Nell Gwynne 1650-87

Eleanor or “Nell” Gwynn was well known as one of the first English stage actresses and also as a mistress of Charles II. Not much is known of her early life as she was born in humble circumstances. Her mother was probably a bawdy house keeper, and it’s believed that she was born in either London or Oxford, probably around 1650, during the reign of Cromwell. Nelly and her sister Rose probably grew up in Covent Garden, London, in poverty. Her father was said to be a Captain, but the truth is that nothing is known of him. As a child Nell probably worked at various occupations. It is said that she was a street seller, and also that she worked at her mother’s brothel, serving drinks. Puritan England was a dull place and amusements such as theatre were considered frivolous or immoral, and were banned. But in the early 1660’s with the restoration of Charles II to his throne, he licensed two theater companies and permitted women to act on the stage. Previously, as in Shakespeare’s day, the women’s parts were usually played by boy actors. Nell and her sister Rose started out as orange girls at the theatre Royal, Drury Lane. “Orange Moll”- a former prostitute, had a license to sell oranges and other sweetmeats to the patrons of the theatre, and Nell had a lively personality and a witty tongue, so she soon developed great skill at the selling job. It called for liveliness, quick wit and charm. Soon, she used her connections with the theatre to move into the acting profession. Nell had had no education, as a girl from a slum, but she had a sharp intelligence and in spite of being illiterate, she learned parts quickly and became very popular on the stage. Charles II often attended performances, as did members of his court. 

Nell realized that she was better at comedy than drama and serous theatre, so she found herself cast mostly in comic roles. She also played “breeches parts” where the female character adopts men’s clothes for some reason, and hence was able to show off her figure in male attire. During her early years as an actress, she became the mistress of the well-known actor, Charles Hart, and he nurtured her budding career. A few years later, she left the theatre for a time, to become the mistress of the wit and rake, Lord Buckhurst, who took her away from acting and gave her an income. However, she soon returned to the stage and seems overall to have had very few lovers. It was difficult for a woman to make her way even in the world of theatre, without a male protector but Nell seemed to be reluctant to take many lovers and supported herself. 

In 1667/8, the Duke of Buckingham seems to have interested himself in Nelly, since he wanted to counteract Barbara Castlemaines influence with the King. Barbara was Buckingham’s cousin, but she was a greedy and hot tempered woman. She and he were frequently at odds, and the Duke wanted to get Charles involved with another mistress who would put forward his pint of view. However, Charles was not the man to be faithful to any mistress for long. He and Barbara had been lovers for some years and had several children but the affaire was cooling. He began a short affair with Moll Davies, an actress from another theater. However, he met Nelly and began to take a fancy to her. Her quick wit and saucy tongue attracted him, and her forthright frank manners, the contrast between a girl born in a London slum and court ladies, made her seem charming. In 1670, she bore a son to him, but still returned to the stage for a time. She was less demanding than Barbara Castlemaine but she did have her price. 

  She asked insistently for a house and pension, and honours for her children. Some courtiers commented that Nell, because of her social position, her low birth was not “treated with the decencies of a mistress” but rather like a whore. Charles was not faithful to any of his women, but he was generous with money and they were part of his court and had much more influence there than his wife. Catherine of Braganza was a rather “mousy” young woman, who had been brought up in a restricted conventual culture. She was not sophisticated enough to handle a royal marriage to someone like Charles, or to deal with his many glamorous highly born mistresses who outshone her. As a Roman Catholic, and a wife who was unable to produce children, she became isolated at Court, and Charles, while reasonably kindly to her, mostly ignored her. In the early 1670’s Nell became part of the court and gave up acting. She had another son by Charles; the two boys were called Charles and James Beauclerk. However, Nell had to persist in asking for them to be given titles, as was usual for the children of his mistresses. She was not well born enough to have a lot of influence with him, but he was fond of her. In the 1670s however, he met Louise de Keroualle, a young Frenchwoman who had been one of his beloved sister Minette’s ladies. After Minette’s death, she came to court and after lot of prevarication, became his mistress. Louise was generally regarded as an agent of the King of France, and was not well liked. However Nell was popular, especially among the common people from whom she had sprung. 

Yet  in spite of her lack of likablity, Charles was deeply in love with Louise, and regarded her as a more important romance than Nelly. 

 Nell was still involved with Charles and used her sharp tongue to put down the haughty French mistress. She remarked that Louise gave herself airs and was always telling the world how many grand relations she had, so “why did she lower herself to be a courtesan?” 

She added that she had had few lovers though she was brought up in a bawdy house and "it was her profession."  She called Louise “Squintabella” because of a slight cast in her eye, and “The Weeping Willow” because of her tendency to cry. When her carriage was attacked by a mob who had mistaken it for De Keroualle’s carriage, she called out “Pray good People, be civil. I am the Protestant whore.” 

As time passed, Charles divided his attentions between a few mistresses, Hortense the Duchess of Mazarin was a favorite, he never entirely broke with Barbara Castlemaine, though their affair had ended... and he had Louise and Nelly. But in 1685, he died suddenly. Among his last words he asked his brother to “Not let poor Nelly starve”, and James II paid off Nell’s debts and gave her a pension. Her son James had died in childhood and her older son Charles had been given the title Duke of St Albans. Two years after Charles’ death, Nelly had a stroke and died, at the age of 37. She is remembered as a talented comedy actress, and a witty lively woman with a kind heart. It is said that she persuaded Charles to donate land for the Chelsea Pensioners hospital.