I recently gave a paper at Phi Alpha Theta regional research conference. During my commentary I was asked about Anne's character. Was she too sexual for the time period? Did she indeed destroy the marriage of Henry VIII and Catherine? Well lets just say I was more than prepared for these questions; Anne's character and intentions have been distorted, stretched and even lied about for centuries. Was she overly sexual? Probably. She was a beautiful woman who obviously used her looks to further her own ambitions. Is that a crime? NO! And many of her intentions were very honorable, she was a woman who understood the Evangelical need for a closer connection to God and used her feminine wiles to present the reformist cause. Quite effectively, I might add. The marriage of Henry and Catherine was unstable at best. He had countless bastard children and treated Catherine with respect, not love. Whatever infatuation he had with her was long dead as he was faced with his own mortality and the prospect of the ending Tudor dynasty. "The Other Boleyn Girl" and other Hollywood imagery of Anne is false. Take the time to know her, I guarantee you won't be disappointed.
Yay I am not alone in (well, I hate it) "The Other Boleyn Girl". I picked up the book when it came out and as someone who loves to read and will usually slog through anything to see how it ends, quit the book pretty quickly. "At least not many people will read it". I was dumb, or just clueless about Hollywood. I have wondered over and over why Philippa Gregory seems to truly and actively hate Anne. I mean HAAAATES her. Maybe Ms Gregory's great great (etc) Grandmother lent Anne Boleyn a sweater and never got it back ;0) So YES! Please do find out more about this lady. History and research really can be fun.
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