Do Not Tell Secrets To Those

This advice is attributed to Queen Elizabeth I from reports of her counsel to courtiers, reflecting a hard-won lesson from her early years in a court where misplaced trust was frequently fatal. Before her accession, Elizabeth had navigated the dangerous reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, and Mary I, during which numerous people she knew were executed for political or religious reasons. Her caution about confidences was not merely personal wisdom but institutional survival strategy: the Tudor court was pervasively monitored, and secrets routinely reached enemies through indiscreet allies.