Lost Children of Catherine of Aragon

Catherine of Aragon gave birth to a good deal of children during her marriage to Henry VIII but only Mary I would survive - something that would eventually lead to Catherine's dethronement. But how many children did Catherine give birth to? Where there really no boys among them?

The answer to the last question is a definite "no" - Catherine gave birth to a number of sons but sadly none of them survived their infancy. These were the children of Catherine:

• Catherine gave birth to a stillborn daughter on January 31 1510 - the girl died the same day
• The son Henry wanted was born on January 1 1511 and was immediately named Henry and made Duke of Cornwall - he died on February 23 that same year
• Another son was born in October/November 1513 but he died before he was named 
• Henry, (another) Duke of Cornwell was born in 1514 in December but died within the month
• Catherine finally gave birth to a child that would survive but the child was a girl: Mary. She was born on February 18 1516
• Catherine's last child was a stillborn girl born on November 10 1518 

As the years show, Catherine was pregnant almost constantly from 1510-1518. After this period she did not conceive again and as nature has it, she eventually entered menopause. How unfair and painful it must have been for Catherine to listen to Henry and his councillors complaining that she never was able to produce an heir, while she had not only been through labour pains but the pain of losing the child as well - several times. 

Not Becoming of A Christian Princess

It is - and was - not a secret that Princess Mary and Prince Edward did not see eye to eye on religious matters but as it turns out, the siblings had different views on royal behaviour.

Prince Edward wrote to Catherine Parr, asking her to keep the Princess Mary from dancing foreign and exotic dances. In his own words Mary should "attend no longer to foreign dances and merriments which do not become a most Christian Princess." You can almost imagine Mary's indignation towards being reproved by her younger brother on her behaviour.
Despite personal pride, Mary may also have found a sort of comfort in the foreign dances since her mother had brought many Spanish and "Moorish" dances to the English court when she arrived to marry Arthur, Prince of Wales.

Catherine the Queen

"The Lady Katherine is a proud, stubborn woman of very high courage. If she took it into her head to take her daughter's part, she could quite easily take the field, muster a great array, and wage against me a war as fierce as any her mother Isabella ever waged in Spain." 

This is what Henry VIII himself said about Catherine of Aragon. It is strange that he still chose to go up against her in the matter of their marriage's trial - he must have known that Catherine would never leave the title, she felt belonged to her by right.

Ghost of Catherine Parr

Catherine Parr died tragically after giving birth to her only child - a girl with the name of Mary. Catherine's ghost has been seen at two different locations: Snape Castle and Sudeley Castle.

At Snape Castle, Catherine's ghost is said to take the form of a young girl with long blond hair and wearing a Tudor gown. As her second husband used Snape Castle as the family's main residence, so Catherine must have spent a large amount of her married life here. When Catherine's ghost appears at Snape Castle it is said to be a happy spirit.

Snape Castle

However, the ghost of Catherine Parr at Sudeley Castle is of a completely different mood than the ghost of Snape Castle. Catherine's ghost has been seen roaming the castle that used to be home for Catherine and her last husband, Thomas Seymour. Allegedly, Catherine's ghost is wearing a green gown and appears to be searching for something - people have guessed that it might be her daughter who vanished from history when she was two years old.
But Catherine have been spotted on different occasions at Sudeley Castle. The maid, Margaret Parker, had reported that while working in the castle she has seen a tall, beautiful woman - again wearing green - looking out of a window. At first she thought that she had mistaken an artist, also working in the castle that same day for a ghost. But it turned out that the artist was no where near the place where the ghost was spotted. Margaret Parker herself believes that she saw the ghost of Catherine Parr. Unlike Catherine's ghost at Snape Castle there is a more melancholic feeling attached to the ghost at Sudeley Castle.

A Scandal of Playfulness?

A scandal that occurred after Henry VIII's death is still a source of debate. A juicy rumour of the Dowager Queen, her husband and the King's daughter is bound to be a source of interest - then and now. So let's take a look at a typical Tudor rumour:

When Catherine Parr had married Thomas Seymour (another scandal!) she invited the Lady Elizabeth to stay with her and her new husband at Sudeley Castle. Lady Elizabeth - and her ill-fated cousin Lady Jane Grey - accepted the invitation. But soon things got out of hands in the peaceful household. Allegedly, Thomas Seymour would engage in inappropriate games with the young princess Elizabeth which involved him tickling the princess - something that was not socially acceptable in a respectable relationship. But to make the scandal even more interesting the rumours has it that Catherine Parr herself joined in!
Apparently it was more than Catherine would accept when she supposedly found her husband embracing the Lady Elizabeth who was consequently sent to another household to stop the whole thing.

But is it true?

Probably not. One always has to consider the source and in this case it is "Kat" Ashley - Elizabeth's governess. Though she would be considered a reasonable witness in normal circumstances, she is not that reliable in this case. The situation was that Kat Ashley was imprisoned in the Tower when she told the story and had been threatened with torture - enough to make anyone lie. Except for her, there is nobody who has ever claimed that the incident took place. So it is reasonable to assume that the poor governess (otherwise completely loyal to Elizabeth) only told the story to spare herself the horrors of the torture chamber. Nevertheless, the story must have caused quite a scandal at the time. 

Catherine of Aragon's Ghost

The ghost of Catherine of Aragon is said to be haunting Kimbolton Castle where she spent the last years of her life. After Catherine of Aragon had been divorced from Henry VIII she was sent to Kimbolton Castle where she would eventually die - abandoned and forbidden to see her daughter.
Catherine's ghost has been seen wandering the halls of the Queen's chambers. Apparently, her ghost is not aware of the changing in the building's levelling because she is seen walking with her legs and lower body half descended from the ceiling and her head and upper body appearing on the floor above.

Kimbolton Castle 

The Haunted Gallery

Hampton Court Palace is rumoured to house a number of ghosts but one story in particular has been so remarked that an entire gallery now goes under the name "the Haunted Gallery". It is the ghost of Katherine Howard that is said to be haunting the gallery, reliving a terrible day for almost five hundred years ago.

Katherine Howard - the fifth wife of Henry VIII - and was in 1541 put under house arrest for charges of adultery. When Katherine was told of her husband had placed her under house arrest she went into a panic. Running past her guards Katherine managed to reach what is now the Haunted Gallery where she saw her husband. She screamed out to him but he turned away and walked out. The guards caught her and dragged her screaming down the gallery. Not long after this episode the young Katherine Howard was beheaded.

Ever since then visitors of the castle have experienced strange things when walking through the gallery. Many have heard and seen a woman running screaming down the corridor. Two female visitors fainted at the same spot, on the same day with just hours between - the women did not know each other beforehand.

the Haunted Gallery

Catherine of Aragon's Pomegranate

Catherine of Aragon used this badge during her time as Queen of England. The pomegranate with its peak to the seeds symbolizes fertility and abundance. Besides, the pomegranate was an exotic fruit and also represented Catherine's Spanish heritage.
The pomegranate is crowned which symbolises sovereignty and was the ultimate power symbol.