ELIZABETH I (1533 - 1603)
The signature of Elizabeth I of England is perhaps one of the most famous examples in history, often used by graphologists to illustrate an elaborate, stately and almost flamboyant style, which was in fact normal practice in those days by people who needed to represent their position or status.
Graphological opinion of Elizabeth I is often based upon her signature, but an assessment of her actual handwriting reveals surprising facts about this highly complex woman. I show here samples taken from three different stages in her life illustrating many other aspects of her personality.
Graphological opinion of Elizabeth I is often based upon her signature, but an assessment of her actual handwriting reveals surprising facts about this highly complex woman. I show here samples taken from three different stages in her life illustrating many other aspects of her personality.
sample - A Elizabeth at 21
In sample A we see the writing of Elizabeth at the age of 21. Forced to assume the mantle of royalty, but also placed in an impossible situation, bearing in mind the fate of her mother (Anne Boleyn) and the state of ‘illegitimacy’ thrust upon her after that time, Elizabeth now found herself accused (unjustly) of plotting the overthrow of her Catholic sister, Queen Mary. Surrounded by counsellors she could not trust, with rumours abounding of the many plots to have the Queen and her papist views overthrown, Mary had her young half-sister imprisoned in the Tower of London, in 1544. Refused an interview, but allowed to write to the Queen, Elizabeth tried unsuccessfully to reason with Mary. Elizabeth concludes her letter of petition:
"I humbly crave but only one worde of answer from your selfe.
Your highne’s most faithful subject that hathe bine from the beginning
and wylbe to my ende.
Elizabeth"
In this sample we see the careful and very regular calligraphic script taught by her tutor Roger Ascham. History tells us that this letter was written on her journey to the Tower of London, presumably via the River Thames which was the only entrance to the Tower of London at the time, (which perhaps explains the state of the sample, with ink blotches and 'dirty' appearance - remember, she would have been using a quill pen which needed sharpening every so often, and ink well), we see nevertheless a highly controlled piece of work, with baselines absolutely regular, and letter width and spacing between letters and words never varying, indicating the degree of control at the command of this young Princess.
The slant is perhaps unexpected, given that writing styles of the time prescribed an upright slant, and that here we find a slight right slant. Despite the fact that her mother was executed, and she was forced to accept the state of "illegitimacy" after the event, history records that Elizabeth felt no personal sense of shame, and in fact was on good terms with her father, Henry VIII. The writing would appear to confirm this fact, indicating her need for affection and approval from others, but also a basic – and perhaps necessary - belief in the male dominated society. Even though Elizabeth was a Princess, women had no position of note in society - and she knew from personal experience that even a Queen was not safe from execution.
Style is very correct and proper, as would be necessary in a letter to the Queen, which would normally not reveal a great deal in itself, being a "persona" script, and something of a "mask". However, a couple of interesting deviations, in terms of (a) the left margin which gradually narrows down the page and (b) the occasionally mingling extensions of one line with the line below, put a slightly different interpretation upon the high degree of control otherwise found. Both the deviations noted reveal the effect that her immediate situation was having upon her, with the awareness of her imminent incarceration, and even possible execution (on the grounds of Treason if Queen Mary could not be convinced of her innocence). The effort to control her emotions, with careful, regular calligraphic script, was beginning to slip, revealing mental confusion and uncertainty about her future, with a deep longing revealed to be back in safer times, surrounded by friends whom she might never see again.
"I humbly crave but only one worde of answer from your selfe.
Your highne’s most faithful subject that hathe bine from the beginning
and wylbe to my ende.
Elizabeth"
In this sample we see the careful and very regular calligraphic script taught by her tutor Roger Ascham. History tells us that this letter was written on her journey to the Tower of London, presumably via the River Thames which was the only entrance to the Tower of London at the time, (which perhaps explains the state of the sample, with ink blotches and 'dirty' appearance - remember, she would have been using a quill pen which needed sharpening every so often, and ink well), we see nevertheless a highly controlled piece of work, with baselines absolutely regular, and letter width and spacing between letters and words never varying, indicating the degree of control at the command of this young Princess.
The slant is perhaps unexpected, given that writing styles of the time prescribed an upright slant, and that here we find a slight right slant. Despite the fact that her mother was executed, and she was forced to accept the state of "illegitimacy" after the event, history records that Elizabeth felt no personal sense of shame, and in fact was on good terms with her father, Henry VIII. The writing would appear to confirm this fact, indicating her need for affection and approval from others, but also a basic – and perhaps necessary - belief in the male dominated society. Even though Elizabeth was a Princess, women had no position of note in society - and she knew from personal experience that even a Queen was not safe from execution.
Style is very correct and proper, as would be necessary in a letter to the Queen, which would normally not reveal a great deal in itself, being a "persona" script, and something of a "mask". However, a couple of interesting deviations, in terms of (a) the left margin which gradually narrows down the page and (b) the occasionally mingling extensions of one line with the line below, put a slightly different interpretation upon the high degree of control otherwise found. Both the deviations noted reveal the effect that her immediate situation was having upon her, with the awareness of her imminent incarceration, and even possible execution (on the grounds of Treason if Queen Mary could not be convinced of her innocence). The effort to control her emotions, with careful, regular calligraphic script, was beginning to slip, revealing mental confusion and uncertainty about her future, with a deep longing revealed to be back in safer times, surrounded by friends whom she might never see again.
sample - B Elizabeth as queen
Sample B, written in 1567, shows Elizabeth as Queen, drafting a speech to Parliament on her succession. Elizabeth is now 34, and the most powerful woman in the land. However, despite her position, insecurity stayed with her throughout her life with her need to be constantly alert to political intrigue and threat paramount. Her need to adopt the attitude of male thinking is reflected by her manner at the time, and also in her famous speech in which she declares, "I may have the weak and feeble body of a woman, but I have the heart and soul of a prince".
Was this statement true, or merely clever tactics? If true, this attitude will also be reflected in her writing.
Elizabeth was the most grandly dressed person in the land, with her huge gowns, often in dazzling white silk, dripping in pearls and jewels. Her red hair would be dressed in yet more jewels, as would every finger on each hand. She would be surrounded by a great entourage of ladies-in-waiting, courtiers and servants, and must have made a stunning entrance, creating a sense of awe in all who saw her. And yet her private handwriting does not reveal a traditionally feminine hand, nor even a need to aggrandise herself. In fact, quite the reverse. Here we see a simplified working handwriting, rather than the stylised formations produced by a grand lady, suggesting that her appearance, like her famous signature, was perhaps an effort to appear more feminine, or an integral part of her position, whereas in fact her mind was more interested in the practicalities of State.
Making an impression was important, however, as can be seen from the first letter on the page (even though it was intended to be a draft for her own use) and perhaps most notably in the capital letters "A". The need to assert her position was obvious, given the political uncertainty of the times.
However, her claim to have the "heart and soul of a prince" was right. This writing lacks any real femininity, in terms of "softness", "yielding", "giving", the totally feminine "surrender". Instead we see a strong "animus" element in the script. The leanness of movements, the strong insistent downstrokes like sharp almost ‘sword-like’ formations, declare her authority. It is strong, decisive and almost aggressive, critical with sharp movements and pointed ‘t’ bars; like the sword she always kept by her side. Elizabeth was confrontational in her speed of thought and directness. Ambition is also evident, which perhaps speaks of her need for survival amongst other European and surrounding royalty, such as her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots, whose claim to the throne of England because of Elizabeth’s "illegitimacy" had to be overcome. There is no doubt she was a highly intelligent woman. Elizabeth knew what she wanted, and in terms of decisions regarding affairs of state, she ruled supreme. It is in her personal life and sense of identity that we see the confusion and uncertainty. Also, feeling the need to express herself as a woman, but lacking the ability to achieve this.
The combination of rather wide word spacing with mingling lines, is a "counter-dominant", revealing conflict. The wide word spacing indicates loneliness, and, coupled with the right slant and rounded open movements, a craving for affection, with the mingling of lines revealing her lack of awareness for achieving this, i.e. unfulfilled needs. This ‘counter-dominant’ reveals emotional insecurity. At the same time as lacking spontaneity in her attempts to establish contacts, because of her obvious uncertainty as to who she could trust, there was also tension and unease which would have appeared to others as distant reserve. Given her position, there were few who would cross that line and respond to the Queen’s need for emotional and or social contact, leaving her isolated: the "Virgin Queen" who could not contemplate marriage because of the political situation, but who craved intimacy and often bestowed her affection unwisely, sometimes with devastating results.
Hence we find vulnerability just below the surface in this otherwise strong and dominant script. . However, the highly irritated way of expressing herself in the writing, the sharp and then pasty stroke, and the angularity, show that whilst she craved affection herself, it is doubtful that she could ever really give affection to someone else, be it man or woman.
Elizabeth’s rages were legendary, and are reflected by the loss of control over letter forms, the erratic pressure pattern, the letter forms which take on an unnecessarily angular formation (as in the double ll’s of "all", and the almost confrontational formation of the letter ‘K’, traditionally a letter showing authority challenges when produced as a misplaced capital). In addition we see many downstrokes produced as ‘thrusts’ onto the page (the photocopy helps to highlight this), together with words which have been deleted by a single decisive stabbing stroke of the pen, indicating her determination and will power. The Queen would make a bad enemy, and it was a brave or a foolish man who crossed her.
The speed of writing is rapid, albeit with slight ‘interruptions’ to the flow, with the horizontal tension sometimes broken with the unnecessarily stabbing vertical movements, and also by the often disconnected letter forms and the rather wide word spacing. Her thought processes were fast, with many clever connecting movements and tall, lean letter forms indicating an incisive mind and her ability to rapidly formulate ideas with little need for background information or detail. In fact she would have found the slow, stolid thinking of some of her more sedate or elderly counsellors, irritating. She was ahead of them before they had finished deliberating.
The form level is high. Despite this being a draft, and obviously written in haste, we see a straight left margin, baselines which unerringly find their straight horizontal path across the page; the clear formation of letters, and separation of words - and lines most of the time. The rhythm of letter forms, suggest an almost dancing "mischievous" movement across the page, as her lively mind pursues its goal. There is no doubt she had a healthy sense of humour (shown by clever rapid connections and many letter forms being produced with pen stroke moving fluently in different directions), although sometimes this could take the course of cutting sarcasm, shown by the many sharp or pointed movements, as with the ‘t’ bars. Basically, this is a ‘thinking’ script, with simplified letter forms, "flying" ‘i’ dots, and pen often skimming the surface of the paper, revealing that much of her waking time was spent in cerebral activity.
The height of the upper movements together with simplified and rapid execution of letter forms speak of her aspirations. However, unlike Sample A, there is some irregularity in the height. This speaks of uncertainty, and ideas which can be deflected by a clever orator, all confirmed by the surprisingly low height of ‘t’ bars which lack any real pressure and are produced as short movements, often ending in a sharp point. The combined indications of these movements are of a fitful willpower, coupled with frustration and a restless urge to succeed. Ergo, conflict.
The m/z movements are often angular, which, with the sharp ink trail and lack of lead-in strokes, indicate she could be more direct than gracious, and sharp with people when she felt so inclined. The rapidly produced and simplified letter forms, when coupled with the abrupt or non-existent ending strokes and the straight left margin, reveal a regimented mind that could react with alarming speed, with wit and clever repartee. When she had finalised a matter, however, that was it, nothing more could be said. And yet the combination of sharp ink trail and relatively tall upper zone movements, show that Queen Elizabeth was herself extremely sensitive and highly strung. A volatile mixture.
The m/z height fluctuates, again speaking of a fluctuating inner sense of self-worth, which was quickly hidden behind formality and authority. The emotional writing at times also give the impression that she was under pressure, with little time to consider herself, and having to be totally committed to her task. The frustration experienced by this emotionally alone woman can be seen in the often erratic pressure, and the zonal imbalance. She was also aware of her creative and imaginative abilities, but frustrated "beyond endurance" when unable to realize them, because of the prevailing political or international situation, or the need for diplomacy. In her personal life this frustration took on a more melancholy attitude, with the Queen’s black moods requiring the royal household to tip-toe around the palace for fear of incurring the royal wrath.
"I grieve; and dare not show my discontent!
I love; and yet am forced to seem to hate!
I do; yet dare not say I ever meant!"
Poem by Elizabeth.
The upper and lower zone movements are often rounded revealing the ability to be charming, and even patient if the individual was held in some favour, but the indications of explosive bursts of anger, shown by the angularity, the fluctuating m/z movements, the alternation between sharp and then pasty stroke, and the occasionally erratic ink pressure - caused as much by the impatience revealed by not wiping off the ‘excess’ ink from her quill pen before continuing with her writing, but simply loading her pen with ink each time and thus producing this effect of sudden ink pressure every now and then - warned that a lack of compliance would result in the ‘sun’ disappearing behind a cloud,
".. and ‘thunder’ falling in wondrous manner on all alike".
(Sir John Harington, The Queen’s Godson.)
Her emotional life might be lonely, disappointing and even stormy, revealed by sharp and then pasty stroke, and the constantly changing variety and length of lower zone movements (people around her could expect constant surprises). She could also be arrogant and unaware of the needs of others, shown by the jutting height of many m/z letters, angularity of form and sharpness of ink trail, coupled with the wide word spacing. However, as a ‘statesman’, Elizabeth had no equal.
Her eclectic mind and ability to deal with any situation is shown by rapid speed of writing, which yet does not lose its clarity of form, by the legibility of letter forms, often disconnected or suddenly grouped together when speed allowed this. Her ability to react instantly to any given situation as the occasion demanded, revealed by the variety of formations of the same letter as with the letter ‘m’ sometimes produced as an arcade and other times as an incisive angular movement and even occasionally in garland formation - the control she maintained over her court was as much by her ability to react instantly according to the situation, thus keeping everyone slightly off balance, as by the degree of control she maintained, reflected in her writing in terms of elements of the layout - the perfectly formed oval letters (revealing a brilliant memory); the accurate placing of ‘t’crosses – despite the speed of writing – all combine to tell us as eloquently as any member of her court living at that time, that the Queen took an active interest in everything going on, as well as dealing with all matters of state, whether important or trivial. Under Elizabeth 1's reign, the royal court became the centre of the nation's cultural life in a way that it never had been before, and was never to be again.
Was this statement true, or merely clever tactics? If true, this attitude will also be reflected in her writing.
Elizabeth was the most grandly dressed person in the land, with her huge gowns, often in dazzling white silk, dripping in pearls and jewels. Her red hair would be dressed in yet more jewels, as would every finger on each hand. She would be surrounded by a great entourage of ladies-in-waiting, courtiers and servants, and must have made a stunning entrance, creating a sense of awe in all who saw her. And yet her private handwriting does not reveal a traditionally feminine hand, nor even a need to aggrandise herself. In fact, quite the reverse. Here we see a simplified working handwriting, rather than the stylised formations produced by a grand lady, suggesting that her appearance, like her famous signature, was perhaps an effort to appear more feminine, or an integral part of her position, whereas in fact her mind was more interested in the practicalities of State.
Making an impression was important, however, as can be seen from the first letter on the page (even though it was intended to be a draft for her own use) and perhaps most notably in the capital letters "A". The need to assert her position was obvious, given the political uncertainty of the times.
However, her claim to have the "heart and soul of a prince" was right. This writing lacks any real femininity, in terms of "softness", "yielding", "giving", the totally feminine "surrender". Instead we see a strong "animus" element in the script. The leanness of movements, the strong insistent downstrokes like sharp almost ‘sword-like’ formations, declare her authority. It is strong, decisive and almost aggressive, critical with sharp movements and pointed ‘t’ bars; like the sword she always kept by her side. Elizabeth was confrontational in her speed of thought and directness. Ambition is also evident, which perhaps speaks of her need for survival amongst other European and surrounding royalty, such as her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots, whose claim to the throne of England because of Elizabeth’s "illegitimacy" had to be overcome. There is no doubt she was a highly intelligent woman. Elizabeth knew what she wanted, and in terms of decisions regarding affairs of state, she ruled supreme. It is in her personal life and sense of identity that we see the confusion and uncertainty. Also, feeling the need to express herself as a woman, but lacking the ability to achieve this.
The combination of rather wide word spacing with mingling lines, is a "counter-dominant", revealing conflict. The wide word spacing indicates loneliness, and, coupled with the right slant and rounded open movements, a craving for affection, with the mingling of lines revealing her lack of awareness for achieving this, i.e. unfulfilled needs. This ‘counter-dominant’ reveals emotional insecurity. At the same time as lacking spontaneity in her attempts to establish contacts, because of her obvious uncertainty as to who she could trust, there was also tension and unease which would have appeared to others as distant reserve. Given her position, there were few who would cross that line and respond to the Queen’s need for emotional and or social contact, leaving her isolated: the "Virgin Queen" who could not contemplate marriage because of the political situation, but who craved intimacy and often bestowed her affection unwisely, sometimes with devastating results.
Hence we find vulnerability just below the surface in this otherwise strong and dominant script. . However, the highly irritated way of expressing herself in the writing, the sharp and then pasty stroke, and the angularity, show that whilst she craved affection herself, it is doubtful that she could ever really give affection to someone else, be it man or woman.
Elizabeth’s rages were legendary, and are reflected by the loss of control over letter forms, the erratic pressure pattern, the letter forms which take on an unnecessarily angular formation (as in the double ll’s of "all", and the almost confrontational formation of the letter ‘K’, traditionally a letter showing authority challenges when produced as a misplaced capital). In addition we see many downstrokes produced as ‘thrusts’ onto the page (the photocopy helps to highlight this), together with words which have been deleted by a single decisive stabbing stroke of the pen, indicating her determination and will power. The Queen would make a bad enemy, and it was a brave or a foolish man who crossed her.
The speed of writing is rapid, albeit with slight ‘interruptions’ to the flow, with the horizontal tension sometimes broken with the unnecessarily stabbing vertical movements, and also by the often disconnected letter forms and the rather wide word spacing. Her thought processes were fast, with many clever connecting movements and tall, lean letter forms indicating an incisive mind and her ability to rapidly formulate ideas with little need for background information or detail. In fact she would have found the slow, stolid thinking of some of her more sedate or elderly counsellors, irritating. She was ahead of them before they had finished deliberating.
The form level is high. Despite this being a draft, and obviously written in haste, we see a straight left margin, baselines which unerringly find their straight horizontal path across the page; the clear formation of letters, and separation of words - and lines most of the time. The rhythm of letter forms, suggest an almost dancing "mischievous" movement across the page, as her lively mind pursues its goal. There is no doubt she had a healthy sense of humour (shown by clever rapid connections and many letter forms being produced with pen stroke moving fluently in different directions), although sometimes this could take the course of cutting sarcasm, shown by the many sharp or pointed movements, as with the ‘t’ bars. Basically, this is a ‘thinking’ script, with simplified letter forms, "flying" ‘i’ dots, and pen often skimming the surface of the paper, revealing that much of her waking time was spent in cerebral activity.
The height of the upper movements together with simplified and rapid execution of letter forms speak of her aspirations. However, unlike Sample A, there is some irregularity in the height. This speaks of uncertainty, and ideas which can be deflected by a clever orator, all confirmed by the surprisingly low height of ‘t’ bars which lack any real pressure and are produced as short movements, often ending in a sharp point. The combined indications of these movements are of a fitful willpower, coupled with frustration and a restless urge to succeed. Ergo, conflict.
The m/z movements are often angular, which, with the sharp ink trail and lack of lead-in strokes, indicate she could be more direct than gracious, and sharp with people when she felt so inclined. The rapidly produced and simplified letter forms, when coupled with the abrupt or non-existent ending strokes and the straight left margin, reveal a regimented mind that could react with alarming speed, with wit and clever repartee. When she had finalised a matter, however, that was it, nothing more could be said. And yet the combination of sharp ink trail and relatively tall upper zone movements, show that Queen Elizabeth was herself extremely sensitive and highly strung. A volatile mixture.
The m/z height fluctuates, again speaking of a fluctuating inner sense of self-worth, which was quickly hidden behind formality and authority. The emotional writing at times also give the impression that she was under pressure, with little time to consider herself, and having to be totally committed to her task. The frustration experienced by this emotionally alone woman can be seen in the often erratic pressure, and the zonal imbalance. She was also aware of her creative and imaginative abilities, but frustrated "beyond endurance" when unable to realize them, because of the prevailing political or international situation, or the need for diplomacy. In her personal life this frustration took on a more melancholy attitude, with the Queen’s black moods requiring the royal household to tip-toe around the palace for fear of incurring the royal wrath.
"I grieve; and dare not show my discontent!
I love; and yet am forced to seem to hate!
I do; yet dare not say I ever meant!"
Poem by Elizabeth.
The upper and lower zone movements are often rounded revealing the ability to be charming, and even patient if the individual was held in some favour, but the indications of explosive bursts of anger, shown by the angularity, the fluctuating m/z movements, the alternation between sharp and then pasty stroke, and the occasionally erratic ink pressure - caused as much by the impatience revealed by not wiping off the ‘excess’ ink from her quill pen before continuing with her writing, but simply loading her pen with ink each time and thus producing this effect of sudden ink pressure every now and then - warned that a lack of compliance would result in the ‘sun’ disappearing behind a cloud,
".. and ‘thunder’ falling in wondrous manner on all alike".
(Sir John Harington, The Queen’s Godson.)
Her emotional life might be lonely, disappointing and even stormy, revealed by sharp and then pasty stroke, and the constantly changing variety and length of lower zone movements (people around her could expect constant surprises). She could also be arrogant and unaware of the needs of others, shown by the jutting height of many m/z letters, angularity of form and sharpness of ink trail, coupled with the wide word spacing. However, as a ‘statesman’, Elizabeth had no equal.
Her eclectic mind and ability to deal with any situation is shown by rapid speed of writing, which yet does not lose its clarity of form, by the legibility of letter forms, often disconnected or suddenly grouped together when speed allowed this. Her ability to react instantly to any given situation as the occasion demanded, revealed by the variety of formations of the same letter as with the letter ‘m’ sometimes produced as an arcade and other times as an incisive angular movement and even occasionally in garland formation - the control she maintained over her court was as much by her ability to react instantly according to the situation, thus keeping everyone slightly off balance, as by the degree of control she maintained, reflected in her writing in terms of elements of the layout - the perfectly formed oval letters (revealing a brilliant memory); the accurate placing of ‘t’crosses – despite the speed of writing – all combine to tell us as eloquently as any member of her court living at that time, that the Queen took an active interest in everything going on, as well as dealing with all matters of state, whether important or trivial. Under Elizabeth 1's reign, the royal court became the centre of the nation's cultural life in a way that it never had been before, and was never to be again.
Sample - C Elizabeth's signature circa 1601
Sample C bears the famous signature produced in 1601 on the warrant for the execution of the Earl of Essex, two years before the Queen's death. The signature by this time may have been produced more by rote than as a personal signature, having become one of her royal duties, with her evident sense of position and responsibility being maintained despite the obvious lack of any ‘joie d’vivre’.
Careful observation reveals that the formation of the signature was with a slow slightly uneven pressure, indicating the effort taken and the slowly ebbing energy levels, perhaps caused as much by the emotional effect of Essex's devastating betrayal as by any health problem. In this signature we see an upright slant, which again compares with the right slanted writing to indicate her public position compared with the inner woman.
Elizabeth never married, but occasionally she showed favour to a particular courtier, bestowing both her affection, great honours and even land and wealth. However, she was finally forced to sign the execution warrant of her "favourite", the handsome, dashing young Essex, when his plot was uncovered to take over the throne with the help of the Irish rebel leader, Tyrone. Not only had he shown a treasonable lack of loyalty to his Queen, but also scorned her personally. Her position as head of State required her to act, but there is no doubt, from the many tales of the Queen and her "lamentations" after Essex’s death, that she was very greatly affected by what had occurred. How much Essex’s betrayal contributed to her own death two years later, is open to speculation, but the signature bears witness to the loss of her former vitality and perhaps even the will to live.
Guest Analyst: Marion Rayner, MBIG (Dip.), C.G., London
British Director of the AFGS
e-mail:[email protected]
Careful observation reveals that the formation of the signature was with a slow slightly uneven pressure, indicating the effort taken and the slowly ebbing energy levels, perhaps caused as much by the emotional effect of Essex's devastating betrayal as by any health problem. In this signature we see an upright slant, which again compares with the right slanted writing to indicate her public position compared with the inner woman.
Elizabeth never married, but occasionally she showed favour to a particular courtier, bestowing both her affection, great honours and even land and wealth. However, she was finally forced to sign the execution warrant of her "favourite", the handsome, dashing young Essex, when his plot was uncovered to take over the throne with the help of the Irish rebel leader, Tyrone. Not only had he shown a treasonable lack of loyalty to his Queen, but also scorned her personally. Her position as head of State required her to act, but there is no doubt, from the many tales of the Queen and her "lamentations" after Essex’s death, that she was very greatly affected by what had occurred. How much Essex’s betrayal contributed to her own death two years later, is open to speculation, but the signature bears witness to the loss of her former vitality and perhaps even the will to live.
Guest Analyst: Marion Rayner, MBIG (Dip.), C.G., London
British Director of the AFGS
e-mail:[email protected]
