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book_worm333 |
Tudor Wives
Jan 10 2011, 5:05 PM EST
Which wife do you believe was Henry's favorite and why?
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Keyword tags:
Six wives
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Shenandoan |
1. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 11 2011, 3:12 PM EST
| Post edited: Jan 11 2011, 3:13 PM EST
That's a good question.I just read love letters from King Henry to Anne Boleyn. The impression it left on me was that from a man being deeply in love with a woman. I think he also was very much in love with Katherine Howard, but it always gave me the feeling it was more her youth and vivacity that formed the greatest attraction to the King at that point in his life. I should say he had the deepest feelings for Anne Boleyn. Why? Chemistry, the fact she was an intelligent woman, she was very different from Catherine of Aragon and the possibility of getting his long-wished-for heir might have played a role also. 4 out of 12 found this valuable. Do you? |
lettice |
2. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 11 2011, 4:14 PM EST
"That's a good question.It's difficult to speculate as women were second class citizens at the time & Henry needed a means to an end (a male heir). Based on this need, I would have to say Jane Seymour. Henry mourned her loss deeply: can't say that for the others. 8 out of 12 found this valuable. Do you? |
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Shenandoan |
3. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 11 2011, 5:36 PM EST
I think he mourned about Catherine Howard as well.. I think his world collapsed the moment the truth about Catherine and Thomas Culpeper became clear. As for Anne Boleyn: I still think his feelings for her went beyond the feeling he had for his other wives. That they didn't last is a different story. 4 out of 10 found this valuable. Do you? |
royalfalcon |
4. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 11 2011, 5:53 PM EST
"I think he mourned about Catherine Howard as well.. I think his world collapsed the moment the truth about Catherine and Thomas Culpeper became clear.I also believe that Anne Boleyn was the grand passion of his liffe. The letters that he wrote to her are quite beautiful. If it turned to hate in the end - well love and hate are closely linked sometimes. 5 out of 11 found this valuable. Do you? |
jaclynb731 |
5. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 11 2011, 10:15 PM EST
| Post edited: Jan 11 2011, 10:24 PM EST
"It's difficult to speculate as women were second class citizens at the time & Henry needed a means to an end (a male heir). Based on this need, I would have to say Jane Seymour. Henry mourned her los was the deeply: can't say that for the others."I kindly disagree with lettice and others who think the same way about this question. I don't think that Henry really morned the loss of Jane because he had the most love for her. I think he was really mourning what Jane did, and could do for him. Jane was the only one to bore Henry a healthy child, so Jane providing him with an heir played a leading reason for Henry proclaiming Jane his favorite wife. With the death of Jane, he probably mourned the loss of sons he thought would follow after Edward. One last thing, remember the timeline between the death of Anne and the rise and death of Jane; I think on some level Henry tried really hard to convince himself of Anne's guilt. Henry himself was not truly convinced, and after the untimely death of Jane, the lady for which he sent his Nan to death for, his mental, emotional, and physical heath quickly descent into more madness, that was really the mask for his, sadness, hurt, disappointment, and guilt. This observer believes Anne was his favorite wife, think of all the silence after her death. To even utter the name Anne Boleyn would envoke a most troubled emotion. 4 out of 5 found this valuable. Do you? |
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Shenandoan |
6. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 12 2011, 6:24 AM EST
I feel the same way about it. As for the change of his mental state I find it difficult to say what caused it. He had the jousting accident during his relationship with Anne Boleyn and it is believed that this event could have caused brain damage. It might as well be both things. The physical result of his accident, the loss of his ability to take part in the sports he loved so much and the tragic events in his private life. What you often see when people are getting psychical problems, is a combination of causes. 3 out of 4 found this valuable. Do you? |
Jes89 |
7. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 12 2011, 8:16 AM EST
The fact is that we have Henry's words saying that was Jane Seymour. We can't fight against what he did say in his life.For the rest it's speculation and in some cases people's fav wives, that they choose to be Henry's fav too. My opinion is that he loved all his wives( except Anne of Cleves), but at some point the love died with COA, AB and KH 8 out of 9 found this valuable. Do you? |
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henrymickeymicheal |
8. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 13 2011, 9:13 AM EST
they portrade anne as an spoiled self centered brat was she really like that?
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freya9 |
9. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 13 2011, 4:39 PM EST
Henry had happy times with all his wives (apart from Anne of cleves but he seems to have gotten on well with her once their marriage was annulled). Henry himself said Jane was his one true wife and for whatever reason that was his choice. So she was his favourite. Because she gave him his son. Although if one of Henry's subsequent wives had given him two Jane would have been knocked off the top spot pretty sharpish.1 out of 1 found this valuable. Do you? |
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jaclynb731 |
10. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 13 2011, 4:55 PM EST
| Post edited: Jan 13 2011, 5:08 PM EST
"The fact is that we have Henry's words saying that was Jane Seymour. We can't fight against what he did say in his life.Hi Jes89, What I am about to write will probably read more condescending than my actual tone, but here goes my response to your quote. I can acknowldge what a fact is...Henry did proclaim Jane his favorite wife...but I don't think that we have to accept what Henryy said because he said it. To me, public declorations do not permit truth. If we were to take the word of all of histories men and women then what are any historians or (tudor/history) enthusiast doing debating anything at all? Are we to all accept the public declorations made by kings and queens simply because in their lifetime they said so? p.s. This is not a to disbute Jane as his favorite, it has more to do with me not believing Henry. I already said why I think he choose Jane as his favorite wife, so I will not repeat myself. And to those who might say love was different, and that I am implicating modern love, know this; modern love and it roots stem from the medieval time (remember the legend of Camelot!). Chivarly and passionate love did exist, but it was not the norm in Tudor England. To be clear I think Anne Boleyn was the favorite for passionate love, Jane was the recipient of love as defined by Tudor norms. 1 out of 2 found this valuable. Do you? |
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Jes89 |
11. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 13 2011, 5:46 PM EST
"Hi Jes89,I agree when you say about the debate. But what i said is that Henry said it's Jane and i can still find 50 reasons for being Anne or Catherine, but still he died saying that woman was his special, so i feel that i need to respect that as his truth. But, again,i did give my opinion, i believe he loved all his wives, Henry seems to be the kind of people who is into love very much, but just like it happens all the time the love's gone 6 out of 6 found this valuable. Do you? |
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Jes89 |
12. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 13 2011, 5:50 PM EST
"good point on the different kinds of love. I would say that KH was his middle age crisis. Like some old men who loves to show their young girls like pieces of jewels. Do you find this valuable? |
AJBates |
13. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 13 2011, 6:26 PM EST
Well I think the whole which is his favorite wife would most likely have been decided by Henry looking back on his life and all of them. Obviously he would pick the one who didn't fail and died before he got too tired of her.In my opinion though since we are talking about wives, not the relationship with the girl in question prior to marriage. I would say was in the first 5 years of his marriage to KOA as well as Katherine Howard for the reason that in that time he never had a mistress or a need for one in that time. (I don't really figure Catherine Parr as being a love of the king at all, more that he wanted a wife to take care of him, Maragert George's book even shows that at the proposal he said he didn't plan on her being a wife carnally really, it's fiction but makes sense). Anne I think was the great love of his life and she too held him away from mistresses for the 7 years, but I think he loved her more prior to the marriage and much less after which is why I don't think she was the most loved "wife". 1 out of 1 found this valuable. Do you? |
QueenElizabethAnne |
14. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 13 2011, 7:08 PM EST
quote: "Anne I think was the great love of his life and she too held him away from mistresses for the 7 years, but I think he loved her more prior to the marriage and much less after which is why I don't think she was the most loved "wife".That makes a lot of sense. 0 out of 2 found this valuable. Do you? |
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jaclynb731 |
15. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 13 2011, 7:27 PM EST
"good point on the different kinds of love.Hi again jes89, If there is something that seems to be true, there are all sorts of love, and Henry's "love" was fickle and fleeting...and coming off the heals of my own personal disappointment...boys still behave this way. Do you find this valuable? |
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freya9 |
16. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 14 2011, 8:34 PM EST
I think Henry had the most happiness with Katherine of Aragon, the most passion with Anne Boylen, the fulfilment of a son with Jane, the most fun and the renewal of his youth with Katherine Howard and a supportive companion in Catherine Parr. Even in Anne of Cleves after the annulment he gained a 'sister' who was loved and respected. Although most of Henry's marriages ended badly he got something positive from all of them.
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royalfalcon |
17. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 15 2011, 7:04 AM EST
"I think Henry had the most happiness with Katherine of Aragon, the most passion with Anne Boylen, the fulfilment of a son with Jane, the most fun and the renewal of his youth with Katherine Howard and a supportive companion in Catherine Parr. Even in Anne of Cleves after the annulment he gained a 'sister' who was loved and respected. Although most of Henry's marriages ended badly he got something positive from all of them."Excellent Freya what a well thought out post. I think you have summed up Henry's marriages brilliantly. Do you find this valuable? |
Anne'sCurls |
18. RE: Tudor Wives
Jan 21 2011, 9:16 PM EST
| Post edited: Jan 21 2011, 9:21 PM EST
"good point on the different kinds of love.If we're taking Henry's words as truth then Anne was a witch and adulterer, he was never married to Katharine of Aragon, Anne of Cleves was ugly, and he only had 2 wives. The reason why who his favorite is in question is because Henry is a sociopathic, opportunistic liar. I honestly can't say who was his favorite; the only way I could see him having a favorite wife is if he married a KatKittyCateAnnaNanJane 1 out of 3 found this valuable. Do you? |
