Claire | April 29, 2017

On 29th April 1536, Queen Anne Boleyn had two separate encounters with male courtiers, men who would soon be accused of sleeping with her and plotting with her to kill King Henry VIII. You can read more about Anne’s encounters with Mark Smeaton, a musician, and Sir Henry Norris, her husband’s groom of the stool, […]

Category: Anne Boleyn Fall, Events of 1536, Tudor Characters | 6 Comments »
Tags: Anne Boleyn and Henry Norris, Anne Boleyn and Mark Smeaton, Henry Norris, Mark Smeaton, Sir Henry Norris, Smeton

Claire | November 11, 2016

Yes, that is the question that I find myself answering today. I’ve never actually had someone ask me that or even argue about it with me, but while I was researching Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn’s 1535 royal progress I came across an article that put forward the theory that Mark Smeaton fathered the baby […]

Category: Anne Boleyn General, Anne Boleyn Places, Boleyn Myth, Events of 1536, Myths and Legends, Representations of Anne Boleyn, Tudor Characters | 31 Comments »
Tags: 1535 Royal Progress, Anne Boleyn and Mark Smeaton, Anne Boleyn in Winchester, Mark Smeaton, Mark Smeaton father of Anne Boleyn's baby, Mark Smeaton visits Anne Boleyn in Winchester, Winchester, Wolvesey Castle

Claire | April 29, 2016

On Saturday 29th April 1536, Queen Anne Boleyn had two separate encounters with two courtiers who would end up being accused of sleeping with her and of plotting the King’s death with her. The first encounter was with Mark Smeaton, a groom of the privy chamber, a court musician and a man who had been […]

Category: Anne Boleyn Fall, Events of 1536 | 9 Comments »
Tags: Anne Boleyn and Henry Norris, Anne Boleyn and Mark Smeaton, dead men's shoes, Mark Smeaton, Sir Henry Norris

Claire | April 30, 2015

On 30th April 1536, court musician Mark Smeaton was taken to Thomas Cromwell’s house in Stepney where he was interrogated. Within 24 hours he had confessed to making love three times to the Queen. It is likely that the note that Henry VIII received at the May Day joust, the next day, contained details of […]

Category: Anne Boleyn Fall, Events of 1536, Tudor Characters | 6 Comments »
Tags: Anne Boleyn and Mark Smeaton, arrest of Mark Smeaton, Cromwell interrogates Mark Smeaton, Mark Smeaton, Mark Smeaton's confession, Mark Smeton

Claire | April 29, 2015

On 29th April 1536, Queen Anne Boleyn had two encounters with male courtiers which she later worried about when imprisoned in the Tower. The first involved court musician Mark Smeaton and the second involved Sir Henry Norris, her husband’s Groom of the Stool and a man who was courting Anne’s cousin, Madge Shelton. Both were […]

Category: Anne Boleyn Fall, Events of 1536 | 1 Comment »
Tags: Anne Boleyn and Henry Norris, Anne Boleyn and Mark Smeaton, Anne Boleyn's fall, courtly love, dead men's shoes, Henry Norris, Mark Smeaton, Mark Smeton, Sir Henry Norris