There was a full-throated roar at this and suddenly Lizbeth found that her eyes were wet. The Queen always seemed to say the right thing at the right moment, she thought, and those words would be remembered for ever by everyone who had been present that day.
The banquet which followed was impressive, but as Lady Mary said with a little grimace,
“Once you’ve been to one banquet, you find that all the others are much of a muchness.”
There was music and a great deal of talk before finally they started on their homeward journey. Once again Lizbeth had trouble with her horse, for the torches blowing in the wind caused him to shy. Several times the other Maids of Honour told her to be more careful as she bumped into them.
At length they came to Whitehall, the Queen dismounted and her ladies
