Anne Boleyn

Anne is, for me the most interesting of all Henry's wives, I cannot decide on weather it was ambition or love when thinking of her marriage to Henry.  Needless to say whichever it was she did not deserve her beheading, and neither did the five men that she was alleged to have had seduced.

Anne arrived into the court of Henry VIII in 1522 after spending 7 years in the French court.  She first caught the attention of the King when playing the part of "perseverance" in a pageant.  Anne was betrothed to Henry Percy, however this was not supported by Henry Percy's father and Cardinal Wolsey refused the match.

Anne came from an ambitious family, her uncle, Thomas Howard was highly ambitious to me a really unlikeable person.  No doubt that he would have pushed for Anne and her sister Mary to get in the Kings way and into his bed.  I do not believe that he would ever have thought that Anne could go as far as she did though.

People really began to take notice of Henry and Anne in 1527 when Henry began to seek an annulment from Catherine of Aragon, and more so in 1528 when Anne became a prominent figure at court.

Henry had kept Anne's sister Mary as a misstress for some time, however Mary was not the innocent as portrayed by Philippa Gregory in "The other Boleyn Girl", far from it.

Henry and Anne's love letters to each other still survive today and are held in the Vatican I believe.  Such a shame they are not kept at Hever Castle, or Hampton Court Palace for people to see.

Henry and Anne did not consummate their marriage until the divorce from Catherine of Aragon was final (or rather almost was).  Anne and Henry held out for a very long time for this divorce and I don't think that can be ignored, although it could be argued that ambition would allow her to wait that long.  However, for me, from Henry's point of view he would not have waited so long if he did not love her.  If it was pure lust then I think he would have tired of waiting and found another woman.  They were married in January 1533, and the marriage latest just three years.  Anne gave birth to a baby girl, Elizabeth in September 1533 and bore no further surviving children.

From what I understand Henry and Anne's relationship was a very intense one.  There was deep affection, but also blazing rows and heated tempers.

It would seem to an outsider that Anne perhaps grew "too big for her boots". Anne was dominant in court and not as queenly in her duties as Catherine was.  She, to me did not understand her place, and while she could previously had got her way as far as Henry was concerned, time changed that.  She was his wife and queen and expected to behave in an appropriate way.  Anne was very vocal and perhaps shouldn't have been.  After three years of marriage Henry had had enough, although this is under debate as he seemed very much in love prior to her trial.  I think to give Anne's trial the write up it deserves (I'll try my best), it would require a separate post.

Rumours of Anne's alleged infidelity circulated and Anne was put on trial along with five men (including her brother George), along with charges of witchcraft (Henry believed that Anne had bewitched him).  Anne was sent to the scaffold and beheaded in May 1536.

Anne's death was incredibly tragic and undeserved.  But to add a different train of thought, I don't think if Henry simply wanted divorce she would have accepted that.  Although Catherine did not either, she was dignified and stayed out of the way so to be speak, once the divorce was final and she was moved away.  In Anne's case, this wouldn't have happened.  Anne was very headstrong.  Perhaps Anne and Henry were too similar in character and this is why the marriage broke down.

Did Henry ever really marry for love?

When thinking about each of Heney's wives I wondered if any of them truly loved Henry?

Catherine of Aragon: Widowed from her marriage to Arthur, she was in limbo land for a few years. Henry asked Catherine to marry him a few years after Arthur's death. Was this a relief for Catherine rather than true love? I think so. However I do believe that Catherine grew to love Henry.

Anne Boleyn: It took Anne and Henry six years before they could marry, but was it love or ambition that enabled Anne to wait so long? Sources say that Anne was ambitious but I wonder was she trying to do one better than her sister Mary?

Jane Seymour: Was Jane as equally ambitious as Anne but more subtle in her approach? Henry is buried beside Jane in St. George's chapel Windsor which sums up his feelings for her (or was it because she gave him a son?). But was Jane really in love?

Anne of Cleves: This was an arranged marriage with the couple not even meeting before the wedding. I think I am safe to say here that this was not love on either side.

Catherine Howard: Henry was smitten with Catherine, but as she was so much younger than Henry, and him fat and ageing, and Catherine committing adultery while married to Henry, I can't see this being true love on Catherine's side either.

Catherine Parr: I feel that this marriage grew into a fondness rather than true love. Henry was certainly impotent by this time in his life so there was probably no physical relationship. It's believed that Catherine wanted to marry Thomas Seymour which she did after Henry's death, so Catherine in my view, wanted to marry Thomas rather than Henry.

I would love to know your thoughts on whether you think any of Henry's wives truly loved him?

Catherine of Aragon

Catherine first set foot on English soil at the age of 15 when she was betrothed to Henry VIII's brother Arthur, Prince of Wales.  Their marriage had been arranged for some time by Arthur's father Henry VII, and Catherine's parents King Ferdinand V of Aragon, and Isabel I of Castile.  It's hard to imagine what thoughts must have gone through Catherine's mind, being mearly 15, separated from her family, and sent off to marry.  With that said, from what I understand the marriage was a happy one, despite it being so short.  

Following Arthur's unexpected death, Catherine remained in England under the care of Henry VII for eight years.  This must have been a very worrying time for Catherine, widowed and uncertain of her future.  There was speculation that after Henry VII's queen Elizabeth of York's death, that Henry VII was considering marrying Catherine himself.  However, Catherine and Henry VIII were engaged when Henry was just 12, but not married until Henry was almost 18.

Upon Henry VII's death on 21st April 1509, Henry and Catherine had a joint coronation on 24th June 1509 at Westminster Abbey.  This was unusual at the time, as it would have been expected for Henry to have had his own coronation, with Catherine's following at a later date.

Catherine and Henry were a popular couple, the King being young, athletic and handsome, Catherine was beloved by the people of England and excelled in her queenly duties.  She was made for her role.

On new years day 1511, Catherine gave birth to a baby boy, Henry, Duke of Cornwall.  There were huge celebrations and both Henry and Catherine were overjoyed.  Sadly, their joy was short lived.  Henry, Duke of Cornwall died on 23rd February 1511.  This would have been devastating for both Catherine and Henry.  Catherine had already given birth the previous year to a still born daughter.  Catherine had a further three stillborn babies, boys in 1513 and 15145 and a girl in 1518.  However, she did give birth to a healthy baby girl, Mary born on 18th February 1516.  

As I understand it, Catherine and Henry had a happy marriage, Henry named Catherine as Regent of England while he was on a military campaign in France, which to me shows a great deal of trust.  Catherine was able to maintain her dignity while Henry had several mistresses (one being Mary Boleyn, Anne's sister), and an illegitimate son, Henry Fitzroy.  It was accepted at the time that the King could take mistresses, which is why I say Catherine maintained her dignity, nowadays I doubt anyone would be so accepting.

By 1526, Henry had turned his affections towards Catherine's lady-in-waiting Anne Boleyn.  I would assume that Catherine no doubt thought that Anne would be yet another misstress and thought no more of it. Sadly for Catherine this was not the case, and BY 1528 Henry had decided that he wanted to annul his marriage to Catherine.  She must have been heartbroken.  Henry's reason for the annulment was that he believed that he had committed a sin by marrying his brother's wife, and that Catherine and Arthur had consummated their marriage, something Catherine strongly (and i mean strongly) denied until her death.  

It took Henry six years to get what he wanted, but in order to get it he had to break with the Roman Catholic church.  That is another chapter altogether.

Catherine was put through a tiresome ordeal and had to publicly plea her case, maintaining that she and Arthur had never consummated their marriage, so in fact herself and Henry had committed no sin.  The people of England were very much on Catherine's side.  After the annulment was finalised, Catherine was sent away and eventually settled in Kimbolton Castle from 1535 until her death in 1536.  Catherine was unable to see her beloved daughter Mary.  This must have been very painful for both Catherine and Mary, who was around 17 years of age when her parents marriage was annulled.

Catherine died on 7th January 1536 of what is believed to have been cancer.  Her funeral was held at Peterborough Cathedral and Henry forbade Mary to attend.  

Catherine did not live to hear of Anne Boleyn's downfall and execution and I have always wondered what she would have thought of it all.  Would Henry have allowed Catherine and Mary to be reunited following Anne's execution?  

What i admire most about Catherine is how strong and determined she was.  She praised Henry until the end, and did not let him go without a fight.  To me it shows enormous strength to only say nice things about someone who has humiliated you and separated you from your daughter.  Did Henry ever feel regret having treated Catherine this way, and also illegitamising Mary and separating mother and daughter?  

Henry's Six Wives - An Overview

I thought I would start with a brief overview of Henry's wives before I go on to write about each in turn.



Catherine of Aragon

Born: 16th December 1485
Died: 7th January 1536
Buried: Peterborough Cathedral
Queen of England from 1509 - 1533

From an early age Catherine was destined to become Queen of England.  Born to King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile, Catherine was betrothed to Henry's elder brother Arthur.  The marriage was a short one, as Arthur died five months later.  Following Arthur's death, Catherine spent the next eight years in England before marrying Henry.

By all accounts Catherine was a popular and successful Queen and a devoted wife to Henry.  Sadly they lost their son Henry shortly after his birth, and Catherine had subsequent miscarriages.  However, Catherine did give birth to a healthy baby girl, Mary who later went on to rule England from 1553 - 1558.

Catherine and Henry's marriage lasted 24 years before being annulled at Henry's request.  Catherine died a few months before the fall of Anne Boleyn.  Catherine is believed to have died of Cancer, and sadly after the marriage was annulled, she was not able to see her daughter Mary.

Catherine's life to me is a fascinating one, she seems to me to be a headstrong, intelligent, and loyal queen, however, her life was tainted with sadness with losing so many babies and her deep love of Henry.



Anne Boleyn

Born: believed to be around 1501
Died: May 1536
Buried: Church of St Peter ad Vincula
Queen of England from 1533 - 1536

Anne is to me a fascinating individual.  Born to Thomas Boleyn and Lady Elizabeth Howard, she attracted the attention of the King and after six long years (and a break with the Catholic Church), they were married.

Their daughter Elizabeth, later Queen of England from 1558 - 1603 was born shortly after their marriage in September 1533.  Anne suffered two miscarriages after the birth of Elizabeth.

Anne and henry's marriage lasted just three years, before Anne was sentenced to death on charges of adultery and witchcraft. Anne was beheaded on 19th May 1536, along with five other men, including her brother George.  I can safely say neither Anne, nor those five others were guilty of these charges.

From what I understand, Henry and Anne's relationship was passionate and fiery.  Anne, to me is a complex character (as is Henry), I will elaborate further in my post about Anne later.

Jane Seymour

Born: 1508
Died: October 1537
Buried: St Georges Chapel, Windsor
Queen of England from 1536 - 1537

Jane is quite possibly the queen that is known the littlest about.  A lady in waiting to both Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn, Jane also caught the Kings eye and went on to become his wife.  Jane was the complete opposite to Anne in temperament, which may have been refreshing for Henry considering his relationship with Anne was turbulent.

Jane gave birth to Edward on 12th October 1537.  Edward went on to become King of England 1547 - 1553.  Jane died shortly after Edwards birth at Hampton Court Palace, it is believed that Jane died as a result of an infection, perhaps sustained from a tear during labour.

There does not seem to be a great deal of information on Jane herself,  it was said that she was no great beauty.  However, she was pivotal in repairing the relationship between Henry and his daughter Mary.  I see Jane as a peacemaker (as was Catherine Parr) with Henry and his daughters, some say that Jane had no agenda with Henry, but others say she was equally ambitious in marrying Henry and becoming queen.

Anne of Cleves

Born: September 1515
Died: July 1557
Buried: Westminster Abbey
Queen of England from January 1940 - July 1940

Anne faired the best to some degree from all of Henry's wives, however she was I think humiliated in the process.  The marriage was arranged without the couple meeting beforehand and Anne quickly learnt that Henry did not approve of her.

I think for anyone to be told that they physically repel someone is a huge insult and can only be taken to heart.  Anne however dealt with this and was rewarded generously.

The marriage was very short by anyone's standards, and no children came, but Anne remained a friend of the King and his children until her death in 1557.

Anne to me is a likeable person, but who also has a fascinating story to tell.

Catherine Howard

Born: 1520
Died: November 1541
Buried: Church of St Peter ad Vincula
Queen of England from July 1540 - November 1541

Catherine was a lady in waiting to Anne of Cleves and also married to Henry for a short time.  Catherine bore Henry no children, and from all accounts Henry was smitten with her.

However, Catherine was unfaithful to Henry and also not a virgin prior to their marriage.  this humiliated Henry and as a result Catherine was beheaded along with her previous lover Francis Dereham and Thomas Culpepper, who she had committed adultery with.

Catherine in my opinion was a young girl who was a little foolish, and it cost her dearly.  There are many factors to consider with Catherine's adultery, the main one being that she was married to a man she may not have considered physically attractive.

Catherine was Anne Boleyn's cousin, but did not have the same privileged upbringing.  I will go into more detail at a later stage.

Catherine Parr

Born: 1512
Died: September 1548
Buried: Sudeley Castle, Gloucestershire
Queen of England from July 1543 - January 1547

Catherine differs from Henry's other wives in that she had been married twice before, to Sir Edward Bugh (from 1929 - 1933), and John Neville, third Baron Latimer (1534 - 1543).  Catherine was widowed following both marriages.

Catherine was a loyal wife to Henry and played a large part in reconciling Henry with both his daughters.  Catherine was a reformer and this it is said almost cost her her life.

Catherine and Henry had no children, but were married until Henry's death.  Catherine later went on to marry Jane Seymour's brother Thomas until her death in 1548.

Catherine to me is also a very likeable character, however I find her life to have been a sad one in places.

Welcome!

I've decided to start this blog to share some of my thoughts and information on the Tudors. 

I first became interested in the Tudors around 5 years ago after some encouragement from my cousin, and since then I have been an avid reader and watcher of all things Tudor! It really is a fascinating period of history, and what makes it more appealing is that we can only guess the feelings behind the people. 

I would love to hear your opinions and any feedback you may have on my blog. 

Thank you for reading.