Great Women of History

I'm extremely fond of people who don't strut - those who tell the truth about themselves, the good and the less good. So let's commemorate the birthday today of Nell Gwynne (1650-1687), mistress of Charles II of England.



And why should we pay any attention to this woman? Here's one of my favorite stories, coming to you from the "It's good to be the king" department:

Charles II had several mistresses, which was pretty common for royalty at the time - come to think of it, it's pretty common for royalty now - and he didn't discriminate. He took on Catholics, Protestants, maids and nobles.

One day Nell Gwynne was riding through Oxford in her carriage, and a crowd of people mistook her for Louise de Kerouaille, another royal mistress and a very unpopular Catholic. They started shouting opprobrious epithets; it looked like a riot in the making. Ms. Gwynne quickly realized what the problem was, stuck her head out the window, and said something like "Pray, good people, be civil. I am the Protestant whore."

They loved it, and an ugly scene was averted.

Benshlomo says, There's nothing like calling a spade a spade.