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You are here: UK History > Royal History > House of Tudor > Henry VIII | The king with 6 wives > Anne Boleyn
Perhaps the most famous of Henry’s wives, Anne Boleyn was his second wife and is credited with starting the English Reformation. She is the mother of the future Elizabeth I and cousin to another of Henry’s wives, Katherine Howard.
Born: Either 1501 or 1507, Bickling Hall, Norfolk England
Died: 19th May 1936 (either aged 29 or 35), Tower of London
Queen: 1st June 1533 – 17th May 1536
Married: 28th May 1533 – 17th May 1536
Spouses: Henry VIII of England
Parents: Thomas Boleyn 1st Earl of Wiltshire and Elizabeth Howard
Children: Elizabeth I of England
Though her exact birth date is unknown, Anne was the second of three children to Thomas Boleyn, later Earl of Wiltshire and Earl of Ormond and his wife Elizabeth Howard, the oldest daughter of Thomas Howard, the Earl of Surrey and Duke of Norfolk. She had an older sister, Mary and a younger brother, George. Through the Howard family, who were one of England’s most prominent, she was descended from Edward I of England, meaning she was of more noble birth than some of Henry’s other wives, though was not a noblewoman by any means, her father however did work as a diplomat for the royal family, which led to his children receiving an education abroad.
Anne’s education was typical of the time for her class. In 1513, she was taken in by Margaret of Austria who supplemented her education with domestic skills, dancing, embroidery, household management, maths, grammar, history, reading and writing. She also learned how to play games and was taught archery, falconry, horseback riding and hunting. Anne had a very cultured life, living in various courts and households across Europe.
Anne lived at the Court of Savoy in Mechelen until she was sent to attend Henry VIII’s sister Mary when she was married to King Louis XII of France in 1514. In France, Anne was maid of honour to both Queen Mary and her new stepdaughter Queen Claude, staying in the French court for around seven years. During this time, she acquired knowledge of French culture and learned about Lutheranism.
Anne was called back to England to marry her cousin James Butler, who was living at the English Court. The marriage was intended to settle a land dispute and was partly organised by Henry VIII who wanted to avoid a war with Ireland. The plan ended in failure and James Butler later married the daughter of the Earl of Desmond.
Anne’s sister Mary, who had also been with her in France, was returned to England a few years later to end her affair with the French King. She was married to William Carey in 1520, Henry VIII attended the wedding and soon claimed Mary as his mistress. There is some debate as to whether Mary’s children were fathered by her husband or by the king, Henry did not acknowledge either of them but did acknowledge his son Henry Fitzroy who was the son of another of his mistresses.
By 1522, Anne had a position in the English court as lady in waiting to Queen Catherine. During this time, Anne was courting Henry Percy, the son of the Earl of Northumberland and entered into a secret betrothal with him though it has been stated that they were not lovers. The romance ended when the Percy family refused to support the engagement. Cardinal Wolsey also refused the match. Anne was also known to have been a close friend of Sir Thomas Wyatt, one of the eminent poets of the time. In 1526, Henry VIII began to take notice of Anne and started to pursue her, Anne however resisted his attempts to seduce her refusing to become his mistress and often leaving court for her family home at Hever Castle. There is no evidence to suggest that they were lovers prior to their marriage and Henry’s many letters to her suggest that their seven year courtship remained unconsummated until the end of his marriage with Catherine of Aragon. He proposed marriage in 1523 and Anne accepted, though their nuptials were delayed because of issues surrounding the annulment of Henry’s marriage.
It is widely believed that Henry thought that annulment would be granted easily. It was the back and forth with the pope that allowed Anne’s religious beliefs to influence Henry and she began to take a larger role in policy and state.
In 1528, there was an outbreak of sweating sickness, Henry left London and Anne retreated to Hever Castle but still contracted the disease which ended up killing her brother in law. Henry sent his personal physicians to care for her and she recovered, again cementing his determination to make Anne his wife. It wasn’t until Thomas Cranmer, the Boleyn family chaplain became Archbishop of Canterbury that this began to look more like a reality. Even before their marriage, Anne was able to grant petitions, receive diplomats and give patronage. She was hugely influential in securing an alliance with France, so much so that the pair travelled to France to seek the approval of King Francis I for their marriage. Anne’s family also rose above the ranks during this time, her sister received an annual pension and her children received an education and roles at court. Her father, cousins and brother also received titles.
The pair married in secret on 14th November 1532 in Dover. She soon became pregnant and as their union was considered unlawful, they had a second service in London in January 1533. Their marriage was finally declared valid on 28th May 1533, five days after the annulment was approved. Catherine was formally stripped of her title as queen and Anne was consequently crowned queen consort on 1st June 1533 in a ceremony at Westminster Abbey. She was crowned with St Edward’s crown which had previously only been used to crown monarchs.
After the coronation, Anne settled at Greenwich Palace to prepare for the birth of her baby, which was born on 7th September 1533, a girl named Elizabeth. Henry had been anticipating a son and had set up a joust to celebrate the birth of a prince, which was quickly cancelled. The infant princess was given a splendid christening and Henry’s older daughter was sent to Hatfield House, which would become Elizabeth’s home to serve her younger sister. Anne would spend a lot of time visiting her daughter, rather than leaving her to be solely cared for by staff.
The marriage between Henry and Anne was said to be relatively happy with periods of calm and affection. However, Anne’s intelligence and gumption was less desirable in a wife as it was in a mistress, which led to problems. After a miscarriage in 1534, Henry discussed the possibility of divorce without having to return to Catherine, however, they reconciled and Anne became pregnant again that October. Public opinion of her was low, especially after several prominent executions and her failure to produce a male heir.
Anne’s downfall began after the death of Catherine of Aragon. With Catherine dead, Anne attempted to make peace with Mary, and once again pregnant, was aware of the dangers if she failed to give birth to a son. With Catherine gone, Henry would be free to marry without any taint of illegality, especially as he had started courting one of her maids of honour, Jane Seymour, giving her a necklace which Anne ripped from her neck with such force that it injured her hand.
While Anne was heavily pregnant, Henry was injured in a jousting tournament, which left him unconscious for two hours. Anne would miscarry shortly afterwards on the day of Catherine’s funeral. Court doctors stated that the baby was a boy and this marked the beginning of the end. It was reported that Anne had two stillborn children after Elizabeth and then the baby that was miscarried in 1536. While recovering, Henry declared that Anne had tricked him into marrying her and moved Jane Seymour into the royal quarters at Greenwich Palace. Her brother Edward Seymour and his wife joined her for the sake of propriety and Anne’s brother was refused the Order of the Garter, which he had previously been promised.
Historians today say that Thomas Cromwell, advisor to the king was the architect behind Anne’s downfall. Initially an ally of the Boleyns, he soon changed sides following an argument over the dissolution of the monasteries. Anne had wanted the money to go to charity and education, but Cromwell wanted the money to go into the royal treasury instead. Though he did not go after Anne until Henry asked him to investigate claims of infidelity.
Cromwell’s investigation saw several men in Anne’s service and inner circle being arrested, some were tortured into confessing that they had had affairs with the queen. Those accused were Mark Smeaton, Sir Henry Norris, Sir Francis Weston, Sir William Brereton, Sir Thomas Wyatt, Sir Richard Page and Anne’s own brother, George Boleyn. George was arrested on charges of incest and treason.
On 2nd May 1536, Anne was arrested and taken to the Tower of London. On arrival, she demanded to know the charges against her and asked to speak to her father and brother. She wrote to Henry pleading her innocence however it did little to save her.
Four of the accused men were tried in Westminster later that month. Weston, Brereton and Norris publicly maintained their innocence and only Smeaton plead guilty. Anne and George were tried separately in the Tower of London in front of a jury of 27 peers. Anne’s charges were for adultery, incest and high treason, as at the time, infidelity on the part of a queen was a form of treason, for which the penalty was execution. Henry Percy, who was once betrothed to Anne was part of the jury and when the verdict was declared, collapsed and had to be removed from the room. Just days later, Thomas Cranmer declared Henry and Anne’s marriage invalid.
The accused were found guilty and sentenced to death. George Boleyn and the other men were executed on 17th May 1536. Anne was also sentenced to death, but Henry commuted her sentence from burning to beheading and brought in an expert swordsman from France.
Anne was executed on 19th May. On the morning of her execution, she sat with a priest and heard mass. She swore on the bible that she had never been unfaithful to the king, before being escorted to a scaffold erected on the north side of the White Tower at the Tower of London. She was accompanied by two female attendants and made a short speech to the waiting crowd, however, did not confess guilt. After a brief farewell, she knelt in the French style of beheadings and recited a prayer. The execution consisted of a single strike of the sword with Thomas Cromwell, the Duke of Suffolk, Henry Fitzroy, The Lord Mayor of London and a number of the King’s council in attendance. Cranmer was said to be beside himself at Anne’s death, though did little to save her, perhaps concerned for his own position. She was buried in an unmarked grave in the Chapel of St Peter ad Vincula and was uncovered during renovations in the 1870s, her grave is now marked.
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