Anne of Cleves by Sarah-Beth Watkins

Author:Sarah-Beth Watkins [Watkins, Sarah-Beth]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-78535-905-7
Publisher: John Hunt Publishing
Published: 2018-10-25T16:00:00+00:00

The French ambassador also reported how joyous Anne had become and that she wore different dresses every day. Anne was happy at Richmond and was now one of the richest ladies in the kingdom.

Richmond Palace

Chapter Six

A New Queen Katherine

1541

Anne had been living the quiet life during the first few months of Henry’s marriage to the young Katherine Howard but on 3 January she travelled to Hampton Court for the New Year celebrations. Her gift to the newlyweds were two horses with ‘violet velvet trappings’.1 She was welcomed at court by ‘the duchess of Suffolk, the countess of Hertford, and certain other ladies, who, after conducting her to the rooms destined for her lodging, took her to the queen’s apartments’.2

Both Anne and Katherine had been anxious about this meeting but Anne conducted herself ‘with as much reverence and punctilious ceremony, as if she were herself the most insignificant damsel at court, all the time addressing the queen on her knees, notwithstanding the prayers and entreaties of the latter, who received her most kindly, showing her great favour and courtesy. At this time the king entered the room, and, after making a very low bow to Anne, embraced and kissed her’.3

Henry took his place next to Katherine at the top of the table. Anne sat at ‘a seat near the bottom of the table, all the time keeping as good a mien and countenance, and looking as unconcerned as if there had been nothing between them’.4 She spent the evening talking and dancing with the queen after Henry had retired. A year in England had passed and Anne had picked up more of the language and a lot of the customs, enough for the two women to spend a pleasant evening together. The next day the King sent Katherine a present of a ring and two small dogs, which she gave to Anne before she returned to Richmond. The two women were not recorded as ever seeing each other again.

All were delighted that the meeting of ex-queen and new queen had gone so smoothly. Anne had accomplished the feat of truly acting like the king’s sister. Not only was Henry pleased with her but he now gave her permission to see the Princess Elizabeth as she had previously requested with strict instructions that the princess must always refer to her as Lady Anne and never queen. Elizabeth was living a peripatetic life moving between Ashridge, Hatfield, Hunsdon, Enfield and Havering Bower so we are uncertain where they met. As later evidence shows she also nurtured a relationship with the Princess Mary, now welcome at court after a long estrangement with her father not helped by his marriage to a girl much younger than her and a relative of the hated Anne Boleyn no less.

Chapuys, the Spanish ambassador, who had staunchly supported Katherine of Aragon was back at court in July 1540 after several months’ absence. Noted for his reports he was carefully watching how the new queen would fare. In May he

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