Between Two Kings (Book One in Anne Boleyn Alternate History Trilogy) Blog Materials – use as much or as little as you like; please don’t feel that you have to use everything. I’ve included a variety of things so that you can select what you want to use for your...
The meeting of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn with François I of France in Calais
Imagine that we are in the city of Calais in Tudor England. This place had a special meaning for King Henry VIII because it was the last remnant of the once substantial English possessions on the continent. King Henry and his beloved Anne Boleyn sailed to Calais to meet with...
The chronology of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn’s visit to Calais in October 1532
King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn sailed to Calais on the 11th of October 1532 after she had been elevated to Marquess of Pembroke in an elaborate ceremony on the 1st of September 1532. Some time passed before the monarch and the lady of his dreams met with his French...
Anne von Cleves: a victim of Henry VIII’s health issues on the wedding night
Anne von Cleves (Anna von Kleve) was born in Schloss Burg, near Düsseldorf, on the 22nd of September 1515. Her parents were John III, Duke of Cleves and Count of Mark, known as the Peaceful (der Friedfertige), and his wife, Maria of Jülich-Berg. Anne had 3 siblings: Sibylle, William, and...
Birth of the English Gloriana and Her Mother’s Miscarriages
On the 7th of September 1533, Anne Boleyn birthed a daughter – the future Queen Elizabeth I of England. It happened at Greenwich Palace, where Queen Elizabeth of York had given birth to King Henry VIII. At first, Anne’s pregnancy had been without any complications, and the proud mother coped...
Marriage of Mary I of England and Philip II of Spain
On the 25th of July 1554, Queen Mary I of England married Philip II of Spain at Winchester Cathedral. Catherine of Aragon’s dream came true: at the age of 37, Mary Tudor became the first queen regnant in England and turned her attention to finding a husband. The match was...
Mary Boleyn: a possible mistress of two kings, but not a whore
Mary Boleyn, Anne Boleyn’s elder sister, died on the 19th of July 1543 in her early forties. In her first marriage to William Carey, she had two children – Catherine and Henry Carey, who are considered by some historians King Henry VIII’s bastards, although it cannot be proved. After Mary’s...
A goddess to fill the royal nursery with Tudor sons
King Henry VIII met Anne von Cleves privately on New Year’s Day 1540 at Rochester Abbey on her journey from Dover. The king, accompanied by his few courtiers, arrived at the abbey with the intention to woo his bride with courtly love. He went to Anne’s rooms disguised, so Anne,...
A New Tudor Royal Wedding less than two weeks after Anne Boleyn’s execution
On the 30th of May 1536, King Henry VIII of England and Lady Jane Seymour were married at Whitehall palace at the Queen’s Closet. Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, who had married Jane’s predecessor, now dead Anne Boleyn, and the Tudor monarch in the winter of 1533, conducted the quiet...
The visit of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V to England in 1522
On the 26th of May 1522, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V arrived at the English city-port of Dover. Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, Archbishop of York, as well as his entourage of approximately 300 Englishmen, specially selected for this occasion in advance, greeted the Habsburg emperor. At the time of the emperor’s...
Day of mourning: executions of George Boleyn and the other men unjustly condemned
Today is a day of mourning for historians and Tudor enthusiasts. On the early morning of the 17th of May 1536, several men, among them the queen’s own brother, were escorted out of the western entrance of the Tower under heavy guard. They were George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford, as well...
Death of Queen Jane Seymour
On the 12th of October 1537, Queen Jane Seymour gave birth to the future King Edward VI at Hampton Court Palace. The ordeal was a horrendous one, for the birth had taken two days and three nights. Nevertheless, she must have been in an elated frame of mind because...
Princess Mary Tudor: biding her time after marrying Louis XII
On the 13th of August 1514, Princess Mary Tudor was married to King Louis XII of France by proxy at Greenwich Palace. A young and beautiful maid became the wife of an ailing and old monarch! Mary was eighteen, while Louis was fifty-two! However, the age difference did not matter...
Young Henry FitzRoy’s death: tinged in selfish and painful hues for King Henry VIII
On the 22nd or 23rd of July 1536, Henry FitzRoy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset, died at St James’s Palace in London. Although Henry VIII took enough mistresses in his date, he had only one acknowledged illegitimate son – Henry FitzRoy, whose mother was his mistress, Lady Elizabeth Blount. As...
Royal eccentricity: the wrestling match of two kings
The history of wrestling stretches into ancient times. It was first described in the Greek literature, including in Homer’s legendary literary works such as the Iliad and the Odyssey. Greek wrestling was a popular form of martial art, and it was featured as a sport since the eighteenth Olympiad in...