Killerly beautiful: the controversial beauty secrets of Elizabeth I (10 photos)

Beauty is also an indicator of health. And in order not to worsen it, modern girls and women carefully study the composition of cosmetics so as not to smear some dubious or downright dangerous things on themselves.





In the old days this was easier. The product works - and it works great. The composition is the tenth thing, but you need to be beautiful now. Otherwise, the husband will leave or the lover will leave.



Young Elizabeth. Portrait of an unknown artist

However, some young ladies even in the absence of men had to use dubious means. Even smart and educated, which, without a doubt, was the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn - the British Queen Elizabeth I, who managed to rule her subjects for almost 45 years. The Virgin Queen went down in history under this nickname because she had neither a husband nor children. Elizabeth cared exclusively about the good of the state and her subjects, whom she considered children.





Coronation portrait of Elizabeth I

A quite bright and pretty person suddenly fell ill with smallpox. She was not yet 30 years old, but the chances of survival despite the care of the best doctors were not particularly high. At that time, one out of three patients died from smallpox. Fate turned out to be merciful to the queen, but the disease took away her luxurious red hair from the girl and left terrible marks on Elizabeth’s forehead - pockmarks. The queen fought against them for the rest of her life.



"Pelican Portrait" of Elizabeth I by Nicholas Hilliard

To maintain her brand, the woman began to use special whitewash, especially since deathly pallor of the skin was then considered a sign of aristocracy. The miracle remedies included lead and vinegar, and the creation of the image was completed with the cherry on the cake - scarlet lipstick and blush, which were also generously stuffed with mercury.



"Armada Portrait" by George Gower

The older the queen became, the thicker the layer of white she had to apply to her face in order to somehow maintain her brand. Skin aging was also accelerated due to poisoning, even if the penetration of dangerous substances into the body through the skin was slow.



Portrait of Elizabeth by Marcus Gerards the Younger

By the end of her life, the death mask that the woman applied to her face was almost 2 centimeters thick. What’s even worse is that she didn’t remove the whitewash every evening, but only once a few days. Using for this purpose a hellish mixture of the same mercury, alum and crushed eggshells, which further traumatized the skin. The queen tried to divert attention from her face and hands with luxurious outfits, elaborate collars and elegant gloves.



Cate Blanchett as Elizabeth

It turns out that she removed the poison with poison. And so time after time. The depression caused by the loss of beauty was also complicated by the gradual deterioration of mental health caused by mercury poisoning. Characteristic symptoms are weakness, drowsiness, heavy dreams and irritability, headaches, and joint pain. In severe cases of poisoning, performance decreases, mental activity suffers, and memory deteriorates.



Anita Dobson as Queen

The situation was further complicated by the fact that the virgin queen did not allow doctors to approach her. Therefore, we can only guess what actually claimed the queen’s life - oncology, pneumonia, or, as the lion’s share of researchers believe, poisoning by the very white and lipsticks that the poor thing clutched at like a saving straw.



Helen Mirren as Elizabeth

However, she lived a more than long life for that time - 69 years. And some researchers believe that constant microdoses of poisons, on the contrary, contributed to longevity and life extension. Since the woman’s body was saturated with them so that not a single pathogen, be it a bacterium, virus or microbe, had a chance to stay and survive.



Margot Robbie as Elizabeth I

However, should a woman be blamed for striving to be beautiful? Moreover, Elizabeth became famous not only as the owner of a deathly pale face, but also as an erudite, intelligent woman who knew several languages and pursued a competent domestic and foreign policy aimed at strengthening the country.