This day in Tudor history, 1st June 1533, Whitsunday, was a day of victory for Henry VIII and Queen Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII’s second wife. They had waited many years for this moment, and had been through so much with the ‘great matter’. This was a day to be celebrated, for this was the day that Anne Boleyn was crowned queen at Westminster Abbey.
It was a long day for the pregnant queen, starting with a procession from Westminster Hall to Westminster Abbey, then there was the actual coronation ceremony, which was performed by Anne’s good friend, Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, and finally the huge coronation banquet.
Find out exactly what Anne Boleyn did on that day in 1533 in today’s video.
If you prefer reading articles to watching videos, you can click here to read more about Anne’s coronation.
I have seen glimpses of our queens coronation in 1952, the whole event looked exhausting and there was Elizabeth 11 looking deadly serious as she was crowned and anointed with the orb and sceptre, those symbols of kingly power in each hand, in Annes day it was much the same, the whole procession which was huge with all the nobility the aristocracy the Lord Mayor all the officials and Annes ladies and gentlemen of her household I wonder London did not disappear from view under the great throng, she arrived at Westminster that ancient seat of kings between eight and nine in the morning, which mean she would have arisen early, although as Claire states she must have as the day wore on been overwhelmed with tiredness, I think the adrenalin could have kicked in and her mind was focused on the event ahead, this was what she and Henry had striven for for nearly seven years, ever since they had pledged their love to each other although as iv said before, I think with Anne it was more about ambition, that now had come to pass and as I commented in yesterday’s post, she had overcome all the obstacles in their path and made it to the seat of England’s power, that of royalty, her coronation was unique as she was crowned with the crown of King Edward which proclaimed to everyone her right to be queen consort, it was unprecedented and was once more proof of Henry V111’s love for her, I find the idea of having to prostrate oneself when one is heavily pregnant very uncomfortable, and she must have groaned inwardly as she stretched herself in front of the archbishop, her beloved friend and supporter Thomas Cranmer, but it was all part of the ancient ritual of crowning, she wore cloth of gold before now she wore the trappings of royalty purple cloth and ermine, the banquet must have been a welcome affair as she could sit down and there were her ladies to attend to her every needs, if she wanted to spit they were there with a cloth and they would have placed cool lavender or rosemary sachets on her forehead to calm her forehead, which must have been burning, she carried it all off marvellously though she could have felt nausea that morning due to her condition and maybe had swollen ankles, the baby could have been restless but she carried it all off with aplomb and the banquet sounds marvellous as those old banquets always do, there were hippocras a kind of spiced wine, iv always been intrigued by the name which sounds Latin, it sounds like it could have been a red wine and Henry V111 liked his sweetened with sugar, Anne possibly did not drink much because and I’m assuming it could have been a fairly warm day, there is no mention of bad weather, and too much wine drunk early when one is rather hot and uncomfortable can lead to sleepiness and headaches, I know there were sweet wafers too and other beautiful fare and delicacies, Henry was watching his sweetheart from afar and he must have swelled with pride, and how did her family feel, was Mary Boleyn a little bit envious that now she had to curtsey to her little sister? Her parents must have been so proud too as they watched their daughter being crowned and anointed, they would never in their wildest dreams thought that when she was born she would one day be their queen, they must have had many pinch me moments, her brother was devoted to her and his wife would have been in attendance on Anne that day, also as a member of one of the chief houses in the land her aunt the Duchess of Norfolk was there and also the Dowager Duchess of Norfolk carrying her train, the former a woman whose temper was nearly on a parr with Annes, she was estranged from Annes uncle and later her rival Bess Holland was to join the new queens household, the old dowager duchess was years later to witness the marriage of another granddaughter – Catherine Howard and she was to be locked up in the Tower for withholding information about her past, this day was a joyous one for Anne but I agree with Claire she must have longed for it to be over, one can share Annes triumph this coronation was surely proof that God approved of her right to be queen, he had saved her from death when she had lain feverish with the sweating sickness another sign that surely she was destined for greatness, it sounds strange to us now but in those days people believed that everything that happened was by divine intervention, thus we can understand Henry and Annes reasoning, of course Elizabeth was not yet born which shook Henrys belief somewhat, but now this was a day of celebration and it surpassed the past two days, Anne was now a divinely anointed crowned queen, I can see the Londoners on that day still glowering but with the wine running freely they would have shaken off their animosity, and the children would have loved it, there could well have been dancing in the streets after the partaking of too much wine which after all, the common folk were not used to, ale was their drink and London always being noted for a city of drunkeness, must have been in a kind of stupor the following day, many must have nursed their sore heads and yet whilst they toasted the new queen, many must have thought of their old one who sat sad and wretched in her lonely palace, devoid of her daughter who also, must have been sullen and miserable in her own residence, they had their friends but their tears must have fallen that day for their own glory days which were now long gone, the Londoners enjoyed the wine but after the effects had worn of they must have wept for her who many still thought of as their real queen, we can share Annes joy but also Katherines sadness – both unique women in their own way, and I feel even though this was Annes day, Katherine does deserve a mention who our ancestors loved and revered so much, both women known for their strength and tenacity, Henry V111 was a King caught between two lionesses and he knew it!
If anyone is interested the most recent episode of the Talking Tudors podcast posted yesterday May 31 is an interview with Owen Emmerson talking about Anne’s childhood and Hevet Castle.
Anne must have been tired, exhilarated, exhausted, hot and triumphant all at the same time. Here we now have the sacred part of the coronation, when Anne ceases to become an ordinary mortal and was transformed into a great and holy royal person, a sacred person, a person of mystery. Four gruelling days in the hot sun and six months pregnant, in a gown and mantel and probably glad that at least she had bare feet. The crown of England was placed upon her head because Henry was making a bold statement, he needed his new Queen, the woman he hoped carried his son and heir and the wife he now knew was not married to his brother first and he had to let the whole city and whole country know he felt that Anne was all of these things as Katherine had not been. He was not disappointed in her dignity and how she carried herself that day and he knew that the great and the good had done their duty as well. Anne was secondly crowned with her own crown and her Queenship confirmed. She had a very long banquet which she seems to have enjoyed and rest periods and Suffolk kept order, although I am pretty certain he and the Duchess of Norfolk would rather be elsewhere.
Of course she could just have won the European Cup and made history anyway without having to marry Henry lol. I am watching a rerun of the victory parade which was more than five and a half hours through the entire city on an open top bus and the huge party going on. Anne’s own procession would have been quite long with hundreds of people walking or riding before her and behind her the previous days and stopping for tableaux and songs and poems and probably a well earned rest. There was the tableaux of the triumph of Paris, the children who sang in her honour, the falcon being crowned, many other wonderful things but now we had the orb, the two sceptres of the sovereign and Mass and a lot of other religious symbols which added to the sacred mystery of a King or Queen.
June 1st 1533 Anne Boleyn crowned Queen of England.
June 1st 2019 Liverpool F.C crowned Kings of Europe.
History in the Making.
Bq are you from Liverpool?
Thanks Globerose, amazing.
Aye five minutes from the start of the route, watching the parade which I recorded after I got back from the live parade. I don’t believe I actually hobbled after a bus, and that’s before the beer. Waited an hour or so at the starting point for probably three or four seconds of the boys and the briefest glimpse of the cup, on the opposite side of the bus, but the air punch and wave from Big Kloppo was enough! Chased the bus, dogding a cop round the other side where I caught the cup on video. I can slow the video down in slow motion and will be putting it on Y Tube tomorrow, not actually awake enough at present, but its great to relax now and watch the full thing. Absolutely mad, the place where I was was five and six layers deep and that’s at the roundabout, by time the bus got to the river it was ten or twenty deep or more. 750,000 official estimates are probably actually less than the actual figures and I have plenty of video of the before and after video. There was a stupid couple of cops in one of those paddy wagons which tried to turn down the closed part of the end of Queens Drive, our end, through a crowd of 300 or more people brought forward to block it off, who had kids with them and would not move, which is great and the official police in charge went up to the driver and stopping him ordered him up the opposite direction, the long way around with the other diverted traffic, to huge cheers from the crowd. When the first three escort cars came on ahead to make room, by moving people standing in the middle of the road back onto the island, there was a black cab with his for hire caught behind them and between them and the music truck, all relaxed, waving, his red flag on his ariel, getting huge cheers, it was really funny. Then pandemonium as the three buses arrived, the press, the entire squad, honestly never seen so many on the bus on previous parades and have done all but one since 1965, a two year old on dads shoulders in the city centre, the two first teams, the fringe players, the kids, the under 16s, under 18s, the under 21 squad, they literally were intertwined up there, the wives and kids and very young academy kids on the third bus, the Boss hanging off the back with his beer and it was just wild. Honestly you would think a big pop star had arrived. The city was really red yesterday. It was totally bliss. Walking along the road back to the pub I had left a few hours before, saw a mum with baby in pram, fast asleep, in Liverpool away kit. Relaxing later with sausage rolls from sayers and a cup of tea was a dream and then had a real German ale. Today slept most of the day as didn’t over the weekend. I am still floating. Had a fantastic time. Actually did know what the other team felt. On the other had we won it in our first final in 1977 in Rome. The young player who scored the winner was out with a bad injury last two seasons and on loan to another club. Came back in just before Christmas, took down that other lot over the road, called Everton, took down Man U, took down Tottenham in the league, took down the biggest club in football, Barcelona and now has won the European cup. Known affectionately as Big Ears because of its shape the trophy is with the other five European cups at Anfield, where it belongs. Really had a great time.
I am sure the crowds turned out to watch Anne Boleyn, who would miss it, free wine and food and pageantry always attracted people as did Royalty and people came to see who it was who had replaced their own Queen, Katherine the Beloved, but no, I don’t think they cheered half as much. Nobody greeted Trump either and protests are planned tomorrow. The mob have to be won over today still, we are a pretty demanding lot.
Does sound fantastic Liverpool is said to be a lovely city.
Congrats BQ and to the City of Liverpool and all of its joyous citizens: Anne’s crowds may have been somewhat less enthused?!
Oh Happy Day, BQ! Having read your comment, I feel I’ve been taken to Liverpool and shared it with you! One to remember.
Thanks again, Christine and Globerose, yes, it has some lovely parts as does London and New York and many other cities but it also has its dumping grounds, but even they have some gems in them. Anfield was rebuilt a few years ago, reintergrating it into the park next to it, which makes the stadium much more attractive. The Hillsborough Memorial is now much easier to access, again from the park and it’s more peaceful now. Anfield Road is one of the busiest and most built up parts of the northern end of the city and the old Everton F.C is literally the other side of the park on Goodison Road and is in desperate need of repair. The Docklands of Liverpool have plenty of open space now, as you can imagine, so one of them is going to be their new home. We have a runner joke about the old EFC ground becoming our car park. That’s actually not as inappropriate as it sounds. Back in 1878 the two teams were the same club and played in Red. Home was Goodison Park. 1892 the teams had a fallen out and a new team was founded on a new patch of land in the middle of fields, on the other side of the new park. Anfield opened its gates 127 years ago with the team of Jocks, seven of them were over six foot six, v Leeds United, one of the original football teams in the League, winning 7 0 on their debut before a wild handful of support on a freezing, wind swept, pouring night. We played ironically in blue. John Sturgeon went on to own one of the most successful clubs of the next decade. His statue was unveiled this year. We soon changed to the familiar red and the rest is history. Like London we have a number of historical landmarks and more than eleven miles of parks, not including several smaller green spaces, the river is our life blood and we have some very early museums and galleries, built on the spot were the first settlement was. The South of course is the greener, more affluent end but that was originally true of the inner city. The two Cathedrals and the three Graces still dominate the skyline, but of course a number of iconic new buildings have changed the river front completely. Football and music are the blood which pumps through the heart of every person in the city. You can’t escape either. I am not certain which political genius decided to have the Tall Ships River Festival and the parade along the Strand on the riverside on Sunday, but it was a real stroke of genius as nobody could go home until afterwards, which kept everyone there until after 8 p.m. That just added to the party.
Anyway better let everyone get back to Anne Boleyn.
Happy Birthday, Claire!
Thanks so much for all that you do in bringing the Tudors to life for us!