Young Henry Tudor. Catherine of Valois, Queen consort of England. Lady Margaret Beaufort. John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. Ultimately, Henry understood the importance of a legitimate heir. He used the Welsh flag as we now know it for the first time Henry flew the red dragon of Cadwaladr during his invasion of England, using his Welsh ancestry to gather support and gain safe passage through Wales on his way to meet Richard III at Bosworth.
The Welsh flag. Elizabeth of York, Queen consort of England. Richard III of England. Arthur, Prince of Wales. His marriage bed was rediscovered in Royal bed, the Langley Collection. Sign up for our newsletter Enter your email address below to get the latest news and exclusive content from The History Press delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up. Share this page. His philandering ways were tame by the standards of his contemporaries, but they nonetheless resulted in his first divorce in Because Catherine was now 42 and unable to conceive another child, Henry set on a mission to obtain a male heir by configuring a way to officially abandon his marriage with Catherine.
The Book of Leviticus stated that a man who takes his brother's wife shall remain childless. Though Catherine had borne him a child, that child was a girl, which, in Henry's logic, did not count. He petitioned the pope for an annulment but was refused due to pressure from Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, Catherine's nephew. The debate, during which Catherine fought mightily to maintain both her own and her daughter's titles, lasted for six years. In , Anne Boleyn, who was still Henry's mistress, became pregnant.
Henry decided he didn't need the pope's permission on matters of the Church of England. Thomas Cranmer, the new archbishop of Canterbury, presided over the trial that declared his first marriage annulled. Inside the court, however, Queen Anne suffered greatly from her failure to produce a living male heir.
After she miscarried twice, Henry became interested in one of Anne's ladies-in-waiting, Jane Seymour. In an all-out effort to leave his unfruitful marriage, Henry contrived an elaborate story that Anne had committed adultery, had incestuous relations and was plotting to murder him. Henry charged three men on account of their adultery with his wife, and on May 15, , he put her on trial. Anne, regal and calm, denied all charges against her.
Four days later, Henry's marriage to Anne was annulled and declared invalid. Anne was then taken to the Tower Green, where she was beheaded in private on May 19, However, Jane was never officially coronated or crowned queen. Just nine days after giving birth, Jane died from a pregnancy-related infection.
He and his court mourned for an extended period of time after her passing. Three years after the death of Jane Seymour, Henry was ready to marry again, mainly to ensure the succession of his crown. He inquired in foreign courts about the appearances of available women. Anne, the sister of the Duke of Cleves, was suggested. The German artist Hans Holbein the Younger, who served as the king's official painter, was sent out to create a portrait of her. However after the couple married, in January , Henry disapproved of Anne in the flesh and divorced her after six months.
Within weeks of his divorce to Anne of Cleves, Henry married the very young Catherine Howard, a first cousin of Anne Boleyn, in a private marriage on July 28, Henry, 49, and Catherine, 19, started out a happy pair.
Henry was now dealing with tremendous weight gain and a bad leg, and his new wife gave him zest for life. He repaid her with lavish gifts. Happiness would not last long for the couple. Catherine began seeking the attention of men her own age—a tremendously dangerous endeavor for the queen of England. Meanwhile she went for protection to Jasper Tudor and it was in his stronghold of Pembroke Castle that she gave birth to the baby Henry.
The following year she married Henry Stafford, a son of the Duke of Buckingham, to gain his protection and avoid having another husband forced on her. In , when the young Henry Tudor was five years old, he was taken away from her and his wardship was given to William, Lord Herbert. Young Henry had never known a father and had now been parted from his mother as well.
The Herberts seem to have treated him kindly and he was given a gentleman's education, but Lord Herbert was executed in Henry stayed on with Lady Herbert and in , when he was thirteen, he had an audience with Henry VI.
Later Tudor propaganda had it that the pious, half-mad king prophesied that the boy would one day rule England. Louis XI of France also tried to get Henry into his clutches. It was a desperately insecure situation and it is little wonder that the young Tudor came to manhood cautious, prudent and deeply reserved.
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