On December 27, 1539, Anne of Cleves landed in Kent. She was on her way to being Henry’s fourth wife, and she would be the only one Henry married without ever having met her. Instead, he sent Hans Holbein to paint her, and whether or not Holbein flattered her in the painting is something that art historians have been arguing for centuries. Either way, when Henry met her, he was repulsed, though it’s also possible that it was the fact that Anne didn’t recognize him and was rude to him when he tried to surprise her in disguise, that put him off.
Either way, the marriage barely lasted six months, though Anne was bitterly disappointed in its ending. People often portray her as the lucky one now, but at the time, she was very upset at being put aside – her honor was at stake. After Catherine Howard was killed, Anne was positive that Henry would come back to her, and when he married Katherine Parr, Anne made some disparaging comments about Katherine’s looks as compared to her own.
That’s your Tudor Minute for today. Remember you can dive deeper into life in 16th-century England through the Renaissance English History Podcast at englandcast.com where there is an episode on Anne of Cleves.
Suggested links:
Spring 2019 Tudor Summit: Heather Darsie on Anna of Cleves
Episode 121: Alison Weir on Anne of Cleves
Episode 061: Anne of Cleves
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Heather Teysko is the creator, writer, and producer of The Renaissance English History Podcast, one of the longest running indie history podcasts, going since 2009. She's been writing about history online for over 25 years, since her first site on Colonial American history became number one in history on Yahoo in 1998. She writes books, created the original Tudor Planner (a yearly diary filled with Tudor history) and in 2019 created the world's first Tudorcon (you can "attend" online this year!). She has been passionate about Tudor England since she first read Alison Weir's The Six Wives of Henry VIII 20 years ago, and subsequently moved to London after college to spend her time immersed in Tudor history.