On 4th February 1520, Mary Boleyn, sister of Anne Boleyn and daughter of Thomas Boleyn and Elizabeth Howard, got married.
She married William Carey, an Esquire of the Body and a relative and close friend of Henry VIII. The wedding took place in the Chapel Royal at Greenwich Palace and the king attended.
How wonderful to be married in the chapel royal of Greenwich palace, Henry V111’s favourite residence and where much later the brides sister was to be arrested for treason, for now it was the scene of the happy couples nuptials and both families were pleased at the match, William Carey was a relation to the king and a favoured courtier and Mary’s family was Sir Thomas Boleyn a courtier and diplomat and his wife the daughter of the Duke of Norfolk, we know little else about the wedding but Anne Boleyn and their brother George and his wife must have been there, the king was present and he gave the wedded couple a gift of money, four years later they were blessed with children and at some point Mary became the kings mistress, however we have no sources that tell us when they became lovers how long it lasted and ended, but their relationship has led many to speculate that her children were sired by the king and not the husband, since both were born several years into the marriage I believe they were Carey’s and as neither were acknowledged by the king, that I feel is proof enough, the Boleyn family were ever entwined with their monarch when Anne became his official mistress after a whole year of hot pursuit, sadly it was to prove the Boleyn’s downfall and it was a great shock which led to quite possibly, the early demise of father mother and eldest daughter, but for now the merry company toasted the young couples good health and future.