Queens' Rings

All can be bought here

A Palace of Queens

Yet another post of Hampton Court Palace! Some of the famous six wives of Henry VIII have left their mark on this favourite palace of their husband. So, let's take a look at the reminders of Queens that has been long lost to history.

This is the ceiling of the Anne Boleyn
Gateway - the squares that surronds
the Tudor rose involves Anne's falcon

The Anne Boleyn Gateway is now named after the doomed second wife of Henry VIII but it was not the case at the time - imagine the weirdness of that! After the downfall of Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII wanted to erase every memory of her and had her badges and initials removed. But a few were forgotten and today they serve as a reminder of the Queen that Henry wanted to forget. Anne's badges can still be seen at the Anne Boleyn Gateway which is also where the gateway derives its name. Also, her falcons and initials still adorns the great hammer-beams of the Great Hall's ceiling.

Jane Seymour's badge can be seen on an original frieze outside the Royal Chapel. Also the Great Watching Chamber still house references to this third wife. A phoenix rising from a castle can be seen on the ceiling of this room - the very badge of Jane.

Anne of Cleves is - despite her very short marriage - also among the wives that the castle can tell us about. In what is now a tea room a plate is displayed. This plate shows signs that it belonged to Edward VI - but the wheel of Cleves can still be seen on it. It is likely that the plate was hastily changed after the annulment of the couple's marriage.

Even Catherine of Aragon's pomegranate still remains - it hangs above a door frame, apparently forgotten.


Katherine Howard's ghost has put the "haunted" in the Haunted Gallery but since it is not a physical artifact I have chosen not to include it here.

Drawings of the Queens

I have come across these beautiful drawings of Henry VIII's wives and I thought that I might share them (I have arranged them to look nicer):

Catherine Parr

Catherine Parr was born in 1512 (probably August) to Sir Thomas Parr and Maud Green. She received the standard education but developed a lifelong passion for learning. She was fluent in French, Latin and Italian but hated any kind of needlework.

She married her first husband (sir Edward Borough) when she was seventeen and it is possible that her husband was in poor health and died in 1533. After her husband's death she spent some time with the Dowager Lady Strickland before marrying John Neville, who was the 3rd Baron Latymer and twice her age. Her husband was a strongly believing Catholic and during the Lincolnshire rising a mob appeared in front of their house, demanding that Lord Latymer supported the reinstatement of Catholicism and Catherine watched as they dragged him away. In 1536 and 1537 Catherine lived alone with her two step-children, fearing what would happen next. It is likely that she developed her intense dislike of the rebellion and the old religion during this period.

Katherine Howard

Katherine Howard was the daughter of Lord Edmund Howard and Joyce Culpeper. She was the cousin of Henry's doomed Queen, Anne Boleyn. Due to Lord Edmund Howard's bad finances, Katherine was sent to be brought up at the household of the Dowager Duchess of Norfolk.
But the young people living with the Dowager Duchess never received a proper education and consequently Katherine was one of the least educated wives of Henry VIII. The young Katherine Howard is described as vivacious and beautiful but without any interest in studies or religion.

Anne of Cleves

Anne of Cleves was born in 1515 in Düsseldorf and was the daughter of John III, thus making her of the House of La Marck. When she was twelve Anne was betrothed to Francis of Lorraine who was heir to the dukedom of Lorraine. But Francis was only ten at the time and the betrothal was cancelled in 1535. But Anne was not to be a spinster.
Thomas Cromwell was eager to have Henry VIII marry into the Protestant League in Germany because it would provide him with protection against the Catholic countries of Spain and France who were signing a treaty. Henry (superficial as always) was not happy about having to marry someone he had never seen and demanded that the court painter Hans Holbein was to go to Germany and paint the likeness of Anne of Cleves. And he liked what he saw.

Jane Seymour

Jane Seymour was born as the daughter of Sir John Seymour and Margery Wentworth. Not much is known of her childhood but she had not received a great education (she read and wrote a little but was better at household management and needlework) and was not nearly as intelligent as Catherine of Aragon or Anne Boleyn had been.
Jane Seymour served as a lady-in-waiting first to Queen Catherine and then to Queen Anne. It is possible that she had already been introduced as a lady-in-waiting to Catherine of Aragon in 1527. Jane is said to have had a "childlike face" and a modest personality. She probably had blond hair and is reported to be very pale and kind of nature.

Anne Boleyn

A doomed Queen - the woman who set England in a roar and was beheaded for it

Exactly when Anne Boleyn was born is not known but historians generally clings to two different birth years: 1501 or 1507. Anne Boleyn was the daughter of Thomas Boleyn (later 1st Earl of Wiltshire) and Elizabeth Howard. She spent her childhood at Hever Castle with her two siblings Mary and George. She received the standard education for ladies at the time which included grammar, history, her family genealogy, reading, spelling and writing; of course she learned the skills necessary for every young woman of her position: dancing, riding, music, household management, needlework, singing and good manners.

Thomas Boleyn was a successful diplomat and charmed Margaret of Austria who in return offered Anne a place in her household - normally a girl had to be twelve years of age but an exception was made. Anne stayed with the archduchess (who was very fond of her "petit Boulin) until Thomas Boleyn arranged for her to follow Mary Tudor on her way to France where she was marrying the French king.
Anne first served as a maid of honour to Mary Tudor and then to Claude of France, whom she served for seven years. During her stay in France Anne finished her education and was fluent in French before long.

Catherine of Aragon

Catherine as a widow

Catherine of Aragon was born on December 16th 1485 to the royal couple of Isabel of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon. As a child she received one of the best education Europe had to offer; speaking, reading and writing Spanish and Latin and speaking French and Greek. During her upbringing she was greatly influenced by her very devout parents and was brought up believing that God had created a special destiny for her.