by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Anne of Cleves, Queen of England; Credit – Wikipedia

Anne of Cleves was the fourth of King Henry VIII of England‘s six wives and is often considered the most fortunate of Henry’s wives. Born on September 22, 1515, in Düsseldorf in the Duchy of Berg, now in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, she was the second of the four children of Johann, Duke of Cleves and Count of Mark and Maria of Jülich-Berg, daughter of Duke William IV of Jülich-Berg, who became heiress to her father’s estates Jülich, Berg and Ravensberg.

Anne had three siblings:

• Sybille of Cleves (1512 – 1554), married Johann Friedrich, Elector of Saxony, had issue
• William, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg (1516 – 1592), married Maria, Archduchess of Austria, had issue
• Amalia of Cleves (1517 – 1586), unmarried

Anne grew up in Schloss Burg in Solingen, Duchy of Berg, now in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, and received a limited education that focused on embroidery and sewing, and not on learning foreign languages (she could read and write only in German), singing, or playing a musical instrument. At the age of ten, Anne was betrothed to Francis I, Duke of Lorraine, but the betrothal was later canceled.

Schloss Burg, Anne’s childhood home; Credit – Wikipedia

Jane Seymour, the third wife of King Henry VIII of England, died in 1537 due to childbirth complications, after giving birth to Henry’s long-awaited son, the future King Edward VI. The search for a fourth wife began shortly after Jane’s death, with Henry’s chief minister, Thomas Cromwell, taking the lead. Cromwell wanted an alliance with a European royal house, so all English ambassadors were instructed to look for possible brides.

In 1538, it was suggested that Henry marry a daughter of Johann, Duke of Cleves, who was a powerful supporter of the Protestant Reformation. Henry requested a portrait of Anne, the elder of the two unmarried daughters and so Hans Holbein, Henry’s court painted was dispatched to Cleves. Holbein used his artistic license and painted (the portrait above) what he saw as an artist: a delicate girl in her twenties, quiet and content wearing the unflattering headdress fashionable in Cleves. He did not show her strong frame or her pock-marked skin. Henry was delighted with the portrait and Anne’s brother William, who had succeeded his father in 1539, sent an emissary to England to negotiate the marriage contract.

Anne arrived in Deal, England on December 27, 1539, and proceeded to Rochester on New Year’s Day. Henry was so eager to see Anne, that he went to Rochester incognito. Henry was terribly disappointed by his new bride. He found Anne humorless and boring. She looked unimpressive in her German costume, acted shy, and did not speak English. Henry postponed the wedding for two days and regretted that he could not withdraw from the marriage contract. Reluctantly, Henry married Anne on January 6, 1540, at the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, London, England.

Thomas Cromwell hoped that the wedding night would bring the couple closer together, but the marriage was never consummated, and it was said that the couple spent the night playing cards. Henry told Cromwell, “I liked her before not well, but now I like her much worse.” Anne told Eleanor Manners, Countess of Rutland, one of her ladies-in-waiting, “When he comes to bed he kisseth me, and he taketh me by the hand, and biddeth me ‘Good night, sweetheart’; and in the morning kisseth me and biddeth ‘Farewell, darling.'” Lady Rutland responded, “Madam, there must be more than this, or it will be long ere we have a Duke of York, which all this realm most desireth.” Meanwhile, Henry was showing an interest in one of Anne’s maids-of-honor, Catherine Howard, who would become his fifth wife.

On June 24, 1540, Anne was sent to Richmond Palace for “her health, open air and pleasure” and on July 6, 1540, she was informed that Henry wanted to end the marriage. Anne agreed to an annulment, finalized on July 9, 1540, on the grounds of non-consummation and Anne’s pre-contract to Francis of Lorraine. Thomas Cromwell, the scapegoat for the failed marriage, was arrested on June 10, 1540, under a bill of attainder and executed for treason and heresy on Tower Hill on July 28, 1540. Henry married Catherine Howard that same day and later regretted having Cromwell executed.

Although Anne’s mother and brother wanted her to return home, she remained in England. Henry gave her a generous settlement and the use of Richmond Palace and Hever Castle. Anne was frequently at court, had a cordial relationship with Henry and his children, and was referred to as “the King’s Beloved Sister.” Anne of Cleves survived Henry and all his wives. Her last public appearance was at the coronation of her stepdaughter Queen Mary I. As the third lady in the land, she rode behind the new queen beside Mary’s sister Elizabeth.

In the spring of 1557, Anne became ill and died at the age of 41 on July 16, 1557, at Chelsea Manor, probably from cancer. Anne was buried with pomp and ceremony at Westminster Abbey on the south side of the altar. Her plain marble tomb has since been used for regalia and plate display at coronations and royal weddings.

Tomb of Anne of Cleves; Credit – Westminster Abbey

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

England: House of Tudor Resources at Unofficial Royalty

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by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

Anne Boleyn, Queen of England; Credit – Wikipedia

Anne Boleyn was the second of the six wives of King Henry VIII of England, the mother of Queen Elizabeth I of England, and one of Henry VIII’s two beheaded wives.  The date and place of Anne’s birth are uncertain. She was born between 1501 – 1507 at either Blicking Hall in Norfolk or Hever Castle in Kent. Anne’s father was Thomas Boleyn (later 1st Earl of Wiltshire, 1st Earl of Ormond, 1st Viscount Rochford), a diplomat for King Henry VII and King Henry VIII. He was descended from Eustace II, Count of Boulogne who fought for William the Conqueror during the Battle of Hastings. “Boulogne” eventually was anglicized to “Boleyn.” Anne’s mother was Lady Elizabeth Howard, the eldest daughter of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk.  Elizabeth’s eldest brother was Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, a prominent Tudor politician, and one of her other brothers was Lord Edmund Howard, the father of Catherine Howard, King Henry VIII’s fifth wife, his other beheaded wife. Through her mother, Anne was a descendant of King Edward I of England.

Anne had two siblings who survived childhood:

• Mary Boleyn (c. 1499 – 1543), mistress of King Henry VIII of England, married (1) William Carey, issue may be Carey’s or Henry VIII’s;   (2) Sir William Stafford, possible issue
• George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford (c. 1504 – 1536), married Jane Parker, no issue; George was executed as one of Anne’s supposed lovers and his wife Jane was executed with Catherine Howard

Mary Boleyn; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1512, Anne’s father was appointed an ambassador to the court of Margaret of Austria, Regent of the Netherlands in Brussels, and his three children accompanied him. While in Brussels, Anne served as a maid of honor to Margaret of Austria. She then joined her sister Mary at the French court as a maid of honor to Mary Tudor, sister of King Henry VIII, who had married King Louis XII of France. When Mary Tudor returned to England after King Louis XII died, Anne stayed on at the French court, serving as a maid of honor to Queen Claude, the daughter of King Louis XII and the wife of his successor King François I. Anne returned to England in 1522, and was appointed a maid of honor to Catherine of Aragon, King Henry VIII’s first wife.

Anne was lively and vivacious and soon attracted admirers at the English court including King Henry VIII. Henry’s only surviving child with his wife Catherine of Aragon was a daughter. Henry was desperate for a male heir and thought Anne could give him one. Anne refused to become Henry’s mistress as her sister Mary had. However, she continued to flirt with him and entered into an amorous correspondence with him. Meanwhile, Henry set into action the machinations that would annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. When Henry secretly married Anne on January 25, 1533, at the Palace of Westminster, she was already pregnant with her first child. On May 25, 1533, Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury declared Henry and Catherine’s marriage null and void and five days later, he declared Henry and Anne’s marriage valid.

There was a rush for Anne to be crowned as she was pregnant and there was some question about whether the child had been conceived before or after the marriage ceremony. Anne was quite unpopular and Henry VIII wanted to cement her status. Anne was crowned at Westminster Abbey on June 1, 1533.

Anne was pregnant three times, but only gave birth to one live child:

• Elizabeth I, Queen of England (September 7, 1533 – March 24, 1603), unmarried, no issue
• Stillborn son (August/September 1534)
• Miscarried son (January 29, 1536)

When Anne gave birth to her first child, a daughter Elizabeth, Henry was greatly disappointed and did not attend Elizabeth’s christening. Anne soon found herself supplanted as she had done to Catherine of Aragon. Jane Seymour, one of her maids of honor and eventually Henry’s third wife, attracted Henry’s attention starting in 1534. By late 1535, Anne was pregnant again. However, during a tournament in January 1536, Henry fell from his horse and was unconscious for hours. The stress resulted in premature labor, and Anne miscarried a son.

The loss of this son sealed Anne’s fate. Henry was determined to be rid of her, and her fall and execution were engineered by Thomas Cromwell, Henry’s chief minister. Many historians believe that the case charging Anne with adultery with her brother George Boleyn and four other men (Francis Weston, Henry Norris, William Brereton, and Mark Smeaton) was completely fabricated. Anne was arrested on May 2, 1536, and taken to the Tower of London. On May 14, 1536, Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury declared her marriage to Henry was null and void. Her trial, presided over by her uncle Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, occurred at the Tower on May 15, 1536, and she was found guilty of adultery, incest, and high treason. On May 18, 1536, Anne’s brother and the four other men were executed. Anne’s execution was scheduled for May 19, 1536, on Tower Green. Henry arranged for an expert swordsman from Calais, France who used a sword rather than an ax. Before her execution, Anne made a speech to the crowd:

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. 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. 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. O Lord have mercy on me, to God I commend my soul.

After saying goodbye to her ladies, Anne knelt and a blindfold was tied over her eyes. Anne remained in an upright kneeling position and kept repeating, “Jesu receive my soul; O Lord God have pity on my soul.” With one stroke of the executioner’s sword, Anne was dead. Her body was placed in an oak chest and she was buried in an unmarked grave in the Chapel of St. Peter-ad-Vincula at the Tower of London. In 1876, Anne’s remains were identified during renovation work and her grave is now marked by a plaque on the chapel floor.

Plaque marking Anne Boleyn’s grave; Credit – Wikipedia

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

England: House of Tudor Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Index
• House of Tudor Index
• British Royal Births, Marriages, Deaths, and Other Important Events
• Coronations after the Norman Conquest (1066 – present)
• History and Traditions: Tudor Weddings
• House of Tudor Burial Sites
• House of Tudor Christenings

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2016

Elizabeth of York, Queen of England; Credit – Wikipedia

Elizabeth of York holds a unique position in British royal history. She was King Edward IV’s daughter, King Edward V’s sister, King Richard III’s niece, King Henry VII’s wife, King Henry VII’s mother, and the grandmother of King Edward VI, Queen Mary I, and Queen Elizabeth I. Her great-granddaughter was Mary, Queen of Scots whose son, King James VI of Scotland, succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England. Through this line, the British royal family and other European royal families can trace their descent from Elizabeth of York.

Born on February 11, 1466, at the Palace of Westminster, Elizabeth of York was the eldest child of King Edward IV of England and Elizabeth Woodville. Edward IV was the eldest surviving son of Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York who had a strong claim to the English throne. The social and financial troubles that followed the Hundred Years’ War, combined with the mental disability and weak rule of the Lancastrian King Henry VI had revived interest in the claim of Richard, 3rd Duke of York. Hence, the Wars of the Roses were fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet, the House of Lancaster and the House of York between 1455 and 1487. Richard, 3rd Duke of York was killed on December 30, 1460, at the Battle of Wakefield and his son Edward was then the leader of the House of York. After winning a decisive victory on March 2, 1461, at the Battle of Mortimer’s Cross, 19-year-old Edward proclaimed himself king. In 1464, King Edward IV married Elizabeth Woodville and their first child, Elizabeth, was born two years later.

Elizabeth was christened at Westminster Abbey in a solemn ceremony. Her godparents were:

• Jacquetta of Luxembourg, her maternal grandmother
• Cecily Neville, Duchess of York, her paternal grandmother
• Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, her father’s first cousin

Elizabeth had nine siblings:

• Mary of York (1467 – 1482), unmarried
• Cecily of York (1469 – 1507); married (1) Ralph Scrope of Upsall, no issue, marriage annulled; (2) John Welles, 1st Viscount Welles, had issue, died young; (3) Sir Thomas Kyme, possible issue
• King Edward V of England (1470 – c. 1483); briefly succeeded his father, as King Edward V of England, was the elder of the Princes in the Tower
• Margaret of York (born and died 1472)
• Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York (1473 – c. 1483), was the younger of the Princes in the Tower
• Anne of York (1475 – 1511); married Thomas Howard (later 3rd Duke of Norfolk and uncle of Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, King Henry VIII’s beheaded wives), had no surviving issue
• George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Bedford (1477 – 1479)
• Catherine of York (1479 – 1527); married William Courtenay, 1st Earl of Devon, had issue
• Bridget of York (1480 – 1517); became a nun

Elizabeth had two half-brothers from her mother’s first marriage to Sir John Grey of Groby who was killed at the Second Battle of St Albans:

• Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset (1455 – 1501), married (1) Anne Holland, no children; (2) Cecily Bonville, 7th Baroness Harington and 2nd Baroness Bonville, had 14 children; Thomas and Cecily are the great-grandparents of Lady Jane Grey
• Sir Richard Grey (1457 – 1483), unmarried, executed by Richard, Duke of Gloucester (future King Richard III)

In October 1470, thanks to Elizabeth’s godfather Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick switching from the Yorkist faction to the Lancastrian faction, Henry VI was restored to the throne. Edward IV and his brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester (the future Richard III) fled to Flanders, part of Burgundy, where their sister Margaret of York lived with her husband Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy.  Four-year-old Elizabeth went into sanctuary at Westminster Abbey with her pregnant mother and her younger sisters Mary and Cecily. While in sanctuary, Elizabeth’s brother Edward (the future Edward V) was born. By April 1471, Elizabeth’s father was back on the throne, and a month later King Henry VI was murdered in the Tower of London.

By the time of the early death in 1483 of King Edward IV at the age of 40, Elizabeth had been promised in marriage to George Neville, 1st Duke of Bedford and the future King Charles VIII of France, but nothing came of either promise. When King Edward IV died and his twelve-year-old son succeeded him as King Edward V, Edward IV’s brother, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, was named Lord Protector of his young nephew and moved to keep the Woodvilles, the family of Edward IV’s widow Elizabeth Woodville, from exercising power. The widowed queen sought to gain political power for her family by appointing family members to key positions and rushing the coronation of her young son. The new king was accompanied to London by his maternal uncle Anthony Woodville, 2nd Earl Rivers and his half-brother Sir Richard Grey. Rivers and Grey were accused of planning to assassinate Richard, were arrested, and taken to Pontefract Castle, where they were later executed without trial. Richard then proceeded with the new king to London where Edward V was presented to the Lord Mayor of London. For their safety, King Edward V and his nine-year-old brother Richard, Duke of York were sent to the Tower of London and never seen again.

On June 22, 1483, a sermon was preached at St. Paul’s Cross in London declaring Edward IV’s marriage to Elizabeth Woodville invalid and his children illegitimate. This information apparently came from Robert Stillington, the Bishop of Bath and Wells, who claimed a legal pre-contract of marriage to Eleanor Butler, invalidated the king’s later marriage to Elizabeth Woodville. The citizens of London presented Richard a petition urging him to assume the throne, and he was proclaimed king on June 26, 1483. King Richard III and his wife Anne were crowned in Westminster Abbey on July 6, 1483, and their son was created Prince of Wales. In January of 1484, Parliament issued the Titulus Regius, a statute proclaiming Richard the rightful king. Shortly thereafter, Elizabeth’s mother and Margaret Beaufort, the mother of the Lancastrian leader Henry Tudor still in exile in Brittany, made a secret agreement that their children should marry.

On August 22, 1485, Henry Tudor defeated King Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field and became King Henry VII, the first Tudor king of England. Elizabeth of York and Henry married on January 18, 1486, at the Palace of Westminster. Henry had Parliament repeal Titulus Regius, the act that declared King Edward IV’s marriage invalid and his children illegitimate, thereby legitimizing his wife. The Tudor Rose, a combination of the Red Rose of Lancaster and the White Rose of York, symbolized the new House of Tudor.

The Tudor Rose; Credit – Wikipedia

Double Portrait of Elizabeth of York and Henry VII; Credit – Wikipedia

Children of King Henry VII and Elizabeth of York:

• Arthur, Prince of Wales (1486 – 1502), married Catherine of Aragon, no issue
• Margaret Tudor (1489 – 1541), married (1) James IV, King of Scots, had issue including King James V of Scotland; (2) Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus, had issue; (3) Henry Stewart, 1st Lord Methven, no surviving issue; Margaret was the grandmother of both Mary, Queen of Scots and Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, the parents of King James I of England
• Henry VIII, King of England (1491 – 1547), married (1) Catherine of Aragon, had daughter Queen Mary I of England; (2) Anne Boleyn, had daughter Queen Elizabeth I of England; (3) Jane Seymour, had son King Edward VI of England; (4) Anne of Cleves, no issue; (5) Catherine Howard, no issue; (6) Catherine Parr, no issue
• Elizabeth Tudor (1492 – 1495)
• Mary Tudor (1496 – 1533), married (1) Louis XII, King of France, no issue; (2) Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, had issue, grandparents of Lady Jane Grey
• Edmund Tudor, Duke of Somerset (1499 – 1500)
• Katherine Tudor (born and died February 1503) her mother, Elizabeth of York, died as a result of Katherine’s birth

Henry VII’s family: At left, Henry VII, with Arthur, Prince of Wales behind him, then Henry (later Henry VIII), and Edmund, who did not survive early childhood. To the right is Elizabeth of York, with Margaret, then Elizabeth who didn’t survive childhood, Mary, and Katherine, who died shortly after her birth; Credit – Wikipedia

Unlike her mother Elizabeth Woodville and her mother-in-law Margaret Beaufort, Elizabeth had no political ambitions and played her role as wife and mother. Many historians believe that Elizabeth was overshadowed by her dominant mother-in-law (who outlived both her son and daughter-in-law). Nevertheless, Elizabeth was a very popular queen, and having numerous children with whom she secured the new Tudor dynasty made her even more popular.

Her firstborn son was born in Winchester, then identified as the site of Camelot, and named Arthur after the legendary king. In 1501, Arthur married Catherine of Aragon, the youngest daughter of Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon. Five months later, 15-year-old Arthur was dead, probably of sweating sickness, and his parents were devastated. Elizabeth comforted her husband who was not only in mourning for his son, but also in fear for his dynasty by saying, “Your mother never had more children than you, but God in His grace, always sheltered you and brought to where you are now. God has left you a handsome prince and two beautiful princesses. We both are still young and can have more children.”

Arthur, Prince of Wales; Credit – Wikipedia

Shortly after Arthur’s death, Elizabeth became pregnant again and hoped for a son. She spent that year preparing her daughter Margaret, who was to marry King James IV of Scotland, for her role as Queen of Scotland. In early 1503, Elizabeth spent her confinement at the Tower of London. On February 2, 1503, she gave birth to a daughter, Katherine. Shortly after giving birth, Elizabeth became ill with puerperal fever (childbed fever) and died on February 11, 1503, her 37th birthday. Her death so shook Henry VII that he went into seclusion and would only see his mother. Little Katherine died on February 18, 1503.

In 2012, an illuminated manuscript (see below) that was once the property of Henry VII was discovered in the National Library of Wales. King Henry VII is shown in mourning clothes, receiving the book containing the manuscript. In the background, behind their father, are his daughters, Mary and Margaret, in black veils. On the top left, an 11-year-old future King Henry VIII is shown weeping into the sheets of his mother’s empty bed.

Credit – Wikipedia

Elizabeth received a dignified state funeral in Westminster Abbey in the presence of her sisters. On her coffin was a wooden effigy, modeled on Elizabeth. The funeral procession was led by her sister Catherine of York. All of London mourned the popular queen. In the Cheapside section of London, groups of 37 young women, representing the 37 years of Elizabeth’s life, with green wreaths in their hair and candles in their hands paraded through the streets. Candles lit in Elizabeth’s memory were burning in all the churches. Thomas More, a 25-year-old lawyer at the time and would later be beheaded during the reign of Elizabeth’s son Henry VIII, wrote an elegy in honor of the late Queen, “A Rueful Lamentation.”  Each February 11, King Henry VII decreed that a requiem mass be sung, bells be tolled, and 100 candles be lit in honor of Elizabeth of York.

Elizabeth’s painted wood funeral effigy in Westminster Abbey; Credit – Wikipedia

King Henry VII died at Richmond Palace on April 21, 1509, at the age of 52. He lies buried with his wife Elizabeth in a tomb created by Italian artist Pietro Torrigiano in the Henry VII Chapel in Westminster Abbey.

Tomb of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York; Credit – englishhistoryauthors.blogspot.com

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

England: House of Tudor Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Index
• House of Tudor Index
• British Royal Births, Marriages, Deaths, and Other Important Events
• Coronations after the Norman Conquest (1066 – present)
• History and Traditions: Tudor Weddings
• House of Tudor Burial Sites
• House of Tudor Christenings

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2016

King Henry VII of England; Credit – Wikipedia

Henry Tudor, the founder of the Tudor dynasty, was born on January 28, 1457, at Pembroke Castle in Wales. Three months before his birth, his father Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond died of the plague while imprisoned, leaving a 13-year-old pregnant widow, Lady Margaret Beaufort. Upon his birth, Henry succeeded to his father’s title, Earl of Richmond.

Pembroke Castle in Wales; Photo Credit – Wikipedia

Henry’s father, Edmund Tudor, was the eldest child of Owen Tudor and Catherine of Valois, widow of King Henry V of England. Therefore, Edmund was the half-brother of King Henry VI of England.  Owen Tudor’s ancestors were from prominent Welsh families. Catherine of Valois was the daughter of King Charles VI of France and Isabeau of Bavaria.  There is much debate as to whether Catherine and Owen married.  No documentation of marriage exists, and even if they did marry, their marriage would not have been legal due to the act regarding the remarriage of a queen dowager. King Henry VII of England and the Tudor dynasty descended from Owen Tudor and Catherine of Valois’ relationship. Through their great-granddaughter, Margaret Tudor (Henry VII’s daughter), they are the ancestors of the British royal family and many other European royal families.

Henry’s mother, Lady Margaret Beaufort, was the only child of John Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset and Margaret Beauchamp of Bletso. Through her father, Lady Margaret was a descendant of King Edward III of England. Her grandfather, John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset was the eldest child of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (Edward III’s son), and his mistress Katherine Swynford, whom he married in 1396. Their children were declared legitimate by King Richard II of England and Pope Boniface IX, but their half-brother King Henry IV of England introduced a provision that neither they nor their descendants could ever claim the throne of England.  For more details, see Wikipedia: Margaret Beaufort – Ancestry.

At the time of Henry Tudor’s birth, the Wars of the Roses, the fight for the English throne between the House of Lancaster and the House of York, had been occurring for two years. His mother, a descendant of the House of Lancaster, was living at Pembroke Castle under the protection of her brother-in-law Jasper Tudor.  Lady Margaret married two more times but had no more children.

Lady Margaret Beaufort, Henry’s mother; Credit – Wikipedia

Jasper Tudor brought up his nephew Henry. In 1461, when the Yorkist Edward IV became king, Jasper went into exile, and Henry became the guardian of William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke. In 1470, the Lancastrian King Henry VI gained the throne again, but six months later, the Yorkist King Edward IV regained the throne, and King Henry VI was murdered in the Tower of London. Jasper left England again for France and took his nephew Henry with him to keep him safe. Jasper and Henry were given refuge by François II, Duke of Brittany. The next thirteen years of Henry’s life were spent in Brittany, and little is known of his life there.

In 1483, King Edward IV died and was briefly succeeded by his young son, King Edward V. Before the young king could be crowned, his father’s marriage to his mother Elizabeth Woodville was declared invalid, making their children illegitimate and ineligible for the throne. King Edward IV’s brother King Richard III assumed the throne. The former King Edward V and his brother Richard, Duke of York (the Little Princes in the Tower) disappeared during the summer of 1483, and their fate is unknown.

Henry Tudor’s mother, despite being married to the Yorkist Thomas Stanley, was actively promoting her son as an alternative to King Richard III. King Edward IV’s widow, Elizabeth Woodville and Henry’s mother made a secret agreement that their children should marry. On Christmas Day in 1483, still in France, Henry pledged to marry King Edward IV’s eldest daughter, Elizabeth of York, who was also Edward IV’s heir since the presumed deaths of her brothers, King Edward V and his brother Richard, Duke of York. In 1485, having gained the support of the Woodvilles, the in-laws of the late King Edward IV, Henry Tudor sailed to Wales with a small French and Scottish force. On August 7, 1485,  they landed in Mill Bay, Pembrokeshire, Wales, close to Henry’s birthplace. Henry Tudor then marched towards England, accompanied by his uncle Jasper Tudor and John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford.

On August 22, 1485, at the Battle of Bosworth Field, the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the last king of the House of York and the Plantagenet dynasty, 32-year-old King Richard III of England, lost his life and his crown. The battle was a decisive victory for the House of Lancaster, whose leader, 28-year-old Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond, became the first monarch of the House of Tudor.

Stained glass window in St James Church in Sutton Cheney, England, where it is believed Richard III (left) attended his last Mass before facing Henry VII (right) in the Battle of Bosworth Field; Credit – Wikipedia

Richard had entered the battle as a seasoned soldier, wearing a battle crown on his helmet. During the battle, he saw an opportunity to strike directly at Henry Tudor and his personal guard, and sped off on his horse. After managing to kill Henry Tudor’s standard-bearer, Richard saw something he had not expected. Sir William Stanley, the younger brother of Henry Tudor’s stepfather, changed sides. Instead of supporting Richard and the Yorkists, Stanley attacked them, helping to secure a victory for Henry Tudor and the Lancastrians.

Richard was overwhelmed by Stanley’s soldiers, and at some point, he took off or lost his helmet. Polydore Vergil, Henry Tudor’s official historian, wrote that “King Richard, alone, was killed fighting manfully in the thickest press of his enemies.” According to Welsh poet Guto’r Glyn, the leading Welsh Lancastrian Rhys ap Thomas, or one of his men, killed the king, writing that he “killed the boar, shaved his head.” After the battle, Henry Tudor’s men were yelling, “God save King Henry!” Inspired by this, Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Debry, who was married to the new king’s mother, found Richard’s battle crown and placed it on his stepson’s head, saying, “Sir, I make you King of England.”

Finding Richard’s circlet after the battle, Lord Stanley hands it to Henry Tudor; Credit – Wikipedia

Henry Tudor’s first action was to declare himself king by right of conquest. He was crowned in Westminster Abbey on October 30, 1485. King Henry VII did not neglect to reward his supporters. Among them were his uncle Jasper Tudor, who became Duke of Bedford, and his stepfather Thomas Stanley, who became Earl of Derby. Thomas Stanley’s descendant still holds the title. The first Parliament of King Henry VII’s reign was called in November 1485, and a bill was passed confirming Henry’s right to the throne and settling the succession upon the heirs of his body.

Henry VII also honored his pledge to marry Elizabeth of York, King Edward IV’s eldest child, uniting the House of York and the House of Lancaster. On January 18, 1486, the couple were married at the Palace of Westminster. Parliament repealed Titulus Regius, the act declaring King Edward IV’s marriage invalid and his children illegitimate, thereby legitimizing his wife. The Tudor Rose, a combination of the Red Rose of Lancaster and the White Rose of York, symbolized the new House of Tudor.

The Tudor Rose; Credit – Wikipedia

Double Portrait of Elizabeth of York and Henry VII; Credit – Wikipedia

Children of King Henry VII and Elizabeth of York:

• Arthur, Prince of Wales (1486 – 1502), married Catherine of Aragon, no issue
• Margaret Tudor (1489 – 1541), married (1) James IV, King of Scotland, had issue including King James V of Scotland; (2) Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus, had issue; (3) Henry Stewart, 1st Lord Methven, no surviving issue; Margaret was the grandmother of both Mary, Queen of Scots and Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, the parents of King James I of England
• Henry VIII, King of England (1491 – 1547), married (1) Catherine of Aragon, had daughter Queen Mary I of England; (2) Anne Boleyn, had daughter Queen Elizabeth I of England; (3) Jane Seymour, had son King Edward VI of England; (4) Anne of Cleves, no issue; (5) Catherine Howard, no issue; (6) Catherine Parr, no issue
• Elizabeth Tudor (1492 – 1495)
• Mary Tudor (1496 – 1533), married (1) Louis XII, King of France, no issue; (2) Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, had issue, grandparents of Lady Jane Grey
• Edmund Tudor, Duke of Somerset (1499 – 1500)
• Katherine Tudor (born and died February 1503) her mother, Elizabeth of York, died as a result of Katherine’s birth

Henry VII’s family: At left, Henry VII, with Arthur, Prince of Wales behind him, then Henry (later Henry VIII), and Edmund, who did not survive early childhood. To the right is Elizabeth of York, with Margaret, then Elizabeth, who did not survive childhood, Mary, and Katherine, who died shortly after her birth; Credit – Wikipedia

During his reign, King Henry VII’s two main goals were peace-keeping and economic prosperity, and he succeeded in both. He did not try to retake the territories lost in France during the reigns of his predecessors. Instead, he concluded a peace treaty with France, which helped fill the coffers of England again. Henry VII made a pact with Spain with the marriage treaty of his eldest son Arthur, Prince of Wales and Catherine of Aragon. He also allied himself with Scotland by marrying his daughter Margaret to King James IV of Scotland. Ultimately, this marriage would unite England and Scotland when King Henry VII’s great-great-grandson, King James VI of Scotland, succeeded King Henry VII’s granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth I of England. Finally, Henry allied with the Holy Roman Empire under Maximilian I. To improve the economic position of England, Henry subsidized shipbuilding, so at the same time, a powerful navy and a large merchant fleet were created.

Bust of Henry VII of England; painted terracotta; made by Pietro Torrigiano; in the Victoria and Albert Museum; Credit – Susan Flantzer

Although King Henry VII is usually considered miserly, he maintained a splendid court, built Richmond Palace, and rebuilt Baynard’s Castle and Greenwich Palace. He founded several religious houses and supported his mother’s educational and religious causes. Perhaps his greatest building legacy is the beautiful Henry VII Chapel in Westminster Abbey, where he and his wife (and many others) are buried.

Henry VII Chapel; Photo Credit – http://mirandustours.com

Arthur, Prince of Wales, Henry’s eldest son and heir, died suddenly in 1502, probably from sweating sickness, shortly after his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. His second son, the future King Henry VIII, became heir and married Catherine of Aragon, the first of his six wives. In 1503, Henry VII’s wife Elizabeth died on her 37th birthday, probably from puerperal fever, shortly after giving birth to her last child, who also died. Henry was grief-stricken, remained in seclusion for six weeks, and would only allow his mother near him.  He considered marrying again after Elizabeth’s death, but nothing ever came of it.

Scene at the deathbed of Henry VII at Richmond Palace, 1509; Credit – Wikipedia

Henry’s health began to fail in 1507, and he suffered from attacks of gout and asthma. King Henry VII died at Richmond Palace in Richmond, Surrey, England, on April 21, 1509, at the age of 52. He lies buried with his wife, Elizabeth, in a tomb created by Italian artist Pietro Torrigiano in the Henry VII Chapel in Westminster Abbey in London, England.  Henry’s mother died two months later and therefore, lived to see her grandson become King Henry VIII.

Tomb of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York; Credit – englishhistoryauthors.blogspot.com

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