Hey everyone, here am I with a new fan fiction. Read and Review!
The Jewels of Christendom
Summary: What if Isabella of Castille, Katherine of Aragon's mother and Mary's grandmother, was still alive when Henry started to think of a divorce? What if Mary's marriage contract with Charles V was not disrespected? What if Katherine decided to resign from her position as Queen of England for Mary's sake, sending her daughter to be raised in Spain by her still living grandmother, Isabella of Castille? How would Mary and Isabella react to Henry VIII's changes in terms of religion? How would they protect Catalina from Henry's cruelty?
Notes:
Anne Boleyn's date of birth - 1502. (She caught Henry's eye around 1518.)
Mary Tudor's date of birth: 1516
Isabella of Castille's date of birth: 1461 (instead of 1451)
Charles V date of birth: 1507, instead of 1500.
Prologue
May 1522
Greenwich, London
- Your Majesty, the Imperial Ambassador is here - whispered Lady Elizabeth Darrell.
- Thank you, Lady Elizabeth. You can leave us alone.
She curtseyed and Katherine's smile lit up when the Imperial Ambassador came in. Eustace Chapuys had always been a faithful servant, a staunch ally but above all a loyal friend. She knew she could count on him, especially now, when her husband's attentions were all absorbed by that Boleyn girl, Anne. Katherine knew of all his husband's mistresses, and Anne was no exception. Truth to be told, Katherine had to admit she wasn't anything like a common English lady, with her olive skin tone and her dark eyes and hair. But she wasn't the kind of woman Henry would likely marry: Anne had an annoying way of meddling into the King's affairs, unlike Katherine did. Not that she didn't want to, sometimes: God knew how she wished she could ban that vain and power-hungry Cardinal Wolsey from Court and from her husband's favor. Katherine was a highly learned woman, unlike most women of that times, but she knew that first of all she was a good Christian wife, and that meant she would never raise her voice to her husband or go against his will. However, it pained her to hear that Henry wished to marry Anne.
At first she tried to fight, for her own sake and for her daughter. She was a Princess of Spain after all; Mary was descendent of the Catholic Kings. Henry had alleged religious reasons to annul their marriage: according to the Book of Leviticus, a man who marries his brother's wife (as Katherine had been before God had chosen to take her noble husband, Prince Arthur Tudor, Henry's older brother, away from her), should die childless. Well, they had a daughter, so that wasn't true in her case. But it seemed that as far as Henry was concerned, Mary was just a bastard, a child of no importance. It was whispered that the Boleyn witch had casted a spell on him, vanishing all fatherly love from Henry's heart. It was also whispered that both her brother and father had advised her to plot Mary's murder in order to disguise it as an accident. And this was what had prompted her, Catalina of Aragón y Castilla, daughter and granddaughter of Kings, to make a decision which broke her heart as much as relieved it. But she needed Chapuys's help. She needed to write her mother, the old Queen Isabella of Castille. Katherine was amazed by her mother's strength and health: at age 54 she was still able to rule a country by her own right after years of joined regency along with her husband. Unlike many countries in Europe, in Spain a woman could actually rule a country with equal sovereignty as her husband. It was the way her parents had found to unite the Aragonese and the Castilian crowns, and in Katherine's opinion, it had worked divinely.
She was the first one to agree with Mary's betrothal to her cousin (and Katherine's nephew) Charles V, a boy of fifteen now. Under normal circumstances, the Pope would never allow such marriage, because of the family affinity between the groom and the bride, but her mother was a highly influential woman in the Christian world, due to her exemplary fights against the Moors. In six years time, Mary would become Maria of Habsburg, Holy Roman Empress. The young English princess was only supposed to travel to Spain in a few years, but regarding the current affairs in England, Katherine had other ideas.
- Eustace - she said, while he kissed her hand. - Gracias por haber venido tan pronto. Es un asunto muy importante, algo que no podré hacer sin su ayuda.
(*thanks for coming so quickly. This is a very important matter, something I cannot do without your help).
- Será un honor, Majestad - he said, in perfect Spanish.
(*it will be an honor, Majesty)
- De esta carta a mi madre, la Reina Isabella, lo más pronto que pueda.
(*Give this letter to my mother, Queen Isabella, as soon as you can).
Chapuys knew he should not ask, but something in his Lady's distressed looks made him proceed otherwise:
- Ha tomado una decisión, Señora ?
(Have you come to a decision, my Lady?)
Katherine nodded slowly.
- Sí, finalmente. (*Yes, finally)
Chapuys pressed his lips together.
- Eso significará que usted tendrá que abdicar de todo por que hemos luchado todos estes años. Su marido la sustituirá por una puta. (*That means you will have to resign from everything we have fought for all these years. Your husband will replace you for a whore) - his words were cold, but not taken as an offense. He was stating something as obvious as the blueness of the sky.
- Yo sé, Eustace. Pero mi corazón de madre ya no tiene más sangre que derramar. No puedo vivir con el miedo de perderla, de perder mi hija, la luz de mi vida. Prefiero ser acogida en un mostero y saber que Mary está en seguranza en España a llorar abrazada a un cadáver - they both crossed themselves. (*I know Eustace. But my heart, the heart of a mother, has no blood left to shed. I can't live with the fear of losing her, of losing my daughter, the light of my life. I prefer to retire for a monastery, knowing that Mary is safe in Spain rather than cry next to her dead body).
- Necesita pedir permiso a su marido - stated Chapuys. - No será fácil. (*You need to ask your husband's permission. It won't be easy).
- Oh, será más fácil que imagina, Eustace. La única condición que yo impongo a cambio del divorcio es el viaje de mi hija. Henry está desesperado por un divorcio. El Papa nunca le dará permiso para divorciarse de mi mientras yo no lo quiera también. Entonces, la única solución de mi marido es hacer lo que yo le pido. De todas maneras, Mary ya no es su perla. Aquella puta Bolena, sí que es su perla ahora. - her voice trembled. - Por favor, Eustace, haga lo que le pido. Sé que no concorda con esto, pero hágalo no por Queen Katherine, sino por Catalina de España.
(Oh, it will be easier than you think, Eustace. The only condition I impose in exchange for a divorce is my daughter's trip. Henry is desperate for a divorce. The pope will never him have his way until I don't want to divorce myself from him as well. So, the only solution for Henry is do what I ask him to do. Anyway, Mary isn't his pearl anymore. That Boleyn whore, she is his pearl now. Please, Eustace, do what I ask you to. I know you don't agree with this.. but do it not for Queen Katherine, but instead for Catalina of Spain).
Eustace wanted to say something but he couldn't find his voice. Her suffering was so great that he promised to do anything, even against his conscience, to ease it. He curtseyed deeply and left before the Queen could the saddened look on his face.