How the bride of the King of England became his sister: Anna of Cleves

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

King Henry VIII managed to marry for love several times in his life, but not in this case: Anna of Cleves disgusted the groom. “She is not as beautiful as she is said to be,” he complained. The artist got it for embellishing the image of the bride, the first adviser eventually paid with his life for an unsuccessful matchmaking, and Anna herself was threatened with the fate of the king's previous wives - to go into exile or to be agreed and end up on the block. But it turned out differently - and the ugly, unwanted queen was able to turn defeat into victory.

Choosing a new wife

The wives of Henry VIII are a large and rich topic for both scientific study and plots of fiction. Anna Klevskaya was destined to become wife number four. The list was grim: the first wife died in exile, separated from her daughter, and according to rumors, she was completely poisoned; the second wife, and then the fifth, were beheaded; the happiness of the third turned out to be short - she died shortly after giving birth. But the fate of Anna Klevskaya against this background seems to be quite prosperous.

It is unlikely that she was raised as a future queen, but Anna was born in the family of rather influential German rulers. She was the daughter of Duke Johann III. Anna grew up with two sisters and her brother Wilhelm. She received almost no education - it was in the order of things. She knew only her native language and, in addition, mastered the art of handicraft and managing the household. The girl was not taught either science or court arts - dancing, singing, playing musical instruments.

But she grew up kind, meek, was pretty and enjoyed common love. And since Anna was still a representative of the ruling family, she was also valued in the bride market for political reasons. As a child, she turned out to be engaged - formally, of course - with the Duke of Lorraine, also far from adult, but after a while this engagement was canceled.

She was twenty-five years old when Henry VIII set out in earnest to find a new wife, burying Queen Jane Seymour, who died of childbirth fever, in 1537. Despite the fact that the long-awaited heir - Prince Edward - was finally born, in order to strengthen the position of the Tudors on the English throne, a new marriage and new sons were required, and Henry began to choose a bride. Here, of course, it was not without political nuances.

The king did not want to turn to the Spaniards, the French did not give their princesses to Henry. Christina of Denmark, having received Henry's offer, scoffed at the English king: her relative Catherine of Aragon, according to popular belief, was poisoned, the next wife, Anne Boleyn, was executed, the third wife, Jane Seymour, could not be followed by careless English doctors. Henry was given to understand that his future queen number four would not be so easy to persuade to accept this title.

But then there was a rumor that the daughters of the German Duke of Cleves were very good-looking, and their family did not object to marriage with the king. They talked a lot about Anna - supposedly she is sweet, good-looking, knows how to behave. Such a wedding in the eyes of Henry VIII looked very attractive: it gave additional trump cards in the fight against Catholics - by that time the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and the French king Francis I had concluded an alliance against England, and the Pope republished the bull about Henry's excommunication from the Catholic Church. The support of the Duke of Cleves in these conditions was expensive: even if he himself was not a Protestant, the papal power did not extend to his domain.

Meeting the bride and disappointment

An active supporter of the idea of the king's marriage to Anna of Cleves was the king's adviser Thomas Cromwell, who praised her beauty and become with might and main. Then Heinrich sent the girls to the homeland of the court painter Hans Holbein Jr. to paint portraits of both sisters. Holbein was an excellent master: the portrait of Anna, brought to England, was very much liked by the king.

The disadvantage of the bride was perhaps her lack of knowledge of the English language, but everything indicated that the girl would make up for this omission with ease. Preparations for the wedding began, in the fall of 1539 a prenuptial agreement was signed, and soon the bride and her numerous retinue went to England. Anna was greeted by representatives of the king, they showed their respect to the Princess of Cleves and sent messages to the king praising his choice.

On the first day of 1540 in the city of Rochester, a meeting took place between Henry and Anne of Cleves. It is not known exactly what happened between the bride and groom, but after the meeting, the king expressed strong displeasure. He was dissatisfied with the choice of the bride, and also with the work of the artist. Henry did not like the bride at all. Not that he himself was handsome - by that time the king had grown very stout, his waist circumference reached 52 inches, and until that time they had not heard much about the king's legibility. But still, Anna was honored with unflattering epithets. Apparently, the main shortcomings of the bride were her large nose, disguised in the portrait due to a favorable angle, and traces of smallpox on her face. In addition, the girl was unusually tall, and all the previous chosen ones of the king were notable for their small stature.

Awkwardness arose - the king was looking for ways to refuse marriage, but the matter went too far; On January 6, 1540, the wedding was played. However, until the final completion of the marriage ceremony did not come. The next morning the king declared that he had not touched his wife. This went on for several months. The king informed the entourage that he was not able to fulfill marital duties, making it clear that the whole thing was in Anna. Meanwhile, the new queen enjoyed success at the court. She studied English, was distinguished by exquisite manners, was a kind stepmother to Heinrich's children Elizabeth and Eduard, made friends with his eldest daughter Maria - almost her own age. Anna seemed quite pleased with her position.

How to get rid of the queen

But Henry was dissatisfied with his position. He was already thinking about a new queen, and a candidate for this role was at hand - Catherine Howard from Queen Anne's retinue. It was only required to eliminate the unloved and physically unpleasant wife. The situation was alarming - the king got rid of his wives mercilessly, especially when he was at the mercy of strong feelings. To begin with, Anna was expelled from London - this happened in June 1540, and then - the king's advisers suggested an excuse to free herself from the marriage bond. As a legal justification for the invalidity of the marriage, they called the very engagement of Anna with the Duke of Lorraine.

Something similar happened in the case of the first queen, Catherine of Aragon, and she persisted in her desire to remain the king's wife. But when they came to Anna with a similar announcement - that she would no longer be queen, she willingly fulfilled all the conditions of the king, and on July 9, 1540, the marriage was declared invalid. To celebrate, the king presented his former wife with several estates and palaces, including those that once belonged to the family of Anne Boleyn, his second wife. Anna Klevskaya was declared the royal "beloved sister", and in this status she was free to remain at court as long as she wanted. In addition, she was allowed to marry.

What could threaten Henry's fourth wife is evidenced by the fact that shortly after the official dissolution of these marriage bonds, Thomas Cromwell was executed. And the king married for the fifth time - to Catherine Howard, who was destined to die at the hands of the executioner after a year and a half. Anna remained, was one of the first ladies of the state, maintained warm friendly relations with the king, who was no longer threatened with the unpleasant need for physical rapprochement. Anna took part in the life of the royal family and in general was always nearby. She never returned to her homeland. In the palace donated by the king, the former queen held receptions, kept her court, often invited her stepdaughter Elizabeth, to whom she was very attached.

She outlived the king himself and all his wives, including the last, Catherine Parr, and King Edward, his successor. Anna did not live so many years, at the time of her death she was only 41 years old. At this time in England was already ruled by Mary Tudor, daughter of Henry. It is noteworthy that when she, a convinced Catholic, ascended the throne, Anna herself changed her faith - she tried so hard to avoid conflicts and strive to be comfortable. yard. True, she never got to know the joys of family life or the happiness of motherhood. Anna Klevskaya died in 1557 - most likely from cancer.

And here is how the other sensational royal marriages that have gone down in history.