WI: Elizabeth of York died much younger?

10th of May, 1526 - 9th of March, 1541

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William Tudor, Duke of Somerset (b.1493: d.1527)

The death of the Duke of Somerset in 1527, left the royal court in shambles. The Lord, who had been Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and Warden of the Scottish Marshes, along with over 20 other major and minor positions, had acted as the kingdom's military commander for over a decade at this point and would be known as a great knight and strategist. Aged only 34, the Duke had died of a heart attack during sword training, which was unexpected for the generally healthy man. His wife, now the Dowager Duchess of Somerset Elizabeth Stewart, would give birth early the next year to their final child, a second daughter that was named Margaret Tudor of Somerset. The Dowager Duchess, upon returning from her confinement, found herself marginalized by the royal court due to her Scottish heritage. Without the protection of her highly popular husband, the awkward and pale Scottish Princess withdrew from the public life completely, taking her daughters with her to Eltham Palace. Her son, unfortunately, would stay in the household of the Duke of York and became a ward of the King, although he did not do her the dishonour of stealing her dower.

The Queen of Scots, in the household of her future sisters-in-law, found the entirety of her situation bewildering. Having lost both her parents so quickly (one to the battlefield and one to marriage), been told she was to be married and be Queen of England. Having seemingly accepted this, Joan Stewart found herself both better treated than the Tudor Princesses and stifled. She wore elaborate, expensive gowns and had come to an age in what she could appreciate them, entering adolescence, but found her education lacking and in 1530 would send the King requests for better tutors to match her own advancing intellectualism. However, her needs would, in this regard, not really be met until her marriage in 1532, aged 16. However, it seen became obvious to everyone the Prince of Wales was more than just uninterested in his Scottish bride. He actively despised the Queen of Scots.

The young man, now entering his 20s, was a man who had grown up with an atmosphere of hate about the Scots. He despised the King of Scots who had wounded his uncle and attacked his father's kingdom. The Prince of Wales also seemed to have a cold relationship with his aunt, finding the Dowager Duchess of Somerset to be an unwelcome presence in his court when she visited, although he did recognize that she was family and thus would be at least polite in her presence. However, his attitude to his Princess of Wales early in their marriage was considered nasty even by his father, who in 1534 ordered the Prince to treat the Queen with more respect. However, he did not and despite impregnating two mistresses in these early years of his marriage, the Prince did not produce an heir with his bride. Indeed, she claimed to have been untouched, writing to the King complaining that, if her husband continued to refuse to do his husbandly duties, she would have to find another husband instead. And thus, in 1536, the King found himself ambushed by the Queen of Scots, who demanded an annulment from the Prince of Wales.

She did accommodate him on her next husband. Agreeing to marry a man of his choosing, she was not surprised to learn that he wished her to marry the Duke of York, only 2 years her senior and not nearly as prejudiced. In fact, it seems some form of silly romance had begun between the two and upon Papal dispensation in 1538 the two were married. Thus, the Prince of Wales was suddenly an available husband and the King searched for a rich bride. He considered the Princesses of Austria, Portugal and Spain, but his plans were ultimately foiled by the Prince's sudden, secret marriage to none other than his cousin, the Lady Margaret Howard. Born in 1519 as the eldest daughter of the Earl of Surrey, the son of the recently (in 1517) re-endowed Duke of Norfolk and son of Catherine of York, William Howard, the lady in question was known for her beauty and extremely foul-mouth. In fact, the normally demure and quiet Dowager Duchess of Somerset was to have called her "a great burden of a woman" and the Queen of England, Germaine de Foix, less known for her sweet character, was to call her in letters "my son's wife, the Prostitute of Wales".

While not actually a courtesan of any nature, the new Princess of Wales was a brash young woman with a talent to make every person in the room hate her immediately. She would call the Queen, known for her vanity, "old and worn" to her face in 1539 and in 1540 earnt the distaste of the Lady Yolande of Somerset by calling her "heavy and unattractive". While neither of these descriptions were wrong (in particular, the Lady Yolande would be 460 pounds at her death), they ignored the preferred arrangement of the court. Compliments and honeyed words were the norm, not rudeness. However, protected by her husband who adored her, the Princess of Wales spent much of her early marriage in a bubble where her every word was laughed at. Ultimately, this freedom would not last.
 
Henry VII of England (b.1457) m. Elizabeth of York (b.1466: d.1486) (a), Joanna of Portugal (b.1452: d.1490) (b), Yolande of Lorraine (b.1462) (c)

1a) Arthur Tudor, Prince of Wales (b.1486: d.1502)

2a) Henry VIII of England (b.1491) m. Magdalena of Navarre (b.1494: d.1518) (a), Germaine de Foix (b.1488) (b)

1a) Henry Tudor, Prince of Wales (b.1511) m. Joan I of Scotland (b.1516) (a) -annulled 1537-, Margaret Howard (b.1519) (b)

1a) Henry Tudor of Wales (b.1540)​

2a) Stillborn Daughter (c.1512)

3a) Edmund Tudor, Duke of York (b.1514) m. Joan I of Scotland (b.1516) (a)

4a) Mary Tudor (b.1518)

5b) Catherine Tudor (b.1521)​
3a) William Tudor, Duke of Somerset (b.1493) m. Elizabeth Stewart (b.1498) (a)

1a) Yolande of Somerset (b.1520)

2a) Edward of Somerset (b.1523)

3a) Margaret of Somerset (b.1528)​
4a) Margaret Tudor (b.1494: d.1495)

5a) Edmund Tudor (b.1496: d.1496)

6a) Elizabeth Tudor (b.1498) m. James V of Scotland (b.1495: d.1518) (a), Francis I of France (b.1494) (a)

1a) Stillborn Daughter (c.1510)

2a) Joan I of Scotland (c.1516) m. Henry Tudor, Prince of Wales (b.1511) (a) -annulled in 1537-, Edmund Tudor, Duke of York (b.1514) (b)

3a) Miscarriage (c.1518)

4b) Louis de Valois, Duke of Berry (b.1527)

5b) Stillborn Daughter (c.1531)​
James IV of Scotland (b.1473: d.1508) m. Anne of York (b.1475: d.1512) (a)

1a) James V of Scotland (b.1495: d.1518) m. Elizabeth Tudor (b.1498)

1a) Stillborn Daughter (c.1510)

2a) Joan I of Scotland (b.1516) m. Henry Tudor, Prince of Wales (b.1511) (a) -annulled in 1537-, Edmund Tudor, Duke of York (b.1514) (b)

3a) Miscarriage (c.1518)​
2a) Elizabeth Stewart (b.1498) m. William Tudor, Duke of Somerset (b.1493) (a)

1a) Yolande of Somerset (b.1520)

2a) Edward of Somerset (b.1523)

3a) Margaret of Somerset (b.1528)​
3a) Stillborn Son (c.1501)​
 
Strange that Yolande has managed children here, whereas her OTL match with the Landgrave of Hesse was childless. Would've thought that France would rather postpone or cancel the marriage of Jeanne d'Angoulême - I mean after all, how does the Comte de Taillebourg compare to being the wife of the king of England? Still, this makes for an interesting POD
 
10th of March, 1541 - 2nd of June, 1551

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Germaine de Foix (b.1488: d.1541)

The death of the King's second wife in May of 1541 was a blow to Henry VIII of England. Germaine de Foix had been, in many ways, the greatest love of the King's life and she was honoured by a grand funeral and placed in the tomb the King had had built in 1520, originally for himself and Magdalena of Navarre. However, the King had a second figure built on his left side, depicting his second Queen. Having inferred a second Queen to the grave, the King resisted the attempts by the court to have him remarry, eventually sending 4 women from court in an effort to prevent being continually hounded for "romantic meetings". As the court found out, the King was a traditionalist when it came to marriage and expected, if any bride, a royal one.

His son, meanwhile, continued to enjoy life in the North with his bride, welcoming not only his son Henry the previous year, but two daughters in 1541 and 1542 (Catherine and Anne), but a second son in 1544 (Edward Tudor). All healthy and beautiful, they contrasted with his previous bride, who would undergo her first pregnancy in 1543, giving birth to a sickly daughter, named Elizabeth. However, this child was not long for this world and in 1544 she would die, to the despair of the Queen of Scots. However, in 1545 the Queen, with her husband, would visit Scotland, taking her proper place in Edinburgh. This arrangement, with his son on the throne, suited the King well, and in 1542 his elder daughter, the Princess Mary, was married to the Earl of Arran as had been hinted at so many times over the past decade. The Earl had first made his case for the Princess in 1531, forsaking a match with the Lady Margaret Douglas, a Scottish noblewoman. However, the King at the time was considering a match with the future Duke of Cleves and thus kept the match with a Scottish Earl on the backburner, although he did not completely burn the bride, due to the Earl's position as next heir to the Scottish Throne after his daughter-in-law. The match with Cleves had fallen through, as had one with a son of the French King. In 1537 he attempted a match between the Princess and the Prince of Asturias, which was met with a firm no. Thus, the King found himself agreeing, finally, to the Scottish match.

As for the King's nieces, the Lady Yolande of Somerset married in 1544 Edmund Kymbe, the second son of Sir Thomas Kymbe and Elizabeth Howard. Favoured by the King, the Lady of Somerset was granted, for her husband, the title of Earl of Suffolk, and in 1548 the Earl was raised to a Duke. The second of his nieces, the Lady Margaret of Somerset, was married in 1546 to the eldest son of the Earl of Ormond, William Boleyn. His father had been in high favour of the King since the late 1510's and in 1521, after despute over the title of Earl of Ormond had arisen, the King had favoured the diplomat and in 1522 had allowed him to marry the Lady Yolande Braye, sister to the Baroness Cobham. The Earl of Ormond had definitely had a wife in 1502, a merchant's daughter sometimes referred to as Janet or Jane Haydon in historical texts, but the union had left no children and in 1518 it was recorded he was not married, so she most likely died in the early 1510's. His second match was much higher and his son's union to the niece of the King was a definite triumph, along with his second son's rise to Viscount Rochford in 1547 and marriage to the Princess of Wales' sister, Catherine Howard (b.1523). The Boleyns, while never key players at the court, were definitely important and would continue their prominence over the next decade.

The birth, in 1548, of a healthy daughter to the Queen of Scotland was seen by many as a miracle. Repeatedly rumoured to be barren, particularly after her first pregnancy, the new daughter, named Mary Tudor, was proclaimed as a miracle child and was the next Queen of Scotland. The King in England rejoiced that his line would sit the throne and the Duke of York, having been until recently unhappy in the marriage, found solace that he was not infertile. However, Edmund Tudor was not a well man and in 1549 he succumbed to Sweating Sickness, leaving the Queen once again unmarried. With her daughter she had an heir, but it was not enough. In 1551 the Queen of Scotland married to the German Prince Johann Wilhelm of Saxony, 14 years her junior.
 
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Henry VII of England (b.1457) m. Elizabeth of York (b.1466: d.1486) (a), Joanna of Portugal (b.1452: d.1490) (b), Yolande of Lorraine (b.1462) (c)

1a) Arthur Tudor, Prince of Wales (b.1486: d.1502)

2a) Henry VIII of England (b.1491) m. Magdalena of Navarre (b.1494: d.1518) (a), Germaine de Foix (b.1488: d.1541) (b)

1a) Henry Tudor, Prince of Wales (b.1511) m. Joan I of Scotland (b.1516) (a) -annulled 1537-, Margaret Howard (b.1519) (b)

1a) Henry Tudor of Wales (b.1540)

2a) Catherine Tudor of Wales (b.1541)

3a) Anne Tudor of Wales (b.1542)

4a) Edward Tudor of Wales (b.1544)

5a) Thomas Tudor of Wales (b.1546)

6a) William Tudor of Wales (b.1547)

7a) Elizabeth Tudor of Wales (b.1550)​

2a) Stillborn Daughter (c.1512)

3a) Edmund Tudor, Duke of York (b.1514: d.1549) m. Joan I of Scotland (b.1516) (a)

1a) Elizabeth Tudor (b.1543: d.1544)

2a) Mary Tudor (b.1548)​

4a) Mary Tudor (b.1518) m. James Hamilton, Earl of Arran (b.1516) (a)

1a) Henry Hamilton (b.1542)

2a) James Hamilton (b.1546)

3a) Arthur Hamilton (b.1550)​

5b) Catherine Tudor (b.1521)
3a) William Tudor, Duke of Somerset (b.1493: d.1527) m. Elizabeth Stewart (b.1498) (a)

1a) Yolande of Somerset (b.1520) m. Edmund Kymbe, Duke of Suffolk (b.1503) (a)

1a) Margaret Kymbe (b.1545)

2a) Eleanor Kymbe (b.1546: d.1546)

3a) John Kymbe (b.1547)

4a) Catherine Kymbe (b.1549: d.1550)

5a) Penelope Kymbe (b.1551)​

2a) Edward Tudor, 2nd Duke of Somerset (b.1523)

3a) Margaret of Somerset (b.1528) m. Lord William Boleyn (b.1524) (a)

1a) Elizabeth Boleyn (b.1547)

2a) Henry Boleyn (b.1548)

3a) Yolande Boleyn (b.1551)​

4a) Margaret Tudor (b.1494: d.1495)

5a) Edmund Tudor (b.1496: d.1496)

6a) Elizabeth Tudor (b.1498) m. James V of Scotland (b.1495: d.1518) (a), Francis I of France (b.1494) (a)

1a) Stillborn Daughter (c.1510)

2a) Joan I of Scotland (c.1516) m. Henry Tudor, Prince of Wales (b.1511) (a) -annulled in 1537-, Edmund Tudor, Duke of York (b.1514: d.1549) (b), Johann Wilhelm of Saxony (b.1530) (c)

1b) Elizabeth Tudor (b.1543: d.1544)

2b) Mary Tudor (b.1548)​

3a) Miscarriage (c.1518)

4b) Louis de Valois, Duke of Berry (b.1527)

5b) Stillborn Daughter (c.1531)​
James IV of Scotland (b.1473: d.1508) m. Anne of York (b.1475: d.1512) (a)

1a) James V of Scotland (b.1495: d.1518) m. Elizabeth Tudor (b.1498)

1a) Stillborn Daughter (c.1510)

2a) Joan I of Scotland (b.1516) m. Henry Tudor, Prince of Wales (b.1511) (a) -annulled in 1537-, Edmund Tudor, Duke of York (b.1514: d.1549) (b), Johann Wilhelm of Saxony (b.1530) (c)

1b) Elizabeth Tudor (b.1543: d.1544)

2b) Mary Tudor (b.1548)​

3a) Miscarriage (c.1518)​

2a) Elizabeth Stewart (b.1498) m. William Tudor, Duke of Somerset (b.1493: d.1527) (a)

1a) Yolande of Somerset (b.1520) m. Edmund Kymbe, Duke of Suffolk (b.1503) (a)
1a) Margaret Kymbe (b.1545)

2a) Eleanor Kymbe (b.1546: d.1546)

3a) John Kymbe (b.1547)

4a) Catherine Kymbe (b.1549: d.1550)

5a) Penelope Kymbe (b.1551)​

2a) Edward of Somerset (b.1523)

3a) Margaret of Somerset (b.1528) m. Lord William Boleyn (b.1524) (a)

1a) Elizabeth Boleyn (b.1547)

2a) Henry Boleyn (b.1548)

3a) Yolande Boleyn (b.1551)​

3a) Stillborn Son (c.1501)​
 
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