ming
village of Chelsea. To such substantial gifts as these he added the
honour of an appointment at court: when the merry player was made one
of the ladies of the privy chamber to the queen. Samuel Pegg states this
fact, not generally known, and assures us he discovered it "from the
book in the lord chamberlain's office."

From her position as the king's mistress, Madam Ellen moved on terms of
perfect equality with the Duchess of Portsmouth's friends--supping
with my Lady Orrery, visiting my Lord Cavendish, and establishing a
friendship with the gay Duchess of Norfolk. This was a source of deep
vexation to the haughty Frenchwoman; but Nell Gwynn's familiarity with
the king was a cause of even greater mortification. Sir George Etherege
records in verse when the monarch was "dumpish" Nell would "chuck the
royal chin;" and it is stated that, mindful of her former conquests over
Charles Hart and Charles Lord Buckley, it was her habit to playfully
style his majesty "Charles the Third." Her wilfulness, wit, and beauty
enabled her to maintain such a strong hold upon the king's heart, that
he shared his time equally between her and the Duchess of Portsmouth.
Indignant that a woman from the playhouse should receive such evidences
of the royal affection, her grace lost no opportunity of insulting Nell,
who responded by mimicry and grimaces, which threw those who witnessed
the comedy into fits of laughter, and covered the wrathful duchess with
confusion.

But though the light-hearted actress frequently treated disdain with
ridicule, she could occasionally analyze the respective positions held
by herself and the duchess with seriousness, Madame de Sevigne tells us,
Nell would reason in this manner: "This duchess pretends to be a person
of quality: she affirms she is related to the best families in France,
and when any person of distinction dies she puts herself in mourning.
If she be a lady of such quality, why does she demean herself to be a
courtesan? She ought to die with shame. As for me, it is my profession.
I do not pretend to anything better. The king entertains me, and I am
constant to him at present. He has a son by me; I contend that he ought
to acknowledge him--and I am well assured that he will, for he loves me
as well as the duchess."

To have her son ennobled, and by this means raise him to an equality
with the offspring of her grace, became the desire of Nell Gwynn's life.
To her request that this favour might be