Anne of Cleves, Duchess of Lorraine

Continuing with my Tudor theme:D

Anne of Cleves' marriage to Henry VIII was dissolved on the grounds that she had been precontracted to Francis of Lorraine (okay, fine, it was the official reason, really Henry, just wanted to be rid of the very plain, German hausfrau - the Flanders' mare/Dutch cow - Cromwell had married him to.)

Now, what if Anne had been married to Francis - not merely precontracted. Would she have made a better duchess of provincial Lorraine than queen for England?

Discuss.
 
And maybe instead of Maria of Austria, Anne's brother, the duke of Cleves can marry Christine of Denmark when his marriage to Jeanne d'Albret is dissolved/annulled.
 
I think her divorce and subsequent wealth/independence made OTL Anne of Cleves into a woman she would never have been if she had remained in Germany, married to some middle-tier prince...I don't think she'd be anything more than a name in genealogies, a historical anecdote.

The issue of religion comes up: weren't the Lorrainers Catholic? I think the Duke of Lorraine would have more to gain from marriage in France or with the Hapsburgs than with a Cleves girl, especially one so closely tied to the Protestant cause (her sister was Electress of Saxony).

To recall her brother marrying Marie of Austria was part of some settlement touching the disputed succession to Guelders - Ferdinand would probably want to benefit his own position in Germany with his daughter as Duchess of Cleves than his niece (especially with so many children of his own to marry off).
 
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