Anne was trained at the French courts herself, and boasted all the glamour, exceptional skills and intelligence Henry wished to embody himself.. She had already been denied the love of h
Trang 1in a secret betrothal However, all those with their gaze fixed upon the enchanting young debutante soon found themselves facing a rival they could not hope to better – the King of England
Henry prided himself on his image – he was obsessed with his appearance and was constantly attempting to prove himself as an accomplished, charismatic and capable leader With his own claim
to the throne emerging from the turbulent War of the Roses, he was determined to do everything in his power to secure his and his descendant’s place
as king As models of the Renaissance man, Henry had a friendly rivalry with Francis I of France and did anything he could do to outmatch him
Anne was trained at the French courts herself, and boasted all the glamour, exceptional skills and intelligence Henry wished to embody himself He wanted her instantly
However, unlike her sister, Anne was not a weak-willed girl who would bow to the will of a man
Anne’s courtly education
in the royal palaces of the Netherlands and France had given her grace, elegance and
a beautiful singing voice – but
it had also given her one other thing: knowledge of the game
of courtly love She knew what became of the mistresses of kings;
she had witnessed her own sister tossed aside the moment his attention had been drawn by another She had already been denied the love of her sweetheart, Henry Percy, having been deemed unworthy by his father
Henry’s obvious affections for her would provide the perfect opportunity to prove just how much she was worth Anne did something no woman before her had dared to do: she said no to the king
Rather than outraging him, Anne’s rejection spurred Henry to chase her more fervently He bestowed her with gifts, penned love letter after love letter, but the enchanting but strong-willed woman still said no When he offered for her to
be his official mistress, that too was rejected She was everything all the women in his life had never been – rather than agreeing politely, she challenged his opinions, debating with him on subjects such
as theology She was passionate, brash and fiery, and she had well and truly set Henry alight There was no doubt in his mind that such a young, virile
woman would bear him the male heir that would ensure the continuation of his line Sometime
in 1527, after a year of chasing her, he proposed marriage to Anne, and finally she said yes
While we have reams of Henry’s love letters, and the extreme decisions that would follow his proposal as evidence of his strong feelings for Anne, we can only speculate on what was going
on in the young woman’s head She was under immense pressure from her ambitious father and uncle to elevate the family name – something a match with a king would no doubt achieve – but the lengths to which Henry would go to ensure she became queen must have been captivating for the younger daughter of a family with commoner roots Because Henry did indeed have great lengths
to travel, there was the small matter of his current wife, the now-infertile Catherine of Aragon Henry, at least in the early part of his reign, was well known as a devout Catholic He had even been named
a so-called ‘defender of the faith’
by Pope Leo X, and it was to the Bible he turned to seek an annulment for his 24-year-long marriage to the mother of his only legitimate child to date
He argued with Pope Clement VII that his marriage to Catherine, who had been his late brother’s wife, directly went against the words in Leviticus 20:21 But the Pope wasn’t a fool; to allow the annulment would contradict the decision made by a previous infallible Pope to allow the marriage between Henry and Catherine in the first place Again Henry was told no and again he was denied Anne and the male heir he so badly desired Henry had heard enough ‘nos’ so on 23 May 1533
he took matters into his own hands and ordered the newly elected and specially selected archbishop
of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, to grant him the annulment he so desperately needed That simple action would have consequences that would reach far beyond Henry or Anne’s own life, forever changing the religious and political landscape of the country, leading to the English Reformation Breaking away from Rome was a rash, dangerous and groundbreaking move, but Henry finally had what he wanted – he was allowed to marry the enchanting Anne And it was just in time, because she was already pregnant, and any child born out
69
Anne Boleyn
17 love letters that Henry wrote to Anne have survived and are stored in the Vatican Library
Tudor courtship
Get set up
As forced marriage is
forbidden by the church,
marriages can’t strictly be
‘arranged’, but couples are often matched
up by their parents to ensure a suitor of
acceptable social standing Love matches
do occur, but are only really acceptable if
the wealth of both is suitable
Show your commitment
Known as betrothal or handfasting, when the couple have agreed to marry they will go through a period similar to a modern-day engagement This may involve a ceremony where pledges are made After betrothal the couple can begin sexual relations.
Shower her with gifts
Once a suitable lady has been chosen, a Tudor gentleman will begin to visit her frequently and bestow her with an array of valuable gifts in hope of winning her over Ribbons, girdles and gloves can all be used to capture a lady’s heart.
Get married
The marriage ceremony itself is a very public and high-profile affair in a church with the more guests the better Wedding dresses will usually be the bride’s best dress and, for those who can afford it, the ceremony will be followed by a great feast with food, music and dancing.