I rise extremely early and write a letter to the king. I appraise him of the queen’s concern and ask when he is planning to return to these shores. I tell him he is much missed by all at court. I am not happy about his conduct. It is not my place to question a king’s activities, so I keep my most private thoughts out of the letter. I do feel that he has treated the queen badly by not returning as soon as he heard about the pregnancy. Not that many people at court really believe it is a genuine pregnancy. Maybe Philip shares that view, although he did write to the privy council recently saying he was delighted that the queen was with child. Added to all this, there are rumours still flying around court that he had a Spanish woman here on his last visit and was seen scurrying along to her be
