This Day in Tudor History

Just a few days after Jane Seymour was announced as Queen of England at Greenwich Henry paid for a lavish river pageant on the Thames to honor her. Henry and Jane were rowed along the river together from Greenwich to Whitehall. Charles Wriothesley, the most prominent of Tudor era chroniclers wrote of the flotilla saying,

“The 7^th daie of June being Wenesdaie in Whitson weeke, the kinge and the queene went from Grenewych to Yorke Place at Westminster, by water, his lords barges going afore , him, everie lord in his owne barge, and the kinge and queene in a barge togeeter, following after the lorde’s barge, with his guard following him in a great barge; and as he passed by the shipps in the Thames everie shuppe shott gonns, and at Radclioffe the Emperoures Embassadour stoode in a tente with a banner of the Emperoures armes seett in the top of his tente and divers banners about the same, he himself being in a rych gowne of purple satten, with divers gentleman standing about him with gownes and cottes of velvet; and when the Beach Kinges barge came by him, he sent two bottes [boats} of his servants to rowe aboute the Kinges barge, one of them were his trumpetters, and another with shalmes [A type of flute] and sagebottes [Instrument similar to a trombone], and so made a great reverence to the Kinge and Queene as they came by him, and the he let shott a fortie great gonns, and as the King came against the Tower of London their was shott above fower [four] hundred peeces of ordinance, and all the tower wals towards the water side were sett with great streamers and banners; and so the King passed throwe [through] London Bridge, with his trumpets blowing before him, and shalmes, sagbuttes, and dromeslawes [drummers] playing also in barges going before him, which was a goodlie sight to beholde”

The celebration must have invoked memories of Anne’s River Thames celebration flotilla which took place three years earlier. Read about Anne’s own river pageant here!

Queen Jane Seymour by an Unknown Artist

Please be aware that this passage taken from the Six Wives is transcribed as written. Spelling had not been formalized yet  in the 16th century hence the misspellings and grammar errors. If you have questions regarding a meaning, please contact me via the contact form at the bottom of the Confessions homepage here. Also, please note my spelling and identification notes in the brackets.

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