Meet Charles’ Mistresses
Charles II was well known for his love of women and he had countless affairs, flings and one-off trysts with both aristocrats and commoners alike. But some of these women stand out particularly because they had children with the king.
Read their bios to find out more about these mistresses, and the part that they, and their children, played in the life and at the court of Charles II.
Lucy Walter
Lucy met Charles in the Netherlands while he was a young Prince in exile, and she quickly fell pregnant with their son, James. Years later, many people claimed that James was legitimate, because Lucy and Charles had secretly been married, making him the rightful heir to the throne…
Elizabeth Killigrew
A quiet and lesser known mistress, Elizabeth met Charles at The Hague while he was living in exile, and she was already married.
Catherine Pegge
Catherine and Charles were together for several years while she was living in the Spanish Netherlands. She had two children by the future king, and lived a quiet life with her husband.
Barbara Palmer
Beautiful, fiery and entitled, Barbara Palmer was not just one of the most notorious and controversial of Charles’ mistresses, but also a powerful and influential figure at the royal court. Her father-in-law said that she would make her husband the most miserable man alive! With several affairs under her belt, and six illegitimate children with the king, he may have been right.
Mary ‘Moll’ Davis
Though Nell comes to mind when we think about Charles’ actress mistress, Moll was on the scene long before her, and was already causing a stir at court by being a commoner who was parading round in jewels and finery. But an embarrassing prank at the hands of her rival nearly cost her her place at court…
Eleanor ‘Nell’ Gwyn
The classic rags to riches story! Nell was once a young prostitute in West London, but climbed the social ladder to become one of Charles most intriguing, and beloved, royal mistresses. She had two children with Charles who were officially recognised and given titles and an aristocratic surname… not bad for the sons of an orange-girl!
Louise de Kérouaille
Louise was a French aristocrat and lady-in-waiting to Charles’ sister, Minette, at the French court, and met Charles when they visited England. When Minette died suddenly a few months later, Charles quickly secured Louise a position at the English court… as Queen Catherine’s lady-in-waiting!