Barbara was an only child, born into an influential English noble family , the Villiers. Her father died in the first English Civil War, fighting for the royalists. After the defeat of Charles I and the royalist cause, the Villiers family was left impoverished.
By all accounts Barbara was an outstanding beauty with long dark hair, deep blue eyes and sensuous features. Eventually, in , she was married off to Roger Palmer , who came from a lower-ranking family than the Villiers, but which was equally as royalist and devoted to the Stuart monarchy. His father allegedly remarked that Barbara would make Palmer one of the most miserable men in the world! He may have been rightβ¦. Later in , after the Protectorate had been dissolved and Charles had been proclaimed King of England, the Palmers set sail for the Netherlands as part of the entourage that were to collect Charles and take him back to England for his coronation.
Although it is not clear exactly when the affair between Charles and Barbara began, this is certainly when they would have a first met, and within a few weeks of being back in England, rumour started to spread of the relationship between Charles II and Mrs Palmer. Later that year, the king granted Palmer the title of Baron of Limerick and Earl of Castlemaine for services to the crown.
Moreover, the grant of the titles specified that the titles could only be passed down to children that Barbara bore, not any that Palmer may have had by subsequent wives. So it was clear to everyone that the titles, and the power, lay with Barbara. But Barbara, who was only just at the beginning of what would be years of influence and power over the king, had other ideas.
Determined to make her position secure and public, she insisted on giving birth at Hampton Court Palace , where the king and his new queen were staying for their honeymoon! Charles agreed - not a great start to the royal marriage. This was the last straw for Palmer. Barbara, now feeling free and bolstered by her increasing sway over the king, wanted to secure her place at court even more official.
