Was thinking about Arthuriana, and the interest the Tudor family seems to have had in it, when I remembered two of the Welsh triads (and then looked them up, of course):
Triad 56: Arthur's Three Great Queens:
Gwenhwyfar daughter of Cywryd Gwent,
and Gwenhwyfar daughter of Gwythyr son of Greidiawl,
and Gwenhwyfar daughter of Gogfran the Giant.
Triad 57: And his Three (Principle?) Concubines were these:
Indeg daughter of Garwy the Tall,
and Garwen ("Fair Leg") daughter of Henin the Old,
and Gwyl ("Modest") daughter of Gendawd ("Big Chin").
So, Arthur had three wives, and depending on which copy of the triads you're translating, either three mistresses/concubines, or three favored/principle concubines, and an unknown number of others (the latter seems to be more obscure, though). This is something that would certainly appeal to a randy chap like Henry VIII, and I would say that anyone who knew Henry, and knew those triads, would realize this.
Well, Britain did not have a shortage of eloquent, intellectual men, nor did it have a shortage of Protestants and reformers, and the two groups did coincide a bit. Thus, it would be possible for someone to fake a letter, or a draft thereof, from the High King Artorius to one of the 5th or 6th-century Popes, allegedly responding to criticism from that Pope, and do it well enough that people in that era would consider it genuine. That someone might also be able to write it in such a way as to greatly appeal to the King, if he knew Henry fairly well.
Of course, its also possible that such a letter might have existed, since British history in the Dark Ages is especially dark, but the chances are fairly low.
So, let us say that, in the late 1520s or very early 1530s, a letter is brought to the Court, written on 'clearly old' parchment, in the Latin that was in use in that era, in which Artorius, Rex Britannorum, defends himself and his nation against certain complaints made by the Pope in a letter that was not found (which Pope it is, and thus the date on the letter, depends rather on which Popes would have been most likely to complain):
Firstly, he defends his right to have three wives, and declares that the fact that they all have the same given name is a coincidence, not an attempt at pretending they're all one woman, and defends his right also to have concubines.
Then he defends the Pelagianism of the Celtic Church, and finally, the fact that the bishops in Britain do not really obey the Pope, which he justifies partly by pointing out that since before the time of his grandfather, Rome has done nothing for Britain, and if the lords of Britain do not obey the Emperor of Rome (Odoacer or Theoderic could have been called that, if its after 476, and nearly were, a few times), why should its priests? He also lodges his own complaints of corruption in the Church, which coincide with some complaints leveled against the 16th century Church.
The manner of the letter's writing appeals to Henry, as does its apparent origin, while Anne likes the latter part, but could do without the defense and endorsement of polygamy, for obvious reasons. Mind you, it could lead to Anne keeping her head, and likewise Katherine Howard, if the latter still becomes Henry's mistress, but does not become one of his wives.
Mind you, not so sure Henry would choose to have more than one wife at the same time, but he might - likely not Catherine of Aragon, though, not that she'd agree to such a thing.
Since the letter is from King Arthur, confirmed by the best scholars, it is widely copied, translated, and distributed throughout the land, pleasing some, and quite displeasing others.
So, what effect does this have on the course of history, do you think?
Triad 56: Arthur's Three Great Queens:
Gwenhwyfar daughter of Cywryd Gwent,
and Gwenhwyfar daughter of Gwythyr son of Greidiawl,
and Gwenhwyfar daughter of Gogfran the Giant.
Triad 57: And his Three (Principle?) Concubines were these:
Indeg daughter of Garwy the Tall,
and Garwen ("Fair Leg") daughter of Henin the Old,
and Gwyl ("Modest") daughter of Gendawd ("Big Chin").
So, Arthur had three wives, and depending on which copy of the triads you're translating, either three mistresses/concubines, or three favored/principle concubines, and an unknown number of others (the latter seems to be more obscure, though). This is something that would certainly appeal to a randy chap like Henry VIII, and I would say that anyone who knew Henry, and knew those triads, would realize this.
Well, Britain did not have a shortage of eloquent, intellectual men, nor did it have a shortage of Protestants and reformers, and the two groups did coincide a bit. Thus, it would be possible for someone to fake a letter, or a draft thereof, from the High King Artorius to one of the 5th or 6th-century Popes, allegedly responding to criticism from that Pope, and do it well enough that people in that era would consider it genuine. That someone might also be able to write it in such a way as to greatly appeal to the King, if he knew Henry fairly well.
Of course, its also possible that such a letter might have existed, since British history in the Dark Ages is especially dark, but the chances are fairly low.
So, let us say that, in the late 1520s or very early 1530s, a letter is brought to the Court, written on 'clearly old' parchment, in the Latin that was in use in that era, in which Artorius, Rex Britannorum, defends himself and his nation against certain complaints made by the Pope in a letter that was not found (which Pope it is, and thus the date on the letter, depends rather on which Popes would have been most likely to complain):
Firstly, he defends his right to have three wives, and declares that the fact that they all have the same given name is a coincidence, not an attempt at pretending they're all one woman, and defends his right also to have concubines.
Then he defends the Pelagianism of the Celtic Church, and finally, the fact that the bishops in Britain do not really obey the Pope, which he justifies partly by pointing out that since before the time of his grandfather, Rome has done nothing for Britain, and if the lords of Britain do not obey the Emperor of Rome (Odoacer or Theoderic could have been called that, if its after 476, and nearly were, a few times), why should its priests? He also lodges his own complaints of corruption in the Church, which coincide with some complaints leveled against the 16th century Church.
The manner of the letter's writing appeals to Henry, as does its apparent origin, while Anne likes the latter part, but could do without the defense and endorsement of polygamy, for obvious reasons. Mind you, it could lead to Anne keeping her head, and likewise Katherine Howard, if the latter still becomes Henry's mistress, but does not become one of his wives.
Mind you, not so sure Henry would choose to have more than one wife at the same time, but he might - likely not Catherine of Aragon, though, not that she'd agree to such a thing.
Since the letter is from King Arthur, confirmed by the best scholars, it is widely copied, translated, and distributed throughout the land, pleasing some, and quite displeasing others.
So, what effect does this have on the course of history, do you think?