Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Read of the Week
Though it has taken me a while, I finally finished another book. Over the past few weeks I have been enjoying Mary Boleyn: The Mistress of Kings by Alison Weir. The book is a much needed exploration of Mary's life, despite a lot of guesswork and conjecture on the part of the author. Mary's life is much like a blank slate, with little details available to fill in the gaps. This book discusses her affairs with both Francois and Henry as well as her marriages, children and reputation. I really enjoyed reading it, despite the fact that I felt it lacked a certain support system of primary source evidence. Weir, a clear Anne enthusiast also spends quite a lot of time focusing on Anne in relationship to Mary. So much in fact, that sometimes I would forget I was reading about Mary and not Anne. Weir obviously does the best with what evidence is surviving and available to her and she dug deep into not only historical documents but also social customs and context to paint the most clear portrait of of Mary that I have ever read. It is interesting to explore the "other" Boleyn girl in a historical, rather than Hollywood created, setting. I would recommend it to Weir's fans and those interested in learning more about general Boleyn family history.
Monday, April 8, 2013
Reader Questions
Like much of my research work lately, answering reader questions has fallen by the way-side. Please forgive the delay and I will try to be more diligent about addressing your questions!
Q: What happened the Henry FitzRoy?
A: Historically, he is recorded as having died of consumption, which most historians believe is Tuberculosis. However, he could have died of another pulmonary infection such as cancer, pneumonia or influenza. Without access to modern medical technology and autopsy practices we cannot be completely certain.
Q: Were Mary Carey's (nee Boleyn) children the illegitimate offspring of Henry VIII?
A: We can't be 100% sure, but I plan to address the question in a blog post this week. Stay tuned.
Q: Did Reginald Pole have a strong claim to the English throne? If not why was Henry VIII intimidated by him?
A: This is an excellent question and to fully explain I need to give a short genealogy lesson. Reginald Pole was the son of Margaret Pole, countess of Salisbury. Margaret's father was George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence and brother to both Kings Edward IV and Richard III who ruled as part of the York dynasty. George was executed for high treason by his elder brother Edward. Upon the death of Edward, his heir should have been crowned Edward V but he was declared illegitimate along with his younger brother, clearing the way for Richard to seize power. Richard was killed during the Battle of Bosworth Field while fighting Henry Tudor, who would become Henry VII, father to the infamous Henry VIII. Richard died without a successor. Now, to evaluate the claim that Reginald would have had a strong claim to the throne; Henry Tudor had a legitimate, if weak claim to the English throne. His father was half brother to the deposed former Lacastrian king Henry VI and his mother was second cousin to Henry VI meaning his claim through the Lancastrian line was quite stable. Margaret was the sole remaining heir of George but as women could not inherit her eldest son would have been the York heir to the claim. That son was Reginald Pole. I believe that while Reginald could stake a claim, that claim would have been based on the crown being taken from the Lancastrian line by the Yorks as well as the fact that any inheritances George would have left to his children were seized following his death. It was only the kindness of Edward that restored George's family to some semblance of nobility. Also, in an attempt to unite the warring country Henry VII married Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV. Because her brothers were presumed dead by this point that made her the heir to her father. Therefore, by the time Henry VIII ascended the throne he had a strong claim to the throne because of his Lancastrian AND York heritage. I find that Henry's dislike of Pole came more from his very public opposition to Henry's divorce and remarriage to Anne Boleyn as well as his refusal to join the Church of England, Pole remained staunchly Catholic for the remainder of his life.
Thank you for your questions! Continue submitting via the contact form and I will answer them in a timely fashion.
Cheers,
Tanya
Q: What happened the Henry FitzRoy?
A: Historically, he is recorded as having died of consumption, which most historians believe is Tuberculosis. However, he could have died of another pulmonary infection such as cancer, pneumonia or influenza. Without access to modern medical technology and autopsy practices we cannot be completely certain.
Q: Were Mary Carey's (nee Boleyn) children the illegitimate offspring of Henry VIII?
A: We can't be 100% sure, but I plan to address the question in a blog post this week. Stay tuned.
Q: Did Reginald Pole have a strong claim to the English throne? If not why was Henry VIII intimidated by him?
A: This is an excellent question and to fully explain I need to give a short genealogy lesson. Reginald Pole was the son of Margaret Pole, countess of Salisbury. Margaret's father was George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence and brother to both Kings Edward IV and Richard III who ruled as part of the York dynasty. George was executed for high treason by his elder brother Edward. Upon the death of Edward, his heir should have been crowned Edward V but he was declared illegitimate along with his younger brother, clearing the way for Richard to seize power. Richard was killed during the Battle of Bosworth Field while fighting Henry Tudor, who would become Henry VII, father to the infamous Henry VIII. Richard died without a successor. Now, to evaluate the claim that Reginald would have had a strong claim to the throne; Henry Tudor had a legitimate, if weak claim to the English throne. His father was half brother to the deposed former Lacastrian king Henry VI and his mother was second cousin to Henry VI meaning his claim through the Lancastrian line was quite stable. Margaret was the sole remaining heir of George but as women could not inherit her eldest son would have been the York heir to the claim. That son was Reginald Pole. I believe that while Reginald could stake a claim, that claim would have been based on the crown being taken from the Lancastrian line by the Yorks as well as the fact that any inheritances George would have left to his children were seized following his death. It was only the kindness of Edward that restored George's family to some semblance of nobility. Also, in an attempt to unite the warring country Henry VII married Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV. Because her brothers were presumed dead by this point that made her the heir to her father. Therefore, by the time Henry VIII ascended the throne he had a strong claim to the throne because of his Lancastrian AND York heritage. I find that Henry's dislike of Pole came more from his very public opposition to Henry's divorce and remarriage to Anne Boleyn as well as his refusal to join the Church of England, Pole remained staunchly Catholic for the remainder of his life.
Thank you for your questions! Continue submitting via the contact form and I will answer them in a timely fashion.
Cheers,
Tanya
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Author Hilary Mantel on Anne Boleyn
Friday, April 5, 2013
On This Day in Tudor History
On this day in Tudor history Richard Rouse, official cook for Bishop John Fisher was boiled to death. Rouse, a commoner, admitted to poisoning porridge that was subsequently served to Fisher and several guests visiting him. Because Fisher was virulently against Henry VIII divorce from Catherine of Aragon and his desire to marry Anne Boleyn, many were quick to blame her for the poisoning which resulted in several deaths. The poisoning has been portrayed in Hollywood versions of Anne's story including The Tudors which implied that Thomas Boleyn provided Rouse with the poison. Fortunately, there is no evidence to support this claim and Henry VIII did not belief gossip at the time.
Primary source evidence references the event in several locations, this excerpt is from the Letters and Papers of Henry VIII:
"On the Eighteenth day of February, 1531, one Richard Roose, of Rochester, Cook, also called Richard Cooke, did cast poison into a vessel of yeast to baum, standing in the kitchen of the Bishop of Rochester's Palace, at Lambeth March, by means of which two persons who happened to eat of the pottage made with such yeast died".
Primary source evidence references the event in several locations, this excerpt is from the Letters and Papers of Henry VIII:
"On the Eighteenth day of February, 1531, one Richard Roose, of Rochester, Cook, also called Richard Cooke, did cast poison into a vessel of yeast to baum, standing in the kitchen of the Bishop of Rochester's Palace, at Lambeth March, by means of which two persons who happened to eat of the pottage made with such yeast died".
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Read of the Week
It has been quite some time since I posted; however I am vowing to be more diligent in my writing from now on. This week I read The Rise and Fall of Anne Boleyn: Family Politics at the Court of Henry VIII. This book is very interesting; for a woman who has a PhD in history and claims to be a Tudor history expert author Retha Warnicke relies a lot on the mythological view of Anne. Retha contends that George Boleyn was a homosexual, despite the clear lack of evidence to support the claim. She also states that Anne gave birth to a deformed fetus in January 1536, of which there is also no evidence. What I do appreciate about this work is that is explores Anne's early life and gives credible, well argued evidence regarding her birth date. Warnicke's book also gives in-depth information on Anne's religious beliefs, however I tend to disagree with her over-all picture of Anne as a scheming, social climber. It is an interesting read despite the what I view as sketchy research on the part of the author. Pick-it up and draw your own conclusions.
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