Cast of Characters

[Sir Barnaby Howard]

The London Covert

Lord High Admiral Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, Captain of Imperatorius
A long-time friend of Elizabeth, it surprised no one when he was given the rank of Admiral. He is the highest ranking rider in all the English Dragon Corps and sits in the Queen's Privy Council. He is 53 years old but still tall and dark of hair and beard.

Sir Francis Drake, captain of Conflagratia
Celebrated for the prizes he and his dragon have almost single-handedly taken from Spanish galleons returning from the New World, he is very much in favor with the Queen, especially having given the large portion of it to the Crown. He is 45 years old.

Sir Barnaby Howard, captain of Gloriana
A scion of the Howard family, cousin to both the current Duke of Norfolk and the Queen herself, Barnaby was fortunate to flatter the Queen enough to catch her eye and earn himself the captaincy of the Petit Chevalier given to her by the French. He is 27 years old, born the year of Elizabeth's coronation.

Sir Edmund Blackadder, captain of Lentulus
A courier-captain, descended from a proud line of aristocrats than can be traced back to a certain youngest son of a certain king, though now of rather diminished circumstances. He is 34 and has but one crewman who is a known layabout.

Sir John Merryweather, a physician
The surgeon at the Covert, who handles men and beasts both. He is 50 years old and studies not only the biology of living creatures but also astronomy and geography. He is known more for his maps than his curative efforts.

Dragons at the Covert:
Imperatorius, a Regal Copper (m)
Conflagratia, a Chequered Nettle (f)
Gloriana, a Petit Chevalier (f)
Lentulus, a Winchester (m)

[Sir Barnaby Howard]

The Queen of England and her Court

Elizabeth I, the Virgin Queen
As a Protestant queen refusing to marry and at 52 already past the age of pregnancy, Elizabeth's reign grows more and more precarious with each year. Still, she maintains a form grip on her power, to the frustration of her many rivals. She is well-known for her patronage of the arts, and for the many rumours surrounding her supposed 'virginity'.

Sir Francis Walsingham, the Secretary of State
One of Elizabeth's most trusted and influential advisors, Sir Francis is the rock and hammer of the Elizabethan court. Often described as her 'spymaster', Sir Francis is cold and dour, with little humour to speak of and a mind as hard as a Regal Copper's scales. His efforts to transform Protestant England into a maritime power with an effective intelligence network have made him a very respected and feared man in Elizabeth's court. He is 53 years old.

William Cecil, Baron Burghley
The head of the Queen's privy council, and her longest-serving minister, William Cecil is often considered the true architect of her success. As her first Secretary of State, Cecil secured financial and political security for Elizabeth, and appointed Francis Walsingham to establish their now formidable network. Even at the old age of 65, this career politician of common descent remains the Queen's most trusted advisor to this very day.

Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex
The Earl of Essex is the Queen's current favorite minister, but far from her most trusted. Though his title is Master of the Horse and he sits upon the Privy Council, noone really quite knows what he does, except entertain Her Majesty and reap profits from certain wine taxes. Only 20 years old, he has expressed certain aspirations for military glory, but has yet to saddle a dragon. His stepfather is the equally ambitious Robert Dudley, creating even more drama in the Privy Council.

Sir Walter Raleigh
Another rake, and the sort of rake Her Majesty seems to enjoy. After taking part in the crushing of several Irish uprisings, Raleigh took hold of a few thousand acres of land and established himself as a landlord in a land that despised him. While a powerful landowner, Raleigh could never convince other English to come to his Munster and settle. Now, deciding that perhaps what he needs is a more exotic locale to offer, he has come to London in the hopes of convincing the Queen to allow him to found a colony in the New World. He is 31 years old.

Bernardino de Mendoza, the Spanish ambassador
Sent by Philip II just seven years ago, Mendoza is the third Spanish ambassador to serve Elizabeth. He had primarily been a military man up until that point. As he comes from Spain and from Philip, who was Elizabeth's sisters husband and one of her erstwhile suitors, he is not well trusted by Elizabeth or her councilors.

Michel de Castelnau

[Sir Barnaby Howard]

The French Court

[Sir Barnaby Howard]

The Scottish Court

Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots
Once Queen Consort of France, now Mary is only Queen of Scotland. With the claims of illegitimacy throughout Elizabeth's childhood, as well as the English Protestant break with the Papacy, some see her as the rightful Queen of England as well, due to her descent from Henry VIII's sister. Nine years younger than Elizabeth and with less of the stain of age upon her beauty, she is clearly Elizabeth's rival in more ways than one.
She is 43 years old and twice widowed, first by the King of France and second by an English courtier, Lord Darnley, by whom she has one son, James.

Prince James Stuart, Duke of Rothesay
The 19-year-old son and heir of Queen Mary.

[Sir Barnaby Howard]

The Spanish Court

King Philip II of Spain
Previously married to Elizabeth's elder sister Mary, who had been a devout Catholic. As Mary descended into madness and hysteria, he cultivated a relationship with Elizabeth, only to be refused by the prudent princess.
He is 58 years old but still a strong and virile man still. He has been widowed four times, by princesses from four of the most powerful nations of Europe (Spain, England, France, Austria).