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    <Metadata name="Page_topic">Anne Boleyn queen of England wife of King Henry VIII mother of Queen Elizabeth I The Six Wives of King Henry VIII biography images letters primary sources</Metadata>
    <Metadata name="Content">Anne Boleyn queen of England mother of Queen Elizabeth I wife of King Henry VIII The Six Wives of King Henry VIII biography images letters primary sources</Metadata>
    <Metadata name="Author">Marilee Mongello</Metadata>
    <Metadata name="Title">Anne Boleyn: Biography, Portraits, Primary Sources</Metadata>
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    <Metadata name="dc.Subject">Tudor period|Monarchs</Metadata>
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&lt;table border=&quot;0&quot; cellpadding=&quot;3&quot; width=&quot;100%&quot; height=&quot;667&quot;&gt;
  &lt;tbody&gt;
    &lt;tr&gt;
      &lt;td width=&quot;25%&quot; height=&quot;29&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;
      &lt;/td&gt;
      &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;50%&quot; height=&quot;29&quot;&gt;
      &lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;'[A] woman who is the scandal of 
      Christendom.'&lt;br&gt;
      &lt;/font&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;-1&quot;&gt;Katharine of Aragon describes her
rival, 1531&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
      &lt;/td&gt;
    &lt;/tr&gt;
    &lt;tr&gt;
      &lt;td width=&quot;25%&quot; height=&quot;610&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;
      &lt;/td&gt;
      &lt;td valign=&quot;top&quot; width=&quot;50%&quot; height=&quot;610&quot;&gt;
      &lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt; 
&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
      &lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt; 
&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;_httpdocimg_/boleyncardinalbig.gif&quot; alt=&quot;Anne Boleyn&quot; width=&quot;352&quot; height=&quot;90&quot;&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
      &lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt; &lt;b&gt; 
      &lt;img border=&quot;2&quot;
 src=&quot;_httpdocimg_/boleynmainjpg.jpg&quot;
 alt=&quot;the most famous portrait of Anne Boleyn; at the NPG, London&quot;
 width=&quot;275&quot; height=&quot;357&quot;&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
      &lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt; &lt;i&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;2&quot;&gt;portrait of Anne Boleyn by an unknown 
      artist, late 16th century&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
      &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt; &lt;br&gt;Anne Boleyn is one of the most famous queens
in English history, though she ruled for just three years.&amp;nbsp; The
daughter of an ambitious knight and niece of the duke of Norfolk, Anne
spent her adolescence in France.&amp;nbsp; When she returned to England,
her wit and style were her greatest charms.&amp;nbsp; She had a circle of
admirers and became secretly engaged to Henry Percy.&amp;nbsp; She also
entered the service of Katharine of Aragon.&amp;nbsp; But she soon caught
the eye of Henry VIII.&amp;nbsp; He ordered Percy from court and tried to
make Anne his mistress.&amp;nbsp; She refused.&amp;nbsp; Her sister, Mary, had
been the king's mistress and gained little from it but scandal.&amp;nbsp;
Her hopes with Percy dashed, Anne demanded that the king marry
her.&amp;nbsp; She waited nearly seven years for Henry to obtain an
annulment.&amp;nbsp; It finally took an irrevocable breach with the Holy
See before they wed in 1533.&amp;nbsp; But she was unable to give Henry the
son he desperately needed and their marriage ended tragically for
Anne.&amp;nbsp; She was executed on patently false charges of witchcraft,
incest and adultery on 19 May 1536.&amp;nbsp; Her daughter, Elizabeth,
would become England's greatest queen.&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
      &lt;blockquote&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;&lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fboleyn.html#Biography&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;
        &lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;Read the biography of Anne Boleyn&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;font
 size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;br&gt;
Primary Sources&lt;/b&gt; &lt;br&gt;
Read &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fletters.html&quot;&gt;letters
written by Anne&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br&gt;
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fab-percy.html&quot;&gt;The
romance between Anne &amp;amp; Henry Percy,&lt;/a&gt; c1523&amp;nbsp; &lt;br&gt;
Eyewitness accounts of &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fprianne1.html&quot;&gt;her coronation in
1533&lt;/a&gt; &amp;amp; &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fprianne2.html&quot;&gt;her
execution in 1536&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br&gt;
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fab-lastdays.html&quot;&gt;An
account of Anne's last days&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br&gt;
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fprianne3.html&quot;&gt;Anne's
last words&lt;/a&gt;, 19 May 1536&amp;nbsp; &lt;br&gt;
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fexanne.html&quot;&gt;Another
account of her execution&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
          &lt;p&gt;
          &lt;b&gt;Secondary Sources&lt;br&gt;&lt;/b&gt;Read JA Froude's 1891 work &lt;i&gt;
          &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fsecondary.html&quot;&gt;The Divorce 
          of Catherine of Aragon&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/i&gt;.&amp;nbsp; &lt;font size=&quot;2&quot;&gt;Understandably, it also 
          discusses Anne Boleyn as well as Henry VIII's rumored affair with her 
          sister Mary.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
      &lt;/blockquote&gt;
      &lt;blockquote&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fannedesc.html&quot;&gt;Contemporary
descriptions of Anne&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br&gt;
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2flovelett.html&quot;&gt;Henry
VIII's love letters to Anne&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br&gt;
        &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fboleyn-poems.html&quot;&gt;Poetry
about Anne Boleyn&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/p&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;Visit &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.marileecody.com%2fimages.html&quot;&gt;Tudor
England: Images&lt;/a&gt; to view portraits of Anne.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br&gt;
Visit the &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2feliz.html&quot;&gt;Queen
Elizabeth I site&lt;/a&gt; to learn more about Anne's daughter.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br&gt;
Read about Anne's sister, &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fcitizens%2fboleyn.html&quot;&gt;Mary Boleyn&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2ffiveanne.html&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;The
Boleyn-Howard connection&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br&gt;
        &lt;font size=&quot;-1&quot;&gt;Anne's relationship to Henry VIII's fifth wife&lt;/font&gt;
        &lt;/p&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;Test your knowledge of Anne Boleyn's life at &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2ftudor1.html&quot;&gt;Tudor Quizzes&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;2&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;br&gt;Links&lt;br&gt;&lt;/b&gt;
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.geocities.com%2fboleynfamily&quot;&gt;The Boleyns&lt;/a&gt;: A 
        website dedicated to the entire Boleyn family, with particular emphasis 
        upon Anne.&lt;br&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fjack-of-all-trades.ca%2fmeandmine&quot;&gt;Me and Mine&lt;/a&gt;: 
        Biography and images of Anne Boleyn.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;2&quot;&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;br&gt;
        Interact&lt;br&gt;
        &lt;/b&gt; Meet other Anne Boleyn enthusiasts at &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.fine-eyes.net%2fanneboleyn%2findextwo.html&quot;&gt;Mistress
Anne: The Official Anne Boleyn Fanlisting&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;br&gt;
Meet other Six Wives enthusiasts at &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fladiesallfanlist.cjb.net&quot;&gt;Ladies All: A Fanlisting for
the Six Wives of Henry VIII&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fgroups.yahoo.com%2fsearch%3fquery%3dAnne%2bBoleyn&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;
Anne Boleyn at Yahoo! Groups&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; There are numerous groups
dedicated to Anne.&amp;nbsp; I think you need a Yahoo! ID to join.&lt;br&gt;
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2ftudorhistory.org%2flists%2flist.html&quot;&gt; Tudor Talk &lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp;This
email discussion list is sponsored by Tudorhistory.org.&amp;nbsp; It does
not focus exclusively on Anne.&lt;br&gt;
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fgroups.yahoo.com%2fgroup%2fReign%5fof%5fthe%5fTudors%5frpg&quot;&gt;Reign
of the Tudors&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; This is a role-playing game set in 16th century
England.&amp;nbsp; If you would like to 'play' Jane Grey or Anne Boleyn or
other Tudors, click the link to join.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;&lt;br&gt;
        &lt;b&gt;NEWS&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; September 2004&lt;br&gt;The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn: 
        The Most Happy&lt;/b&gt; by Eric Ives has just been published
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.amazon.co.uk%2fexec%2fobidos%2fASIN%2f0631234799%2fqid%3d1096393233%2fref%3dsr%5f8%5fxs%5fap%5fi1%5fxgl%2f026-3687195-0558069&quot;&gt;
        in the UK&lt;/a&gt; and
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.amazon.com%2fexec%2fobidos%2ftg%2fdetail%2f-%2f0631234799%2fqid%3d1096393461%2fsr%3d8-1%2fref%3dsr%5f8%5fxs%5fap%5fi1%5fxgl14%2f002-7093489-7046463%3fv%3dglance%26s%3dbooks%26n%3d507846&quot;&gt;
        US&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; I will be posting a lengthy review soon.&amp;nbsp;
        &lt;font size=&quot;2&quot;&gt;Professor Ives had previously written the definitive 
        biography of Anne in 1986; this work incorporates new research.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;
        &lt;b&gt;&lt;br&gt;
        Anne
Boleyn: A New Life of England's Tragic Queen&lt;/b&gt; by Joanna Denny
        was published
        &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=0&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.amazon.co.uk%2fexec%2fobidos%2fASIN%2f074995017X%2fqid%3d1076882496%2fsr%3d2-2%2fref%3dsr%5f2%5f11%5f2%2f026-9295844-3953254&quot;&gt;in the UK&lt;/a&gt; 
        in April 2004.&lt;/p&gt;
        &lt;hr&gt;
        &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;2&quot;&gt;The above portrait of Anne Boleyn is a late
16th copy of a lost original.&amp;nbsp; It can be viewed at the National Portrait
Gallery, London.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
        &lt;hr&gt; &lt;/blockquote&gt;
      &lt;/td&gt;
      &lt;td width=&quot;25%&quot; height=&quot;610&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;
      &lt;/td&gt;
    &lt;/tr&gt;
  &lt;/tbody&gt;
&lt;/table&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
  &lt;blockquote&gt;
    &lt;blockquote&gt;
      &lt;p align=&quot;left&quot;&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;
      &lt;br&gt;
      &lt;/font&gt;&lt;a name=&quot;Biography&quot;&gt;&lt;br&gt;
      &lt;/a&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;'She is of middling stature, with a swarthy
complexion, long neck, wide mouth, bosom not much raised, and in fact
has nothing but the King's great appetite, and her eyes, which are
black and beautiful - and take great effect on those who served the
Queen when she was on the throne.&amp;nbsp; She lives like a queen, and the
King accompanies her to Mass - and everywhere.'&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/font&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;font
 size=&quot;-1&quot;&gt;the Venetian ambassador describes Anne, 1532&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/i&gt; &lt;/p&gt;
    &lt;/blockquote&gt;
    &lt;p align=&quot;left&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;Biography&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br&gt;
Anne Boleyn's birthdate is unknown; even the year is widely
debated.&amp;nbsp; General opinion now favors 1501 or 1502, though some
historians persuasively argue for 1507.&amp;nbsp; She was probably born at
Blickling Hall in Norfolk.&amp;nbsp; Her father was Sir Thomas Boleyn, a
minor courtier with a talent for foreign languages; he was of London
merchant stock and eager to advance in the world.&amp;nbsp; Like most men,
he chose to marry well.&amp;nbsp; His bride was Elizabeth Howard, daughter
of the second duke of Norfolk and sister of the third duke.&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Anne had two surviving siblings, &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fcitizens%2fboleyn.html&quot;&gt;Mary&lt;/a&gt;
and George.&amp;nbsp; Their birthdates are also unknown, as is the order of their 
  births.&amp;nbsp; We only know that all three Boleyn siblings were close in age.&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;In 1514, Henry VIII married his youngest sister, Mary, to the aged king of France.&amp;nbsp; Anne
accompanied the Tudor princess as a very&lt;img
 height=&quot;232&quot; alt=&quot;miniature portrait of Anne Boleyn&quot;
 src=&quot;_httpdocimg_/boleynsmall.jpg&quot;
 width=&quot;175&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt; young lady-in-waiting; she remained in France after the French king died and
  &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fcitizens%2fbrandon.html&quot;&gt;Mary Tudor&lt;/a&gt;
returned home.&amp;nbsp; Anne gained the subsequent honor of being educated
under the watchful eye of the new French queen Claude.&amp;nbsp; This
education had a uniquely French emphasis upon fashion and flirtation,
though more intellectual skills were not neglected.&amp;nbsp; Anne became
an accomplished musician, singer and dancer.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;In 1521 or early 1522, with war between England and France
imminent, Anne returned home.&amp;nbsp; When she first caught Henry VIII's
eye is unknown.&amp;nbsp; He was originally attracted to her sister, Mary
who came to court before Anne.&amp;nbsp; She was the king's mistress in the
early 1520s and, as a mark of favor, her father was elevated to the
peerage as viscount Rochfort/Rochford in 1525.&amp;nbsp; Mary herself would leave 
  court with only a dull marriage, and possibly the king's illegitimate son, as 
  her reward.&amp;nbsp; Anne learned much from her sister's example.&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Her first years at court were spent in service to Henry VIII's
first wife, &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2faragon.html&quot;&gt;Katharine of Aragon&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; She became quite popular among
the younger men.&amp;nbsp; She was not considered a great beauty; her
sister occupied that position in the family, but even Mary was merely
deemed 'pretty'.&amp;nbsp; Hostile chroniclers &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fannedesc.html&quot;&gt;described Anne&lt;/a&gt;
as plain, sallow, and possessing two distinct flaws - a large mole on
the side of her neck and an extra finger on her left hand.&amp;nbsp; Such
praise as she received focused on her style, her wit and charm; she was
quick-tempered and spirited.&amp;nbsp; Her most remarkable physical
attributes were her large dark eyes and long black hair.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;The king's attraction was focused upon her sharp and teasing
manner, and her oft-stated unavailability.&amp;nbsp; What he couldn't have,
he pined for all the more.&amp;nbsp; This was especially difficult for a
king used to having his own way in everything.&amp;nbsp; Anne was also
seriously involved with &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fab-percy.html&quot;&gt;Henry Percy&lt;/a&gt;,
the son and heir of the earl of Northumberland; there were rumors of an
engagement and declarations of true love.&amp;nbsp; The king ordered his
great minister, &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fcitizens%2fwolsey.html&quot;&gt;Cardinal
Thomas Wolsey&lt;/a&gt;, to end the match.&amp;nbsp; Wolsey did so, thus ensuring
Percy's unhappy marriage to the earl of Shrewsbury's daughter and
Anne's great enmity.&amp;nbsp; It was safer to blame the Cardinal than his
king.&amp;nbsp; Also, Henry's jealousy revealed the depth of his feelings,
and Anne quite naturally thought - if she could not be an earl's wife,
why not try for the crown of England? &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;When Anne avoided Henry's company, was sullen and evasive to him,
he sent her from court; he hoped that a few months in the country would
persuade her of his charms.&amp;nbsp; It did not work.&amp;nbsp; Anne was
already playing a far more serious game than the king.&amp;nbsp; Later,
after she had been arrested, Henry would claim he had been 'bewitched'
and the term wasn't used lightly in the 16th century.&amp;nbsp; But perhaps
it was simply the contrast between her vivacity and Katharine's
solemnity; or perhaps the king mistook the inexplicable ardor of true
love for something more ominous, long after that love had faded.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;It is impossible to fully explain the mystery of attraction
between two people.&amp;nbsp; How Anne was able to capture and maintain the
king's attention for such a long while, despite great obstacles and the
constant presence of malicious gossip, cannot be explained.&amp;nbsp; Henry
was headstrong and querulous.&amp;nbsp; But for several years, he remained
faithful to his feelings for Anne - and his attendant desire for a
legitimate male heir.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt; &lt;img border=&quot;0&quot;
 src=&quot;_httpdocimg_/aragon-min.jpg&quot;
 alt=&quot;miniature portrait of Katharine of Aragon&quot; align=&quot;left&quot;
 width=&quot;166&quot; height=&quot;168&quot;&gt;One cannot separate the king's desire for a
son, indeed its very necessity, from his personal desire for
Anne.&amp;nbsp; The two interests merged perfectly in 1527.&amp;nbsp; Henry had
discovered the &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2faragon.html&quot;&gt;invalidity
of his marriage&lt;/a&gt; to Katharine.&amp;nbsp; Now it was possible to annul
his marriage and secure his two fondest hopes - Anne's hand in marriage
and the long-desired heir.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt; Cardinal Wolsey had long advocated an Anglo-French
alliance.&amp;nbsp; For that reason, he disliked the Spanish
  &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2faragon.html&quot;&gt;Katharine
of Aragon&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; He now set about securing his monarch's annulment
with the intention of marrying Henry to a French princess.&amp;nbsp; And if
not a French princess, perhaps a great lady of the English court.&amp;nbsp;
Wolsey did not like Anne, and she despised him.&amp;nbsp; It was Wolsey who
had delivered the king's orders to Henry Percy, driving her suitor from
court.&amp;nbsp; She never forgot that injury to her heart.&amp;nbsp; And while
she could not revenge herself upon the king, &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fletter8.html&quot;&gt;she could work
against&lt;/a&gt; his Lord Chancellor.&amp;nbsp; His protégé and successor &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fcitizens%2fcromwell.html&quot;&gt;Thomas
Cromwell&lt;/a&gt; became a close ally. &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;But Anne alone did not cause Wolsey's fall from grace, though she
took the blame for it.&amp;nbsp; Indeed, 'Nan Bullen', as the common people
derisively called her, became the scapegoat for all the king's
unpopular decisions.&amp;nbsp; But it is important to remember that no one
- not Wolsey, not Cromwell, and certainly not Anne Boleyn - ever
controlled Henry VIII, or made him do other than exactly what he
wanted.&amp;nbsp; He was a king who thoroughly knew and enjoyed his
position.&amp;nbsp; &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fcitizens%2fmore.html&quot;&gt;Sir Thomas
More&lt;/a&gt; would aptly point this out to his son-in-law, William Roper -
'If a lion knew his strength, it were hard for any man to hold
him.'&amp;nbsp; And later, when Roper commented upon the king's affection
for More, the philosopher replied that if his head would win the king a
castle in France, then Henry would not hesitate to chop it off.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;But most people found it easier to hate Anne than to hate their
monarch.&amp;nbsp; As the king's desire for an annulment became the gossip
of all Europe, she was roundly criticized and condemned.&amp;nbsp; And she
was not popular at the English court either.&amp;nbsp; Both her unique
situation and her oft times abrasive personality offended many.&amp;nbsp;
And Katharine's solemn piety had impressed the English court for three
decades; her supporters were numerous, though not inclined to face the
king's formidable wrath.&amp;nbsp; In truth, Anne was sustained only by the
king's affection and she knew his mercurial temper.&amp;nbsp; It is
possible that she was as surprised by his faithfulness as everyone
else.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;As the struggle for an annulment proceeded and the pope
prevaricated between Henry and Katharine's nephew, the Holy Roman
Emperor Charles V, Anne's position at the English court became steadily
more prominent.&amp;nbsp; There were at first little signs.&amp;nbsp; The king
would eat alone with her; she received expensive gifts; she began to
dress in the most fashionable and expensive gowns; the king paid her
gambling debts since Anne, like most courtiers, enjoyed cards and dice.
  &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;The king was not too outlandish at first; he had no desire to
prejudice the pope against his case by flaunting a new love.&amp;nbsp; But
as the delays mounted, and rumors of his new love spread, Henry
realized there was no purpose in hiding the truth.&amp;nbsp; By 1530, Anne
was openly honored by the king at court.&amp;nbsp; She was accorded
precedence over all other ladies, and she sat with the king at
banquets and hunts while Katharine was virtually ignored.&amp;nbsp; The
pretense of his first marriage was allowed to continue; Katharine
continued to personally mend his shirts and send him gifts and
notes.&amp;nbsp; But it was an untenable situation.&amp;nbsp; It grated on both
women.&amp;nbsp; Anne perhaps taxed the king with it.&amp;nbsp; To placate her,
she was titled marquess of Pembroke on 4 September 1532 at Windsor
Castle; she wore a beautiful crimson gown and her hair hung
loose.&amp;nbsp; Now elevated to the peerage in her own right, she had
wealth and lands of her own.&amp;nbsp; But when she accompanied him to
France on a state visit a short while later, the ladies of the French
court refused to meet with her.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;It is believed that her elevation to the peerage marked the
physical consummation of Anne and Henry's relationship.&amp;nbsp; She would
give birth to &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2feliz.html&quot;&gt;Elizabeth&lt;/a&gt;
just a year later, and there were rumors of a secret marriage in late
1532.&amp;nbsp; It is possible that she became pregnant after just a few
months and a second, legitimate wedding became a necessity.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt; &lt;img border=&quot;0&quot;
 src=&quot;_httpdocimg_/boleyn-sketch1.jpg&quot;
 alt=&quot;sketch of Anne Boleyn by Hans Holbein the Younger&quot; align=&quot;left&quot;
 width=&quot;175&quot; height=&quot;157&quot;&gt;The king had his fondest wish within his
grasp.&amp;nbsp; Anne was pregnant with his long-awaited son, or so he
thought, and this son must be legitimate.&amp;nbsp; He could no longer wait
upon the pope.&amp;nbsp; Henry rejected the authority of the Holy See and
Thomas Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, annulled his marriage to
Katharine.&amp;nbsp; Henry and Anne married again in January 1533 in a
small ceremony.&amp;nbsp; But though they were now husband and wife, few
recognized the fact.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fprianne1.html&quot;&gt;Her
coronation&lt;/a&gt; was a lavish affair; the king spared no expense.&amp;nbsp;
But the people of London were noticeably unimpressed.&amp;nbsp; They cried
out 'HA! HA!' mockingly as tapestries decorated with Henry and Anne's
entwined initials passed by.&amp;nbsp; Henry asked, 'How liked you the look
of the City?'&amp;nbsp; Anne replied, 'Sir, I liked the City well enough -
but I saw a great many caps on heads, and heard but few tongues.'&amp;nbsp;
  &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;And so her coronation was yet another reminder of her complete
dependency upon the king.&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Anne enjoyed her triumph as much as she could.&amp;nbsp; She ordered
new blue and purple livery for her servants and set about replacing
Katharine's badge of pomegranates with her own falcon symbol.&amp;nbsp; She
chose as her motto, 'The Most Happy', in stark contrast to her
predecessor.&amp;nbsp; Katharine had been 'Humble and Loyal'; Henry's
mother, Elizabeth of York had chosen 'Humble and Reverent'.&amp;nbsp; But
humility was not a marked characteristic of Anne Boleyn.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;She was pious, though not as rigid and inflexible as Katharine of
Aragon.&amp;nbsp; Anne's sympathies naturally lay with the progressive
thought now challenging Catholic orthodoxy; with Henry's rejection of the papacy and his
creation of a new Church of England, &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2ffaq.html#Eleven-b&quot;&gt;the
Reformation&lt;/a&gt; had come to England.&amp;nbsp; It was not as revolutionary
as Luther's movement in Germany.&amp;nbsp; Henry actually remained a devout
Catholic, only denying what he now regarded as the illegitimate
authority of the papacy.&amp;nbsp; Anne knew that her marriage and future
children would never be recognized as legitimate by Catholic
Europe.&amp;nbsp; She had to support the new church, otherwise she was no more than 
  the king's mistress.&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;And this new emphasis upon debating even the most esoteric bits of
theology appealed to her nature.&amp;nbsp; She was always curious and open
to new ideas; she never blindly accepted&lt;img height=&quot;175&quot;
 alt=&quot;The above portrait is of Anne Boleyn, painted by Lucas Horenbout; dated 1525-27.  Sir Roy Strong identified the portrait.  Anne wears a necklace with her falcon badge.&quot;
 src=&quot;_httpdocimg_/boleynstrong.jpg&quot;
 width=&quot;175&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt; anything.&amp;nbsp; But this is not to deny her
deep faith.&amp;nbsp; As queen, she was close friends with Thomas Cranmer
and she also sponsored various religious books.&amp;nbsp; She had none of
the hard-fought pragmatism of her daughter, 
  &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2feliz.html&quot;&gt;Elizabeth&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; Religious faith was a
vital part of Anne's life, as it was for every person in the 16th
century.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;She entered confinement for the birth of her first child on 26
August 1533.&amp;nbsp; The child was born on 7 September 1533.&amp;nbsp; The
physicians and astrologers had been mistaken; it was not a
prince.&amp;nbsp; But the healthy baby girl called Elizabeth was not the
disappointment most assumed, nor did she immediately cause her mother's
downfall.&amp;nbsp; The birth had been very easy and quick.&amp;nbsp; 'There
was good speed in the deliverance and bringing forth,' Anne wrote to
Lord Cobham that very day.&amp;nbsp; The queen recovered quickly.&amp;nbsp;
Henry had every reason to believe that strong princes would
follow.&amp;nbsp; It was only when Anne miscarried two sons that he began
to question the validity of his second marriage.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Elizabeth's christening was a grand affair, though the king did
not attend.&amp;nbsp; This fact was much remarked-upon, but Henry
confounded all by his continuing affection for Anne.&amp;nbsp; He also
promptly declared Elizabeth his heir, thus according her precedence
over her 17 year old half-sister, 
  &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fmary1.html&quot;&gt;Princess Mary&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; Anne could
breathe a sigh of relief, recover, and become pregnant again.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Immediately after Elizabeth's christening, Henry wrote to Mary and
demanded that she relinquish her title of Princess of Wales.&amp;nbsp; The
title belonged to his heiress.&amp;nbsp; He also demanded that she
acknowledge the validity of his new marriage and legitimacy of her
half-sister.&amp;nbsp; But Mary could be as obstinate as her mother; she refused.&amp;nbsp; Enraged, Henry evicted Mary from her
home, the manor Beaulieu, so he could give it to Anne's brother, George.&amp;nbsp; In December, 
  she was moved into Elizabeth's household
under the care of Lady Anne Shelton, a sister of Anne's father.&amp;nbsp;
It was an understandably miserable time for Mary.&amp;nbsp; When told to pay her
respects to the baby Princess, she said that she knew of no Princess of
England but herself and burst into tears.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Henry was infuriated and Anne encouraged the estrangement.&amp;nbsp;
Her daughter's status depended upon Mary remaining out of favor.&amp;nbsp;
In the two and a half years she lived after Elizabeth's birth, Anne
proved herself a devoted mother.&amp;nbsp; Soon after the birth, Elizabeth
had to be moved from London, for purposes of health; London was rife
with a variety of illnesses - sweating sickness, smallpox, and
plague.&amp;nbsp; Elizabeth and Mary were sent to Hatfield.&amp;nbsp; Both
Henry and Anne visited their daughter often, occasionally taking her
back with them to Greenwich or the palace at Eltham.&amp;nbsp; During these
visits, Mary was kept alone in her room.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt; &lt;img height=&quot;186&quot; alt=&quot;portrait of Henry VIII&quot;
 src=&quot;_httpdocimg_/henry8boleyn.jpg&quot;
 width=&quot;150&quot; border=&quot;2&quot; align=&quot;left&quot;&gt;There are account books and
letters which reveal certain facts about Elizabeth's early
childhood:&amp;nbsp; bills for an orange satin gown and russet velvet
kirtle, for the king's heir had to be fashionably dressed; a letter in
late 1535, after her second birthday, from the wet nurse asking
permission to wean her; a plan of study in classical languages, for
Anne was determined her daughter would be as educated as Mary.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;The conflict with Mary dominated a great deal of Henry and Anne's
thoughts.&amp;nbsp; In January 1534, the king's new chief minister, Thomas
Cromwell, went to visit Mary at Hatfield.&amp;nbsp; He urged her to
renounce her title and warned her that her behavior would lead to her
ruin.&amp;nbsp; Mary replied that she simply wanted her father's blessing
and the honor of kissing his hand.&amp;nbsp; When Cromwell chastised her,
she left the room.&amp;nbsp; Mary, and indeed most of England, believed
Anne to be the cause of Henry's disgust with his eldest child.&amp;nbsp; In
truth, Henry had far more to do with it than Anne; this was proven
after Anne's execution.&amp;nbsp; Mary believed that she would regain her
favor with the wicked stepmother out of the way but she was proven
terribly wrong.&amp;nbsp; Eventually, under threat of her life, she &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fprimary.html&quot;&gt;wrote the letter&lt;/a&gt;
her father had long desired.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;He and Anne also tried a gentler course with Mary; their goal was
to show that she had brought Henry's displeasure upon herself and that
he and Anne were quite willing - under reasonable conditions - to
receive her.&amp;nbsp; At their next visit to Hatfield, Anne arranged to
see her stepdaughter.&amp;nbsp; She invited Mary to come to court and
'visit me as Queen.'&amp;nbsp; Mary responded with a cruel insult - 'I know
no Queen in England but my mother.&amp;nbsp; But if you, Madam, as my
father's mistress, will intercede for me with him, I should be
grateful.'&amp;nbsp; Anne did not lose her temper; she pointed out the
absurdity of the request and repeated her offer.&amp;nbsp; Mary then
refused to answer and Anne left in a rage.&amp;nbsp; From then on, she made
no attempts to gain Mary's friendship.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;The problem with Mary highlights the untenable positions Anne and
Elizabeth occupied in English politics.&amp;nbsp; Many of Henry's subjects
did not know who to call Princess, who was the rightful heir, and who
was the true wife.&amp;nbsp; Katharine of Aragon lived on, still calling
herself Queen, and Mary, encouraged by the spiteful Imperial ambassador
Eustace Chapuys, still called herself Princess.&amp;nbsp; Furthermore,
Chapuys, who openly despised Anne, told Mary that Anne was planning to
have her murdered.&amp;nbsp; It was a terrible lie but one that Mary, in
her hysterical state, was inclined to believe.&amp;nbsp; When word came
that she and Elizabeth's household was moving from Hatfield to The
More, she refused to go.&amp;nbsp; She believed she would be moved and
quietly murdered.&amp;nbsp; Guards had to actually seize her and throw her
into her litter.&amp;nbsp; Her distress naturally made her ill.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Elizabeth, meanwhile, was too young to notice any of this.&amp;nbsp;
But such events helped cement the lifelong hatred Mary would have for
her half-sister.&amp;nbsp; Her Spanish friends continued to spread rumors
about Anne and Elizabeth, saying the infant princess was physically
deformed and monstrous in appearance.&amp;nbsp; To dispel this, in April
1534, Henry showed the naked infant to several continental
ambassadors.&amp;nbsp; In that same month, Anne announced she was once
again pregnant.&amp;nbsp; Nothing could have pleased Henry more.&amp;nbsp; She
may have had a miscarriage in February for there were rumors she was
pregnant in January but nothing came of it; given the heightened
circumstances, it is unlikely she could have hidden her
condition.&amp;nbsp; Even a suspicion of pregnancy was sure to become
gossip.&amp;nbsp; But the main source of this miscarriage is Chapuys,
hardly an impartial observer.&amp;nbsp; At any rate, she was definitely
pregnant again in April 1534.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;The elated king took his wife to the medieval palace at Eltham;
there, they sent for the princess Elizabeth.&amp;nbsp; Henry was often seen
carrying her about and playing with her.&amp;nbsp; The king&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot;
 src=&quot;_httpdocimg_/boleynsketch2.jpg&quot;
 align=&quot;right&quot; alt=&quot;sketch of Anne Boleyn by Hans Holbein the Younger&quot;
 width=&quot;165&quot; height=&quot;206&quot;&gt; and queen soon returned to Greenwich and
then Henry left on a progress, leaving Anne at the palace.&amp;nbsp; This
was probably out of concern for her health and lends some credence to
the belief she miscarried in February.&amp;nbsp; If she had, Henry would
show special concern for her health, and this he did.&amp;nbsp; He was
supposed to meet Francis I of France in June at Calais to sign a treaty
but decided not to, writing that Katharine and Mary, 'bearing no small
grudge against his most entirely beloved Queen Anne, might perchance in
his absence take occasion to practice matters of no small peril to his
royal person, realm, and subjects.'&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;His extra attention to Anne did not help her health.&amp;nbsp; In
September 1534, she miscarried a six-month-old fetus; it was old enough
for features to be discerned - it was a boy.&amp;nbsp; Henry was bitterly
disappointed.&amp;nbsp; Anne was likewise.&amp;nbsp; She was also angry for
Henry had begun a casual affair that summer.&amp;nbsp; She reproached him
and Henry replied, 'You have good reason to be content with what I have
done for you - and I would not do it again, if the thing were to
begin.&amp;nbsp; Consider from what you have come.'&amp;nbsp; The scene was
furious and overheard by her attendants.&amp;nbsp; But it was a passing
storm.&amp;nbsp; Henry was already tired of his new mistress and, within
days, Chapuys was sadly writing to Charles V of Henry's continued
affection.&amp;nbsp; But there were signs that things were not progressing
smoothly.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;For example, Henry had hoped to cement his relationship with
Francis I by betrothing Elizabeth to Francis's son, the Duc
d'Angouleme.&amp;nbsp; After Anne suffered two miscarriages, as the French
ambassador reported to Francis, the French king grew wary of such a
betrothal.&amp;nbsp; To him, it must have seemed that Anne's position was
weakening; after all, Henry had dismissed one wife because she had no
sons - would he do the same to Anne?&amp;nbsp; And, if he did, then what
good was a marriage to Elizabeth?&amp;nbsp; Of course, it was in France's
interests to promote Anne for Katharine of Aragon and her daughter were
Charles V's pawns.&amp;nbsp; But his doubts highlight the
instability of Anne's position.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;This undoubtedly affected her mental and physical health.&amp;nbsp;
Henry was never the mercenary adulterer of legend.&amp;nbsp; In fact, he
was remarkably conventional in his sexual appetites, unlike his French
rival.&amp;nbsp; Any affairs would have been widely reported and yet,
during his long marriage to Katharine of Aragon, there were just a
handful of mistresses.&amp;nbsp; He enjoyed being around attractive
women.&amp;nbsp; He was flirtatious and would joke with them, compliment
them, but only rarely did he enter into a physical relationship.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;But for Anne, any occasional fling was devastating, especially if
it followed upon her miscarriage.&amp;nbsp; Such behavior was said to
indicate his displeasure with her; this she could not afford.&amp;nbsp;
They were occasionally estranged and the effect was to increase her
already-noticeable anxiety.&amp;nbsp; In late 1534 Anne, accompanied by the
duke of Suffolk, her uncle Norfolk, and other courtiers, visited
Richmond Palace, where both Elizabeth and Mary resided.&amp;nbsp; Anne
entered her daughter's rooms only to realize that the two dukes had
left her.&amp;nbsp; They were paying court to Mary and remained with her
until Anne had left.&amp;nbsp; Still, this slight could be forgotten when
the Treason Act was passed in November.&amp;nbsp; It was now a capital
crime to deny the legitimacy of her marriage or children.&amp;nbsp; By
December, she and Henry had made up yet again.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;A scandal occurred shortly thereafter which added further damage to Anne's 
  reputation.&amp;nbsp; Her sister, Mary, who had been Henry's mistress years 
  before, married Sir William Stafford without her family or the king's 
  permission.&amp;nbsp; Because Stafford was poor, Mary's father was angry and cut 
  off her allowance.&amp;nbsp; She appealed to the king and Anne but they would not 
  help.&amp;nbsp; (Mary did not attend court during Anne's reign, since her presence 
  would have been an embarrassment for the king and queen.)&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt; &lt;img height=&quot;194&quot; alt=&quot;portrait of Anne Boleyn&quot;
 src=&quot;_httpdocimg_/anne2.jpg&quot; width=&quot;139&quot;
 border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;left&quot;&gt;Always fascinated with rumors surrounding his
English 'brother', Francis I decided to hedge his bets in the mercurial
Tudor court.&amp;nbsp; In other words, he would remain friendly with Anne
and also with Mary Tudor.&amp;nbsp; And so he instructed his new
ambassador, Admiral Chabot, to ignore Anne when he arrived at
court.&amp;nbsp; Chabot was received by Henry and two days passed without
any mention of the queen.&amp;nbsp; Henry asked if Chabot wanted to visit
her.&amp;nbsp; The ambassador replied, 'As it pleases Your Highness' and
then asked permission to visit Mary.&amp;nbsp; Henry refused, but Chabot
made certain everyone knew of his request.&amp;nbsp; He also told courtiers
that Francis wanted to marry the Dauphin to Mary; when Henry reminded
him of the union with Elizabeth, the ambassador said nothing.&amp;nbsp;
Still, Francis did enrage Charles V by acknowledging Elizabeth's
legitimacy.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;It was a tedious and frightening dance for Anne.&amp;nbsp; During the
two and a half years after Elizabeth's birth, she was rarely secure,
certain of her position and the king's affections.&amp;nbsp; Her little
daughter received every favor she could bestow; Anne insisted Henry
favor Elizabeth because it strengthened her position.&amp;nbsp; But she was
surrounded by fair-weather friends who, at the slightest sign of
Henry's disfavor, ignored her.&amp;nbsp; She only trusted her brother,
George, whose wife, Jane Rochford, was a viper in their nest.&amp;nbsp;
Meanwhile, Henry was again flirting openly with another woman.&amp;nbsp;
This time it was Anne's cousin and lady-in-waiting, Madge
Shelton.&amp;nbsp; Anne still had influence over her husband, but knew only
one way to make his favor permanent.&amp;nbsp; She must bear a son.&amp;nbsp;
Henry would never dismiss the mother of his long-awaited heir.&amp;nbsp;
Her enemies would at last be silenced.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Meanwhile, Henry's health had begun to worsen.&amp;nbsp; The first
signs of the illness which would kill him appeared (occluded sinus on
his leg).&amp;nbsp; Headaches became frequent and severe.&amp;nbsp; The king
was a hypochondriac.&amp;nbsp; Now unable to indulge his love of sports, he
instead indulged his fear of pain and illness.&amp;nbsp; And he was
frequently impotent.&amp;nbsp; He was in his mid-forties and increasingly
obese; this, combined with his other ailments, made his continued
virility questionable.&amp;nbsp; Certainly his 'mistresses' did not
conceive.&amp;nbsp; But the continued lack of an heir and Anne's
miscarriages must have reminded him of Katharine.&amp;nbsp; How could it
not?&amp;nbsp; Like most of his contemporaries, the king blamed his wife
when she did not conceive or carry to term.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;And, like Francis I, Thomas Cromwell - that influential and
brilliant man - was keeping his options open as well.&amp;nbsp; He visited
Mary and was rumored to promise support for her reinstatement.&amp;nbsp;
Anne was terrified at this loss of her one-time supporter who was also
the king's most trusted advisor.&amp;nbsp; But Anne had one last chance,
and in June 1535, became pregnant again.&amp;nbsp; She lost that child as
well, in January 1536; she was reported to have said, 'I have
miscarried of my savior.'&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;When her destruction came, it was rapid and unbelievable.&amp;nbsp;
Henry had always been one to plot against people while he pretended
affection.&amp;nbsp; Anne suffered the same fate as Katharine.&amp;nbsp; She
knew he was dissatisfied with her but he maintained their lifestyle
together.&amp;nbsp; And all the while, he was seeking the best way to
destroy her.&amp;nbsp; Katharine of Aragon died in January as well, just a
few days before Anne's miscarriage.&amp;nbsp; These events, taken together,
pushed Henry into action.&amp;nbsp; While Katharine had lived, most of
Europe, and many Englishmen, had regarded her as his rightful wife, not
Anne.&amp;nbsp; Now he was rid of Katharine; if he were to rid himself of
Anne, he could marry again - and this third marriage would never be
tainted by the specter of bigamy.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Henry's &lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fprianne2.html&quot;&gt;decision
to thoroughly destroy Anne&lt;/a&gt; baffled even her enemies.&amp;nbsp; There
was a possible way out which would spare Anne's life.&amp;nbsp; Henry had
admitted an affair with her sister,&lt;img height=&quot;194&quot;
 alt=&quot;an 18th century portrait of Anne Boleyn&quot;
 src=&quot;_httpdocimg_/anne3.jpg&quot; width=&quot;144&quot;
 border=&quot;2&quot; align=&quot;right&quot;&gt; Mary.&amp;nbsp; He could have argued that was as
damning as Katharine's marriage to his brother.&amp;nbsp; But he chose a
more direct route.&amp;nbsp; He had her arrested, charged with adultery,
witchcraft, and incest; the charges were ludicrous even to her
enemies.&amp;nbsp; Her brother George was arrested as well.&amp;nbsp; His
despised wife, Jane Rochford, testified about an incestuous love
affair.&amp;nbsp; Whether anyone believed her was irrelevant.&amp;nbsp; Henry
VIII wanted Anne convicted and killed.&amp;nbsp; George would also lose his
life, as did three of their friends.&amp;nbsp; Only one had confessed to
the charge, and that was under torture; it was still enough to convict
them all.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;As queen of England, Anne was tried by her peers; the main charge
was adultery, and this was an act of treason for a queen.&amp;nbsp; No
member of the nobility would help her; her craven uncle Norfolk
pronounced the death sentence.&amp;nbsp; Poor Henry Percy, her first love,
swooned during the trial and had to be carried from the room.&amp;nbsp; As
a concession to her former position, she was not beheaded by a clumsy
axe.&amp;nbsp; A skilled swordsman was brought over from France.&amp;nbsp; She
was assured that there would be little pain; she replied, with typical
spirit, 'I have heard that the executioner is very good.&amp;nbsp; And I
have a little neck.'&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;blockquote&gt;
    &lt;blockquote&gt;
      &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;'You have chosen me from low estate to be your
queen and companion, far beyond my desert or desire; if, then, you
found me worthy of such honor, good your grace, let not any light fancy
or bad counsel of my enemies withdraw your princely favor from me;
neither let that stain - that unworthy stain - of a disloyal heart
towards your good grace ever cast so foul a blot on me, and on the
infant princess your daughter.' &lt;/font&gt;&lt;b&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/b&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;font
 size=&quot;-1&quot;&gt;from Anne Boleyn's &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fletter10.html&quot;&gt;last letter&lt;/a&gt;
to King Henry VIII, 1536&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/i&gt;;&lt;i&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;2&quot;&gt; &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fletter10.html&quot;&gt;its authenticity
is debated&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
    &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;She had prayed for exile, to end her days in a nunnery, but now
faced a more tragic fate.&amp;nbsp; She met it with bravery and wit.&amp;nbsp;
She was brought to the scaffold at 8 o'clock in the morning on 19 May
1536.&amp;nbsp; It was a heretofore unknown spectacle, the first public
execution of an English queen.&amp;nbsp; Anne, who had defended herself so
ably at her trial, chose her last words carefully:&amp;nbsp; 'Good
Christian people, I am come hither to die, for according to the law,
and by the law I am judged to die, and therefore I will speak nothing
against it.&amp;nbsp; I am come hither to accuse no man, nor to speak
anything of that, whereof I am accused and condemned to die, but I pray
God save the king and send him long to reign over you, for a gentler
nor a more merciful prince was there never: and to me he was ever a
good, a gentle and sovereign lord.&amp;nbsp; And if any person will meddle
of my cause, I require them to judge the best.&amp;nbsp; And thus I take my
leave of the world and of you all, and I heartily desire you all to
pray for me.&amp;nbsp; O Lord have mercy on me, to God I commend my
soul.'&amp;nbsp; She was then blindfolded and knelt at the block.&amp;nbsp; She
repeated several times, 'To Jesus Christ I commend my soul; Lord Jesu
receive my soul.'&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;It was a sardonic message to the king.&amp;nbsp; Even now he waited
impatiently to hear the Tower cannon mark Anne's death.&amp;nbsp; He wished
to marry Anne's lady-in-waiting, &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fseymour.html&quot;&gt;Jane
Seymour&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; They wed ten days after the execution.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Elizabeth was just three and a half when her mother died.&amp;nbsp;
She was a precocious child, though; when her governess visited her just
days after the execution, &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2feliz.html&quot;&gt;Elizabeth&lt;/a&gt;
asked, 'Why, Governor, how hap it yesterday Lady Princess, and today
but Lady Elizabeth?'&amp;nbsp; &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p&gt;Anne was buried in an old arrow box since no coffin was
provided.&amp;nbsp; But the box was too short; her head was tucked beside
her.&amp;nbsp; The remains were taken to St Peter ad Vincula, the church of
the Tower of London.&amp;nbsp; It was later rumored that her few remaining
friends smuggled her body to a more suitable grave and she is buried
under a plain slab in a Norfolk church.&amp;nbsp; The church is said to be
haunted.&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;4&quot;&gt;'And if any person will meddle of my
cause, I require them to judge the best.'&amp;nbsp; &lt;br&gt;
  &lt;/font&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;-1&quot;&gt;from Anne Boleyn's speech at her execution&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/i&gt;
  &lt;/p&gt;
  &lt;blockquote&gt;
    &lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
    &lt;center&gt;
    &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;-1&quot;&gt;&lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fwives.html&quot;&gt;to the Six
Wives main page&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/font&gt; &lt;br&gt;
    &lt;font size=&quot;-1&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor.html&quot;&gt;to
Tudor England&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
    &lt;p&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;-1&quot;&gt; &lt;a
 href=&quot;_httpextlink_&amp;amp;rl=1&amp;amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fprimary.html&quot;&gt;to Primary Sources&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/font&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
    &lt;/center&gt;
  &lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p align=&quot;center&quot;&gt;&lt;font size=&quot;2&quot;&gt;This page receives 15,000+ unique visitors per 
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