The facts about Anne Boleyn

Anne Boleyn ( AKA Nan Bullen )
Mother of Queen Elizabeth I

The Tudor Dynasty of Queen Elizabeth I - Major Figures & People in the family of Queen Elizabeth I

Short Biography and facts about the life of Anne Boleyn - Mother of Queen Elizabeth I
The following biography information provides basic facts and information about the life Anne Boleyn:

• Nationality: English

• Mother of Queen Elizabeth I and second wife of King Henry VIII of England

• Lifespan: 1502 - 1536

• Born: 1502

• Married: January 1533

• Executed: 19 May 1536

• Family connections: Second wife of King Henry VIII and mother of Queen Elizabeth I

• Religion: Protestant

• Character of Anne Boleyn : Witty, intelligent, proud, brave, quick-tempered, stubborn, ambitious and haughty

• Appearance of Anne Boleyn : Anne Boleyn was dark skinned, dark eyed and dark haired - the total opposite to the Tudor pale, fair skinned vision of beauty. She had a sixth finger growing from her small finger and a large mole on her neck. She disguise these imperfections by creating new fashions - long sleeves to hide her six finger and a black velvet ribbon around her neck hiding the unsightly mole. These 'deformities' were said to be the sure sign of a witch

Information, Facts & History about the life of Anne Boleyn - Mother of Queen Elizabeth I
The following are additional facts about the life and history of Anne Boleyn - Mother of Queen Elizabeth I:

• Anne Boleyn was born at Blickling Hall, Norfolk, England

• Anne Boleyn was the daughter of Sir Thomas Boleyn and Lady Elizabeth Howard. Anne was the maternal niece of the Duke of Norfolk

• Her younger sister was Mary Boleyn and her brother was George Boleyn

• The family home was at Hever Castle in Kent

• During the early years of Anne Boleyn she was taught by a French governess and was well tutored at home

• As was the tradition in many noble Tudor families Anne Boleyn and her sister Mary were both sent to France in their early teens to finish their education as ladies-in-waiting at the French court

• Anne Boleyn was lady-in-waiting to Queen Claude of France, who was married to King Louis XII of France

• During her early years in France Anne Boleyn acquired the sophistication and elegance of the French court. She also acquired her taste for beautiful and elegant clothes

• Anne Boleyn almost certainly would have attended 'The Field of Cloth of Gold' where King Francois I of France met King Henry VIII of England. This was probably where Anne Boleyn first saw King Henry VIII

• Anne Boleyn returned to England after 7 years in France where she was also taught music, dance and poetry

• Anne Boleyn took up a position and joined her sister Mary Boleyn at the English royal court as lady-in-waiting to Queen Katharine of Aragon

• In 1525 King Henry VIII had an affair with her married sister, Mary Boleyn. It was a short lived affair during which time Henry's attention was drawn towards Anne Boleyn

• On March 4 1526 Mary Boleyn gave birth to a son, called Henry - he was widely assumed to be the son of King Henry VIII although was not acknowledged as such. The reason for this was that Henry had already fallen in love with her sister Anne...

• Anne Boleyn was not in love with Henry VIII. She had seen how her sister Mary had given into the King and been quickly discarded. Anne had no intention of making this mistake. She was adamant that she would only give herself to the King if they were married - and how was this possible as he already had Katharine of Aragon as a wife?

• King Henry VIII was a spoilt, powerful and pampered man, used to getting whatever he wanted. Anne Boleyn with her sharp and witty tongue presented him with an unexpected challenge

• King Henry VIII courted Anne for six years. "The King's Secret Matter" was no longer a secret. It became publicly known that Henry was seeking a divorce from Queen Katherine of Aragon

• Lord Chancellor Thomas Wolsey fails to obtain the Pope's consent to Henry's divorce from Katherine of Aragon and is dismissed by the King

• In 1532 the situation came to a head and Anne Boleyn became pregnant

• Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury granted the annulment of the marriage between Katharine of Aragon and Henry VIII

• On January 25th 1533 King Henry VIII married Anne Boleyn and is excommunicated by Pope Clement VII

• Hatred and jealousy of the Boleyn family and Queen Anne Boleyn in particular increased - the English people hated Anne and she was called "Witch" and the "Whore" - their loyalty was still with the discarded Katharine of Aragon

• The long awaited heir is born. Court Astrologers had all predicted a boy and the King expected a male heir. But Elizabeth , a daughter for King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, was born on 7 September 1533

• Henry VIII broke with the Church in Rome with the Act of Supremacy, which made the king the head of the Church of England as well as the King of England - he had become all-powerful

• His relationship with Anne Boleyn deteriorated - his passionate love for her was turning to hate. But she once again became pregnant

• The pregnancy was short-lived - Anne miscarried a baby boy. The miscarriage was believed to have been prompted by the shock from the news that the King had met with a terrible accident - it was not clear whether he was alive or dead. He had in fact badly injured his leg when he fell from his horse when jousting

• The miscarriage was a terrible blow. The King blamed Anne Boleyn, he began to believe that his second marriage was cursed

• And another lady-in waiting had caught his eye - her name was Jane Seymour. She came from a noble family and was supported by her two ambitious brothers Thomas Seymour and Edward Seymour. Jane was also supported by the many enemies that Anne Boleyn had made

• Sir Thomas Moore and Bishop Fisher of Rochester were executed for refusing to acknowledge Henry VIII as head of the English Church - the anti-Boleyn faction increased still further

• On 1536 January 7 - Katharine of Aragon died at Kimbolton Castle

• Instead of making the marriage of Anne Boleyn feel completely secure as Queen the death of Katharine the opposite effect. Henry could hardly have divorced his second wife whilst his first wife still lived

• King Henry VIII started courting the meek and mild Jane Seymour - a woman who's personality was the complete opposite to Anne Boleyn

• Rumours about Anne circulated and men who were part of her faction disappeared one by one. No one knew where Mark Smeaton the Queen's musician had gone. Then others followed including Sir Thomas Wyatt, Sir Francis Weston and William Brereton. The King's close friend Sir Henry Norris was arrested at a jousting tournament. Then the Queen's own brother, George Boleyn, Lord Rochford was arrested. Only Sir Thomas Wyatt was released the rest of the men were executed

• On 1536 May 2nd 1536 Queen Anne Boleyn arrested and taken to the Tower of London

• On May 15th 1536 Anne Boleyn was tried for treason, adultery and incest in the Great Hall of the Tower of London with her brother George Boleyn

• Her father, Thomas Boleyn the Earl of Wiltshire, was no help. He denounced the crimes of all of those accused accused and tried Mark Smeaton, Sir Francis Weston, William Brereton and Sir Henry Norris who were condemned to death. King Henry excused Thomas Boleyn from the task of condemning his own children, Queen Anne and George Boleyn to death

• 1536 May 19th 1536 Anne Boleyn was executed on Tower Hill. Anne's body and head were buried in an unmarked grave in the Chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula

• 1536 May 20th: Within 24 hours of Anne Boleyn's execution, Jane Seymour and Henry VIII were formally betrothed