Henry VIII, as we all know, was the spare to the throne - he had an older brother, Arthur, who was married to Catherine of Aragon in 1501. Their marriage lasted less than six months before Arthur died of an unknown illness in 1502. Whether or not it was actually consummated is a riddle for the ages - but the couple failed to conceive either way, and a papal dispensation was secured for her to marry Henry, which she eventually did in 1509. But if Arthur lives, who would the Duke of York marry instead, and when?
On AH.com, the old chestnut that Henry VII was preparing his younger (and, after 1500, only other living) son for a Church career - leading, inevitably, to a bishopric and then a Cardinalate, because nobody can resist the irony of Henry VIII subservient to the Pope like that - when he doesn't become the Pope himself (as Adrian VI or VII) for double irony score - is a frequent scenario. However, it's unlikely that his father would have done that - it was rare for the (legitimate) sons of English Kings to join the priesthood, and there's some evidence that Henry VII was in marriage negotiations for his younger son, although I'm not sure if these predate the death of Arthur in 1502.
Likewise, the most common name bandied about as Henry VIII's alternate spouse is Eleanor of Austria, Charles V's older sister (who IOTL married Manuel I of Portugal and then Francis I of France, and whose only surviving issue, Maria of Portugal, died unmarried). Apparently the two were betrothed (or as good as) for a time before Henry decided to marry Catherine, at least according to the venerable Wikipedia. But I must imagine that would be contingent on Henry being the Heir Apparent, especially since she married two regnant Kings IOTL. If he's just the Duke of York and probably not even Heir Presumptive after his father dies, would he still be as attractive a match?
As further rebuttal against Eleanor as a potential wife, I'll quote this post I encountered as I was searching the forums:
Another potential candidate from OTL is Marguerite of Angoulême, whose mother sought to marry her to Henry "when she was ten" (in 1502), by which time he might have already been the Heir Apparent - and she was the only legitimate sister of the Heir Presumptive to the French throne. Despite this, her first marriage was "only" to the Duke of Alençon, the next Prince of the Blood after Francis (after he died, though, she did marry a King... of Navarre, a de facto French vassal since 1512).
Is there anyone else who hasn't been considered? An unmentioned English aristocrat or gentlewoman, perhaps? (He did marry four of those IOTL, after all.)
And what about Henry VII? Yes, he dithered and dallied in getting his son (or himself!) married after Arthur and then Elizabeth of York died, but most reports indicate that the deaths of his son and heir, and then his wife (whom he had obviously grown to love despite the marriage having been purely political) devastated him emotionally, and that he was quite a different man - and King - afterwards. Consider that the Henry VII whose wife and heir were still alive had his first son married at the age of 15 (and was apparently willing to do it sooner, but Ferdinand and Isabella kept putting it off) and his first daughter wed even younger, at 13 (the Treaty of Perpetual Peace which arranged this marriage was signed just months before Arthur died). It therefore strikes me as more likely, counter-intuitively enough, that Henry VII would get his second son married before his death ITTL, despite there being far less urgency for him to do so. Even if Henry VII keeps putting it off, I see no reason why Arthur wouldn't arrange something for his brother as soon as possible after their father dies (Arthur and Henry were apparently quite close as children, and no doubt the Duke of York would be pushing for a wife).
A couple of miscellaneous assumptions, should Arthur remain alive:
Arthur and Catherine will very likely conceive and have (surviving?) issue before Henry VII dies. A high-placed betrothal for the Duke of York becomes less likely as Arthur sires more healthy children. Comparing the fecundity of the bride and groom to their siblings, parents, aunts, and uncles, the pair are likely to first conceive no later than 1504.
Although the combination of being spared the devastation of losing her son and the decreased need for more children could well spare Elizabeth of York from her OTL death in childbirth, her days might be numbered anyway: of Edward IV's seven daughters, four died between the ages of 36 and 38 IOTL, including Elizabeth, who died on her 37th birthday. Only one of them, Catherine, lived longer, dying at age 48. So it's possible - even likely - that Elizabeth predeceases Henry, and that anyone he subsequently approaches for betrothal will be far more interested in affiancing their daughters (or sisters, etc.) to him, and might refuse to even consider his second son as an alternative.
Those are just my ideas, and they might not even be very good ones. So now I open the thread to you:
Who might Henry Tudor, Duke of York marry? When? And what benefit would the match bring England, or at least him personally?
On AH.com, the old chestnut that Henry VII was preparing his younger (and, after 1500, only other living) son for a Church career - leading, inevitably, to a bishopric and then a Cardinalate, because nobody can resist the irony of Henry VIII subservient to the Pope like that - when he doesn't become the Pope himself (as Adrian VI or VII) for double irony score - is a frequent scenario. However, it's unlikely that his father would have done that - it was rare for the (legitimate) sons of English Kings to join the priesthood, and there's some evidence that Henry VII was in marriage negotiations for his younger son, although I'm not sure if these predate the death of Arthur in 1502.
Likewise, the most common name bandied about as Henry VIII's alternate spouse is Eleanor of Austria, Charles V's older sister (who IOTL married Manuel I of Portugal and then Francis I of France, and whose only surviving issue, Maria of Portugal, died unmarried). Apparently the two were betrothed (or as good as) for a time before Henry decided to marry Catherine, at least according to the venerable Wikipedia. But I must imagine that would be contingent on Henry being the Heir Apparent, especially since she married two regnant Kings IOTL. If he's just the Duke of York and probably not even Heir Presumptive after his father dies, would he still be as attractive a match?
As further rebuttal against Eleanor as a potential wife, I'll quote this post I encountered as I was searching the forums:
Eleanor of Austria would be far too grand an alliance for Henry. Catherine's influence with her family was negligible. Possible marriage partners suited to his station and prospects:
- Bona Sforza (providing him with the duchy of Bari and the possibility of becoming a neutral Duke of Milan)
- Infanta Julia of Naples, a cousin of King Ferdinand, OTL married off to the Marquis of Montferrat I think
- Margaret Courtenay, his first cousin, granddaughter of King Edward IV
- Elizabeth Grey, Viscountess Lisle, one of the few heiresses around at the time
- the Infanta Anne of Navarre, or one of her many sisters, daughters of Queen Catherine III
- Maria, Duchess of Julich-Berg, a rich German heiress, mother of Henry's OTL wife Anne of Cleves.
Another potential candidate from OTL is Marguerite of Angoulême, whose mother sought to marry her to Henry "when she was ten" (in 1502), by which time he might have already been the Heir Apparent - and she was the only legitimate sister of the Heir Presumptive to the French throne. Despite this, her first marriage was "only" to the Duke of Alençon, the next Prince of the Blood after Francis (after he died, though, she did marry a King... of Navarre, a de facto French vassal since 1512).
Is there anyone else who hasn't been considered? An unmentioned English aristocrat or gentlewoman, perhaps? (He did marry four of those IOTL, after all.)
And what about Henry VII? Yes, he dithered and dallied in getting his son (or himself!) married after Arthur and then Elizabeth of York died, but most reports indicate that the deaths of his son and heir, and then his wife (whom he had obviously grown to love despite the marriage having been purely political) devastated him emotionally, and that he was quite a different man - and King - afterwards. Consider that the Henry VII whose wife and heir were still alive had his first son married at the age of 15 (and was apparently willing to do it sooner, but Ferdinand and Isabella kept putting it off) and his first daughter wed even younger, at 13 (the Treaty of Perpetual Peace which arranged this marriage was signed just months before Arthur died). It therefore strikes me as more likely, counter-intuitively enough, that Henry VII would get his second son married before his death ITTL, despite there being far less urgency for him to do so. Even if Henry VII keeps putting it off, I see no reason why Arthur wouldn't arrange something for his brother as soon as possible after their father dies (Arthur and Henry were apparently quite close as children, and no doubt the Duke of York would be pushing for a wife).
A couple of miscellaneous assumptions, should Arthur remain alive:
Arthur and Catherine will very likely conceive and have (surviving?) issue before Henry VII dies. A high-placed betrothal for the Duke of York becomes less likely as Arthur sires more healthy children. Comparing the fecundity of the bride and groom to their siblings, parents, aunts, and uncles, the pair are likely to first conceive no later than 1504.
Although the combination of being spared the devastation of losing her son and the decreased need for more children could well spare Elizabeth of York from her OTL death in childbirth, her days might be numbered anyway: of Edward IV's seven daughters, four died between the ages of 36 and 38 IOTL, including Elizabeth, who died on her 37th birthday. Only one of them, Catherine, lived longer, dying at age 48. So it's possible - even likely - that Elizabeth predeceases Henry, and that anyone he subsequently approaches for betrothal will be far more interested in affiancing their daughters (or sisters, etc.) to him, and might refuse to even consider his second son as an alternative.
Those are just my ideas, and they might not even be very good ones. So now I open the thread to you:
Who might Henry Tudor, Duke of York marry? When? And what benefit would the match bring England, or at least him personally?