Claire | May 15, 2018
On this day in history, Monday 15th May 1536, Queen Anne Boleyn and her brother, George Boleyn, Lord Rochford, were tried in the King’s Hall of the royal palace at the Tower of London. The Boleyn siblings were tried separately by a jury of their peers; a jury presided over by their uncle, Thomas Howard, […]
Claire | May 15, 2017
On this day in history, Monday 15th May 1536, Queen Anne Boleyn and her brother, George Boleyn, Lord Rochford, were tried for high treason in the King’s Hall of the royal palace at the Tower of London. Their fellow courtiers, Mark Smeaton, William Brereton, Sir Francis Weston and Sir Henry Norris, had been tried by […]
Claire | September 30, 2016
I’m so excited! My article “The Trial of Anne Boleyn” is the feature article in Issue 7 of History of Royals magazine! Yay! In the article, I explain the context to Anne’s fall, the events leading up to her arrest, trial and execution, and the charges listed in the indictments. I also look at the […]
Claire | May 15, 2016
On 15th May 1536, Queen Anne Boleyn and her brother, George Boleyn, Lord Rochford, were tried in separate trials in the King’s Hall at the Tower of London. As members of the aristocracy, the Boleyn siblings had been given the privilege of being tried by a jury of their peers, presided over by their uncle, […]
Claire | January 26, 2016
Today is the anniversary of the death in 1546 of Sir John Spelman, judge of assize and law reporter. He was buried at Narborough, Norfolk. Spelman is known for his reports of cases from 1502 to 1540, which included the proceedings against Cardinal Wolsey, Lord Dacre, the Carthusian monks, Bishop Fisher, Sir Thomas More and […]
Claire | May 15, 2015
According to Eustace Chapuys, the imperial ambassador, on the morning of the 15th May 1536 Jane Seymour received a message from the King informing her that he would send her a further message at 3 o’clock regarding the “condemnation” of Anne Boleyn. Henry VIII was sure that Anne Boleyn was going to be found guilty […]
Claire | May 15, 2014
On 15th May 1536, Queen Anne Boleyn was tried in the King’s Hall of the Tower of London in front of an estimated 2,000 spectators. The Lord High Steward, Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, who was representing the King, sat on a special throne underneath the canopy of estate. In his hand was the […]
Claire | May 12, 2014
On 12th May 1536, Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, was appointed Lord High Steward of England in readiness for ruling, as Lord President, over the trials of Anne and George Boleyn. Thomas Howard was the eldest son of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk, and of Elizabeth Tilney. He was the brother of Elizabeth […]
