Hi guys this weeks chapter is pretty much just historical filler as I've been away all weekend for my Grandad's 90th and haven't had much of a chance to do anything more. Having said that next weeks chapter will be much more detailed, if you know what I mean :p xx
It came to pass that parliament demanded a verdict from the clergy as to whether they would deny or accept the authority of their King. It was the verdict Henry, Anne and the entire Boleyn family had been waiting for as if the clergy did submit to Henry's will then he would be granted his divorce and be free to marry Anne. The clergy submitted to His Majesty's will and it was at that moment that the Catholic Church in England was broken. This was a great victory for Henry as his desire to be head of his own church and do as he saw fit in terms of his marriage was granted.
Despite this victory however there were a number of unsettling events that followed. Firstly Anne found what she described to one of her ladies maids as a book of prophecy. The warning (or possibly threat) had been placed on her desk: three cards; a king with a letter 'H' to represent Henry, a Queen with a letter 'C' to represent Catherine and in between them a maiden with a letter 'A' to represent Anne. This card had had the head removed from the body and caused Anne a great distress but she did not breath a word of it to the King – he had enough problems going on without having to hear about a supposed threat on her life.
Sir Thomas More gave up his office very shortly after the clergy submitted to Henry's will. He did not wish to remain in his position – he wanted to be left in peace rather than watch the Church fall apart as heretics walked the streets of London and Cromwell and his men bastardised everything that More still held dear. He told Henry that he would not speak of his affairs in public, as many other irate members or the clergy had taken to doing, but would not condone his actions either. Both his leaving and his parting words troubled and enraged Henry somewhat and More knew that he may at some point be made a martyr but that time would come later, he hoped.
Once again Henry asked Catherine to return her jewels which she once again refused to do but he was persistent and eventually Henry received them back. The jewels were then given to Anne, a particularly painful experience for Catherine especially after Henry also granted Anne nobility and titles. Even though he did not have his full divorce and was not yet able to marry the Lady Anne he was already treating her as if she were his Queen.
He took her to France to be introduced to King Francis as his new wife and the future Queen of England. The trip to France was also intended to reunite the two countries and create a new alliance between the two of them. King Francis was only too happy to accept Henry's offer of an alliance and suggested a crusade to take back the Holy Lands. He was also very happy with the entertainment Henry provided – a number of exotic dancing girls, the Lady Anne among them. During the banquet the King of France and Anne were seen talking privately to each other and Isabella suspected that there was something more to their relationship than met the eye. Anne had after all been a lady in waiting to Francis' wife and, Isabella suspected, had probably been a mistress to the French King at one point during her stay there.
Isabella put those thoughts out of her head. She knew it was only a matter of time before one began thinking of these matters to voicing them out loud to another person. Once the thoughts had been voiced there was no going back from it and as Anne was soon to be made Queen (Henry always got his way in the end – that much had never been a secret) that would be seen as an act of treason. Isabella had little problem with falling out of favour with Anne but when one did they immediately found themselves out of favour with the King and Isabella very much desired to keep her head.
The marriage between Henry and Anne was beginning to divide the kingdom. A fight broke out between George Boleyn's men and one of Charles Brandon men and Brandon's man lost his life at the hands of the other men. Brandon was furious and would happily have taken the lives of the guilty parties but he was convinced to otherwise. The Duke of Suffolk found that his principals would be tried over the next few days.
Henry finally married Anne in a secret ceremony before his divorce to Catherine had been fully finalised. It was a small ceremony, with only Anne's family, Isabella and Brandon present. The look that Anne had given Isabella felt as if it could have burnt her right there and then – it was no secret to everyone in court (aside from the King that was) that Anne hated Isabella. Her hatred for Henry's childhood friend was just as great as her hatred for Catherine but she knew that unlike Catherine she could not get Henry to send Isabella away. He loved her too much to do that and that was one of the reasons why Anne hated her.
The marriage to Anne was, in Isabella suspicions if nothing else, was to cover up the fact that Anne was already pregnant. If Henry was going to have another child he wanted it to be a legitimate one, especially if it was to be the son that Anne kept promising him. It was the duty of the Duke of Suffolk to give the message of the King's new marriage to Catherine and to tell her that she was no longer allowed to call herself Queen. The news came as a heavy blow to Catherine; she knew now that there was no possible way that Henry would cease in his pursuit of this divorce. The only possible way was if the Pope were to order him to take her back but Henry was finding his own way around it.
It soon came to pass that that a Bishop from across the seas – one Thomas Cranmer – saw to it to fix Henry's divorce once and for all. Cranmer stated that the King's marriage to Catherine was null and void and it was taken as law. It was also taken as law that the King's new marriage to Anne was lawful and legitimate and that any children the pair were to have would be the true and rightful heirs to the throne of England. It was also more commonly known during this time (especially around the court) that Anne was already pregnant with their first child. She was insistent that it was going to be the son she kept promising but that was to remain unknown for the time being.
On the day of Anne's coronation as Queen a parade was held in her honour. However during the procession a shot was fired and one of the grooms walking behind the carriage containing Henry and Anne was killed. Boleyn blamed Brandon for the assassination attempt on his daughter as the Duke had been in charge of the day's proceedings. Brandon in turn blamed Boleyn for the death of one of his most trusted men.
Anne was crowned Queen of England and was freely allowing her pregnancy to be known to all. There was a great party with feasts, dancing and fireworks. Of the day's parade though Anne was displeased; she stated that there were hardly any people, they did not remove their hats and they did not cheer. She commented that it was more like a funeral than a parade. This irritated the King somewhat – he wanted the entire country to love their new Queen as he did but it seemed as if that was going to be more difficult than had been expected.
Even after Catherine heard the news of Anne's coronation she still refused to relinquish the title of Queen of England. This refusal forced Boleyn to go and converse with the Lady Mary who had grown into a very fine young woman. Mary had the grace and beauty of her mother and the elegance of one far beyond her years. Boleyn told Mary that she had to recognise Anne as the true Queen of England and if she did not there would be serious consequences. Remaining loyal to her mother Mary refused to acknowledge any Queen other than Catherine. Boleyn then told her that she was forbidden to communicate with her mother or there would be hell to pay, a blow which both parties would find hard to bear.
The King received a message from Rome shortly after this stating that if he did not leave Anne and return to Catherine then he would be excommunicated from the church. Henry read the letter from the Pope and tore it up saying that it was too late for that now. He was married to Anne and no power on this earth would make him leave and go back to Catherine, whose health (it was rumoured) was beginning to deteriorate as she felt the force of each new blow that His Majesty dealt her.