The fall of Anne Boleyn

Henry and Anne’s relationship 

1. Although Henry was disappointed that Anne’s first child was a girl, he was confident that she would have more children. However, this was followed by a miscarriage in 1534.  

2. In January 1536 Henry fell from his horse and was unconscious for two hours. Although he recovered, he spent the rest of his life in chronic pain, which made him increasingly unpredictable and bad-tempered.  

3. Then, at the end of that month, Anne miscarried. Henry had just turned 45; the fall from his horse made him scared he could die without having a son; and the security of his kingdom was under threat on account of the pope’s displeasure with his break from Rome.  

4. Once again, Henry reasoned that God disapproved of his marriage and so was refusing to provide him with a son. 

5. By 1536, Anne’s assertive personality was becoming irritating to Henry. Henry had instead fallen in love with Jane Seymour.  

Anne’s suspected adultery 

1. By spring 1536 a rumour reached Henry that Anne was being unfaithful. In April he asked Cromwell to investigate.  

2. On 30 April a court musician, Mark Smeaton, was arrested, and probably tortured into confessing an affair with Anne. Further arrests were made, including of Sir Henry Norris, a long-term friend of Henry, and Anne’s own brother, George, although all of them apart from Smeaton denied the charges.  

3. Anne herself was charged with five cases of adultery and treason, although she too protested her innocence. However, Henry had already made his mind up that he wanted Anne to die.  

The role of Cromwell 

1. On Henry’s behalf, Cromwell had already looked into rumours of whether Anne had had a former relationship with Henry Percy, which could be used as evidence that her marriage to Henry was not valid; however, Cromwell could find no concrete evidence of this.  

2. He then took a leading role in building the adultery case against Anne, and personally interrogated Smeaton.  

3. He collected the evidence against the other main suspects, most of which was based on court gossip.  

4. He made sure the ladies-in-waiting who served the imprisoned Anne were spies, reporting back everything she said to Cromwell.  

5. Some historians say that Anne’s downfall was more the role of Cromwell than Henry, and that he wanted her gone because they disagreed on foreign policy and what to do with the money from the dissolution of the monasteries.  

6. However, this view is unlikely: by now, Henry was a mature and experienced leader, and Wolsey knew it would be dangerous to manipulate him in this way.  

Anne’s arrest and execution 

1. Anne had been arrested on 2 May 1536. On 15 May, she was tried jointly with her brother. Her uncle, the Duke of Norfolk, was the presiding judge. She pleaded her innocence but was found guilty and sentenced to death.  

2. On 17 May the Archbishop of Canterbury annulled Henry’s marriage to Anne. Princess Elizabeth was also made illegitimate.  

3. On 19 May Anne was executed in front of a crown of 1000 people. She used her final words to profess her love for Henry.  

Jane Seymour: marriage, heir and death 

1. The day after Anne’s death, Henry asked Jane Seymour to marry him. Jane was gentle and kind.  

2. The wedding was on 30 May 1536 and was small and private.  

3. Henry urgently needed a son: with both his previous marriages declared illegitimate, so too were Elizabeth and Mary, and Henry had no legitimate heir.   

4. Therefore, Henry really needed Jane to provide him with a son – and she duly gave birth to the future Edward VI on 12 October 1537.  

5. There was considerable rejoicing, although this was cut short when Jane died less than two weeks later from complications of childbirth.  

6. Henry was deeply saddened and wore black for three months.  

The influence of the Seymours 

1. As queen, Jane did not challenge the King. On one occasion she tried – by begging for mercy for those who had taken part in a rebellion known as the Pilgrimage of Grace – Henry threatened her with Anne’s fate.  

2. She was more successful in overseeing a reconciliation between Henry and Mary, although it was on Henry’s terms: Mary had to beg for forgiveness and accept that Catherine and Henry had not been married.  

3. However, Jane was from a politically established family –and when she became queen, the status of her father (Sir John Seymour) and brothers was enhanced.  

4. Although Jane died just one year into marriage, the fact that she had provided Henry with a son ensured the Seymour family remained important court members for the rest of Henry’s reign.  

5. Jane’s eldest brother, Edward Seymour, was the most successful of the Seymours. He was made Earl of Hertford just three days after Edward was born and became a leading advisor to Henry.