Mary and her future.That might have been a step too far, since the queen was well aware that it was the lack of a male heir which preyed at the back of Henry’s mind. But she had invested so much of her youth in discomfort, uncertainty and penury, as she struggled to become queen of England, that she would not contemplate conceding her throne. Her pride and conscience would not let her and her intellect told her that she could make a strong case. She must defend herself because it was not just her crown which was at stake, but Mary’s too. She wanted legal advice and she desired to seek opinions from learned men outside England, rather than rely on those who would essentially do Henry’s bidding. In introducing this international dimension, she immediately raised the stakes. She was giving notice that her struggle with the king of England would be conducted at European level and was bound to involve her nephew, Charles V. Shortly after her interview with the king, she sent one of her Spanish servants with a message seeking the emperor’s help. It would be a protracted dispute but she could not now be easily outmanoeuvred by a husband who wanted to shut her up in a rural retreat. Winning the legal case did not ensure reconciliation with the king, though Katherine seems to have clung to the belief for at least four years that she was going to win Henry back, but it would save her pride and her soul. It would also safeguard Mary.
Only six weeks before Henry told Katherine that their marriage was built on a lie and his conscience could not permit him to live that lie any more, Mary had danced with the French ambassador and taken part in the lavish spectacle that so impressed Spinelli the Venetian. The queen’s presence at this event was the last time she and Henry appeared together before the king went public on his decision to obtain an annulment. There is no information as to when Mary herself first learned of what was happening between her parents, or when she realised that she could not avoid taking sides.The surviving evidence, fragmentary and indirect, suggests that she was shielded from the truth for some time. It seems likely that neither parent wished to involve her initially. Katherine, in spite of her decision to take a stand, would have considered it a needless raising of anxieties and perhaps also an embarrassment. How do you explain to an 11-year-old princess that her father considers you have been unlawfully wedded to him for seven years before she was even born, and that he wishes you to disappear off the scene so that he can marry properly for the first time? Nor would Henry, already dismayed by his wife’s tearful and defiant response to his announcement, have contemplated summoning Mary and explaining the position. The princess’s separate household made it easier to conceal from her the sordid nature of the dispute, while her daily routine, her lessons and pastimes, could continue undisturbed.
Yet those closest to her, the countess of Salisbury and Richard Fetherstone, undoubtedly knew what was happening, and the household servants, coming and going more often in the outside world, would also have picked up rumours and gossip, even if they were given no official information.Wolsey, Mary’s godfather, knew only too well, but he never enlightened her. To do so without his king’s permission risked Henry’s wrath and, besides,Wolsey was too caught up in the affair professionally to concern himself with a child’s questions.What probably happened is that Mary grasped the reality of the struggle between her parents gradually, over a considerable period. There was plenty of time for understanding to dawn, since the conclusion to Henry’s dilemma was not reached until 1533. Much had changed in England by then and Mary had left childhood well behind.Whether there came a point when someone, most likely Katherine herself or Margaret Pole, sat down with the princess and explained to her the basics of a
Only six weeks before Henry told Katherine that their marriage was built on a lie and his conscience could not permit him to live that lie any more, Mary had danced with the French ambassador and taken part in the lavish spectacle that so impressed Spinelli the Venetian. The queen’s presence at this event was the last time she and Henry appeared together before the king went public on his decision to obtain an annulment. There is no information as to when Mary herself first learned of what was happening between her parents, or when she realised that she could not avoid taking sides.The surviving evidence, fragmentary and indirect, suggests that she was shielded from the truth for some time. It seems likely that neither parent wished to involve her initially. Katherine, in spite of her decision to take a stand, would have considered it a needless raising of anxieties and perhaps also an embarrassment. How do you explain to an 11-year-old princess that her father considers you have been unlawfully wedded to him for seven years before she was even born, and that he wishes you to disappear off the scene so that he can marry properly for the first time? Nor would Henry, already dismayed by his wife’s tearful and defiant response to his announcement, have contemplated summoning Mary and explaining the position. The princess’s separate household made it easier to conceal from her the sordid nature of the dispute, while her daily routine, her lessons and pastimes, could continue undisturbed.
Yet those closest to her, the countess of Salisbury and Richard Fetherstone, undoubtedly knew what was happening, and the household servants, coming and going more often in the outside world, would also have picked up rumours and gossip, even if they were given no official information.Wolsey, Mary’s godfather, knew only too well, but he never enlightened her. To do so without his king’s permission risked Henry’s wrath and, besides,Wolsey was too caught up in the affair professionally to concern himself with a child’s questions.What probably happened is that Mary grasped the reality of the struggle between her parents gradually, over a considerable period. There was plenty of time for understanding to dawn, since the conclusion to Henry’s dilemma was not reached until 1533. Much had changed in England by then and Mary had left childhood well behind.Whether there came a point when someone, most likely Katherine herself or Margaret Pole, sat down with the princess and explained to her the basics of a
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