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Anne Boleyn: Whore Or Martyr?

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Anne Boleyn: Whore Or Martyr? Muhareb 1 Anne Boleyn: Whore or Martyr? An Individual’s Religious Beliefs Shaping the Perception of the Queen of England By Samia Muhareb Senior Thesis in History California State Polytechnic University, Pomona 9 June 2010 Grade: Advisor: Dr. Amanda Podany Muhareb 2 One of the most famous and influential English queen’s who altered society both politically and religiously was Anne Boleyn. The influence Anne Boleyn had on English society in the sixteenth century was summed up by historian Charles Beem, “our biggest enemy is terrorism…theirs was the Reformation. You can't overestimate how traumatic the changes in the church would have been. You might get close if you imagined that Monica Lewinsky had been a radical Islamist and Bill Clinton married her and made everyone convert.”1 Anne Boleyn was not the typical English Rose;2 she had an intense tempting quality that greatly attracted King Henry VIII. She was said to possess a delicate and attractive appearance, a vivacious personality, and exotic features since she was not brought up in the English court but rather the French to serve Queen Claude of France. To Henry, Anne symbolized the sophistication and charm of the French court he so earnestly desired.3 Anne Boleyn was the second wife of Henry VIII after his divorce from Katherine, a divorce that would revolutionize England as the country broke free from the Catholic Church and established the Church of England. Before King Henry VIII married Katherine of Aragon, Katherine was wedded to his elder brother Arthur in 1501. A year after their marriage, Arthur died; but the cause of death remains unknown. Upon his death, the validity of Katherine and Arthur’s marriage came into question. Katherine claimed that her marriage to Arthur was never consummated. Under papal dispensation, Henry VIII was granted the right to marry Katherine.4 The marriage between Henry and Katherine did pose problems; “however, the church claimed the power to condone potential defects revealed in advance, and Pope Julius II had issued a papal bull allowing 1 Rebecca Winters Keegan, “When Royals Become Rock Stars,” Time Magazine, March 22, 2007, 1. 2 symbol for the Tudor dynasty 3 Hugh M. Richmond, Puritans and Libertines (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981), 25. 4Neelak Serawlook Tjernagel, Henry VIII and the Lutherans: A Study in Anglo-Lutheran Relations from 1521 to 1547 (Saint Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1965), 74. Muhareb 3 Katherine and Henry to marry despite their relationship.”5 Therefore, under papal confirmation Henry and Katherine could marry regardless of the fact that her previous marriage to Arthur would have made her Henry’s sister-in-law. Though the marriage between the two was validated by the Catholic Church, Henry feared it was his relationship with Katherine that prevented him from producing a male heir.6 Ironically, Henry VIII turned to the Bible to prove his marriage to Katherine as invalid and sought papal dispensation to annul. Henry feared that God was punishing him for marrying his brother’s wife and used references from the Bible to prove he was correct. A passage in The Book of Leviticus indicted that “you must not have intercourse with your brother’s wife, since she belongs to your brother.”7 Katherine’s previous marriage to Arthur made Henry paranoid and he believed it was the reason why a male heir was never born. In addition, the passage in The Book of Leviticus stated that “if a man takes his brother’s wife, it is an impure deed; since he has had intercourse with her who belongs to his brother, they shall be childless.”8 Henry was not childless, he did have one daughter, but childless in the sense of no sons and the continued miscarriages Katherine experienced. When a son was not born, Henry was worried and used the verse to validate his marriage to Anne, his future wife. The Bible became a very significant source to authenticate the divorce. Henry used Bible passages in order to prove his marriage to Katherine was not valid and obtain what he wished. It is difficult to fathom why Henry VIII would have split from the Catholic Church in 1531 when ten years earlier Pope Leo X granted Henry the title “Defender of the Faith.” In 1521 Henry published his work Defense of the Seven Sacraments in Latin in which he opposed the teachings of Martin Luther. As a result, “on the delivery of this book to His Holiness…His 5 Eric Ives, Henry VIII (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007), 14. 6 Tjernagel, 75. 7 Book of Leviticus 18:15. 8 Book of Leviticus 20:21. Muhareb 4 Holiness was pleased to bestow upon the King…that most illustrious, splendid, and most Christian-like title of Defender of the Faith.”9 Henry’s willingness to speak against the quickly spreading teachings of Luther proved his determination and faithfulness to the Catholic Church. Defense of the Seven Sacraments “was one of the most successful pieces of Catholic polemics produced by the first generation of anti-Protestant writers.”10 Henry’s enthusiasm to stop the spread of Protestantism earned him a title that placed him in a positive light in Pope Leo X eyes. His support for Catholicism and the Pope was reflected in his book, which reveals Henry’s earlier position as a traditional conservative who was critical of Lutheranism. By 1524, however, Henry and Katherine stopped having any sexual relations.11 Henry VIII did not have a son to leave behind as an heir to continue the Tudor Dynasty. His wife Katherine of Aragon was past child-bearing age and Henry became frightened for the fate of England if his daughter Mary would inherit the throne. A son was desperately needed in order to preserve the strength of the Tudor Dynasty. King Henry VIII’s daughter, Mary, was betrothed to the heir of the French throne. The engagement further alarmed Henry because if Mary had succeeded him, then France would have had power over England. In 1527 Pope Clement VII was not able to grant a papal dispensation for Henry VIII’s annulment. During this time the Holy Roman Emperor was Charles V, nephew of Katherine. Charles V sought to stop Protestantism and uphold Catholic doctrine. He was allied with the Pope in order to eliminate heresy and preserve religious unity in Europe. Katherine was Charles V’s aunt, as a result an annulment was not granted because it would label her as an adulterous.12 9 Assertio Septem Sacramentorum; or, Defence of the Seven Sacraments, [English & Latin], edited by Louis O'Donovan and James Cardinal Gibbons, (New York, Benziger brothers, 1908), 104. 10 J.J. Scarisbrick, Henry VIII (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1968), 111. 11 Eric Ives, Anne Boleyn (New York: Basil Blackwell, 1986), 108. 12 Tjernagel, 78. Muhareb 5 The English Archbishop working for Henry was Cardinal Wolsey. Wolsey was loyal to both the Pope and the King. He could not convince papal authority to grant the divorce without causing difficulties between church and state. His failure to obtain papal approval of an annulment resulted in his replacement with Thomas Cranmer, who “was in favor of the abolition of papal authority in England as early as 1525.”13 In 1533, Henry broke away from the Catholic Church and secretly married Anne, who was already pregnant with Elizabeth. The divorce from Katherine allowed Henry to consider following Luther and Protestantism; therefore, “it was not until his marriage to Anne Boleyn that Henry could undertake serious negotiations with the Lutherans.”14 Protestantism was already taking root in England. Early English reformer John Wycliff and his followers the Lollards existed in some regions of England in the sixteenth century. Wycliff believed that the sole authority of God was the Bible and emphasized a personal connection with God. It was Anne’s relationship with the King, however, that allowed Henry to truly consider Protestantism. She had played a major role in providing information to the king about the religious movement.15 In 1534 the Act of Supremacy was enacted that officially placed Henry as head of the newly formed Church of England. Along with the act came the requirement that an oath was to be taken to recognize Anne as queen. The act was used to place Henry as head of the religious faith in England and to confirm the reign of Anne Boleyn.16 Overall, the purpose of the Act of Supremacy was to increase the power of England and King Henry VIII and to continue to decrease the influence of the Catholic Church. Anne’s presence allowed the foundation of 13 Tjernagel, 84. 14 Tjernagel, 136. 15 Tjernagel, 112. 16 Act of Supremacy, Selected Documents of English Constitutional History, ed. George Burton Adams and H. Morse Stephens (London: MacMillan & Co., LTD, 1916), 239. Muhareb 6 Protestantism to expand throughout England.17 The religious change caused the image of Anne Boleyn to be tarnished. An individual’s religious affiliation greatly influenced his or her perception of Anne Boleyn. Anne contributed a great deal to the rise of Protestantism in England because “as Henry fell under the influence of Boleyn in his bed…a mild form of Lutheranism was able to establish itself at court.”18 Anne ignited a great religious change in society that would decide how individuals saw her. The split between Katherine and Henry was the “most celebrated divorce in history…[and] made Henry VIII take a second look at Martin Luther and the Protestant following he represented.”19 It was Anne who allowed Protestantism to take a root in England. Religious observation was a large and serious aspect of daily life in the sixteenth century.
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