Catherine of Aragon, ca. 1860, by Richard Burchett
They have been memorialized in everything from an old English rhyme (“Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived”) to a blockbuster musical, SIX, running in the West End and on Broadway. They’re the most well-known group of royal consorts in history, and all were given one main job: to provide a male heir to ensure the succession and the survival of the Tudor dynasty.
The six wives of Henry VIII are famous (and infamous) in song and story. But who were they? Where did each come from, what was she like as an individual, and how did she become part of the famous sextet? And is there anything new to learn about them?
Tudor scholar Carol Ann Lloyd-Stanger examines these women individually to unpack the legends and rumors that have clouded our understanding of them. She discusses some of the recent scholarship that can increase our understanding of the culture of the time, the expectations of women and queens, and how they came to the attention of the king. She explores how Henry’s changing personality and method of ruling influenced his actions and how that affected his wives.
The six wives of Henry VIII have been presented to us in movies, television shows, and all kinds of popular culture. Lloyd-Stanger provides a new perspective on each woman and what she contributed to court life and to history.
Her book, The Tudors by Numbers, was published in 2023. Her latest book, Courting the Virgin Queen: The Suitors of Elizabeth I, gets a late-August release in the United States.
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