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Anne Boleyn

Born circa 1501*, Anne Boleyn was the daughter of Thomas Boleyn, at this time simply a gentleman of a rising family. The second daughter, her sister Mary Tudor had arrived a year of two prior, and several children, including her only other surviving sibling George, were born in the intervening years. While it has been written that she was, most likely, born at Hever Castle, it seems likely that the Queen of England was born in Norfolk, as the Archbishop of Canterbury, Matthew Parker, claimed she and he hailed from the same area. Thus we can assume Anne was born during a time in which her mother had chosen, perhaps, to stay at her family home while her husband made his fortune.

The youth of the Queen is recorded consistently in documentaries and biographies based off her life, but it is perhaps the least well documented part of her life. Raised partially at the court of Margaret of Austria in Brussels, she travelled to France sometime in 1514, although not with the initial group with the Princess Mary Tudor, who would later marry the Duke of Suffolk. Arriving shortly before Louis XII of France’s death, she was quickly moved into the service of Queen Claude of France**, the wife of the new King, Francis I of France. This would be her home until being recalled to home to England in 1521, during a time which Henry VIII of England was planning to invade France, and diplomatically it was not right for an Englishwoman to serve in that court.

A marriage was to be made between Anne and James Butler, her father’s rival for the Earldom of Ormond, an Irish noble title Thomas Boleyn claimed through the right of his mother. However, Anne did in 1523 attempt a greater match with the future Earl of Northumberland, the man Henry Percy. The product of one of England’s most prestigious lines, the future Earl and his love*** would find their plans foiled and Percy was made to marry the Lady Mary Talbot, a miserable union that would produce no children. Anne, meanwhile, saw the Butler match fall to pieces and no other major moves were made for her marriage at this time. Fast approaching the an age where marriage would be even more difficult to contract, another suitor would have major consequences for the Englishwoman.

It may have been as early as 1524, during her sister’s first pregnancy, that Anne Boleyn was propositioned by the King of England. However, it seems she refused and the first major time we hear of their relationship in 1527, when the King announced his intention to have his marriage to Catherine of Aragon annulled and remarry. While Anne was not explicitly named by the King, their relationship had begun in earnest earlier that year and Henry obtained a dispensation to ensure his relations with her sister would not put the future marriage in jeopardy. However, 6 long years would pass before the marriage took place.

During this time, Anne would survive the Sweating Sickness, face vicious insults and person attacks and, at many points, actual threats made to her. She also had to hold back the King, keeping their relationship celibate to ensure when children did come, they were unquestionably legitimate. Unfortunately, this was not a success idea, but a good one all the same. Anne kept herself a maid up until their secret marriage late in 1532, and thus, at least in her and the King’s mind, kept their children wholly legitimate.

*While some have tried to deny this date in favour of a 1507 date, the timelines do not match up, as neither do the evidence we have. Although, yes, her daughter Cecily later claimed she died at the age of 52, many other pieces of evidence speak against this date. A major piece of evidence supporting the 1501 date is the inscription on her joint tomb with Henry VIII of England, which refers to her as dying at 58. Anne would also be referred to as an “old woman” in 1537, which would have been quite a stretch for a woman just then entering her 30’s. Her time spent as a maid of honour in Brussels in 1513 also brings the 1507 date in suspect, as a maid was meant to be around 12/13 years old, and if the 1507 date is to be believed she would have been 6 at the oldest. The main reason for the confusion, other than the statements made by her youngest daughter, is that her last pregnancy occurred in 1543, when she would have been 42. Many have claimed that the pregnancies line up much better with a 1507 date, as that puts her last child at the age of 36, which is close to the age her rival Catherine of Aragon had her last child. But Anne Boleyn was not Catherine of Aragon, and the fact her sister Mary had children late into the 1530’s and possibly later with her second husband is proof in itself that the notion of having a child in her 40’s is not insane.

**Many have made the claim that, during her time in France, Anne Boleyn may have served Marguerite d’Angouleme, who at this time was the Dowager Duchess of Alençon. And while Anne later claimed a close relationship with Marguerite, the Duchess and later Queen of Navarre never reciprocated her claims of kinship. Thus, it is possible Anne served for a time for Marguerite, but due to her presence in the ladies of Queen Claude at the time that she left France in 1521, it is probable that the position was minor or short lived and that she returned to her usual mistress soon after.
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