 vols. (London, 1893-1899, and numerous editions); Anthony Hamilton,
• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.