1561 Visit of Queen Elizabeth I

Elizabeth believed in showing herself to her subjects and made what were called 'progresses' throughout her realm. This made her popular and enabled her to save on her housekeeping accounts. In the summer of 1561, she left Greenwich for the royal palace of Havering-atte-Bower, near Romford, Essex, where she stayed for 5 days before setting off on a tour. She stayed at Ongar Castle, Rookwood Hall (near Leighs), Gosfield Hall, Ipswich, Harwich, St Osyth, Colchester, Layer Marney, Maldon, Moulsham Hall (near Chelmsford), Ingatestone Hall and back to Havering.

Before her arrival, preparations had to be made. The Churchwarden's Accounts contain the following:

Item. Pd. and given to Mister Ammisses man for that he brought a letter from hys Master to ye township of ye quenes Maiestes cummynge in anno 1561 on ye 26 July = 5/-

Mr Amiss was the Duke of Norfolk's Bailiff.

This was very short notice, for the Queen was coming on August 2nd. On 31st July, Nicholas Panton of Ipswich was paid 15/- 'for settynge of ye quenes maiestes gret armes of yngland a pon ye towne gates'. Also on 3rd August it is recorded that 6/8d was paid to the trumpeters when the Queen was here, and 6/8d 'to them that did bare ye bottells'. Thus, the visit cost the town 28/4d and the expense of entertaining the Royal Party probably fell on her host. . Although his name is not given, he is thought to be a wealthy merchant and shipowner named Thomas More, whose mansion stood on the corner of High St, now King's Head St and St Austin's Lane.

The report of the visit, written by Silas Taylor, Storekeeper at the Naval Yard 1664 to 1678, and published by Samuel Dale in his 'History', a second edition of which appeared in 1732, reads as follows:

But August 12, 1561, Queen Elizabeth came hither and accepted of an Entertainment from the Borough, lodging, as it is said, for several days at a House about the middle of the High-Street, and being attended by the Magistrates at her Departure as far as the Windmill out of Town, she graciously demanded of them, what they had to request of her, from whom she received this Answer, Nothing, but to wish her Majesty a good journey: Upon which she turned her Horse about, and looking upon the Town said, A pretty Town and wants nothing, and so bad them farewel.

There is discrepancy between the dates given by Silas Taylor and the Churchwardens. Until 1752, two styles of calendars were in use in Britain. The Roman or Julian calendar, in which the new year began on Lady Day, 25th March and the Gregorian calendar, used by most countries in western Europe, in which the year began on 1st January. Difficulty therefore arises over some dates. In 1752, the change to the Gregorian calendar was made by the omission of 11 days, 3rd September being recognised as 14th September.