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The next day Jane Seymour died. Her body was embalmed and laid on a car of state covered with a rich velvet.
Anne of Cleves was a most unfortunate, ill-treated princess, but she possessed so many virtues that she surely deserved a better fate than to become the wife of a king so devoid of the feelings of a gentleman as Henry' VIII.
After the death of his third queen, this capricious monarch did not find it so easy to get another as he probably expected it would be. Certainly it must have been a woman of rare courage who would willingly subject herself to such a yoke, knowing the experience of his other victims.
Jane Seymour had not been dead more than a month when he made a request of Francis I. that he might be permitted to choose a lady from the royal blood of France for his queen. That monarch replied, "that there was not a damsel of any degree in his own dominions who should not be at his disposal."
Henry was quite flattered at this compliment, and thought it would only be necessary for him to put out his hand to secure any woman he might condescend to favor, so he requested Francis just to bring all the fairest ladies of his court to Calais for him to take his choice. The gallantry of the French king was shocked at such an idea, and he replied, "that it was impossible to bring ladies of noble blood to market as horses are trotted out at a fair."
Then Henry wanted to marry James V.'s lady-love, whom he had seen and admired, not paying the slightest attention to the fact that she was already engaged. When he found it impossible to get her, he was ready to consider the proposition of his ambassador with regard to her sister or Mademoiselle Vendôme.
"Let them be brought to Calais," he said, "and I will take a look at them."
"That would be impossible," was the reply; "but your majesty could send somebody to Paris to see them."
"Good gracious! how can I depend upon any one but myself?" asked Henry. "I must see them, and hear them sing; and what is more, I must see how they look while they are singing," he added.
By the end of the year he found that there was no hope for him in France, so he put on a most melancholy air, and pretended to be dreadfully grieved at the death of his pretty Jane.
This state of mind lasted for about two years; then Cromwell spoke in such flattering terms of the princesses of the house of Cleves that Henry began to think he had played therôleof forlorn widower long enough.
Cromwell had only seen Sybilla, the eldest daughter of the Duke of Cleves. She was married to the Duke of Saxony, and was famed for her talents, virtues, charming manners, and extreme beauty. But unfortunately for Henry, Anne, the second daughter, was as unlike her sister as possible, and had no accomplishments whatever, with the exception of needlework.
Holbein, the celebrated Dutch artist, was required to paint the portraits of both Anne and her younger sister, Amelia, for Henry's inspection, and Christopher Mount was sent to negotiate the treaty of marriage. He wrote a letter to Cromwell filled with Anne's praises and said, "she as far excelleth the Dutchess of Saxony as the golden sun excelleth the silver moon."The Duke of Saxony was very much opposed to a union of his sister-in-law with a man of Henry VIII.'s character, but he was the champion of the Reformation, and Christopher Mount assured him "that the cause of Protestantism in Europe would be greatly advanced by the influence of a Lutheran Queen of England, for Henry was easily managed through his wives."
The Duke of Cleves died in 1559, but his son, who succeeded him, favored Anne's marriage with King Henry, and so did their mother, both being strong allies of the Protestant cause, and feeling that even though it might be a sacrifice, it ought to be made for the sake of their religion.
One of Henry's commissioners wrote him that Anne "occupieth much of her time with her needle. She can read and write her own language, but French and Latin or other language she knoweth not; nor yet can sing or play on any instrument, for they take it here in Germany for a rebuke and an occasion of lightness that great ladies should be learned, or have any knowledge of music." He also speaks of her gentle and amiable temper, but above all he praises her sobriety, which is quite amusing.
Ever since the death of Jane Seymour the Catholics and Protestants of England had vied with each other as to which should be next represented in the queen. It was the magic brush of Hans Holbein that decided the question, and Cromwell won a triumph over Gardiner, Norfolk, and his other rivals, though it brought him ruin at last.
At length all matters of state policy and ceremony were arranged, and the young princess bade farewell to her mother, brother, and sisters, by whom she was tenderly beloved.
The first week in October, 1539, she left her native city, Dusseldorf on the Rhine, attended by a splendid escort. On her arrival at Antwerp she was received by the Englishmerchants there, who gave her a grand torchlight procession by daylight. Next day she proceeded on her journey, and arrived at Calais December 11.
About a mile outside of the town she was met by a regiment of armed men, with the king's archers, all in gay attire, besides the Earl of Southampton, Lord William Howard, and many other lords and gentlemen. Gregory Cromwell, with twenty-four others wore coats of satin damask and velvet, with gold chains of great value, and two hundred yeoman who followed them were dressed in the king's colors, red and blue cloth.
The Earl of Southampton welcomed the royal bride and conducted her into Calais, where such a peal of guns was shot from the ships on her arrival that all her retinue were astonished. Then firing began all along the coast, and was continued by the vessels until there were one hundred and fifty rounds, and so much smoke that the people in Anne's train could scarcely see each other.
The following day she was presented by the mayor with a hundred gold sovereigns, and for about three weeks after her arrival there were all sorts of pastimes and festivities. Meanwhile Henry impatiently awaited his long-expected bride, and busied himself with the execution of four worthy abbots.
The wind did not favor her progress until the 27th, when she embarked, attended by a fleet of fifty ships, and arrived at Deal the same day. The princess was received by a great company of ladies and gentlemen, and conducted to Dover Castle, where she remained until the next Monday, when, in a dreadful storm, she set out for Canterbury. Several days of travel brought the royal bride to Rochester, and New Year's Day was spent at the bishop's palace in that town.
The king was so impatient to see her, that, in companywith eight of his gentlemen-in-waiting, he rode to Rochester to steal a look at his German bride, who, no doubt he thought, would rival the bright-eyed Boleyn and the fair Seymour.
On his arrival he sent a messenger to inform Anne "that he had brought her a New Year's gift, if she would please to receive it."
He followed his messenger into the room where she sat, but a glance was sufficient to show him that he had been deceived. She was by no means a pretty woman, and Henry regarded himself as an injured person in having to marry her. Perhaps she was not more charmed with his appearance or manners, but she sank upon her knees at his approach and did her best to receive him lovingly. He raised her gently, and kissed her, but there could not have been much conversation between them so long as they had to employ an interpreter. Besides her language was so displeasing to his musical ear that he did not want to hear more of it than he could help, though he knew before she came that she could speak no English. The moment he left her presence he sent for the lords who had brought her over and made his complaints.
The New Year's gift that he had provided for Anne was a muff and tippet of rich sable, but when he found she was not handsome he would not honor her by presenting it with his own hands, but sent it on the following morning by a messenger.
He returned to Greenwich in a melancholy frame of mind, and abused Cromwell for having provided him with a wife whom, with his usual brutality, he called a "great Flanders mare." Cromwell tried to put the blame on the Earl of Southampton, and said: "That when he found the princess so different from the pictures, and the reports that had been made of her, he ought to have stopped herat Calais till he had given the king notice that she was not so handsome as she had been represented." The admiral replied bluntly "that he was not invested with any such authority, his commission was to bring her to England, and he had obeyed orders." The king interrupted them by ordering them to find some means to get him out of his engagement. There was a great deal of discussion about the matter, but no objection to the marriage could be invented that would be at all satisfactory to Anne's relations in Germany, so Cromwell assured the king that as a matter of policy he must do nothing to gain the ill-will of her friends.
"Is there no remedy but that I must needs put my neck into this yoke?" exclaimed Henry, passionately.
After these gracious words, which it is to be hoped did not reach the ears of the insulted lady who was waiting his orders at Dartford, he commanded the most splendid preparations to be made for his marriage. On the 3d of January a rich tent, covered with cloth of gold, was pitched at the foot of Shooter's Hill for the royal bride, and other tents around for her ladies. Twelve hundred gentlemen were ranged in double file from the park gates to the heath awaiting the arrival of the king with his bride. About twelve o'clock her grace came down from Shooter's Hill, accompanied by a hundred of her own nation, the Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk, the Archbishop of Canterbury, with other bishops, lords and knights who had come from France, and went towards the tents, where Dr. Kaye, her almoner, presented all the officers and servants of her household, and addressed to her an eloquent Latin oration, of which she did not understand a word. It was answered by her brother's secretary, who acted as interpreter. Then Anne stepped out of her chariot, and was saluted and welcomed by sixty-five ladies, whom she thanked and kissed, afterwhich all entered the tents to warm themselves, for the weather was exceedingly cold and disagreeable. When the king heard that his bride had arrived at her tent he set out through the park to meet her, accompanied by the officers of his council and his gentlemen in waiting, all richly attired in velvet coats embroidered in gold, and mounted on fine large horses. The Marquis of Dorset rode alone, attired in purple velvet and bearing the king's sword of state. Some distance behind him came Henry VIII., mounted on a splendid white courser with trappings of cloth of gold embroidered with pearls. All the buckles, bit, and pendants were of solid gold. The king wore an embroidered purple velvet coat, the sleeves and breast of which were slashed, showing cloth of gold beneath, and fastened together with large buttons of diamonds, rubies, and oriental pearls. His sword and girdle were studded with costly emeralds, and his cap was so covered with jewels that it was not possible to fix a value on it. Around his neck was a deep collar thickly studded with rubies and pearls.
When the bride was informed of Henry's approach she walked out of her tent, mounted a white horse, and, surrounded by her footmen, rode forward to meet him. Her dress was made of rich cloth of gold, cut round in Dutch fashion without a train. On her head she wore a close cap, above which was a circular bonnet ornamented with oriental pearls. Across her brow was a coronet of black velvet, and around her neck a band of superb diamonds. Henry saluted her in the most courteous manner, took off his hat and embraced her as though he really cared for her, while she, not forgetting her duty, and perhaps the instructions she had received, thanked him sweetly and praised the arrangements he had made for her reception. No doubt he was pleased with all the flattering remarks shefelt obliged to make to him. Then he put her on his right side and they rode along together, he acting a deceitful part in trying to appear pleased, and she filled with indignation at the way he had scorned her.
When the grand cavalcade that followed and preceded the royal pair arrived at Greenwich Castle all the men alighted from their horses excepting the king, who rode to the inner court with his bride. When the queen had alighted from her horse Henry tenderly embraced her, and bade her "welcome to her own," then conducted her through the hall that had been prepared for her reception. There he left her and went to his room, where he had an interview with Cromwell, to whom he made bitter complaints about the appearance of his unlucky bride.
Cromwell said he was sorry his grace was not better satisfied, whereupon Henry bade him call his council together to see whether they could not hit upon some plan for getting him out of this marriage. The council met that very afternoon, but failed to aid the king out of his dilemma, and this put him in such a bad humor that he would not say what he had determined to do until the next Monday morning; then he ordered the marriage ceremony to be performed next day, without even consulting the bride..
He wore a gown of cloth of gold, with raised silver flowers all over it. His coat was crimson satin embroidered and slashed, the points fastened with large diamonds, and a rich collar about his neck.
He entered the presence-chamber, and calling Cromwell to him, said, "My lord, if it were not to satisfy the world and my realm, I would not do what I must do this day for any earthly thing." Then one of the officers of the household informed him that the queen was ready. He advanced towards her chamber door, but had to waitseveral minutes before she appeared, which made him very angry. Who can blame the poor woman for her tardiness? she would have been excusable if she had refused to come at all. At last Henry sent one of his lords to bring her. She was dressed in a robe of cloth of gold, thickly embroidered in large flowers of oriental pearls. The skirt was cut, as before, round without a train, and at her neck and waist were costly jewels. Her hair fell luxuriantly over her shoulders, and on her head was a coronet of diamonds, with a few sprigs of rosemary. She walked modestly forward, between the Earls of Overstein and Essex, with a sad, demure expression, and on approaching the spot where the king stood made three low obeisances. She was followed by her ladies.
The Archbishop of Canterbury and Cranmer performed the marriage ceremony, the Earl of Overstein gave her away, and on her wedding-ring was engraved this sentence "God send me weel to keepe."
On the 4th of February the king and queen went up the Thames in grand state to their palace of Westminster. Henry kept up an outward show of attention to his bride, but she knew not the art of pleasing, felt no sympathy with his tastes, and could not gain his affection.
She knew this, but could not help it. Several times she sent for Cromwell, hoping with his advice to be more successful, but he positively refused to talk privately with her. He had reasons of his own for doing so.
On the 1st of May a company of the gallant knights at court, all dressed in white velvet with rich ornaments, had a grand tournament in honor of the recent marriage, and this was the last time Henry and Anne of Cleves ever appeared together in public.
Anne studied the English language industriously, and tried in every possible manner to please her lord, but bythe end of five months she was convinced that it was hopeless.
There was a low-born, unprincipled creature at court, named Sir Thomas Wriothesley, who would have done or said anything to gain favor with his sovereign, and he kept constantly lamenting over Henry's position, and how hard it was for him to be bound to a wife whom he could not love. In this way he prepared the way for a divorce, and Henry was only too ready to avail himself of any excuse. Now his sensitive conscience began to trouble him again. This time it was on the score of religion; he could not bear to think of having a Lutheran wife. No wonder poor Anne lost patience, and in a moment of pique, told him that, "if she had not been compelled to marry him she might have fulfilled her engagement with another to whom she had promised her hand."
That was enough for him; she could scarcely have said anything that would have suited him better, and he at once set to work to make her position as unpleasant as possible. His first move was to dismiss all her foreign attendants, and supply their places with English ladies of his own selection.
By this time he was in love with the young and beautiful Katharine Howard, niece to the Duke of Norfolk, and had decided to make her his wife as soon as he could manage it. The leaders of the Catholic party favored this union, and hoped at the same time for the downfall of their great enemy, Cromwell. They were soon to be gratified, for Henry now required a tool, who would not be guided by the nice feelings of a gentleman, for carrying out his plans. Cromwell was not such a one, and he must be put out of the way. In this reign of terror nothing was easier, and in less than a month he was arrested and shut up in the Tower.
A few days later Anne was sent to Richmond under pretencethat her health required change of air, and this was the prelude to the divorce for which Henry had now grown impatient.
Archbishop Cranmer had performed the marriage ceremony, and it now became his duty to divorce the king for the third time in less than seven years. This was accomplished by unanimous consent of the clergy July 13. As the queen was a stranger to English laws and customs, she was spared the humiliation of appearing before the council.
When everything was settled, Suffolk, Southampton, and Wriothesley were appointed to go to Richmond to get the queen's consent. She was so alarmed when she saw them that before the true object of their visit could be explained to her she fell fainting to the ground. No doubt the poor woman thought she was on the point of having her head cut off. When she recovered consciousness, she was told that if she would resign her title as queen Henry would adopt her for a sister, and that she should be endowed with estates to the value of £3,000 a year. This was an immense relief, and Anne expressed her willingness to resign her honors with such alacrity that the lords were quite surprised.
When Henry heard this, and saw the paper she had signed to that effect, he could not believe that she was so ready to part with so supremely precious a person. Fearing that she might relent, he wrote to his council requesting them to have her write a letter to her brother explaining her position, and expressing her earnest desire for the divorce.
Anne then wrote her mother and brother that she was honorably treated, and felt quite cheerful and contented. She hoped that no dispute would arise between her native land and England, where she purposed spending her life, and begged them in no way to interfere, no doubt dreading that if they did so it would be visited on her head.
In the meantime Anne passed her time very pleasantly at Richmond, dressed magnificently, and performed many deeds of charity; in short, she was happier than she had been since her departure from home.
Sixteen months later Katharine was thrown into prison, and then several attempts were made by various parties to bring about the reunion of Henry and Anne, but fortunately for her without success. From her retirement she heard
A.D. 1540.On the 28th of July, Cromwell was beheaded, and the pious, learned Doctor Barnes, who had been instrumental in bringing about the marriage, was burned at the stake.
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In August Henry visited his divorced wife at Richmond, and was so well received by her that he stayed to supper and seemed in excellent humor. Two days later he publicly introduced Katharine Howard at court as his queen.of the misery the king endured when he became convinced of how his new wife had deceived him, and she must have been more than human if she did not feel somewhat gratified when the royal Bluebeard was compelled to part from her.
Katharine Howard enjoyed sixteen months of boundless influence over her husband, but her lucky star was soon to wane, and without being allowed to open her lips in her own defence save to her confessor, she walked like a sheep to the slaughter. Her execution took place February 13.
A.D. 1577.Anne of Cleves outlived Henry VIII. and his last wife, and died during the reign of Queen Mary at the Palace of Chelsea, aged forty-one.
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There is not a family in England whose name has appeared so often in its history, whether for good or for bad, as that of the Howards, nor one whose members filled such varied and important positions, as every attentive reader will admit.
Katharine Howard was nearly related to Anne Boleyn; she became the fifth wife of Henry VIII., and is by no means one of the nobler specimens of the family to which she belonged.
She was born in 1521, and had the misfortune to lose her mother while she was still young. Her father's duties called him from home a greater part of the time, and the Duchess of Norfolk, her grandmother, who had charge of Katharine, was so neglectful of her duty as to permit the child to choose her own companions, and they were unfortunately low and degraded.
Unlike most grandmothers, the duchess merely tolerated Katharine in her household, and felt that she had performed her part when the little maid was locked in her room, and the key safely deposited in her own pocket. But, like many naughty girls, Katharine managed, in spite of locks, to meet Francis Derham, one of the Duke of Norfolk's retainers, to whom she secretly engaged herself. In order to be nearer his lady-love, Derham entered the service of her grandmother as gentleman-usher. After atime the old lady began to observe certain signs of intimacy between this pair of lovers, and on entering a room one day unexpectedly she found them romping together. Shocked at the familiarity of her usher towards her granddaughter, she boxed the ears of the lady-attendant for permitting it, punished Katharine, and dismissed Derham from her service.
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After that Katharine was kept under greater restraint, and as she grew into womanhood learned to behave properly, and became remarkable for her charming and graceful manners.
She met Henry VIII. the first time at a banquet given by the Bishop of Winchester to celebrate the monarch's marriage with Anne of Cleves, and afterwards at the house of Gardiner. The king took such a fancy to her that it was not long before he secured her appointment as maid-of-honor to the queen. It has been supposed that Katharine was instrumental in bringing about the death ofCromwell, but, as she only intrigued for the king's favors, it is not probable that she troubled her head about politics.
Henry VIII. fell in love with her as he had done with Anne Boleyn and Jane Seymour, when they were maids-of-honor, and little Katharine was silly enough to be flattered by the marks of favor he showed her. The Duchess of Norfolk, instead of warning the girl of her danger, was foolish enough to encourage her to court the king's attention, and provided her with fine clothes to make her as attractive as possible to his majesty.
Henry was easily won, and privately married Katharine a few days after he was divorced from Anne of Cleves.
A.D. 1540.On the 8th of August, 1540, the new bride was introduced at Hampton Court as Queen of England. A short honeymoon was passed at Windsor, and then the royal couple made a tour through several counties, but the king had exhausted his treasury when he married his Flemish bride, so he could not honor Katharine Howard with either a coronation or a marriage festival. But he was very much in love, and lavished affection on her.
Six months of peace and happiness were enjoyed by the royal couple, Henry seldom leaving the side of his young wife, nor permitting any of his councillors to interrupt his pleasures. Katharine felt her power and forgot what had been the fate of her predecessors. She was soon to be reminded, however, for the realm had become divided into two parties—the Catholic and Protestant, and both were strong. The Reformers fondly hoped that Anne of Cleves might be restored to her former position, and regarded Katharine in the same unfavorable light as Anne Boleyn had been looked upon by the Catholics.
At last, in the spring, came a crisis in the shape of an insurrection by the Catholics in Yorkshire, headed by Sir
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John Neville. Henry thought Cardinal Pole was the cause of it, and so took his revenge by ordering the execution of the Countess of Salisbury, Pole's mother, who had been in the tower for more than a year: when the aged lady heard of it she refused to lay her head upon the block, saying, 'so should traitors do, but I am none, and if you will have my head you must win it as you can.' thereupon the brutal ruffian who acted as executioner dragged her by her hoary locks, and 'slovenly butchered the woman in whose veins flowed the noblest blood of England.'
For the purpose of ascertaining the exact state of affairs in Yorkshire, King Henry set out with his wife for that place early in July, 1541, leaving Cranmer, Audley, and Seymour, three Protestant adherents, among his councillors at home. At Yorkshire the royal couple were met by two hundred gentlemen in velvet coats, with four thousand yeomen, who knelt while one of their number offered nine hundred pounds. At another place three hundred ecclesiastics presented six hundred pounds, and so on until Henry found himself much richer than when he started on his journey. Queen Katharine saw more of the pomp of royalty at this time than she had done during the whole year before, for the wealthy aristocracy in every part of the country vied with each other in the grandeur of their entertainments given in honor of the royal couple.
Katharine had been married little more than a year when Francis Derham returned to England, and she committed the error of appointing him as her private secretary. As soon as the king heard of the relation that had existed between this man and his wife previous to her marriage his jealousy was aroused, and the Protestant statesmen took good care to encourage every suspicion that entered their monarch's head. Meanwhile poor little Katharine wasentirely unconscious of the storm that was gathering about her.
King Henry was soon forced to order her removal from Hampton Court. Wriothesley and Rich were the unprincipled, cruel agents who, determined upon the destruction of the queen, persecuted her until she was beside herself with terror and grief. Then, too, she loved her husband, and when she was compelled to leave him without one word of farewell, one look of compassion, her heart was almost broken. The king suffered also, but his council took little heed of that; it would be dangerous for them were Katharine to regain her power.
Shakespeare truly says:
"Trifles, light as air,
Are to the jealous confirmations strong
As proofs of holy writ."
Katharine was removed to Sion House, and thence a few days later to the gloomy dungeon of the Tower.
During the short season of terror that succeeded the queen's arrest, Derham, the poor old Duchess of Norfolk, Culpepper, Katharine's cousin, and several other persons who were guilty of no crime but that of suspecting the attachment that had existed before her marriage between Katharine and Derham, were executed.
On the 16th of January, 1542, parliament met to decide the fate of the queen, and without granting her the privilege of uttering one word in her own defence she was condemned to die. The 14th of the following month was fixed upon for the execution of this beautiful young girl, against whom no crime could be proved even through the instrumentality of the torture.
A.D. 1542.She met her death calmly and meekly, professing to the last her loyalty to the king. Her burialtook place immediately without even the ceremonies that would have been accorded to the meanest of her subjects; she was interred in St. Peter's chapel of the Tower. When speaking of Henry VIII., Sir Walter Raleigh says: "If all the patterns of a merciless tyrant had been lost to the world they might have been found in this prince."
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Katharine Parr was the first Protestant Queen of England, and the only one of the wives of Henry VIII. who supported the doctrine of the Reformation with sincerity. She was an Englishwoman, but not of royal birth, being the only daughter of Sir Thomas Parr, a knight. She was gifted by nature with a fine mind, which was carefully cultivated by her excellent mother, as some of her writings that still exist certainly prove. She read and wrote Latin well, and had some knowledge of Greek.
When a little girl she never could bear to sew, and often said to her mother, "my hands are ordained to touch crowns and sceptres, not spindles and needles." But Lady Parr was too wise to allow such notions to take a strong hold of her daughter's mind, and insisted on her performing those duties that befitted her station in life; consequently her embroidery, of which specimens have been preserved, shows unusual skill and industry. At Lizergh Castle a magnificent counterpane and toilet-cover are exhibited as the work of her hands, and although three centuries have passed since it was done, the colors are scarcely dimmed at all. The material is the richest white satin. In the centre is a medallion of a raised eagle beneath the royal crown, surrounded by a wreath of flowers in colored silks and gold thread. At each corner is a large dragon in purple, crimson, and gold, while bouquets of
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flowers in gorgeous colors are dispersed here and there over the other part. The pieces match, but are of different proportions.
Katharine was married twice before she became the wife of Henry VIII. Her first husband was Lord Edward Borough, a middle-aged widower with several children, who died a short time after the marriage. John Neville, Lord Latimer, was her second choice; he was also a widower with children, and Katharine's amiable temper and sound sense so well fitted her to perform the duties a stepmother that she was loved and esteemed by the families of both her husbands.
She was not more than twenty-nine years old when she was left a widow for the second time. It was then that she became a convert to the Reformed religion, and encouraged its apostles to meet daily in her chamber of state to preach their sermons.
She was not only pious, learned and handsome, but she possessed great wealth, and was connected by descent or marriage with some of the noblest families in England.
Scarcely six months had elapsed after the death of Lord Latimer when she was informed by Henry VIII. that she was the lady whom he intended to honor by making her his sixth wife. She was amazed, and no doubt terrified, when she recalled the cruel treatment of her royal suitor's other victims'. Besides Lord Seymour was courting her, and she had favored his attentions. But that gentleman valued his head so much that no sooner did he hear of his all-powerful royal brother-in-law's intention than he vanished from the scene, leaving Katharine to transfer her affection as best she might.
A.D. 1543.She exchanged her widow's weeds for bridal robes, and was married at Hampton Court without pageantry, but with all suitable observance of ceremony.We are reminded of the fair Scheherazade in the Arabian Nights, who married the sultan, knowing that it was his custom to take a fresh wife every day and cut off her head in the morning.
But the cross, selfish old tyrant whom Katharine Parr had the courage to marry was in such bad health that he needed a skilful nurse; perhaps for that reason she felt confident that her position would be secure. On the day of her marriage she gave presents of bracelets set with rubies, as well as a liberal sum of money, to the Princesses Mary and Elizabeth.
The University of Cambridge sent the king a congratulatory letter on his choice of a Protestant wife, and the celebrated Roger Ascham corresponded with her in the name of that college, requesting her to write oftener, and not to shrink from being called learned. The dignity of the scholar and the queen are beautifully blended with the tenderness of the woman in the character of Katharine Parr after she ascended the throne.
She became an object of jealous ill-will to Gardiner, the leader of the Catholic party, who feared her influence over the king. Scarcely two weeks after the marriage he advised Henry to appoint a commission to search every house in Windsor for books written in favor of the new religion. Henry consented, but made an exception of the castle, no doubt having reason to know that more of such works would be found hidden away in his own household than in all the town put together.
The result was that many men and women were arrested, tried, and condemned to death, and although the flames of their martyrdom were kindled almost in sight of the Protestant queen, she was unable to save the victims. She knew well enough that the murder of these humble Reformers was a blow aimed at herself, and that Gardiner wasplaying a bold game against all those professing her religion.
One of the first acts of justice that Katharine performed after she became queen was to restore the king's two daughters, Mary and Elizabeth, to their proper position at court, after which she was constantly making them presents, and showing them many deeds of tenderness and motherly care. She and Mary were opposed to each other in religious belief, but they were about the same age, had the same accomplishments and tastes, and soon became warm and steadfast friends. Elizabeth's brilliant talents were drawn forth and encouraged by her gifted stepmother, who also directed the studies of Edward.
In one of his letters to her he says: "I thank you, most noble and excellent queen, for the letters you have lately sent me; not only for their beauty, but for their imagination. When I see your good writing and the excellence of your genius, quite surpassing my invention, I am sick of writing. But then I think how kind your nature is, and that whatever proceeds from a good, kind intention will be acceptable; and so I write you this letter."
Her celebrated work, "The Lamentations of a Sinner," is one of the finest specimens of English composition of that period. It is a treatise on morality and the imperfections of human nature.
Henry would have been miserable with a woman of such superior intellect if she had not constantly flattered him and studied his various moods. But so great was the influence she acquired over him, and the confidence he felt in her wisdom, that when he went on an expedition against France he appointed her to govern his realm as Queen Regent of England and Ireland, assisted by the Earl of Hertford.
During his absence he wrote very loving letters to hiswife, who, together with her royal step-children, resided in one house.
A.D. 1544.She showed a great deal of moral courage, but by her beauty, tact, and domestic virtues she had made herself so necessary to her fat, dropsical husband that she was dearer to him than any of her predecessors had been.
Henry had become so unwieldy from disease that he could not move without assistance, and his wife showed herself the most patient and tender of nurses. Sometimes she would remain on her knees for hours bathing and bandaging his ulcerated leg, for he would not permit anybody to touch it but her.
A.D. 1546.The last occasion of festivity at the court of Henry VIII. was when ambassadors arrived to arrange terms of peace between France and England. They were met by a numerous cavalcade of nobles, knights and gentlemen, headed by the young heir to the throne, Prince Edward, who, though only in his ninth year, was mounted on a charger, and welcomed them in the most graceful and engaging manner. He conducted them to Hampton Court, where for ten day's they were feasted and entertained with great magnificence by the king and queen.
Henry presented Katharine with jewels of great value, that she might make a good appearance before their French guests, he also provided new and costly hangings and furniture for her apartments as well as a quantity of handsome silver.
Wriothesley and Bishop Gardiner were alarmed at Katharine's ever-increasing influence, not only over her husband, but over the mind of young Edward as well, and watched her closely, in the hope that they might be able to make some charge against her. Nothing offered itself excepting her religious opinions, which were opposed to Henry's.