An Imperial Match: Anne Boleyn marries Charles V
- Thread starter pandizzy
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Well, someone has to read it for me to describe the contents, but let's just say: it's quite controversial.
2nd of October, 1530.
Madrid, Castile. 2nd of October, 1530.
Anne rubbed her hands together as she sat down, wanting to seem calm and collected as she began to pen the letter to her brother-in-law. Brother-in-law? He was the husband of her sister-in-law and yet she had no idea what to properly call him. Did it matter? She wanted to seem familiar to him, let him know that she was an equal to him.
Though not really. Ugh, this was a disaster. Anne pressed her fingers to her head, too nervous to even process her thoughts properly. The hood was giving her a headache, but she was with her ladies and could not afford to show any sense of intimacy or lack of decorum before them.
Especially Catalina de Toledo. Anne had a bad feeling about her, that she was not as loyal as she pretended, though she could do nothing without an outright reason.
When she opened her eyes again, Anne picked up her quill and dipped it in the pot of ink. Her fingers were trembling, and she feared her writing would look sloppy were she not to calm herself. Anne took a deep breath in. She was an Empress. The Empress. She should not fear the little King of Portugal, even if he was the richest man in Europe, with a navy large enough to threaten all of Charles' dominions themselves.
Portugal could stand alone, but she could not.
When she was satisfied with the steadiness of her hand, Anne began to write.
To my cousin in Lisbon,
It has come to my attention that King Henry has sent back the people that made up the suite of Queen Isabella, your royal sister. Of course, the King has allowed Her Majesty’s confessor to remain and this was, or so I hear, only after much begging from her part.
Thus, I feel as if it is my duty as Empress to lend a helping hand for Your Majesty. Due to the issues in Portugal, and the complete household of the Queen, my dear sister, I invite the Portuguese that have returned from England to join the household of my dear, Infanta María, so that they may mould her into the perfect wife for Prince Afonso.
The Infanta is a young child of six who is very well behaved, precocious and gentle. She is eager to be recognized as an older child and will be more than happy to receive her own household, separate from that of her younger sisters. Thus, I forward the invitation to the Donas Leonor and Margarida, either of whom would serve wonderfully as governess to my daughter.
I await your letter eagerly.
Anne, the Empress.
When she finished the letter, Anne spread some sand on it to dry. Her mother came to take the letter away to seal it and she smiled at her in thanks. It was clear that Lady Elizabeth had seen the dark bags under her eyes, the exhaustion that seemed to weigh her down. The letter to King João was not the first she had penned in that hour, nor the last. Though she took a quick break to drink wine and relieve herself, Anne had been into her duties for hours.
Algiers had been taken from the infidels, but there was much to be done about the city. She had assigned Juan de Zúñiga to rule the city in the name of her husband. That ought to have relieved some of the pressure on her, but Anne, for some reason, wanted to be aware of what was happening there. She wanted to know everything and she never let herself rest.
Maybe it was fear. A deep and cold hand closing around her heart, making her think that she had to be a success, but surely she had succeeded in retaking Algiers, hadn’t she?
Barbarossa was dead, but his brother had fled to the Sultan’s court. They would soon attempt to take the city, which was an important holding to have in the Mediterranean. And she could not rest. She couldn’t.
She was scared and she knew exactly what was the solution for it. Anne took her quill once again and dipped the tip in ink, before scratching the paper again.
My dear and beloved husband,
I write to you once more, asking for your return to these Spanish kingdoms that you trusted me to rule in your name. You have been gone for far too long and your children miss you. I miss you.
Here, you have a child who has never seen you, our daughter Margarita. She's one now and can walk and talk. Her hair is dark like mine, her eyes are like mine as is her skin, but she reminds me so much of you.
The Infanta longs for your return, as do our other children who are with me. When will you come back to my loving arms, my lord?
Please. I love you.
Your loving wife, Anne.
She spread sand across the paper and soon enough, her mother came to take it away to seal and send off with her other mail.
I love getting to see how Anne is handling being in charge! (I think she’s doing beautifully)
Oh Anne has done so well in helping Charles as his regent, but I do truly hope that he listens to her and returns home, his people need him, their children need him, and most of all she needs him. Lovely chapter!
She's definitely shown herself to be well capable of managing the realm in his absence.
Yeah.
And not just his people need him - he needs them. Spain, after all, being one of his major centres of power - if it can't be stable and secure, then...
Absolutely.
Oh, very much so...
To be honest, I think Henry is never going to "forgive" Isabella for this (and I say forgive in quotations since she has nothing to be forgiven for). She insisted on the Portuguese, so next time she opens her mouth to say something, he can do "ah ah ah, remember Teddy died because you opened your mouth and insisted on a Portuguese Governess and now he's dead, remember? Your fault. Hmm! Hmm! Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!" to shut her up.
Whatever influence she had is dead in the water.
Whatever influence she had is dead in the water.
And, if they do have anymore Kids and it's not a boy, Henry is really going to blame her. "See? God gives us another daughter to punish you for your failure in killing Teddy."
I really like the Isabella’s Portuguese household ending up as Maria’s household. Though I wonder if their time in England will make them more or less likely to like Anne?
Also, did Isabella (or other foreign queens) really have thousand or more countrymen as attendants? It makes sense to ladies in waiting and groomsmen and such but I can’t see that adding up to more than a couple hundred.
Also, did Isabella (or other foreign queens) really have thousand or more countrymen as attendants? It makes sense to ladies in waiting and groomsmen and such but I can’t see that adding up to more than a couple hundred.
Well, of course. They will be familiar to where she came from, and certainly able to speak in english!
I based the number on Marie de' Medici's suite, which considered of over 2000 people, since I figured being an infanta of Portugal would be just as splendid as Maria's. I did read something about the number of people Isabella brought to Spain, which was around the thousands, considering they were guards, laundresses, servants, cooks, etc, etc.
Always a good way to start a friendship.And they can bond over Henry’s dislike
15th of October, 1530.
Stirling Castle, Scotland. 15th of October, 1530.
"Father Alexander is here, Your Grace," one of her ladies whispered in her ear.
Anna nodded, setting her book down. She adjusted in her high seat, the golden canopy over her telling of her royal status as the Queen of Scotland, and looked at her maid to let the man in. She had sent off a rider to Edinburgh, the seat of government, requesting his presence only a few hours before and she was not at all surprised to see him respond to her summons so quickly.
She had been living at Stirling with her household since she arrived in Scotland a year before, as Edinburgh was practically flooded with members of the government. Her husband had grown up in Stirling and had great memories of it, which was why it was decided that she would take up her residence there.
Her husband was busy with constructing new wings and redoing some of the old ones, though Anna was lucky enough that the royal apartments were done already. She found them quite beautiful and comfortable, and she enjoyed riding through the grounds and visiting the city and villages around it. There was so much to learn with the common people and she thought that, though she was not yet proficient with the language, she could understand them quite well.
Anna enjoyed charity. It made her feel lighter, more at ease. She was sure Father Alexander imagined she would talk to him about her charities, but that was not at all what she intended.
Janet Flemming, her husband’s illegitimate half-sister, placed a chair for the priest. He was tall and lean, with a dark beard speckled with grey, and made a bow for her, as his queen. Anna offered him her hand, her fingers heavy with rings, and he kissed one of them before stepping back and sitting at the chair offered by Lady Flemming.
“Father,” Anna started, placing her two hands over her lap. She was nervous and she turned the ring on her little finger anxiously, trying to gather the courage to say the words that needed to be said, “I asked you here with a request.”
Father Alexander nodded. “Tell me, my queen, and I will serve you to the best of my capabilities.”
Anna took a deep breath.
“I believe myself to have quite the good grasp of the Scottish language, but there is still one sentence that I find myself coming up short,” she said.
"And what is that, Your Majesty?" Alexander Stewart.
Anna bit her lip.
"I wish to know how to tell the King that I am expecting a baby," she said.
The effect of her words was practically instantaneous. Her ladies gasped and Father Alexander leaned back, widening his eyes slightly.
Anna felt triumphant as she looked around, placing her two hands over her belly, which was still rather flat under her stomacher. James, her lord husband, visited her bedchamber thrice a week, dutiful in the making of heirs. She had come to Scotland at fourteen and now, already fifteen, Anna felt comfortable in the knowledge that soon, she would be expecting a baby.
And it hadn't taken long after her birthday for it to come true. Anna could still remember the night she liked to think her son was conceived. James came to her, without having sent a groom to warn her ladies of his visit, with lust in his eyes. He was so passionate that night, so loving. He was insatiable and she had never felt so beautiful. He had kissed her face, her mouth and her hands, whispering, "My Anna, my sweet Anna."
So it was not at all a surprise when, a fortnight later, her courses did not come. Then the nausea and the soreness that grew on her breasts. It was Lady Flemming who first told her of the sign, when another month passed without her blood and she could scarcely hold down anything that did not have large squares of salmon and apples in its making. "My lady, you are with child," said her sister-in-law.
It was about time. Her mother had been sending her letter after letter, giving out tips to conceive and, though the King of Scotland had to be told before the Duchess of Cleves, Anna was happy to finally give her good news. This would not be her first grandchild, even if would practically weep at the news. Sybille, Anna's older sister, already had two. Johann Friedrich and Johann Wilhelm. Since Anna arrived in Scotland and was crowned Queen, her sister had sent her practically weekly letters. It was a good thing to renew the bond of sisterly friendship that had been weakened when her sister left for Saxony.
Maybe, when Anna had a son, she would have enough political power to increase ties with Saxony. Though, James and her mother had warned her clearly not to meddle with politics and she would hate to step a toe out of line.
Either way, Father Alexander recomposed himself and smiled. "This is how one would say it," he murmured, before adding the translation. Anna tried it out a few times, experimenting with the words and Father Alexander and her ladies nodded when she got it right. "And allow me to say, my queen, the most deserving congratulations for this news."
Anna nodded, smiling brightly. "Thank you, Father," she said, "And please allow me to be the one to give the news to my husband. I would rather him not hear it from anyone else but me."
"Of course, Your Majesty," said Father Alexander. After that, Anna dismissed him.
Her ladies began to excitedly talk amongst them, some already leaving to pick out cloths to begin sewing the baby's garments. Anna took deep breaths, unable to hide her smile.
She was smiling right until she looked at Margaret Douglas, Lady Lochleven. The girl, who was around her age, looked sick, as if she could not believe what was going on. Anna's smile died when she saw Margaret touch her stomach, which was also flat.
But not empty.
--
Wulfhall, England. 12th of November, 1530.
Jane entered her family's home with a sigh of relief, feeling the warmth of the manor entering her insides. Maggie and Mary walked in behind her, the former holding Billy's hand as her servants brought their trunks in.
She had barely seen the doors close when her father engulfed her in an embrace, pressing two wet kisses against her cheeks. Jane chuckled when her large belly prevented them from coming closer, but her father stepped back with a smile, placing a hand on her navel, where the baby kicked the strongest.
"Janey," her father said, looking up at her with tears in his eyes, "How joyful I am. You are to make me a grandfather once more."
"Please, father," said Jane. "One can never have too many grandchildren."
"Tell that to your sister-in-law," her father whispered with a grimace. "I have yet to feel her quicken like you, and she married Henry not long after you married William." He let out a wistful breath, shaking his head. "Sometimes, I wonder if she is barren".
"Father, it takes time," said Jane, unwilling to see him look so forlorn, or to admit that her brother would never hold a son of his own blood in his arms. "She is probably not at ease with the family yet. Soon enough, I know we will see a multitude of Seymours running around."
Her father chuckled and stroked her chin. "Only you can cheer me up like that," he said. "Come, you must be tired. Your mother would have my head if she found out I let a woman in your state stand around for too long.”
“In my state?” Jane chuckled, though she still followed her father out into the drawing room, sitting down to relieve her swollen ankles. Maggie and Mary sat beside her, looking around wide-eyed, still shy with strangers. Even if her family had visited plenty of times since they came to live with her and William. Poor girls, they had been through much.
When they were all sitting, and Billy was examining the toys her father had given him, Jane looked to Sir John with a smile.
“Thank you again for letting me have my confinement here,” she said. “It is so difficult to stay at the house with William gone.”
“Gone!” Her father laughed. “You speak as if he has died. Lord Howard is only serving the King in the Low Countries.”
Jane shook her head. She didn’t think her father could possibly understand what she felt for William. He was the foundation in which she had built her life. When he was off to see his brother at court or attend parliament, she could handle being alone, knowing he would soon return. Still, she would never go to sleep without his shirt in her arms. It made her feel safer, somehow.
So when William told her he would have to leave England for the Low Countries, she had been devastated. And to have her father act like it was such a small matter offended her.
“But the King said he may not return until the betrothal of Lady Elizabeth with the Duke of Burgundy is signed,” she answered. “That may take months, or even years!”
“Oh, is Jane complaining about being alone again?” said Elizabeth, walking in the room. Jane felt her good mood ebb away as quickly as it had risen, observing her shameless sister walk in such a manner as if she had nothing to weigh her down. “Sweet sister, if you continue, people will think you are incapable of being away from the Baron.”
“It’s absolutely normal,” her mother said, waltzing in behind Elizabeth. “Oh, in the first five years of my marriage, I could scarcely let your father go to court without missing him terribly. Soon enough, her brood of children will keep her busy enough to barely notice him.”
“Perhaps,” said Jane. She looked at Maggie and Mary, wanting to take them away from her sister’s influence. If what Henry had told her about Elizabeth and Dorothy was true, she could not keep her two charges away from them far enough so that they may not turn their eyes to them in the hopes of regaining the King’s favour.
And to think she will spend the next two months in the same residence as her sister. Oh, what was she thinking?
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