Elizabeth Darrell is a recurring character in Season Two of The Tudors as the faithful handmaiden of Queen Catherine of Aragon. She remains Catherine's principal lady-in-waiting (despite the position's lack of prospects) after Catherine is usurped by Anne Boleyn as Queen Consort of England.
Season Two[]
Catherine, who has been sent into exile at the Manor of the More by the King, is waited on by a group of select servants who decided to stay with the Queen, Elizabeth being one of them (2.02). Thomas Wyatt arrives, claiming he has brought a written order from for Catherine to return her royal jewels, which Elizabeth concedes to with great bitterness. Wyatt attempts to flirt with her; while Elizabeth initially tries to maintain that she is a good Catholic and will not yield to his temptation, she later has sex with Wyatt in the woods in the same episode.
Sometime later, Charles Brandon arrives to inform Catherine that she is no longer Queen; Catherine privately tells Elizabeth: "As long as I am alive, I will call myself 'the Queen of England'" and Elizabeth tearfully agrees.
Elizabeth is seduced by Thomas Wyatt
Elizabeth later tries to persuade Wyatt to plead to the King and Thomas Cromwell on Catherine's behalf, as she is suffering increasingly now that Henry has married Anne Boleyn; however, Wyatt (who was Anne's former sweetheart, and secretly still loves her) refuses, even when Elizabeth asks him to do so for her. Subsequently, Elizabeth angrily rebuffs Wyatt whenever he comes to the Moor, only allowing him to kiss her cheek once and to give her poetry.
Soon it becomes apparent that Catherine is dying; Elizabeth tearfully attends her bedside as she weakens, helping her write her will and making her as comfortable as possible (2.07). Elizabeth witnesses Catherine's hallucination of her daughter Mary and reassures her that Mary really came to see her, realizing the illusion comforted her mistress.
Some time after Catherine's death, Wyatt comes to Castle Moor in search of Elizabeth. He finds the Moor deserted, dark and all the furniture either removed or covered. As Wyatt investigates further, He finds Elizabeth hanging by the neck in one of the rooms, having committed suicide after the loss of Catherine. Wyatt is stunned and heart-broken to find her dead.
Historic Counterpart[]
Elizabeth Darrell (born c. 1513 – c. 1556 ) was the long-term mistress and muse of Sir Thomas Wyatt. They had one surviving child, Francis, and two other sons that died in infancy. Elizabeth was a servant of the Marchioness of Dorset and then afterward, on an unknown date, she became maid of honor to Queen Catherine. Possibly out of loyalty to Katherine or due to her dislike of Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth refused to take the Oath of Supremacy.
Her fate is dramatically altered in the series: instead of returning to royal service after the death of her mistress, as is historically accurate, Darrell hangs herself from the beams of her mistress's former home. The show is correct however in portraying Darrell's and Wyatt's affair.