The Fall of Anne Boleyn: A Countdown Read online

  The Fall of

  Anne Boleyn:

  A Countdown

  By

  Claire Ridgway

  The Fall of Anne Boleyn: A Countdown

  Copyright © 2012 Claire Ridgway

  First Kindle Edition, April 2012

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, without the prior permission of the publisher.

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  Dedication

  For Tim, Christian, Verity and Joel, always xx

  In memory of Queen Anne Boleyn, George Boleyn, Sir Henry Norris, Sir Francis Weston, Sir William Brereton and Mark Smeaton.

  These bloody days have broken my heart.

  Prologue

  Introduction

  The Cast 1535-1536

  Timeline of Anne Boleyn's Fall,1536

  Anne Boleyn: From Courtier's Daughter to Queen

  Summer 1535 - The Royal Progress and Wolf Hall

  7th January 1536 – Death of Catherine of Aragon

  8th January 1536 – Free from All Suspicion of War!

  24th January 1536 – Henry VIII's Jousting Accident

  29th January 1536 – Burial and Miscarriage

  10th February 1536

  Jane Seymour

  Early 1536 – Foreign Policy

  March 1536 – Act for the Suppression of Lesser Monasteries

  6th March 1536

  18th March 1536 – Jane in Favour

  1st April 1536 - Chapuys, Cromwell, Jane Seymour and the Conservatives

  2nd April 1536 – A Controversial Passion Sunday Sermon

  13th April – Maundy Thursday

  18th April 1536 – The King Tricks Chapuys

  22nd April 1536 – A Strange Letter from Cranmer to Cromwell

  23rd April 1536 – A Warning Sign?

  24th April 1536 – Legal Machinery

  25th April 1536 – Most Entirely Beloved Wife

  26th April 1536 – Anne Boleyn and Matthew Parker

  27th April 1536 – Parliament Summoned

  28th and 29th April 1536

  29th April 1536 - Sir Henry Norris and Dead Men's Shoes

  Sir Henry Norris

  30th April 1536 – A Royal Argument and the First Arrest

  Mark Smeaton

  1st May 1536 - The May Day Joust

  2nd May 1536 – Arrests

  George Boleyn, Lord Rochford

  3rd May 1536 – I Had Never Better Opinion of Woman

  Sir Francis Weston

  4th May 1536 – Further Arrests

  Sir William Brereton

  4th May 1536 – Lady Rochford's Letter

  Jane Boleyn – History's Scapegoat

  4th May 1536 Cruelly Handled – Anne Boleyn in the Tower

  5th May 1536 – Sir Thomas Wyatt, Sir Richard Page and Sir Francis Bryan

  Sir Thomas Wyatt

  Sir Richard Page

  Sir Francis Bryan

  6th May 1536 – From the Lady in the Tower

  7th May 1536 – A Chaplain is Searched

  8th May 1536 – The Vultures Circle

  9th May 1536 – Meetings

  10th May 1536 – The Middlesex Indictment

  11th May 1536 – The Kent Indictment

  The Prisoners Interrogated

  12th May 1536 – The Trial of Norris, Weston, Brereton and Smeaton

  13th May 1536 – Henry Percy and the Pre-contract

  13th May 1536 – The Queen's Household is Broken Up

  14th May 1536 – Jane Seymour

  Henry VIII's Letter to Jane Seymour

  14th May 1536 - The Queen's Incontinent Living

  15th May 1536 – The King to Take a New Wife

  15th May 1536 – The Trial of Anne Boleyn

  16th May 1536 – Archbishop Cranmer Visits Anne Boleyn

  17th May 1536 – The Executions of 5 Men and a Marriage Destroyed

  18th May 1536 – Anne Prepares

  19th May 1536 – The Execution of Queen Anne Boleyn

  Anne Boleyn's Resting Place

  20th May 1536 – The Betrothal of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour

  30th May 1536 – Henry VIII Marries Jane Seymour

  The Reaction

  A Foregone Conclusion

  Who was Responsible for the Fall of Anne Boleyn?

  Conclusion

  The Cast – After May 1536

  Extras

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  Preface

  Dressed in an ermine-trimmed, grey damask robe, with an English style gable hood and a crimson kirtle underneath, the slight, dark-haired woman took her final walk. She went out of the Queen's Lodgings, past the Great Hall, through Cole Harbour Gate, and along the western side of the White Tower to the black-draped scaffold. The Constable of the Tower of London, Sir William Kingston, helped her up the scaffold steps and she stepped forward to address the waiting crowd. Her coal-black eyes flitted over the crowd. As her gaze met those of her enemies - Thomas Cromwell, Charles Brandon, Henry Fitzroy and Thomas Audley – she didn't so much as flinch. The people fell silent as they gazed at their queen, Anne Boleyn, who one witness described as being "never so beautiful". The Queen took a deep breath and spoke:

  "Good Christian people, I have not come here to preach a sermon; I have come here to die. For according to the law and by the law I am judged to die, and therefore I will speak nothing against it. I am come hither to accuse no man, nor to speak 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. And if any person will meddle of my cause, I require them to judge the best. And thus I take my leave of the world and of you all, and I heartily desire you all to pray for me."

  Her ladies stepped forward to remove Anne's mantle and Anne doffed her hood, loosening those famous lustrous dark locks before tucking them into a cloth cap to keep them off her neck - that "little neck". As her ladies sobbed silently, Anne paid the executioner, the famous Sword of Calais, who begged her forgiveness for the deed he was about to commit. Even he was moved by the dignity of the woman who stood before him. She showed no fear. Then the eyes that Anne had always used so powerfully were hidden by a blindfold and she knelt, in the straw, praying all the while:

  "O Lord have mercy on me, to God I commend my soul. To Jesus Christ I commend my soul; Lord Jesu receive my soul."

  One by one, the crowd too sank to their knees out of respect for this woman whose courage and dignity spoke of her innocence. The Dukes of Suffolk and Richmond, stunned, watched the reaction of the crowd and refused to follow suit. Anne deserved this, in their opinion.

  The silence was deafening as the crowd waited for the executioner to strike. The only sound was Anne whispering her prayers. The executioner, visibly shaken by the atmosphere and by Anne's courage, noticed that the Queen kept turning her head slightly, anticipating the blow, so he called out to his assistant to pass him his sword. As Anne moved her head to follow what the assistant was doing, the executioner came up behind her unnoticed and beheaded her with one stroke. Her ordeal was over. Her head may have been in the straw, her blood flowing freely across the scaffold, but Anne's soul was with her Father in Heaven.

  Anne Boleyn was denied a proper burial with Christian service.
Instead, her sobbing ladies gathered up her head and body, wrapped them in white cloth and took them to the Tower chapel, St Peter ad Vincula. Here, the Star of the Court was placed inside an old elm chest which had once contained bow staves. Anne Boleyn, the mother of the future Elizabeth I, was then laid to rest in an unmarked grave, buried as a traitor to the Crown.

  It was the 19th May 1536 and a Queen of England had been executed.

  Introduction

  The fall of the Boleyns and the executions of Anne, George and members of the Boleyn faction cannot be put down to one single factor; the bloody events of 1536 can only be examined properly by looking at their context. A combination of factors all came into play that winter and spring.

  In this guide to the fall of Anne Boleyn, I let the primary sources tell the story of spring 1536 because I believe that there is no better way to examine those events than through the eyes of people who were actually there. Obviously, we have to take into account the bias of those reporting the events and where they were getting their information from. Even so, they give us a unique insight into what was happening. This book is factual and is not a romantic retelling of Anne Boleyn's story. My mission has always been to get at the real truth about Anne Boleyn and to share it. This book is part of that mission. Full references are given, with guidance on how to find the sources named, so that you too can do further research if you wish. Warning: Digging into the 16th century is addictive!

  I have chosen to look at the events chronologically and to take you through them a day at a time, so you can see exactly what led to Anne Boleyn's execution. Interspersed with some of the events are brief biographies of the people mentioned, so that you can see where they fit into Anne's story. I have also provided a "cast" list of those involved in the events. You will notice that the book is not written as a flowing biography or history book, but is written more like a journal or diary. My aim in writing it thus was to make it easy to find dates and events, and to allow you to follow Anne's final days, from start to brutal finish. It also makes it easier to digest.

  The primary sources give us facts, but they do not give us the entire story. We do not know what Thomas Cromwell and Henry VIII were thinking; we only know their actions and some of what they said. We can infer, we can hypothesise, but we will never know for sure exactly what happened in 1536. We can argue that Henry VIII was responsible for Anne's fall, we can argue that it was all down to Cromwell and that Henry was an innocent victim, we can argue that Anne was innocent, we can argue that she was guilty. We do not know the full story, merely partial truths. For this reason, I present here the evidence and my own thoughts based on MY reading of the evidence. You may think differently and I'm certainly not telling you what to think.

  I hope you enjoy this journey back to 1536; hang on to your hats!

  Note: In the Tudor times, there was no standardized spelling. All spellings in quotations are as they were in the contemporary sources.

  The Cast 1535-1536

  Henry VIII (1491-1547) – The King

  Henry VIII was born on the 28th June 1491, the son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. Although the second son, he became King following Henry VII's death because his older brother, Prince Arthur, had died in 1502. Henry VIII married Arthur's widow, Catherine of Aragon, on 11th June 1509 but annulled his marriage to her in 1533. Henry VIII came to believe that their marriage was contrary to God's law because it was incestuous, in that she was his brother's widow, He believed that the lack of a living son was proof of this. Henry married his second wife, Anne Boleyn, in a secret ceremony on the 25th January 1533.

  Henry is known for having six wives – Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard and Catherine Parr – and for executing two of them.

  Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536)

  Catherine of Aragon (Catalina de Aragón) was born on the night of 15th/16th December 1485. She was the daughter of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabel I of Castile, and was named after her maternal great-grandmother, Catalina de Castile or Catherine of Lancaster. On 14th November 1501, Catherine of Aragon married the heir to the English throne, Arthur, Prince of Wales, but was widowed just a few months later. She married Arthur's brother, Henry VIII, in June 1509 and the couple were married for over twenty-four years. Their only surviving child was a daughter, born in February 1516, who became Queen Mary I. It is thought that Catherine had at least five other pregnancies, which resulted in miscarriages, stillbirths or early infant death. Catherine died on 7th January 1536 at Kimbolton Castle.

  Anne Boleyn (1501-1536)

  Anne Boleyn was born in 1501 (some say 1507) and was the daughter of courtier and diplomat Thomas Boleyn and his wife Elizabeth Howard. Anne spent time at the courts of Margaret of Austria and Queen Claude of France before joining the English court in late 1521 to serve Catherine of Aragon as lady-in-waiting. It is thought that Henry VIII was in love with her by Shrovetide 1526 and in August 1527 he decided to ask the Pope for a dispensation to allow him to marry Anne. The King's Great Matter (Henry's struggle for an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon) ensued and Henry and Anne had to wait seven years to marry. Anne was crowned Queen on 1st June 1533 and gave birth to a daughter, the future Elizabeth I, on 7th September 1533. Anne experienced two other unsuccessful pregnancies. She was executed for treason on 19th May 1536, after being found guilty of adultery and plotting the King's death.

  George Boleyn, Lord Rochford (c1504-1536)

  George Boleyn was born around 1504 and was the younger brother of Anne Boleyn. He was a courtier, poet, diplomat, royal favourite and member of the King's privy chamber. He was married to Jane Parker, the daughter of Henry Parker, Lord Morley. George was influential in Parliament and carried out many important diplomatic missions on behalf of the King. His frequent mention in the privy purse expenses show that he regularly played dice, bowls and cards with Henry VIII and was a member of the King's circle of friends. He was also a zealous reformer and gifted poet.

  George was executed on 17th May 1536 after being found guilty of treason and of incest with his sister, Queen Anne Boleyn. Popular fiction makes him out to be homosexual, but there is actually no evidence of this.

  Thomas Boleyn, Earl of Wiltshire and Earl of Ormond (c.1477-1539)

  Thomas was the eldest of ten children. His parents were Sir William Boleyn and Lady Margaret Butler. His paternal grandfather was Geoffrey Boleyn, the Lord Mayor of London, and his maternal grandfather was Thomas Butler, the 7th Earl of Ormond.

  Margaret Butler was a descendant of Eleanor de Bohun and her first husband James Butler, 1st Earl of Ormond; interestingly, Eleanor de Bohun was the granddaughter of Edward I and his first wife, Eleanor of Castile.

  In 1498 or 1499, Thomas Boleyn married Lady Elizabeth Howard, daughter of Thomas Howard, the Earl of Surrey (and later the 2nd Duke of Norfolk). The couple had at least five children: Mary, Anne, George, Thomas and Henry. Only Mary, Anne and George survived childhood. Thomas's flair for languages, his probable legal training and his intelligence made him indispensable at court and he served the King as an ambassador, privy councillor and Lord Privy Seal. Thomas was also a Reformer and supported his godson Thomas Tebold in the latter's travels around Europe in 1535 and 1536, spreading the news that Thomas Boleyn was a patron of the new learning and new religion.

  Thomas Cromwell (1485-1540)

  Thomas Cromwell was born in Putney circa 1485 and was the son of Walter Cromwell, blacksmith, cloth merchant and fuller. He studied law and was fluent in French, Italian and Latin, which helped him to become employed by Cardinal Wolsey in around 1514. After Wolsey's fall, and due partly to the patronage of Anne Boleyn, Cromwell quickly rose to be the King's right hand man. In this role, Cromwell assisted the King in his quest to have his marriage to Catherine of Aragon annulled as well as in the dissolution of the monasteries. He became the King's official principal secretary and chief minister in 1534. There is controversy concerning his actual role in the downfall of Anne Bole
yn. It's unclear whether Cromwell instigated the plot or whether he simply carried out the King's wishes.

  Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk (c1484-1545)

  Charles Brandon was one of Henry VIII's best friends. He was born circa 1484 to Sir William Brandon and Elizabeth Bruyn, and his father died carrying Henry VII's standard at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. It is thought that Brandon grew up in the household of his uncle, Sir Thomas Brandon, a leading courtier in the reign of Henry VII. By 1507, Brandon himself was serving the King as an esquire of the body. Although he was seven years older than Henry VIII, Brandon became the King's lifelong friend, and was made Duke of Suffolk in 1514. He was forgiven for marrying the King's favourite sister, Mary Tudor, Queen of France, in 1515, without the King's permission. The couple had four children: Henry, Frances, Eleanor and a second Henry after the death of their first son. Mary died in June 1533 and their second son died in 1534. Brandon married for the fourth time in September 1534; his new wife was his 14 year old ward, Catherine Willoughby. Brandon had poor relations with Anne Boleyn, his sympathy being with Catherine of Aragon.

  Thomas Audley, Lord Chancellor (1487/8-1544)

  Thomas Audley was born around 1487/8 in Earls Colne, Essex. He came to the attention of Henry VIII in 1523 after taking Cardinal Wolsey's side in Parliament when Sir Thomas More defended the rights of the common people. He rose quickly from that point, and on 20th May 1532 he was knighted and made keeper of the great seal after Sir Thomas More resigned as Lord Chancellor. On 26th January 1533, he was officially named as Lord Chancellor. Audley is thought to have been responsible for smoothing the passage through Parliament of legislation regarding the King's break with Rome and the supremacy.

  Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset (1519-1536)

  Henry Fitzroy was the illegitimate son of Henry VIII by his mistress Elizabeth (Bessie) Blount. He was born at the priory of St Lawrence in Blackmore, Essex, around June 1519. In 1525, he was elected Knight of the Garter and made Earl of Nottingham and Duke of Richmond and Somerset. This was followed, by him being made Warden General of the Marches and Lord Admiral of England. In 1529 he became Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and in October 1532 he accompanied Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn to their meeting with Francis I in Calais. On 26th November 1533, he married Mary Howard, daughter of the Duke of Norfolk, but it is believed that the marriage was never consummated due to the couple's youth.