Anne Boleyn

Anne Boleyn was the second wife of Henry VIII of England. She reigned as Queen of England from 1533 to 1536. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/sixwives/meet/ab_handbook_main.html Boleyn was born between 1501 and 1507 in Norfolk, England and raised at Hever Castle. http://www.timetravel-britain.com/articles/castles/hever.shtml Her parents were Thomas Boleyn and Elizabeth Howard, and her siblings were George Boleyn and Mary Boleyn. http://www.nndb.com/people/900/000093621/

Anne served at the French court as a lady in waiting to Queen Claude of France, and in 1522 served as a lady in waiting to Queen Catherine of Aragon at the English court. http://www.emmetlabs.com/pair/King-Henry-VIII_109/Anne-Boleyn_113 http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/jun/11/book-review-anne-boleyn-fatal-attractions/ She became the mistress of Henry VIII; they were married on January 25, 1533. http://www.britannia.com/bios/aboleyn.html Anne Boleyn was executed on May 19, 1536 by demand of Henry VIII on grounds of high treason for committing adultery. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1252993/Poem-backs-claims-Anne-Boleyn-lovers--brother.html She was beheaded at Tower Hill at the Tower of London and was interred at the Chapel Royal of St. Peter ad Vincula at the Tower of London. http://www.britannia.com/bios/aboleyn.html

Upon Anne's return to England in 1522 after serving at the French court, she began a clandestine affair with Henry Percy, and they attempted to marry in secret. http://www.britannia.com/bios/aboleyn.html http://www.pbs.org/wnet/sixwives/meet/ab_handbook_bg6.html http://www.luminarium.org/encyclopedia/henrypercy6.htm Her father quickly ended the love affair and sent Anne away; she returned to the English court in 1525. http://www.timetravel-britain.com/articles/castles/hever.shtmlhttp://departments.kings.edu/womens_history/anneboleyn.html

Henry VIII was unhappily married to Catherine of Aragon, who had failed to produce a male heir for the English throne. http://www.luminarium.org/encyclopedia/catherinearagon.htm Henry became enraptured with Anne, whose sister Mary Boleyn was a previous mistress to the King. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/sixwives/meet/ab_handbook_why.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/anne_boleyn_01.shtml It is likely Anne fended off Henry’s sexual advances to keep him interested, withholding sex for a proposal of marriage. http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/features/anne-boleyn-drama-queen-2007616.html http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/celebrity/henry_viii/3.html Anne was granted the title "Marchioness of Pembroke" by Henry in 1532. http://www.timetravel-britain.com/articles/castles/hever.shtml

Henry VIII was locked in a stalemate with Pope Clement VII over Henry’s insistence on an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, and the Pope’s failure to acquiesce to his demands. http://www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon41.html Catherine of Aragon was a devout Catholic and the Pope was also feeling the pressure from Catherine's nephew Emperor Charles V to not allow the annulment to proceed. http://www.reference.com/browse/catherine+of+aragonhttp://www.emmetlabs.com/pair/King-Henry-VIII_109/Anne-Boleyn_113 In late 1532 Anne succumbed to Henry’s advances and quickly fell pregnant, which hastened Henry’s need to divorce Catherine and marry Anne. http://www.reference.com/browse/anne+boleyn http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/TUDhenry8.htm http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/features/anne-boleyn-drama-queen-2007616.html http://departments.kings.edu/womens_history/anneboleyn.html Henry VIII broke from the Vatican and declared himself the head of the new Church of England. http://www.emmetlabs.com/pair/King-Henry-VIII_109/Anne-Boleyn_113 His marriage to Catherine of Aragon was subsequently declared invalid. http://www.reference.com/browse/catherine+of+aragon

Henry and Anne were married January 25, 1533. http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/anne_boleyn_01.shtml At her coronation on June 1, 1553, Anne was about six months into her pregnancy. http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Anne_Boleyn.aspx http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/anne-boleyn.html On September 7, 1533, Anne delivered her first child, Elizabeth. http://www.notablebiographies.com/Du-Fi/Elizabeth-I.html Henry and Anne's relationship was tumultuous and tensions mounted as Anne failed to produce a male heir. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/sixwives/meet/ab_handbook_king.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/anne_boleyn_01.shtml She was also well aware of the King’s growing affection towards her lady in waiting, Jane Seymour. http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/celebrity/henry_viii/4.html She fell pregnant three more times, all resulting in miscarriages. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122872854

By 1536 Henry was engaged in an affair with Jane Seymour and had grown tired of his volatile relationship with Anne. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1296826/Anne-Boleyn-harlot-heroine-Was-scheming-sexual-predator-brave-reformer-changed-Britain-ever.html http://www.britannia.com/bios/aboleyn.html http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/celebrity/henry_viii/4.html

Anne was accused of adultery with several men. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1252993/Poem-backs-claims-Anne-Boleyn-lovers--brother.html http://www.emmetlabs.com/pair/King-Henry-VIII_109/Anne-Boleyn_113 Anne was also accused of witchcraft and engaging in incestuous relations with her own brother George. http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/anne-boleyn.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/anne_boleyn_01.shtml Sir Francis Weston, Mark Smeaton, Sir William Brereton, Henry Norris, and her brother George Boleyn were accused of having sexual relations with Anne Boleyn, and were executed on May 17, 1533. http://www.nndb.com/people/900/000093621/ http://www.nndb.com/people/900/000093621/ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1252993/Poem-backs-claims-Anne-Boleyn-lovers--brother.html Two days later, Anne Boleyn was beheaded at the Tower of London on May 19, 1536 by an executioner’s axe. http://departments.kings.edu/womens_history/anneboleyn.html http://www.luminarium.org/encyclopedia/anneboleyn.htm