The Bloody Heir
Hello and welcome to my third timeline, and one that I have been cooking for sometime. As the title suggests, this is going to be a "what if Mary Tudor's pregnancy(ies) had been real rather than phantom?" timeline. I'll try to make this be as realistic as possible, though don't be afraid to offer suggestions and insight. Note that obviously this timeline is going to feature some "yikes" and "spicy" events down the line, should I get to certain days/months/years, but I obviously don't condone any certain actions of my depicted historical and alternate historical characters. This is pretty much a pre-emptive disclaimer. Also this is a Bloody Mary timeline, so you probably already assumed this.
This first post contains mostly IOTL stuff as it's mostly the initial POD post. Obviously the ripple effect will be applied to any later posts.
Her choice of husband not been very popular with England however. Whereas foreign queens had been beloved by the nation, her choice of Philip II - made King of Naples ahead of the marriage, had been met with political polarization most unprecedented. Parliament itself was most staunchly against this, claiming to her majesty most 'unfounded' concerns that England would become a subject to the greater Spanish empire, or that the full force of the Spanish inquisition would breach England's shores; it was also widely believed that as her husband, he would potentially hold more authority in England over her. None of the protests from neither parliament nor civilians proved able to prevent the marriage however, though Mary was smart enough to recognize there would need to be a legal compromise; culminating in the Spanish Marriage Treaty of 1554 - which made clear that Philip II would have no decision-making authorities within England itself unless having the queen's explicit consent; it also specified that in the event of the couple having children, said child would be set to inherit the Spanish controlled lowlands. It also made clear that English troops would not be fighting in the ongoing French Wars of Philip's father. While this was no doubt upsetting to the incoming consort, it proved to be the only way their marriage would be tolerated by parliament.
That said, it still wasn't so easy on the fledgling queen. Sir Thomas Wyatt the younger, son of ambassador Sir Thomas Wyatt the Elder, had took it upon himself to gather as many people he could and raise his arm in rebellion against the queen and her incoming marriage - Mary had even received word that they wanted her deposed in favor of her half-sister Elizabeth, the protestant daughter of the king's whore. The rebellion had been brief - rising on the 26th of January and being crushed in early February, though it's impact had been deep. Though she had misgivings about executing a family member and took pity on her as she had been a pawn of those around her, Mary could no longer risk the threat of political factions rallying around her and as such had Lady Jane Grey executed on the 12th of February 1554; her family's involvement in the rebellion being the tipping point in making her majesty suspend it no longer. The queen's half-sister was also vigorously interrogated, though ultimately there was nothing that could implicate her to the rebellion to be found, despite her being placed on the throne being another grave concern of Mary's surrounding this incident. No evidence of treason on Elizabeth's part to be found, Mary simply had no choice but to keep her suspicions subdued.
Nevertheless, with the rebellion crushed Philip was allowed to arrive on England's shores.
From the moment she saw his portrait, Mary was absolutely enamored by her husband. Though never said directly to the queen's face, the 'King jure uxoris' found his new wife to be less than flattering to his eyes and was far less enthusiastic about the union than she. Even so, he did a husband's duty and consummated the marriage not long after first arriving in the isles; it was not an event which he seemed happy to brag about.
When not very long afterwards Mary could feel the very real sensation that she was finally with child, words could not describe how elated Mary was. After her many years suffering through the reigns of both her quarrelsome father and fanatic brother, even being denied the mourning her own beloved mother - the thought of finally delivering a child into the world brought an excitement that hadn't been seen on the aged queen in years. Watching as her belly expanded over the coming months, at times she couldn't help but stare eagerly at it as if she was already looking down on a successfully birthed child. Much like her father, she admittedly hoped for a son - though unlike him, she would happily settle for a daughter. She knew better than to complain about such a thing at her age.
Ironic it was that come February of 1555, the queen remained eagerly awaiting child while the first of soon-to-be many stake burnings took place; repealing the heretical acts of her predecessors with the advise of her husband was an easy decision for her to make. The first men to burn had been protestant clergymen. By the time of April, 16 people had already met their fate by the flames.
Come spring of 1555 the queen had begun her seclusion- staying away from the prying eyes of the court as her due date neared; though she did temporarily release her sister from house arrest in order for her to be a witness to the child's birth. As April had just been about to turn into May, in fact the date was the 30th of April, the Queen had for a moment feared that she had perhaps imagined the entire ordeal - perhaps a cruel trick of Satan or a test from the lord. But it was just as she thought her child wasn't coming that she heard a splash of water on the floor beneath her feet as she stood in the middle of her chambers - which made her stop stone cold in her tracks. Her child was just arriving. Within mere moments the scene within those chambers at Hampton Court turned from peace to anarchy as the intensive labor of childbirth was all that the queen focus on. It was said that her howls and screams could be heard well from outside the chamber doors, and of course they went on for an agonizingly long amount of hours - yet difficult and painful as it was, the queen forced herself through the ordeal. The entire while, her husband remained silent as he waited just outside the room, having kept his promise to remain in England until the child was born. It was just as she arched head back on the pillow in both exhaustion and relief that her ears were graced with the long awaited sound of her firstborn child's cries. She herself practically cried as the sound filled the room, having feared this day would never come.
It didn't take long for the confirmation that her child was indeed, a son. After all, a mere look at his freshly born body was all it took. A smile graced her majesty's face as she looked down upon the newborn prince in her arms - his hollering having since calmed. Looking down at the soft-skinned, innocent child that had miraculously managed to get pushed out of her brought Mary the greatest joy she had felt since the days before her parents' 'divorce'. As Mary was staring lovingly down at her child, she admittedly struggled to part with him even let the wet-nurse hold him - not only did she double check to ensure she was in fact a catholic, but a significant part of her wanted to never part with her son for but a second; so overcome with joy at his mere existence. Nevertheless, she did force herself to relent and allow her son to be properly nursed - she would have done so herself, had it not been for how weak she felt after the entire ordeal and for the concern that with how old she was getting her milk wouldn't be what it used to be anyway.
The birth of the young prince was not a time for celebration to all in England, however. The prime example of course being the protestants, who no longer would be able to simply depose Mary and restore the will of Henry VIII or Edward VI through Elizabeth nor would they be able to simply wait Mary's life out and hope it would all be over so shortly thereafter. While true the boy was but a newborn babe, he was still the legitament child of the reigning queen. Unless one of them pull from their arses a document proving he is a bastard, they would be stuck with the Marian regime.
Mary did not concern herself with the worries of heretics however, she would let the stake sort their troubled souls out. Her immediate concern was instead with the impending christening of her son which was to take place at Winchester Cathedral a mere four days following his birth. Mary had even, though a bit reluctantly, allowed for her half-sister to attend the ceremony. The ceremony itself followed the instructions detailed my Margaret Beaufort to the letter, and it was there and then that the young son of Mary received his name, which Mary had spent the entire four days thinking of. Though she held a certain respect for her father, she did not want to invoke memories of the breaking from communion with Rome in the naming of her heir, and as such he was christened at the cathedral that morning as Philip, Prince of Wales. Her husband of course had no complaints.
No sooner after the christening had been completed did the elder Phillip 'finally' leave the shores of England for those of Spain, thinking of himself having not much else to do in England after having fulfilled his duties as a husband. Mary was disheartened, though the pain from being parted from her 'love' was far overshadowed by the joy the younger Philip instilled into her. With him having proven capable of surviving past his first few days of alive and as of yet showing no sign of severe sickness, perhaps there was hope for the soul of England after all.
OOC: Yes I realize how....ironic (or perhaps that's not the right word), the son's name is given certain events of OTL.. But I decided to go with it because it just felt fitting for her. Also I won't go too much into detail about how she was able to concieve (partially because I sort of don't want to personally), but I do know many of the popular theories about her health during this period. Just accept that in this timeline, despite having health issues, she managed to indeed be with child.
This first post contains mostly IOTL stuff as it's mostly the initial POD post. Obviously the ripple effect will be applied to any later posts.
1553 ~ 1555: THE BLOODY HEIR
The reign of her majesty Mary, Queen of England, Ireland & France had started with great promise throughout all of her realm. After the deposition of the pretender Lady Jane Grey not more than 2 years ago, she had been welcomed by her people as the legitament heir to Henry VIII & Edward VI. While Protestants had feared her rule from the very beginning, Catholics viewed her ascension as both salvation for their nation as well as a return to normalcy after the queen's father and even more radical brother had so thunderously tore England from communion with Rome. After her throne had been secured, came the issue of her marriage. It was no secret to anyone that the queen was virtually an old maid - her 40's were coming towards her like that of a race horse and with them came the threat of menopause, yet she remained both single and childless. For Mary herself, this brought with it the stress that should she die at any point now England would pass to her heretical sister Elizabeth. An event which she would not simply let happen; quite in fact it would be accurate to say that her greatest dream was to undo all that her father and brother had done to pull England away from Catholicism.Her choice of husband not been very popular with England however. Whereas foreign queens had been beloved by the nation, her choice of Philip II - made King of Naples ahead of the marriage, had been met with political polarization most unprecedented. Parliament itself was most staunchly against this, claiming to her majesty most 'unfounded' concerns that England would become a subject to the greater Spanish empire, or that the full force of the Spanish inquisition would breach England's shores; it was also widely believed that as her husband, he would potentially hold more authority in England over her. None of the protests from neither parliament nor civilians proved able to prevent the marriage however, though Mary was smart enough to recognize there would need to be a legal compromise; culminating in the Spanish Marriage Treaty of 1554 - which made clear that Philip II would have no decision-making authorities within England itself unless having the queen's explicit consent; it also specified that in the event of the couple having children, said child would be set to inherit the Spanish controlled lowlands. It also made clear that English troops would not be fighting in the ongoing French Wars of Philip's father. While this was no doubt upsetting to the incoming consort, it proved to be the only way their marriage would be tolerated by parliament.
That said, it still wasn't so easy on the fledgling queen. Sir Thomas Wyatt the younger, son of ambassador Sir Thomas Wyatt the Elder, had took it upon himself to gather as many people he could and raise his arm in rebellion against the queen and her incoming marriage - Mary had even received word that they wanted her deposed in favor of her half-sister Elizabeth, the protestant daughter of the king's whore. The rebellion had been brief - rising on the 26th of January and being crushed in early February, though it's impact had been deep. Though she had misgivings about executing a family member and took pity on her as she had been a pawn of those around her, Mary could no longer risk the threat of political factions rallying around her and as such had Lady Jane Grey executed on the 12th of February 1554; her family's involvement in the rebellion being the tipping point in making her majesty suspend it no longer. The queen's half-sister was also vigorously interrogated, though ultimately there was nothing that could implicate her to the rebellion to be found, despite her being placed on the throne being another grave concern of Mary's surrounding this incident. No evidence of treason on Elizabeth's part to be found, Mary simply had no choice but to keep her suspicions subdued.
Nevertheless, with the rebellion crushed Philip was allowed to arrive on England's shores.
From the moment she saw his portrait, Mary was absolutely enamored by her husband. Though never said directly to the queen's face, the 'King jure uxoris' found his new wife to be less than flattering to his eyes and was far less enthusiastic about the union than she. Even so, he did a husband's duty and consummated the marriage not long after first arriving in the isles; it was not an event which he seemed happy to brag about.
When not very long afterwards Mary could feel the very real sensation that she was finally with child, words could not describe how elated Mary was. After her many years suffering through the reigns of both her quarrelsome father and fanatic brother, even being denied the mourning her own beloved mother - the thought of finally delivering a child into the world brought an excitement that hadn't been seen on the aged queen in years. Watching as her belly expanded over the coming months, at times she couldn't help but stare eagerly at it as if she was already looking down on a successfully birthed child. Much like her father, she admittedly hoped for a son - though unlike him, she would happily settle for a daughter. She knew better than to complain about such a thing at her age.
Ironic it was that come February of 1555, the queen remained eagerly awaiting child while the first of soon-to-be many stake burnings took place; repealing the heretical acts of her predecessors with the advise of her husband was an easy decision for her to make. The first men to burn had been protestant clergymen. By the time of April, 16 people had already met their fate by the flames.
Come spring of 1555 the queen had begun her seclusion- staying away from the prying eyes of the court as her due date neared; though she did temporarily release her sister from house arrest in order for her to be a witness to the child's birth. As April had just been about to turn into May, in fact the date was the 30th of April, the Queen had for a moment feared that she had perhaps imagined the entire ordeal - perhaps a cruel trick of Satan or a test from the lord. But it was just as she thought her child wasn't coming that she heard a splash of water on the floor beneath her feet as she stood in the middle of her chambers - which made her stop stone cold in her tracks. Her child was just arriving. Within mere moments the scene within those chambers at Hampton Court turned from peace to anarchy as the intensive labor of childbirth was all that the queen focus on. It was said that her howls and screams could be heard well from outside the chamber doors, and of course they went on for an agonizingly long amount of hours - yet difficult and painful as it was, the queen forced herself through the ordeal. The entire while, her husband remained silent as he waited just outside the room, having kept his promise to remain in England until the child was born. It was just as she arched head back on the pillow in both exhaustion and relief that her ears were graced with the long awaited sound of her firstborn child's cries. She herself practically cried as the sound filled the room, having feared this day would never come.
It didn't take long for the confirmation that her child was indeed, a son. After all, a mere look at his freshly born body was all it took. A smile graced her majesty's face as she looked down upon the newborn prince in her arms - his hollering having since calmed. Looking down at the soft-skinned, innocent child that had miraculously managed to get pushed out of her brought Mary the greatest joy she had felt since the days before her parents' 'divorce'. As Mary was staring lovingly down at her child, she admittedly struggled to part with him even let the wet-nurse hold him - not only did she double check to ensure she was in fact a catholic, but a significant part of her wanted to never part with her son for but a second; so overcome with joy at his mere existence. Nevertheless, she did force herself to relent and allow her son to be properly nursed - she would have done so herself, had it not been for how weak she felt after the entire ordeal and for the concern that with how old she was getting her milk wouldn't be what it used to be anyway.
The birth of the young prince was not a time for celebration to all in England, however. The prime example of course being the protestants, who no longer would be able to simply depose Mary and restore the will of Henry VIII or Edward VI through Elizabeth nor would they be able to simply wait Mary's life out and hope it would all be over so shortly thereafter. While true the boy was but a newborn babe, he was still the legitament child of the reigning queen. Unless one of them pull from their arses a document proving he is a bastard, they would be stuck with the Marian regime.
Mary did not concern herself with the worries of heretics however, she would let the stake sort their troubled souls out. Her immediate concern was instead with the impending christening of her son which was to take place at Winchester Cathedral a mere four days following his birth. Mary had even, though a bit reluctantly, allowed for her half-sister to attend the ceremony. The ceremony itself followed the instructions detailed my Margaret Beaufort to the letter, and it was there and then that the young son of Mary received his name, which Mary had spent the entire four days thinking of. Though she held a certain respect for her father, she did not want to invoke memories of the breaking from communion with Rome in the naming of her heir, and as such he was christened at the cathedral that morning as Philip, Prince of Wales. Her husband of course had no complaints.
No sooner after the christening had been completed did the elder Phillip 'finally' leave the shores of England for those of Spain, thinking of himself having not much else to do in England after having fulfilled his duties as a husband. Mary was disheartened, though the pain from being parted from her 'love' was far overshadowed by the joy the younger Philip instilled into her. With him having proven capable of surviving past his first few days of alive and as of yet showing no sign of severe sickness, perhaps there was hope for the soul of England after all.
OOC: Yes I realize how....ironic (or perhaps that's not the right word), the son's name is given certain events of OTL.. But I decided to go with it because it just felt fitting for her. Also I won't go too much into detail about how she was able to concieve (partially because I sort of don't want to personally), but I do know many of the popular theories about her health during this period. Just accept that in this timeline, despite having health issues, she managed to indeed be with child.
