Alison Weir by The Lady in the Tower: The Fall of Anne Boleyn

Author:The Lady in the Tower: The Fall of Anne Boleyn
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 0345453212
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Published: 2009-01-01T06:00:00+00:00

When news of the trial’s outcome reached the court, many people expressed sorrow, especially for Norris and Weston, who were widely liked and respected. “Everyone was moved at their misfortune, especially at the case of Weston.”24 That day, John Husee, newly arrived in London, wrote to Lord Lisle to report the latest events:

This day Mr. Norris, Weston, Brereton, and Mark hath been arraigned, and are judged to be drawn, hanged, and quartered. I pray God have mercy on them. They shall die tomorrow, or Monday at the furthest. Anne the Queen and her brother shall be arraigned in the Tower; some think tomorrow, but on Monday at the furthest. And some doth verily think they shall there even so suffer within the Tower, undelayedly, for divers considerations which are not yet known.25

It is obvious from this that ordinary people could only speculate as to when the men would be executed, or when the Queen and Rochford would come to trial. But as has been noted, the date for the latter hearing had already been set on May 10—for May 15 at the Tower—as Sir John Russell informed Lord Lisle on May 12: “Today, Mr. Norris and such other as you know are cast, and the Queen shall go to her judgment on Monday next.” He confirmed that he had delivered Lord Lisle’s letters to the King, and added a touch peevishly, “I wonder your lordship did not write to me, that I might have made suit for you.”26

“Neither the whore nor her brother was brought to Westminster like the other criminals,” Chapuys was to observe.27 State trials were usually held in Westminster Hall or the Guildhall, but clearly the authorities did not want Anne leaving the Tower and perhaps becoming the focus of public demonstrations, for she was not popular. Hence the decision to have her tried within the Tower precincts.

Husee told Lisle on May 12 that Wyatt and Page were still in the Tower, “but, as it is said, without danger of death; but Mr. Page is banished the King’s presence and court forever.”28 It has been suggested that he escaped because his stepdaughter, Anne Stanhope, had recently married Edward Seymour,29 but they had actually been married for more than two years,30 a circumstance that did not preclude Page’s arrest. No evidence had been laid against Page, though, nor, evidently did Wyatt have any charges to answer, although clearly nobody knew for certain.

The next day, Saturday, May 13, John Husee wrote again to the hopeful Lord Lisle:

Pleaseth your Lordship to be advertised that here is no good to be done neither with the King ne with any other of his Council till such time as the matters now had in hand be fully finished and achieved. Also, touching Master Treasurer [FitzWilliam], it prevaileth nothing to sue unto him till he hath more leisure, for he never read letter since these matters begun. If it be as some doth presume, it shall be all rid by the latter end of this next week.

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