Anne of Cleves

Tudor Royals in Portraiture: 1485-1558

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How we know the Tudor Royals from 1485 – 1558; and who painted them. Guest article by Melanie V. Taylor A recent article in various publications, including The Smithsonian magazine, looked at Franny Moyle’s suggestion that Holbein left  clues regarding the identification of one of his sitters of his miniatures being of Henry VIII’s fourth wife, Anna, Duchess of Cleves.  It is not the first time this possibility has been discussed.  Heather Darsie describes how Anna [More]

Farewell the Flanders Mare (Guest Post)

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Guest post by Rebecca Lyon Deep dish pizza, the Higgs bosun and swimming pool floaties all make an appearance in my new play for kids to perform, Anne of Cleves, Super Queen! Aspects of the play are very fictional and very silly. Although I would not have been able to write it without the meticulous scholarship of historians, it is interesting to consider how our responsibilities – those of historians and those of writers of historical fiction – are [More]

When Anna met Henry: The German Account (Guest Post)

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  By Heather R. Darsie, J. D.  Anna von der Mark’s travel to England to meet her new husband took much longer than either side expected. The Hereditary Duchess of Cleves and King Henry VIII of England mutually hoped that she would be in her new country and officially married to Henry by Christmas. The couple were originally to wed in Canterbury Cathedral, but those plans were thwarted by the unrelenting bad weather on the English Channel. 

Anna of Cleves and Catherine Parr (Guest Post)

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Guest post by Heather R. Darsie Anna of Cleves' marriage to Henry VIII ended in July 1540, scarcely six months after their official wedding took place. Swiftly after that, Henry married the very young Katheryn Howard. During Katheryn's fall from grace, there was strong speculation that Henry would take back Anna. Dignitaries from Cleves actively tried to convince Henry to remarry Anna in early 1542. Henry refused, and Parliament would not support the idea. Even still in [More]

What was the Frauenzimmer? (Guest Post)

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By Heather R. Darsie ?In the 15th century, the word “vrouwenzimmer” slowly entered the German lexicon, becoming a fully-fledged concept by the late 15th to early 16th century. Literally meaning “woman’s room,” the word applied to the secondary court which developed around the women of a noble household. The word “Frau,” now simply meaning a woman or a married woman (for example, Mrs. Jones would be Frau Jones), the word “Frau” used to apply explicitly to a married [More]

Get Out of Jail Free Cards: The Many Annulments of Henry VIII (Guest Post)

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By Jillianne Hamilton Everyone knows Henry VIII was unlucky in love. Not nearly as unlucky as many of his wives, of course, but Henry would certainly have considered himself the most unfortunate man in England when it came to his married life. The excuses he used to get out of his marriage varied from wife to wife. But he and his advisors were able to come up with excuses that never put the king at fault. Ever. His first marriage was the most complicated to end [More]