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| 8 | <title>Primary Sources: Selections from King Henry VIII's love letters to Anne
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| 9 | Boleyn</title>
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| 10 | <style fprolloverstyle>A:hover {color: #0000FF; font-weight: bold}
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| 19 | <tr>
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| 20 | <td valign="bottom" colspan="3">
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| 21 | <p align="center"> <br>
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| 22 | <p align="center">
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| 23 | <img border="0" src="ablovelett.gif" alt="Primary Sources: Selections from King Henry VIII's love letters to Anne Boleyn" width="452" height="113"><p align="center"> </td>
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| 24 | </tr>
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| 29 | </tr>
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| 30 | <tr>
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| 31 | <td valign="top" width="48%" bgcolor="#FFFFE8"><font size="2">These famous
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| 32 | love letters from King Henry VIII to Anne Boleyn are undated. They
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| 33 | were found in the Vatican Library, possibly stolen from Anne and sent to
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| 34 | the papacy during Henry VIII's struggle for an annulment of his marriage
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| 35 | to Katharine of Aragon. Though Henry argued for an annulment on the
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| 36 | basis of his conscience (he stated that the marriage was in direct
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| 37 | contradiction to the Bible), most people believed he simply wanted to
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| 38 | marry Anne Boleyn.</font><p><font size="2">Anne's replies to these letters
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| 39 | are lost.</font></p>
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| 40 | <p><font size="2">The letters were written in French.</font></td>
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| 41 | <td width="4%"></td>
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| 42 | <td valign="top" width="48%">
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| 43 |
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| 44 | <p>My mistress and friend: I and my heart put ourselves in your
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| 45 | hands, begging you to have them suitors for your good favour, and that
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| 46 | your affection for them should not grow less through absence. For
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| 47 | it would be a great pity to increase their sorrow since absence does it
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| 48 | sufficiently, and more than ever I could have thought possible reminding
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| 49 | us of a point in astronomy, which is, that the longer the days are the
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| 50 | farther off is the sun, and yet the more fierce. So it is with our
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| 51 | love, for by absence we are parted, yet nevertheless it keeps its fervour,
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| 52 | at least on my side, and I hope on yours also: assuring you that
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| 53 | on my side the ennui of absence is already too much for me: and when
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| 54 | I think of the increase of what I must needs suffer it would be well nigh
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| 55 | unbearable for me were it not for the firm hope I have and as I cannot
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| 56 | be with you in person, I am sending you the nearest possible thing to that,
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| 57 | namely, my picture set in a bracelet, with the whole device which you already
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| 58 | know. Wishing myself in their place when it shall please you.
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| 59 | This by the hand of </p>
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| 60 |
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| 61 | <p align="left">Your loyal servant and friend</p>
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| 62 |
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| 63 | <p align="left">H. Rex</p>
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| 64 | <hr>
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| 65 | <p>No more to you at this present mine own darling for lack of time but that
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| 66 | I would you were in my arms or I in yours for I think it long since I kissed
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| 67 | you. Written after the killing of an hart at a xj. of the clock minding
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| 68 | with God's grace tomorrow mightily timely to kill another: by the hand
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| 69 | of him which I trust shortly shall be yours.</p>
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| 70 |
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| 71 | <p>Henry R.</p>
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| 72 |
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| 73 | <hr>
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| 74 |
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| 75 | <p>Mine own sweetheart, these shall be to advertise you of the great loneliness
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| 76 | that I find here since your departing, for I ensure you methinketh the
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| 77 | time longer since your departing now last than I was wont to do a whole
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| 78 | fortnight: I think your kindness and my fervents of love causeth
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| 79 | it, for otherwise I would not have thought it possible that for so little
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| 80 | a while it should have grieved me, but now that I am coming toward you
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| 81 | methinketh my pains been half released.... Wishing myself (specially
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| 82 | an evening) in my sweetheart's arms, whose pretty dukkys I trust shortly
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| 83 | to kiss. Written with the hand of him that was, is, and shall be
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| 84 | yours by his will.<p>H.R.<p> </p>
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| 85 | <p align="center">
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| 86 | <a href="monarchs/boleyn.html">
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| 87 | <font size="2">to the Anne
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| 88 | Boleyn website</font></a></p>
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| 89 | <p align="center"><a href="primary.html">
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| 90 | <font size="2">to Primary Sources</font></a></td>
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| 91 | </tr>
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| 92 | </table>
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| 93 | </center>
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| 94 | </div>
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| 95 |
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| 96 | </body>
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