Fic: graven with diamonds in letters plain (4/5) [Tudors, Anne/Henry]
Chapter Three
Chapter Four: March 1539 - January 1540
EXPRESS TO QUEEN ANNE, DUCHESS OF PEMBROKE, FROM GEORGE BOLEYN, EARL OF WILTSHIRE
20 March 1539
Anne,
Forgive the bluntness of this letter, but there is no gentle way of writing the news I must impart. Father is dead. His end was a peaceful one, here at Hever. He simply went to bed last night after dinner, complaining of a headache, and never woke up this morning. His valet tried to rouse him, found him unresponsive, and raised the alarm.
Could you send a letter to Mary? I’ve been busy sending word to court, our uncle, and getting Father’s affairs in order. Also, if you’d could also let her and Stafford know of the plans you and I discussed, I would be grateful.
He’ll be laid to rest next to Mother, just as she asked that he be.
George
LETTER TO LADY MARY STAFFORD FROM QUEEN ANNE, DUCHESS OF PEMBROKE
21 March 1539
My Dear Mary,
I write with unsettling news - Father passed away on the nineteenth of March. George sent me an express, which arrived last night. I know that you and Father were no longer close, but George asked that I inform you while he sees to it that the details are taken care of from Hever. Our George is now the Earl of Wiltshire and Ormonde. It may be un-filial, but I rather think that he will wear the mantle of it all far better than our father did.
Speaking of inheritances, George also asked me to discuss the subject with you. As you know, he and Jane have no children, and he’s told me more than once that there never will be. Even Father couldn’t bully him into sharing her bed and getting a child on her. He hasn’t touched her in years and isn’t about to start now, even to continue our branch of the Boleyn name. Still, it is his right to choose his heir, and he wants to keep the earldoms in our family. He’d like to, with your and Stafford’s consent, to make your young Edward his heir.
Please, think on it.
I remain,
Your Sister,
Anne, Duchess of Pembroke
ANNE BOLEYN’S DIARY
29 March 1539
Queen’s Hall
Father’s affairs have been settled and his body laid to rest beside our mother’s in the family tomb. It is all done, according to George. My brother will be formally invested with the earldom within the next few weeks at court, and Jane will finally delight over being a countess.
I should be feeling sad, should be mourning the loss of the man who helped to bring me to where I am now. I do mourn him, but it is more accurate to say that I mourn the man he was once, long ago. I mourn the man who played in the gardens of Hever with me, chasing me and George about, jumping out from behind the brush and roaring like a great bear. I miss the man who picked me up and swung me about, letting me fly in those brief moments. I miss the man who held me close and murmured, “My Anne.”
I haven’t seen that man in so long, I fear that he may have truly died long ago, perhaps as far back as when Mother died. In the years that followed, ambition seemed to take higher precedence than playing children’s games with his youngest daughter. Then my own childhood abruptly ended when he sent me to the Netherlands, and then on to France.
I’ve been deluged with notes expressing sympathies from half the nobility in England, even if I know very well that my father was one of the most hated men in the country, probably just behind Cromwell in his unpopularity in many circles. Even Henry has written his condolences, for once leaving off his begging for me to return to court. I have to say, on that score, it is a welcome respite.
EXCERPT FROM ANNE BOLEYN, QUEEN OF HEARTS, BY DR. NATALIE OLSEN
“Much, though not all, of the correspondence sent to Anne from Henry during this time period was lost at some point in the nineteenth century, and are believed to be either destroyed or in private hands. Still, the correspondence was referenced in earlier works, though those references mainly say only that Henry spent the months after Anne returned to Queen’s Hall in July 1538 writing to her, asking that she return to court. His requests were always met with refusals, and there is no mention of her being present in the court records. If Henry had made a royal command for her to come to court, Anne would have been faced with the choice of either coming, or being thrown into the Tower for disobeying the king. Therefore, the lack of mention in the court records is probably accurate.
Still, while Anne remained ensconced in the country, there were still other things going on. Negotiations began with the duchy of Cleves for a possible marriage between one of the Duke’s sisters and Henry, though Henry himself was known to be visibly reluctant on the matter, preferring an Imperial or French match…”
LETTER TO QUEEN ANNE, DUCHESS OF PEMBROKE, FROM HENRY VIII
19 October 1539
My Dearest Lady,
You maintain that you are no longer needed here at court, that you came here only to see me healed and resume my duties as the sovereign of England. Your only wish now is to live quietly on your estates, administer them properly, and see to the education of our daughter. All are honorable goals, Anne, but you are sorely missed here. Your company is a balm, a joy in a time when there are precious few.
Please, come back.
H. Rex
THE DIARY OF HENRY VIII
19 October 1539
Whitehall
I’ve sent Master Holbein to Cleves to paint the sisters of Duke William. Cromwell has continued to harp on the match like a man obsessed, and so was appeased when I sent the court painter to take the likenesses of the two ducal princesses. At the very least it gives me some peace on the subject, which is especially welcome when there is little peace to be found elsewhere.
There are whispers of the French and the Spanish signing a treaty with one another. If it’s true, then the need for an alliance with the Protestant League will be even more crucial. Only the League’s collective might at France’s back would make Francis pause about sending his forces against England when we are allied with them. Still, all the same, I hesitate. The German Protestants are far too heretical in their leanings for my liking. When I once told Chapuys that I’d agreed with Luther’s charges of corruption against the Church, I wasn’t lying, and I still mean it. Greed and vice still runs rampant through the Church of Rome, and nothing is done to check it. Still, the Germans have gone much further than that, which makes me nervous, a feeling I don’t care for at all. Nonetheless, I shall endeavor to keep an open mind.
Anne still won’t come to court. I have written her yet again, though I fear that it still won’t be enough. She is so stubborn! I still don’t understand why she ran from Hampton Court last year back to her estates, though she says that she prefers country life to court life now. Hah! As though anyone would believe such a thing. Anne Boleyn, a female country squire? Not in this life. She thrived on court intrigues.
Anne has asked why I want her to come to court, when I have so many of my friends to keep me company, such as Brandon and the Seymour brothers. What need do I have of her in the face of my companions? I tell her over and over that I miss her company, and that is the truth. I truly do miss her. Anne can light up a room like no one else, even by just stepping into it. Her wit and charm are as lovely as ever, and the court feels somehow less without them. But still she will not come…
LETTER TO HENRY VIII, KING OF ENGLAND, FROM QUEEN ANNE, DUCHESS OF PEMBROKE
21 October 1539
Your Majesty,
Fear not, this longing for my company shall pass. I hear you are to be married soon, to a worthy daughter of Cleves. My felicitations.
I shall make a bargain with you. When you have a queen to preside over your court again, I will come and visit her, and you.
Anne, Duchess of Pembroke
ANNE BOLEYN’S DIARY
30 October 1539
Forsythe Manor
The news is spreading like spilled wine on a tablecloth across England. France and Spain have signed the Treaty of Toledo, both swearing to join forces to ‘bring England back to the faith’, or some such high-minded ideal. While part of me thinks that such a pact cannot last, for the Emperor and King Francis are notorious for their mutual enmity, I still cannot help but be nervous. If this treaty lasts long enough for them to invade England, and should they, God forbid, conquer it, then Elizabeth and I will be in grave danger. I sincerely doubt that the Emperor will have any mercy on the woman who replaced his aunt or on the little girl whose legitimacy came at the cost of his cousin’s, a fellow grandchild of Isabella and Ferdinand.
Our only hope, our only defense, lies in Henry’s forthcoming marriage to Anne of Cleves. Oh, how I laughed when I heard that he had chosen her over her younger sister, Amelia. Another Anne will be Queen of England! Such ironies God lays down on this earth! I’m not so conceited as to think that he chose her simply to spite me, of course. Still, it is rather amusing, even if my hysterical laughter gave Nan some cause for alarm. Fortunately, Elizabeth was at her lessons already and didn’t see my display.
Let this Anne of Cleves be Henry’s new queen. I’ll visit her, just as I promised Henry. What else can he possibly ask of me?
THE DIARY OF HENRY VIII
2 November 1539
Whitehall
Welcome news arrived today - the Spanish fleet that was spotted but two days ago has been finally confirmed as a merchant fleet, not a military one, as everyone had feared. The alliance between Francis and the Emperor has already fallen apart - not that such news is a surprise to anyone, given the two men’s hatred of each other. Of course, with the crisis fading, some of my advisors have brought up the possibility of avoiding the marriage alliance with Cleves.
Cromwell, however, maintains that everything is too far gone to back out now. He says that if we turn our backs on Cleves, we risk alienating the entire Protestant League, which would be to England’s grave peril should France and Spain ever renew their alliance. We could never hope to call upon their influence again after so insulting one of their principle members.
To be honest, I am almost looking forward to the match, my religious concerns aside. It has been, as I told Charles, a very long time since I’ve bedded a woman. It is a fine thing to have a wife, after all, and not just in bed. I find myself longing for a companion, someone to share my troubles with. Anne refuses to return to court, to be that companion that I so long for, so perhaps this new Anne, this Anne of Cleves, will be what Anne Boleyn refuses to be.
LETTER TO CATHERINE BRANDON, DUCHESS OF SUFFOLK, FROM CHARLES BRANDON, DUKE OF SUFFOLK
17 December 1539
My Dearest Wife,
I have arrived in Calais, and have met she who is to be our new Queen. I admit, I was rather thrown by her very unfashionable clothing. The Germans force the woman to wear a veil, for God’s sake. Not even England at its most conservative has ever commanded such a thing of our ladies!
Nonetheless, I was permitted to spend some time with her, though her country’s ambassadors sat just outside the door, watching our every move. In sitting across from her, I was able to examine her more closely and see somewhat through the veil. She seems to have darkish hair, and while there is no great beauty about her that I could detect, there was a sweet prettiness about her, a kindness not often found in this world.
She has never learned to play cards, but proved a willing pupil when I offered to teach her piquet. The Lady Anne has a gentle sense of humor, and she was able to make me laugh more than once, something I had not expected after dealing with the dour German ambassadors. I could detect no malice or ambition about her, but I still cannot shake my reservations about this marriage. The king needs someone exotic and exciting to keep his attention. Queen Katherine’s Spanish looks kept him with her for over twenty years; the Duchess of Pembroke kept him fascinated and obsessed with her for over a decade, and still holds at least some of his attention now, long after their marriage has ended. Queen Jane may have been his beloved sweetheart, but still the king had no problem ignoring her in favor of other women, perhaps even more so than he did with his first two wives.
Lady Anne is kind, gentle woman, but she has none of the excitement and glamour of her predecessors, nor even Queen Jane’s ability to soothe in comparison to the Duchess of Pembroke’s high-strung qualities. I fear how Henry may react to her.
Please give my love to our son, but be certain to keep part of it for yourself, my darling wife.
Your Husband,
Charles B.
THE DIARY OF HENRY VIII
31 December 1539
Whitehall
I like her not! By God, I like her not!
I rode to meet her outside of London, much as my father once rode to meet Katherine when she came to marry my brother. When I entered the chambers where she was waiting, I saw her for the first time. She was dressed rather dowdily, in those rather infernal German fashions, but that did not bother me. Such things could be mended easily enough once we rid her of her German attendants and replaced them with fashionable, knowledgeable English maids and matrons. That aside, though, I could not find her at all attractive, nothing like the portrait Holbein made of her. I have been deceived!
Looking at her, I could logically see that she was pretty enough, though hardly a beauty of which legends are made. Still, I could feel absolutely nothing. There is nothing that draws her to me. If she were a lady at a masque at court, I wouldn’t look twice at her.
What has Cromwell gotten me into?! Where is my Anne? I need her here now!
I like her not!
ANNE BOLEYN’S DIARY
31 December 1539
Queen’s Hall
It has been a quiet Christmastide, one I have spent only with those of my ladies who have remained with me and not gone home to visit their families. George is at Rochford Hall, in Essex, administering to his estates there and avoiding his wife, as always. Mary and Stafford have remained at Chebsey this year with their children, who are growing by leaps and bounds if Mary’s gushing letters are anything to go by. Elizabeth is at court with her father and the Lady Mary, so that she may meet her new stepmother upon her arrival at Whitehall.
I’ve resigned myself to the marriage, and have even ordered gifts for them - two little puppies. I hope the new queen likes dogs. Both have the blood of hunters in them, something Henry might like.
THE DIARY OF HENRY VIII
1 January 1540
Whitehall
The Lady Anne arrived at Whitehall at the noon hour. I brought her before the court and allowed her to meet both Mary and Elizabeth, the latter of which had a small bouquet of flowers, no doubt obtained from the royal conservatory. The Lady Anne found them both enchanting and declared that she would love them both, and there was no lie in her eyes.
I could not help but soften a little toward her, despite my unhappiness. I cannot fault what I have seen of her character, and she seems like a pleasant woman. I just cannot find her physically attractive, not like my Anne. My Anne is still a handsome woman, even as she ages.
Perhaps… perhaps this is why she has stayed away from court since the plans for my remarriage began. The whole matter must be very hurtful for her, even now, which could be why she hasn’t returned here to visit.
EXCERPT FROM HENRY VIII: A LIFE, BY DR. ERIC THOMPSON
“The king’s diary is silent on the day of his marriage to Anna of Cleves, though there are plenty of other sources that record the event. All we have in Henry’s hand during this time was a single express sent to the Duchess of Pembroke, left among her papers. The brief words in the note more than adequately express Henry’s bitterness in those days.”
EXPRESS TO QUEEN ANNE, DUCHESS OF PEMBROKE, FROM HENRY VIII, KING OF ENGLAND
7 January 1540
You may come to court now. I am married. You need have no fear for your reputation.
H. Rex
Chapter Five-A
Chapter Four: March 1539 - January 1540
EXPRESS TO QUEEN ANNE, DUCHESS OF PEMBROKE, FROM GEORGE BOLEYN, EARL OF WILTSHIRE
20 March 1539
Anne,
Forgive the bluntness of this letter, but there is no gentle way of writing the news I must impart. Father is dead. His end was a peaceful one, here at Hever. He simply went to bed last night after dinner, complaining of a headache, and never woke up this morning. His valet tried to rouse him, found him unresponsive, and raised the alarm.
Could you send a letter to Mary? I’ve been busy sending word to court, our uncle, and getting Father’s affairs in order. Also, if you’d could also let her and Stafford know of the plans you and I discussed, I would be grateful.
He’ll be laid to rest next to Mother, just as she asked that he be.
George
LETTER TO LADY MARY STAFFORD FROM QUEEN ANNE, DUCHESS OF PEMBROKE
21 March 1539
My Dear Mary,
I write with unsettling news - Father passed away on the nineteenth of March. George sent me an express, which arrived last night. I know that you and Father were no longer close, but George asked that I inform you while he sees to it that the details are taken care of from Hever. Our George is now the Earl of Wiltshire and Ormonde. It may be un-filial, but I rather think that he will wear the mantle of it all far better than our father did.
Speaking of inheritances, George also asked me to discuss the subject with you. As you know, he and Jane have no children, and he’s told me more than once that there never will be. Even Father couldn’t bully him into sharing her bed and getting a child on her. He hasn’t touched her in years and isn’t about to start now, even to continue our branch of the Boleyn name. Still, it is his right to choose his heir, and he wants to keep the earldoms in our family. He’d like to, with your and Stafford’s consent, to make your young Edward his heir.
Please, think on it.
I remain,
Your Sister,
Anne, Duchess of Pembroke
ANNE BOLEYN’S DIARY
29 March 1539
Queen’s Hall
Father’s affairs have been settled and his body laid to rest beside our mother’s in the family tomb. It is all done, according to George. My brother will be formally invested with the earldom within the next few weeks at court, and Jane will finally delight over being a countess.
I should be feeling sad, should be mourning the loss of the man who helped to bring me to where I am now. I do mourn him, but it is more accurate to say that I mourn the man he was once, long ago. I mourn the man who played in the gardens of Hever with me, chasing me and George about, jumping out from behind the brush and roaring like a great bear. I miss the man who picked me up and swung me about, letting me fly in those brief moments. I miss the man who held me close and murmured, “My Anne.”
I haven’t seen that man in so long, I fear that he may have truly died long ago, perhaps as far back as when Mother died. In the years that followed, ambition seemed to take higher precedence than playing children’s games with his youngest daughter. Then my own childhood abruptly ended when he sent me to the Netherlands, and then on to France.
I’ve been deluged with notes expressing sympathies from half the nobility in England, even if I know very well that my father was one of the most hated men in the country, probably just behind Cromwell in his unpopularity in many circles. Even Henry has written his condolences, for once leaving off his begging for me to return to court. I have to say, on that score, it is a welcome respite.
EXCERPT FROM ANNE BOLEYN, QUEEN OF HEARTS, BY DR. NATALIE OLSEN
“Much, though not all, of the correspondence sent to Anne from Henry during this time period was lost at some point in the nineteenth century, and are believed to be either destroyed or in private hands. Still, the correspondence was referenced in earlier works, though those references mainly say only that Henry spent the months after Anne returned to Queen’s Hall in July 1538 writing to her, asking that she return to court. His requests were always met with refusals, and there is no mention of her being present in the court records. If Henry had made a royal command for her to come to court, Anne would have been faced with the choice of either coming, or being thrown into the Tower for disobeying the king. Therefore, the lack of mention in the court records is probably accurate.
Still, while Anne remained ensconced in the country, there were still other things going on. Negotiations began with the duchy of Cleves for a possible marriage between one of the Duke’s sisters and Henry, though Henry himself was known to be visibly reluctant on the matter, preferring an Imperial or French match…”
LETTER TO QUEEN ANNE, DUCHESS OF PEMBROKE, FROM HENRY VIII
19 October 1539
My Dearest Lady,
You maintain that you are no longer needed here at court, that you came here only to see me healed and resume my duties as the sovereign of England. Your only wish now is to live quietly on your estates, administer them properly, and see to the education of our daughter. All are honorable goals, Anne, but you are sorely missed here. Your company is a balm, a joy in a time when there are precious few.
Please, come back.
H. Rex
THE DIARY OF HENRY VIII
19 October 1539
Whitehall
I’ve sent Master Holbein to Cleves to paint the sisters of Duke William. Cromwell has continued to harp on the match like a man obsessed, and so was appeased when I sent the court painter to take the likenesses of the two ducal princesses. At the very least it gives me some peace on the subject, which is especially welcome when there is little peace to be found elsewhere.
There are whispers of the French and the Spanish signing a treaty with one another. If it’s true, then the need for an alliance with the Protestant League will be even more crucial. Only the League’s collective might at France’s back would make Francis pause about sending his forces against England when we are allied with them. Still, all the same, I hesitate. The German Protestants are far too heretical in their leanings for my liking. When I once told Chapuys that I’d agreed with Luther’s charges of corruption against the Church, I wasn’t lying, and I still mean it. Greed and vice still runs rampant through the Church of Rome, and nothing is done to check it. Still, the Germans have gone much further than that, which makes me nervous, a feeling I don’t care for at all. Nonetheless, I shall endeavor to keep an open mind.
Anne still won’t come to court. I have written her yet again, though I fear that it still won’t be enough. She is so stubborn! I still don’t understand why she ran from Hampton Court last year back to her estates, though she says that she prefers country life to court life now. Hah! As though anyone would believe such a thing. Anne Boleyn, a female country squire? Not in this life. She thrived on court intrigues.
Anne has asked why I want her to come to court, when I have so many of my friends to keep me company, such as Brandon and the Seymour brothers. What need do I have of her in the face of my companions? I tell her over and over that I miss her company, and that is the truth. I truly do miss her. Anne can light up a room like no one else, even by just stepping into it. Her wit and charm are as lovely as ever, and the court feels somehow less without them. But still she will not come…
LETTER TO HENRY VIII, KING OF ENGLAND, FROM QUEEN ANNE, DUCHESS OF PEMBROKE
21 October 1539
Your Majesty,
Fear not, this longing for my company shall pass. I hear you are to be married soon, to a worthy daughter of Cleves. My felicitations.
I shall make a bargain with you. When you have a queen to preside over your court again, I will come and visit her, and you.
Anne, Duchess of Pembroke
ANNE BOLEYN’S DIARY
30 October 1539
Forsythe Manor
The news is spreading like spilled wine on a tablecloth across England. France and Spain have signed the Treaty of Toledo, both swearing to join forces to ‘bring England back to the faith’, or some such high-minded ideal. While part of me thinks that such a pact cannot last, for the Emperor and King Francis are notorious for their mutual enmity, I still cannot help but be nervous. If this treaty lasts long enough for them to invade England, and should they, God forbid, conquer it, then Elizabeth and I will be in grave danger. I sincerely doubt that the Emperor will have any mercy on the woman who replaced his aunt or on the little girl whose legitimacy came at the cost of his cousin’s, a fellow grandchild of Isabella and Ferdinand.
Our only hope, our only defense, lies in Henry’s forthcoming marriage to Anne of Cleves. Oh, how I laughed when I heard that he had chosen her over her younger sister, Amelia. Another Anne will be Queen of England! Such ironies God lays down on this earth! I’m not so conceited as to think that he chose her simply to spite me, of course. Still, it is rather amusing, even if my hysterical laughter gave Nan some cause for alarm. Fortunately, Elizabeth was at her lessons already and didn’t see my display.
Let this Anne of Cleves be Henry’s new queen. I’ll visit her, just as I promised Henry. What else can he possibly ask of me?
THE DIARY OF HENRY VIII
2 November 1539
Whitehall
Welcome news arrived today - the Spanish fleet that was spotted but two days ago has been finally confirmed as a merchant fleet, not a military one, as everyone had feared. The alliance between Francis and the Emperor has already fallen apart - not that such news is a surprise to anyone, given the two men’s hatred of each other. Of course, with the crisis fading, some of my advisors have brought up the possibility of avoiding the marriage alliance with Cleves.
Cromwell, however, maintains that everything is too far gone to back out now. He says that if we turn our backs on Cleves, we risk alienating the entire Protestant League, which would be to England’s grave peril should France and Spain ever renew their alliance. We could never hope to call upon their influence again after so insulting one of their principle members.
To be honest, I am almost looking forward to the match, my religious concerns aside. It has been, as I told Charles, a very long time since I’ve bedded a woman. It is a fine thing to have a wife, after all, and not just in bed. I find myself longing for a companion, someone to share my troubles with. Anne refuses to return to court, to be that companion that I so long for, so perhaps this new Anne, this Anne of Cleves, will be what Anne Boleyn refuses to be.
LETTER TO CATHERINE BRANDON, DUCHESS OF SUFFOLK, FROM CHARLES BRANDON, DUKE OF SUFFOLK
17 December 1539
My Dearest Wife,
I have arrived in Calais, and have met she who is to be our new Queen. I admit, I was rather thrown by her very unfashionable clothing. The Germans force the woman to wear a veil, for God’s sake. Not even England at its most conservative has ever commanded such a thing of our ladies!
Nonetheless, I was permitted to spend some time with her, though her country’s ambassadors sat just outside the door, watching our every move. In sitting across from her, I was able to examine her more closely and see somewhat through the veil. She seems to have darkish hair, and while there is no great beauty about her that I could detect, there was a sweet prettiness about her, a kindness not often found in this world.
She has never learned to play cards, but proved a willing pupil when I offered to teach her piquet. The Lady Anne has a gentle sense of humor, and she was able to make me laugh more than once, something I had not expected after dealing with the dour German ambassadors. I could detect no malice or ambition about her, but I still cannot shake my reservations about this marriage. The king needs someone exotic and exciting to keep his attention. Queen Katherine’s Spanish looks kept him with her for over twenty years; the Duchess of Pembroke kept him fascinated and obsessed with her for over a decade, and still holds at least some of his attention now, long after their marriage has ended. Queen Jane may have been his beloved sweetheart, but still the king had no problem ignoring her in favor of other women, perhaps even more so than he did with his first two wives.
Lady Anne is kind, gentle woman, but she has none of the excitement and glamour of her predecessors, nor even Queen Jane’s ability to soothe in comparison to the Duchess of Pembroke’s high-strung qualities. I fear how Henry may react to her.
Please give my love to our son, but be certain to keep part of it for yourself, my darling wife.
Your Husband,
Charles B.
THE DIARY OF HENRY VIII
31 December 1539
Whitehall
I like her not! By God, I like her not!
I rode to meet her outside of London, much as my father once rode to meet Katherine when she came to marry my brother. When I entered the chambers where she was waiting, I saw her for the first time. She was dressed rather dowdily, in those rather infernal German fashions, but that did not bother me. Such things could be mended easily enough once we rid her of her German attendants and replaced them with fashionable, knowledgeable English maids and matrons. That aside, though, I could not find her at all attractive, nothing like the portrait Holbein made of her. I have been deceived!
Looking at her, I could logically see that she was pretty enough, though hardly a beauty of which legends are made. Still, I could feel absolutely nothing. There is nothing that draws her to me. If she were a lady at a masque at court, I wouldn’t look twice at her.
What has Cromwell gotten me into?! Where is my Anne? I need her here now!
I like her not!
ANNE BOLEYN’S DIARY
31 December 1539
Queen’s Hall
It has been a quiet Christmastide, one I have spent only with those of my ladies who have remained with me and not gone home to visit their families. George is at Rochford Hall, in Essex, administering to his estates there and avoiding his wife, as always. Mary and Stafford have remained at Chebsey this year with their children, who are growing by leaps and bounds if Mary’s gushing letters are anything to go by. Elizabeth is at court with her father and the Lady Mary, so that she may meet her new stepmother upon her arrival at Whitehall.
I’ve resigned myself to the marriage, and have even ordered gifts for them - two little puppies. I hope the new queen likes dogs. Both have the blood of hunters in them, something Henry might like.
THE DIARY OF HENRY VIII
1 January 1540
Whitehall
The Lady Anne arrived at Whitehall at the noon hour. I brought her before the court and allowed her to meet both Mary and Elizabeth, the latter of which had a small bouquet of flowers, no doubt obtained from the royal conservatory. The Lady Anne found them both enchanting and declared that she would love them both, and there was no lie in her eyes.
I could not help but soften a little toward her, despite my unhappiness. I cannot fault what I have seen of her character, and she seems like a pleasant woman. I just cannot find her physically attractive, not like my Anne. My Anne is still a handsome woman, even as she ages.
Perhaps… perhaps this is why she has stayed away from court since the plans for my remarriage began. The whole matter must be very hurtful for her, even now, which could be why she hasn’t returned here to visit.
EXCERPT FROM HENRY VIII: A LIFE, BY DR. ERIC THOMPSON
“The king’s diary is silent on the day of his marriage to Anna of Cleves, though there are plenty of other sources that record the event. All we have in Henry’s hand during this time was a single express sent to the Duchess of Pembroke, left among her papers. The brief words in the note more than adequately express Henry’s bitterness in those days.”
EXPRESS TO QUEEN ANNE, DUCHESS OF PEMBROKE, FROM HENRY VIII, KING OF ENGLAND
7 January 1540
You may come to court now. I am married. You need have no fear for your reputation.
H. Rex
Chapter Five-A