Who was the prettiest wife of Henry VIII?
Henry married Katherine because he wanted to. Katherine, six years Henry's senior, was considered beautiful, and shared a love of display and finery with her husband. She and Henry rode and hunted together, and he trusted her completely. For many years they were a happy and devoted couple and a powerful political team.
Catherine of Aragon: perfect in every way but one
Many historians believe she's the only woman Henry truly loved. Tiny, delicate, and ladylike, he believed she was perfect in every way — except one. In their years of marriage, Catherine bore him six children.
Today, Jane Seymour is commonly regarded as Henry's favourite wife – not least because she finally bore him a son – but she's down in fourth place. It is likely Henry would disagree with the findings that she was not bold and outgoing enough, as she is the only wife buried with him.
Katheryn, during her rise to power, was referred to by the Spanish author of 'The Chronicle of Henry VIII', written some years after the events, as being the most beautiful woman in the kingdom, while the French ambassador initially described her as being a young woman of 'extraordinary', or 'great', beauty.
Anne of Cleves has gone down in history as the ugly wife. Henry VIII was so revolted when he first clapped eyes on her that he immediately instructed his lawyers to get him out of the marriage.
Before Queen Mary I, or Mary Tudor, was born, Catherine of Aragon gave the King three sons and a daughter who never survived infancy. Mary Tudor was born 18th February 1516 and was favoured by Henry VIII until her mother Catherine of Aragon was unable to produce a male heir.
Despite Henry's brutality towards Anne, the King later regretted his actions as he lay on his deathbed in 1547 and showed “great grief” over his treatment of his ex-wife and daughter Elizabeth, historian Sandra Vasoli has revealed.
Shortly after their marriage, Henry made a joke that he'd seen two other ladies he preferred, but all the other evidence suggests that he really did love Jane. He certainly pursued her.
Anne Boleyn's Final Words
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.
Thus there was a history of infant mortality on both sides, which may or may not be significant. Henry's second wife, Anne Boleyn, became pregnant four times. She herself was born of parents who had a child “every year”, although only three lived to adulthood.
How many miscarriages did Anne Boleyn have?
Anne subsequently had three miscarriages and by March 1536, Henry was courting Jane Seymour. In order to marry Seymour, Henry had to find reasons to end the marriage to Anne. Henry VIII had Anne investigated for high treason in April 1536.
It smells expensive, unusual and refined, and has a pervasive, cool sensuality. It blends the Englishness of violet with French chamois. It was what I envisage as she beguiled Henry VIII. And it is anything but blonde.
It was only when Henry met Anne, just a few days before the marriage, that he discovered she was not as pretty as promised. He was repulsed by her, saying she had terrible body odour and saggy breasts, and referred to her as the ' Flanders.
It is probably fair to conclude that Anne was neither especially pretty, nor unusually plain. She was tall, slim, and had a dignified and queenly manner. As a mistress, she was easy to serve, and her character was gracious and kind.
Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII, had directly before been found guilty of treason. A jury declared that she had committed adultery with her brother and four other men.
| Catherine Howard | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1521–25 Lambeth, London |
| Died | 13 February 1542 (aged 16–21) Tower of London, London |
| Burial | 13 February 1542 Church of St Peter ad Vincula, Tower of London, London |
| Spouse | Henry VIII ( m. 1540) |
Elizabeth, was born on September 7, 1533. Queen Anne fell pregnant in 1934 and 1536 but both were stillborn. Therefore, Elizabeth was the only child of King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn.
Perhaps Henry felt let down by Anne and perhaps he had begun to think that the marriage was cursed. Perhaps also the fact that he had to execute people because of Anne (like More) and break with his beloved church started to eat away at him and cause him to begin to hate her.
Anne Boleyn is usually stated as the woman Henry VIII loved most and that's probably correct. Yes, England separated from the Catholic Church so they could marry but there is so much more to it than that.
Tudor England was not a place where everyone smelled as sweetly as most people who shower daily today, but its people generally managed not to stink. Of course, the past did smell differently. Even so, being clean and sweet-smelling did matter to many Tudors.
How many of Henry's wives lost their heads?
Of Henry's six wives, two were divorced, one died, and two were beheaded. Only the sixth survived him. You hear a lot about Henry's wives if you visit his palace at Hampton Court, about a half an hour outside London.
When Henry VIII met Anne Boleyn (his mistress Mary's younger sister) in 1525, his marriage was in a precarious state. It was said that the King, then 34, became besotted with 25-year-old Anne, a member of Catherine's entourage. Of Henry's six wives, Anne Boleyn has always been the subject of fascination for historians.
But regardless of which age she was, she seems to have read and spoken both English and French easily — a number of Henry VIII's love letters to her are in French, and it's entirely believable that she thought in French frequently.
Elizabeth is two years and eight months old when her mother Anne Boleyn is accused of adultery and beheaded on the orders of Henry VIII.
In the novel “The Other Boleyn Girl” by Philippa Gregory, Anne Boleyn miscarries “a baby horridly malformed, with a spine flayed open and a huge head, twice as large as the spindly little body”.
It is widely believed that the reason behind Queen Anne's miscarriages and stillborn children was because she suffered from antiphospholipid syndrome, an immune disorder that turns the body against itself.
- Anne Boleyn was Rhesus negative (Rh-) meaning that her body would reject all Rhesus positive babies after the first pregnancy, causing miscarriages. This is a theory put forward by Retha Warnicke to explain Anne's miscarriages following her first successful pregnancy.
| Wife | Married to Henry VIII | Fate |
|---|---|---|
| Jane Seymour | 1536-1537 | Died |
| Anne of Cleves | 1540-1540 | Divorced |
| Catherine Howard | 1540-1542 | Beheaded |
| Catherine Parr | 1543-1547 | Survived |
Catherine remained at Henry's side for 23 years and is even thought to be the only woman the king ever truly loved. “Henry viewed her as a model wife in every respect bar one… her failure to give him a son,” says Tudor historian Tracy Borman. Frustrated at the lack of a male heir, Henry's eyes wandered.
