AGE & the Tudors

Comparing the true of ages
of the real Tudors
with their characters on the series
The 4 seasons of the series cover the years from 1519 - 1547 (28 years)

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Average life expectancy at birth in Tudor times was only 35. (So only half of all people born lived to be 35). However many of the people born died while they were still children. Out of all people born between 33% - 50% died before the age of about 16. There were Black Death Pandemics in 1535 and 1543 and many women died of 'child bed' fever. However if you could survive to your mid-teens you would probably live to your 50s or early 60s. Even in the 16th century some people did live to their 70s or 80s.

"It is important to remember that during Henry's reign, at least half of his subjects were under the age of eighteen. Henry's court swarmed with young people - pages, scullery maids, and the like. English culture celebrated youth; tournaments, hunts, glorious warfare were all the province of the young and strong. And while Henry was young, he joined these events with a gusto sadly lacking in his father or son. But time does not stop, not even for a despotic monarch determined to have his way in all things. During his 'great matter', Henry was in his thirties and changing from 'Bluff King Hal' into an overweight and balding hypochondriac."

[source: englishhistory.net]

Season 1
(filmed in 2006 & broadcast in 2007)
Covered the time period from 1519 - 1530 - 11 years

Character	born	1519 The year Henry's mistress gave birth to his illegitimate son	1526 The year Henry began his love affair with Anne	1530 The year of Wolsey's death	Actor's age in 2006
King Henry VIII	1491	28	35	39	Jonathan Rhys Meyers (aged 29)
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk	c.1484	35	42	46	Henry Cavill (aged 23)
Queen Katherine of Aragon	1485	34	41	45	Maria Doyle Kennedy (aged 42)
Princess Mary Tudor	1516	3	10	14	Bláthnaid McKeown (age unknown) approx 8
Elizabeth Blount	1502	17	24	28	Ruta Gedmintas (age unknown)
Henry Fitzroy	1519	birth	7	11 (died in 1536 aged 17)	Zak Jenciragic (age unknown) approx 6/7 shown dying at this age in season 1
Anne Boleyn	1501 (disputed but generally the accepted birthdate)	18	25	29	Natalie Dormer (Aged 24)
Cardinal Thomas Wolsey	1471/75	48/44	55/51	59/55 death	Sam Neill (aged 59)
Sir Thomas More	1478	41	48	52	Jeremy Northam (aged 45)
Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex	1485	34	41	45	James Frain (aged 38)
Thomas Boleyn, Earl of Wiltshire	1477	45	52	56	Nick Dunning (aged 47)
Princess Margaret Tudor (Queen of Scotland)	1489	38	45	49 (died 1541 aged 52)	Gabrielle Anwar (aged 36) *Plays an amalgamation of these characters but mostly based on Mary dies in Season 1
(Princess) Mary Tudor (Queen of France)	1496	23	30	34 (died 1533 aged 37)

Season 2
(filmed in 2007 & broadcast in 2008)
Covered the years from 1531 - 1536 - 5 years

Character	born	1531 Henry separates from Katherine & banishes her	1533 Marriage annulled and Henry marries Anne	1536 Deaths of Anne and Katherine	Actor's age in 2007
King Henry VIII	1491	40	42	45	Jonathan Rhys Meyers (aged 30)
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk	c.1484	47	49	52	Henry Cavill (aged 24)
Anne Boleyn	1501	30	32	35 death	Natalie Dormer (aged 25)
Queen Katherine of Aragon	1485	46	48	50 death	Maria Doyle Kennedy (aged 43)
Princess Mary Tudor	1516	15	17	20	Sarah Bolger (aged 16)
Princess Elizabeth Tudor	1533	-	birth	3	Kate Duggan (age unknown) approx 6
Sir Thomas More	1478	53	55	died 1535 aged 57	Jeremy Northam (aged 46)
Thomas Wyatt	c.1503	28	30	33	James King AKA Jamie Thomas King (aged 26)
Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex	1485	46	48	51	James Frain (aged 39)
Jane Seymour	c.1508	23	25	28	Anita Briem (aged 25)
Thomas Boleyn, Earl of Wiltshire	1477	54	59	62	Nick Dunning (aged 48)
Mark Smeaton	c. 1512	18	20	23 death	David Alpay (aged 27)
George Boleyn	c.1500/4	31/27	33/29	36/32 death	Padraic Delaney (aged 31)
Jane Boleyn	c.1505	26	28	31	Joanne King (aged 24)
Edward Seymour	1506	25	27	30	Max Brown (aged 26)
John Seymour	1474	57	61	64	John Brennan (age unkown)

Season 3
(filmed in 2008 & broadcast in 2009)
Covered the years from 1536 - 1540 - 4 years

Character	Born	1537 Jane dies & Edward is born	1538	1540	Actor's age in 2008
King Henry VIII	1491	46	47	49	Jonathan Rhys Meyers (aged 31)
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk	c.1484	53	54	56	Henry Cavill (aged 25)
Jane Seymour	c.1508	29 death	-	-	Annabelle Wallis (aged 24)
Princess Mary Tudor	1516	21	22	24	Sarah Bolger (aged 17)
Anne of Cleves	1515	22	23	25	Joss Stone (aged 21)
Katherine Howard	c.1521/24	15/13	16/14	18/16	Tamzin Merchant (aged 21)
Princess Elizabeth Tudor	1533	4	5	7	Claire MacCauley (age Unknown) approx 9/10
Prince Edward Tudor	1537	birth	1	3
Jane Boleyn	c.1505	32	33	35	Joanne King (aged 25)
Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex	1485	52	53	55 death	James Frain (aged 40)
Edward Seymour	c.1506	31	32	34	Max Brown (aged 27)
Francis Bryan	c.1490	47	48	50	Alan Van Sprang (aged 37)
Robert Aske	c.1500	37 death	-	-	Gerard McSorley (aged 58)
Cardinal Von Waldburg	1514	23	24	26	Max Von Sydow (aged 79)
Reginald Pole	1500	37	38	40	Mark Hildreth (age 30)
Lady Salisbury	1473	64	65	67	Kate O'Toole (aged 46) shows her dying in Season 3 but she didn't die till 1541
Earl of Shrewsbury	1468	69	deceased	deceased	Gavin O'Connor (aged 36)

Season 4
(filmed in 2009 & broadcast in 2010)
Covered the years from 1541 - 1547 - 6 years

Character	born	1542 The year Katherine H was executed	1545 Charles Brandon dies	1547 Henry dies	Actor's age in 2009
King Henry VIII	1491	51	54	56 death	Jonathan Rhys Meyers (aged 32)
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk	c.1484	58	61 death	-	Henry Cavill (aged 26)
Princess Mary Tudor	1516	26	29	31	Sarah Bolger (aged 18)
Catherine Parr	1512	30	33	35	Joely Richardson (aged 44)
Katherine Howard	c.1521/1524	21/18 death	-	-	Tamzin Merchant (aged 22)
Jane Boleyn	c.1505	37 death	-	-	Joanne King (aged 26)
Princess Elizabeth Tudor	1533	9	12	14	Laoise Murray (age 13/14)
Thomas Culpepper	c.1514	28 death	-	-	Torrance Coombs (aged 25)
Edward Seymour	c.1506	36	39	41	Max Brown (aged 28)
Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey	1517	25	28	30 death	David O'Hara (aged 44)

AGE & the Tudors

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