Claire | September 20, 2023
Did you know that Elizabeth Boleyn (née Howard), Anne Boleyn’s mother, acted as a chaperone when the king was courting her daughter?
It’s true.
We know from the records that Elizabeth accompanied the king and Anne on their 1529 visit to inspect York Place, which the king had taken from Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, and that she also lived there with Anne before Anne became queen.
Claire | August 30, 2023
Did you know that Anne Boleyn survived sweating sickness?
In June 1528, Anne Boleyn fled from court to her family home, Hever Castle in Kent, after one of her ladies came down with sweating sickness. King Henry VIII and his wife, Catherine of Aragon, fled to Waltham Abbey.
Unfortunately, at Hever, Anne came down with the sweat, as did her father, Thomas Boleyn. Anne’s brother George, cupbearer to Henry VIII, became ill with it at Waltham and the royal couple quickly moved on to Hunsdon to try and escape the illness.
Claire | July 21, 2023
I have a real soft spot for George Boleyn, he’s such a fascinating historical character, so I thought I’d celebrate his life by testing your knowledge of George Boleyn with this fun crossword puzzle. Simply click on the link or image below to open and print out. Hint: Use our George Boleyn category of posts […]
Claire | July 19, 2023
Today is the anniversary of Mary Boleyn’s death in 1543 so I thought I’d focus on her today. Mary Boleyn is a bit of a mystery lady, the perfect blank canvas for historical novelists, and that’s because we actually know very little about her even though she was the sister of a queen and the […]
Claire | July 5, 2023
Anne Boleyn was Henry VIII’s queen consort from 1533 to her execution in 1536, but did you know that Anne Boleyn could have ended up being an Irish countess and living in Ireland instead? Yes, before Anne Boleyn became involved with Henry VIII, there were negotiations for her to marry her relative, James Butler, son […]
Claire | May 17, 2023
On this day in Tudor history, 17th May 1536, five courtiers lost their lives to the executioner on Tower Hill in London. The men were George Boleyn, Lord Rochford, Sir Henry Norris, Sir Francis Weston, William Brereton and Mark Smeaton. George was first to died, being the highest in status, and he made a moving […]
Claire | April 28, 2023
Today’s Friday fun is a quiz on Anne Boleyn’s siblings. Just how much do you know about Anne Boleyn’s brothers and sister? Find out in this fun Anne Boleyn quiz!
Claire | April 3, 2023
On this day in Tudor history, 3rd April 1538, Elizabeth Boleyn, Countess of Wiltshire and Ormond, wife of Thomas Boleyn and mother of the late Queen Anne Boleyn, died near Baynard’s Castle, home of the Abbot of Reading, in London. Elizabeth was about sixty-two years of age and died less than two years after two […]
