THE HEREDITY OF THE TUDORS And the Common Characteristics of the Family By W. T. J. GUN, F.R.Hist.S., F.S.G.

B ELIEVERS in the importance of tain members of the sixteen, especially heredity are always faced with the where there is a double descent. difficulty of ascertaining from which It may be added that in the immediate ancestors the traits of a given individual Tudor ancestry there is no case of doubtful are probably derived. In the case of most paternity, so far as I am aware. men and women, whether of note or other- wise, little is known as a rule of the charac- KING HENRY VII ters and attainments of most of the various PARENTS. ancestors for three or four generations; bare names are usually all that can be ascer- Edmund Tudor, Earl of Richmond. tained. For this reason the heredity of Margaret Beaufort. monarchs presents, on the whole, the best GRANDPARENTS. field for investigation, as in their cases much more is known as to the character of Sir Owen Tudor. ancestors. Among English monarchs the Katharine of Valois. Tudors and Stewarts are the most favour- John, Duke of Somerset. able for this purpose. The personalities of Margaret Beauchamp. the Plantagenets were quite as interesting, GREAT-GRANDPARENTS. but the further we go back in time, the less Meredyth Tudor. we can ascertain of ancestral characteristics. Margaret Vaughan. The Guelphs, on the other hand, though Charles VI, King of France. later, are both in themselves and in their Isabel of ancestors of far less interest than are the Bavaria. Tudors and the Stewarts. John, Earl of Somerset. I do not pretend in this study of the Margaret Holland. Tudors, or in the one which will follow of Sir John Beauchamp. the Stewarts, to have altogether solved the Edith Stourton. problem of their characters, but, as will be The character of the first of the Tudor seen, most of the ten monarchs in question monarchs stands out distinct in history, do appear to show quite clearly the influence cold, wary, sagacious, unlovable, avari- of heredity. cious, possessed, however, of a genuine love In the case of each monarch, the names of learning. His hard and difficult early of the parents, four grandparents, and eight life may account to a certain extent for his great-grandparents are set out. I have not character, but what further can we learn given the names of the sixteen great-great- from his ancestry? In the first place, it is grandparents, partly for consideration of singularly unroyal; apart from the line of space, but mainly because diffusion renders Katharine of Valois, and an ultimate Plan- the tracing of characteristics from this gen- tagenet descent through the Beauforts, eration a matter of great complexity. I Henry sprang from either the nobility or propose at times, however, to refer to cer- quite ordinary gentry. In those turbulent III II2 THE EUGENICS REVIEW times most of his ancestors were forced to verse. On the doctrine of chances, Henry struggle, and did in effect struggle very should therefore have proved able, and able successfully. Owen Tudor must quite he proved to be. clearly have been an exceptional person- ality to have fascinated the Queen Dowager, KING HENRY VIII while Margaret Beauchamp, whose origin was not much more exalted than that of PARENTS. Owen, must have been possessed of con- King Henry VII. siderable attractions to have won the affec- Elizabeth of York. tions of the head of the great house of Beaufort. GRANDPARENTS. Of the earlier Tudors and Beauchamps Edmund Tudor. little is known, but the former were promin- Margaret Beaufort. ent and energetic supporters of Owen Glen- King Edward IV. dower who, it is interesting to note, was a Elizabeth Woodville. relative. Of Margaret Beauchamp it is said that she carefully educated her excellent GREAT-GRANDPARENTS. daughter, from whom Henry certainly de- Sir Owen Tudor. rived his love of learning and probably Katharine of Valois. most of his sagacity, though some of the John, Duke of Somerset. latter may have come from the Tudors, Margaret Beauchamp. none at any rate from the foolish Katharine Richard, Duke of York. of Valois, who sprang from an essentially Cicily Nevill. weak stock-this was fully brought out in Richard Woodville, Earl Rivers. her son by her first marriage, Henry VI. Jaquetta of Luxemburg. From the earlier Beauforts Henry VII may have derived some qualities; there were re- The character of the second of the Tudor semblances between his character and that monarchs stands out even more clearly than of Cardinal Beaufort, the famous brother of that of his father. With mental capacities John, Earl of Somerset. If Henry had on well above the average and a superb the one side a successful adventurer among physique till he ruined it by self-indulgence, his ancestry in Owen Tudor, he had on the nature had bestowed many gifts on Henry, other an equally successful adventuress in but not the capacity to use them wisely. Catharine Swinford, the mistress of John His complete selfishness and ruthlessness of Gaunt and progenitor of the Beauforts. are commonplaces of history; these charac- To sum up, of the four immediate lines teristics were certainly derived in part from which Henry VII derived descent, he from his father, who was, however, far appears to have owed little to the Valois, more sagacious in his methods. The though there were certainly resemblances Seventh Henry was wily and tortuous, while between him and that strange character the Eighth went straight to the point; here Louis XI of France, his first cousin once the great difference in early environment removed. He probably took from the undoubtedly played some part, added to Tudor, Beaufort, and Beauchamp descents which the position of the son was always in perhaps equal degrees. From all these far more secure than that of the father. he could well have derived worldly wisdom, Henry VIII's straightforward ruthless- and from the Tudor and Beaufort ruthless- ness was certainly mainly derived from his ness, though this latter trait was certainly maternal ancestors, but not from his mother no part of the characteristics of his mother. herself, Elizabeth of York, who was a gentle Assuming, as I think we may, some ability and lovable character. There were, how- in the Beauchamps, three of the four lines ever, many resemblances between Henry were distinctly able, one alone was the re- and his maternal grandfather, who equally THE HERE,DITY OF THF, TUDORS II3 ruined a fine physique by self-indulgence, Henry's characteristics may now be and who also possessed decided mental traced from his ancestors in the following abilities, though of a more sluggish dis- detail: position than his grandson, and with far less love of learning and culture. These last (i) General ability- qualities Henry would seem to have derived Conspicuous in his father and in Mar- from Margaret Beaufort, while Elizabeth garet Beaufort and to some extent in Ed- Woodville, an ambitious, sensual woman ward IV and in Elizabeth Woodville among with much feminine charm, certainly trans- his grandparents. Among the great-grand- mitted characteristics to her grandson, who parents in various ways in both the Duke thus derived something from at least three and Duchess of York, in Richard Wood- of his grandparents. Of the disposition and ville, in Owen Tudor, probably in the attainments of the fourth, Edmund Tudor, Duchess of Somerset, not so obviously in who died at an early age, no record remains. the Duke, who came, however, of an able Turning to the eight great-grandparents stock. we find an exact counterpart to the hand- some adventurer Owen Tudor, in the hand- (2) Pitiless determination- some adventurer Richard Woodville. The Conspicuous in the father, in Edward IV careers of these two were extraordinarily and both his parents, probably in Owen alike, each marrying widowed princesses Tudor and Richard Woodville, and cer- far above themselves in degree. The earlier tainly in various Beauforts. In this respect Woodville stock, of which, like the Tudor, in particular, the double descent from John very little is known, was almost certainly of Gaunt and Catharine Swinford must be efficient. The character of Jaquetta of taken into account. Luxemburg bore obvious resemblance to (3) Physical good looks- that of Katharine of Valois; she came, Notable in the mother and in both her however, of a somewhat abler stock, which parents. Owen Tudor and Richard Wood- showed no traces of the Valois degeneracy, ville won their positions largely through though morally on an equally low plane. this attribute, so probably did the Duchess Henry's love of learning, though probably, of Somerset, and so almost certainly did the as has been said, mainly derived from the double Beauforts, may have also owed something ancestress, Catharine Swinford. to the Woodvilles. Elizabeth's brother, (4) Love of learning and culture- Anthony, Earl Rivers, a highly cultured Most decidedly through Henry VII from man, was the great patron of Caxton. But Margaret Beaufort, and in that line ulti- the ruthless determination of Henry's mately from John of Gaunt, possibly a fur- character, derived from several sources, ther portion from the Woodvilles. came most conspicuously from Richard, Duke of York and Cicily Nevill, the parents On the whole it will be seen that the of Richard III, who himself exemplified this qualities of Henry VIII are very referable trait to the highest possible degree. The to heredity, and that the chances were con- Duke of York was remarkably like his siderable that a son of Henry VII and great-grandson, while the Duchess, ' Proud Elizabeth of York would prove a strong Cis,' was almost the latter's female counter- and intensely virile character. It has al- part. This ruthlessness and determination ready been remarked, however, that Eliza- were special characteristics of her family, beth herself shared good looks only with the Nevills; her mother was a Beaufort, her son, otherwise her own gentle nature thus givng Henry VIII a double descent was in the strongest contrast to his, though from John of Gaunt, turbulent but cultured, a consideration of her ancestry shows and from the latter's mistress, the success- clearly why qualities other than her own ful adventuress, Catharine Swinford. could be transmitted. But it must be ad- I14 THE EUGENICS REVIEW mitted that it is most difficult to explain GRIEAT-GRANDPARENTS. Elizabeth herself. Her paternal ancestry Edmund Tudor. for some generations back showed essentially Margaret Beaufort. different qualities, nor does gentleness seem King Edward IV. to have been any characteristic of the Elizabeth Woodville. Luxemburg family. One can only refer her John II, King of Aragon. to some unknown Woodvilles. Of her Johanna Henriquez. children, Mary, Duchess of Suffolk, re- John II, King of Castile. sembled her the most, as to a marked de- Isabella of Portugal. gree did the latter's granddaughter, Ladv Jane Grey. Henry's other sister, Margaret, The character of this unfortunate queen Queen of Scotland, had, as an old Scottish is less clearly defined than that of her writer remarked, "a great twang of her father or paternal grandfather, and in her brother's temper." She had certainly case circumstances played a specially large something of his robustness and ability, and part. She had unquestionably a strong will a very great deal of his selfishness; she and high spirit and considerable mental must on the whole have taken from the same capacity, coupled with the family love of group of ancestors as did Henry. To her learning. Ruthlessness, too, was clearly a gentler sister Mary fell a much greater feature of her character, but to a less marked share of the good looks so widely spread extent than has often been stated. While among their ancestors. her father was on the whole with the flow- ing tide, she was against it, and it was that KING EDWARD VI rather than any inherent weakness in her character which accounted for her failure I do not propose to take the case of this and his success. monarch in detail, as owing to his early Her strong will she derived from both death, his character was left undeveloped. sides. Her mother was far from being a Already, however, a love of learning was meek and yielding woman; married to conspicuous, and some obvious resemblances many men she would have dominated, but to Margaret Beaufort. Possibly in him the no woman could have dominated Henry gentle nature of Elizabeth of York might VIII. Between Mary's four grandparents have become apparent. His maternal ances- there was the most striking general resem- try bore resemblance, in a general way, to blance. No two monarchs could well have the maternal ancestry of his half-sister been more alike than Henry VII and Fer- Elizabeth, though there was no family in his dinand of Aragon, and the character of quarterings to compare for ability with the Henry, as stated above, applies almost word Howards in hers. On the whole, Edward for word to Ferdinand. Elizabeth of York had a fine heredity, and might well have and Isabella of Castile were not so exactly proved a great monarch. alike, for the latter was a more determined and also a more bigoted woman; but still on QUEEN MARY I the whole they resembled each other in gen- eral excellence of character. PARENTS. The parents of Ferdinand, John, King of King Henry VIII. Aragon, and Johanna Henriquez, were Katharine of Aragon. alike able and domineering, the wife even more so than the husband, both utterly GRANDPARENTS. ruthless. John of Castile was, on the King Henry VII. other hand, amiable and weak, while his Elizabeth of York. wife was greatly his superior in ability, the Ferdinand, King of Aragon. Portuguese family from which she sprang Isabella, Queen of Castile. being by far the ablest of those that have THE HEREDITY OF THE TUDORS II5 ruled over that country. Coupling these one of special interest, and it is unfortunate great-grandparents with those on the Tudor that the characters of several of her im- side, we find a preponderance of strong, mediate ancestors on the maternal side re- hard, domineering characters, and a very main unknown. The broad lines of her decided amount of ability. But while Mary own character are familiar to all. As derived something from her father's side, tyrannical and domineering by nature as some part certainly of her strong will, she her father, and most inordinately vain, with lacked the gift of realism so marked in a considerable, though perhaps over-esti- that line, also conspicuous in her grand- mated, love of learning, her most marked father Ferdinand. On the whole, she seems characteristic was undoubtedly her astute- to have taken most from the direct female ness, which involved mental gifts of a high line to Isabella of Portugal. The resem- order. A thorough realist, no one ever blance to Isabella of Castile is specially steered a course more successfully through noteworthy. Isabella was a successful ruler innumerable difficulties. In these respects while Mary was not, but this was due al- it is obvious at first sight that her charac- most wholly to the varying circumstances. ter was largely compounded of those of her The grandmother suited the Spanish tem- father and paternal grandfather, the iron perament, while the granddaughter did not will of the former with the astuteness of the suit the English. latter. But the astuteness was the more prominent and the resemblance to the QUEEN ELIZABETH grandfather the greater. Keeping to the paternal line, Elizabeth bore no resem- PARENTS. blance at all to her grandmother on that King Henry VIII. side, but there were likenesses in her attain- Anne Boleyn. ments to those of Margaret Beaufort and in her character to that of Elizabeth Wood- GRANDPARENTS. ville, while the influence of the Plantagenet King Henry VII. strain is evident. Elizabeth of York. How much was derived from her mother's Thomas Boleyn, Earl of Wiltshire. side? Her extreme vanity is usually felt Elizabeth Howard. to have been inherited from the mother her- self, and this was probably so; quite as cer- GREAT-GRANDPARENTS. tainly some of her astuteness is attributable Edmund Tudor. to this descent, not least to her Boleyn Margaret Beaufort. grandfather. Thomas Boleyn was in many King Edward IV. ways a most despicable character, though Elizabeth Woodville. great allowances must be made for those Sir William Boleyn. who lived under the tyranny of Henry VIII; Margaret Butler. but, like his granddaughter, he showed Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk. great ability in steering his way through Elizabeth Tilney. difficulties. Nothing is known of the character of his father, Sir William, but The ability of this most remarkable the latter's father, Sir Geoffrey Boleyn, was woman has no doubt at times been exagger- an able business man who became Lord ated, but when all deductions have been Mavor of London. From this strain Eliza- made, no question can remain as to her beth may have derived some of the avarice greatness. In fact it is doubtful whether and general carefulness in money matters in all history any woman, certainly any which distinguished her; qualities referable woman of affairs, can definitely be said to also to Henry VII, her personal extrava- have been her superior. This being so, the gance being as far as possible at the ex- question of the influence of her heredity is pense of others. THE EUGENICS REVIEW Of her great-grandmother, Margaret Thomas Howard were much above the aver- Butler, and her grandmother, Elizabeth age in ability; Edward IV and Thomas Howard, no characteristics seem to have Boleyn somewhat above the average; been preserved, but the former sprang from Elizabeth Woodville, Elizabeth of York, a race of Anglo-Irish nobles above the Anne Boleyn, and, almost certainly, Eliza- general average in capacity, while the latter beth Tilney well up to the average at least. belonged to one of the most distinguished While the characters of the remaining four families of the times. All her brothers were are practically unknown, there is no evi- men of more or less mark, still more not- dence that any one of them was a weakling, able was her nephew, the poet Earl of and we have in fact to go right back to the Surrey. Thomas Howard, second Duke of remote Valois strain before we find any Norfolk, the victor of Flodden, was in all ascertainable weakness in Elizabeth's an- respects a striking figure, as was his father cestry. Among all the near ancestors we the first Duke, the " Jockey of Norfolk " find, on the other hand, striking evidence of Shakespeare's " Richard III." The last- of strength and virility, and the chances of named was primarily an ambitious domin- ability in a child of Henry VIII and Anne eering character, while the astuteness to Boleyn were great and were abundantly which so frequent reference must be made fulfilled. was predominant in his son. Unquestion- It will be seen that the influence of ably, Queen Elizabeth owed something to heredity on the characters of the Tudor the Howard strain. Elizabeth Tilney was monarchs was without doubt considerable, probably responsible for some of the dis- more marked in the cases of Henry VIII tinction of this family, for though her own and Elizabeth than in those of Henry VII attainments are unknown, her son by a first and Mary, but sufficiently so in the latter. marriage, John, Lord Berners, showed, like The patriarch of the male line, Owen Tu- Lord Surrey, considerable literary ability, dor, raised his family from obscurity by his and was specially distinguished for his marriage, which had, however, little or no vigorous translation of Froissart. eugenic value. Each of the subsequent In view of Queen Elizabeth's marked marriages, however, to Margaret Beaufort, ability a summary of the degree of mental to Elizabeth of York, and to Anne Boleyn, attainments reached by her fourteen imme- connected the male line with sound and able diate ancestors may now be added. Henry stocks, with results to which history bears VII, Henry VIII, Margaret Beaufort, and witness.

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Eugenics Reiv;ew, Vol. XXII, No. 2.