Happy New Year! Wow, I can’t quite believe how quickly 2010 went, can you?! It seemed to fly by and next month The Anne Boleyn Files will be celebrating its 2nd birthday! I can’t quite believe it and I am truly grateful for all of your support with the site.
2010 saw the site grow massively and we have new visitors every day, so I thought I’d take this opportunity to explain what The Anne Boleyn Files is and isn’t, what my mission is and what my hopes are for 2011.
The Anne Boleyn Files Mission
If you look at the top of this page, you will see that the title of this site is “The Anne Boleyn Files – The REAL TRUTH about Anne Boleyn ‘The Most Happy’ ” and that really does sum up what The Anne Boleyn Files is all about. It is not a site worshipping Anne Boleyn and putting her on some kind of pedestal, it is a site dedicated to educating people about who she really was and spreading the truth about her. I’m sure you’ll agree that Anne Boleyn’s name has been blackened by history and even today, when the majority of historians believe that she was innocent of all the charges laid against her, the general public still believe that she was a traitor, adulteress and that she committed incest with her brother. I wouldn’t say that it was a losing battle, but it is certainly a continual battle, because every day people around the world read or watch something like “The Other Boleyn Girl” and end up having very warped ideas of who Anne Boleyn was. One re-enactor, who recently dressed as Anne Boleyn for an event, told me of how she had people saying quite offensive and abusive things to her, including one person asking her if the B on her necklace stood for “bit**”! That’s what we’re fighting.
I also ought to add here that I’m not just debunking the myths surrounding Anne Boleyn, but also the whole Boleyn family, including Thomas, George, Mary and Jane. How many times do we see on screen and in books Thomas the Pimp, George the Bisexual Rapist, Mary the wh*re and Jane the Voyeur and Liar? Too often. The Boleyn family mean so much to me and I look at what the evidence says, not what the myths and rumours say.
Now, what I’m not about is re-writing history, avenging Anne’s unjust death by making her into some kind of saint or martyr, or claiming that she was solely responsible for the English Reformation! What I am about is using the primary sources, contemporary sources, to build up a picture of Anne Boleyn, the times she lived in and the events of her lifetime. I don’t think that we will ever know exactly what Anne looked like, what she was really like as a person and the complete truth behind the events of 1536, because sources don’t agree and are tarnished by the opinions of those who wrote them. All we can do is compare the sources, see where they agree, take into account who wrote them etc. and fill in the blanks with hypotheses based on that. That is why I tend to list the primary sources I have used in the “Notes and Sources” section at the end of my articles, I want you to be able to understand how I formed my opinions and what my writing is based on. What is wonderful about history is that historians can look at the same sources and come to very different conclusions – just compare the ideas of Eric Ives and G W Bernard! I remember my history teacher at school saying that you can argue anything as long as you can back up your argument with evidence!
A Community
I’ve always said that I don’t see The Anne Boleyn Files as just a website or blog, I see it as a community of like-minded people, people who are passionate about Tudor history. That is why I welcome your comments on articles, your questions for the Q&A page and your discussions in the forum, that’s what this site is all about – sharing ideas and points of view. I also see it as a place where people aren’t afraid to make a comment or ask a question, however “stupid” they may feel it is. This is not a “snobby” site, it is a friendly community where everybody is welcome, except troublemakers. We learn by asking questions and that’s what I want to encourage here. Thank you for helping to make this site what it is today.
I’d also love to hear what you’d like to see on The Anne Boleyn Files in 2011. Is there a topic you’d like me to write about? Is there something missing from the site? Please let me know in the comments section below.
The Anne Boleyn Files in 2011
I believe that 2011 is going to be a huge year for The Anne Boleyn Files. Here’s what you can expect in 2011:-
- More information – I spend all day every day researching Anne Boleyn and Tudor history, so I will be adding new articles, pages, videos, resources etc. on a weekly basis.
- More products – New jewellery, new dresses and costume, new artwork… and I also have a few ideas of completely new products so watch this space!
- Tours – I’m obviously running “The Executed Queens Tour” and “The Anne Boleyn Experience” this year, but I will also be launching the 2012 programme of events in a few months time. Please do make sure that you join our mailing list so that you know about events as soon as they are launched – go to Free Report or the Subscribe Now box on the left hand side menu bar.
- Much more – I’m also working on 3 books and various other projects and I will keep you up to date on my progress. It’s going to be a manic but fun year! Phew!
Claire: Thank you, thank you for your outstanding work and dedication on this website. I truly thought I was alone out there. Here in America, people don’t tend to meet in groups to discuss English history. Oh yes, there are Revolutionary War nuts as well as Civil War (in fact, our history tends to revolve around wars), but I have searched and searched for a local group on the Tudors. (Strangely, there is a Richard III society, but for obvious reasons am not willing to recrown him as the rightful king.)
FYI, I was searching for adult learning courses and noted that Oxford University is offering a one-week course on the Tudors in July. Can’t find anything (yet) on the Cambridge website. I’d prefer to go to Cambridge because, after all, Elizabeth 1 was a Cambridge girl.
Again, thanks for and kudos on your work.
Thank you for your support, Sharyn, it’s great to have you here.
Ooooh, I’ll have to find out more about the course and add it to our Events page and Tudor Courses page. I know what you mean about Cambridge but I used to live quite near Oxford so I have a soft spot for it, plus I loved Inspector Morse!
Hi Claire
Thanks again for this wonderful website!! I cant wait for what you have planned for 2011. Good Luck x
Thanks, Clarebear! x
Five years ago, before I started to seriously study the Boleyns, I had very different views to the ones I hold now.
I have never believed Anne was a b*** or a wh*re, but I did believe she witheld sex from Henry in order to deliberately lure him into marriage. For a while I also believed, having read Joanna Denny, that Anne did so in order to coax Henry towards reform. Likewise, I also believed Anne and George were Protestants, because that was what I had read. It wasn’t until the last two or three years that I understood that was not the case, and came to accept they were seeking reform of the Catholic Church, not a departure from the Catholic faith.
When I first looked at George’s life I believed Jane Rochford was the instigator of the incest charges, and I had to seriously modify my views after I had undretaken my own research and realised for instance that her scaffold speach was a fabrication. That opinion of Jane, held by so many, is not helped by the inaccuracies in Weir’s ‘The Lady in the Tower’.
Part of my changes in attitude have come from this site as well as extant sources, and I am so happy that Claire is avenging all of the Boleyns and not just Anne. George has been equally maligned, if not more so, particularly by the fiction of The Tudors and the unsubstanciated allegations of Weir.
I still believe Henry was culpable for Anne’s fall, that he was seeking a way out of his marriage to Anne, and that he gave instructions to Cromwell to find a way out. I will never accept that Cromwell was acting on his own or that he would have the audacity to do so. For me, the evidence used to suggest Henry was completely innocent just doesn’t stack up. Maybe one day I’ll be convinced, but that’s where differences of opinion are so fundimental to the success of this site. We don’t always have to agree all the time.
Hi Louise,
I’ve actually just added a bit about the Boleyn family as a whole to my post above as I must admit to loving all of them and believing that they all need justice. It’s horrible what TOBG did to Anne but it’s also awful what TOBG, The Tudors etc, have done to Thomas, George and Jane. Mary’s reputation was helped by TOBG and people now see her as the wronged woman, at Anne’s expense, but even if her reputation has been helped by that it is still very bad history. I have such a soft spot for Anne, George, Thomas and Jane, and I really want to do my best by them.
I still don’t know what to make of Henry VIII. I can’t quite believe that Cromwell would have the courage, or stupidity, to act without the King’s say-so, as that would have really been putting his neck on the line, but I’m not sure who had the initial idea.
Thanks to you for all your support x
Claire — I accidentally found your site thanks to someone’s mention of it over on the Showtime Tudor’s message board. I figured I’d check it out, see what you had and then decide if I wanted to participate, and I’m glad (and thankful) that all of you have not only helped me renew my passion for this amazing family, but my interest in Anne Boleyn. I became an Anne fan because of ‘The Six Wives of Henry VIII’, the BBC series with Keith Michell, which aired in the US under the ‘Masterpiece Theater’ title. Henry fascinated me, but my understanding of his wives and what they represented began to form with that show. While Anne of Cleves and Katherine Parr have been given better treatment elsewhere (the Cleves ep was too talky; the actress playing KP was too old and plain for the role), the foundations for how I would view Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn began there. I still remember my grandmother being concerned about me crying hysterically while watching the Anne ep, and me telling her how this Queen was being falsely accused of adultery so she could be pushed aside for another because she couldn’t give this awful King a son. (My grandmother even became an Anne fan and had no idea who any of this people were LOL). But to this day, I can still visualize Dorothy Tutin speaking before “her” accusers; her confession of innocence to Cranmer; her final words on the scaffold. I also saw many sides of Anne: not a saint but a human with good sides and flaws; I saw her as intelligent, flirtatious, passionate, well-educated even for that era; high-tempered, hot-tempered, and way too often speaking before she thought it through. (Her words about KofA and Lady Mary leave me cringing, whereas her noted affection for her Elizabeth makes me see her as a proud and loving mother). It also added to my growing love of history, especially English history (I was about 12 when the series aired in the US).
Since then, I’ve seen portrayals of Anne that made me smile (Bujold, Dormer) and others that had me throw my own tantrums (Portman). The Boleyns continue to fascinate me, as they obviously do YOU, Claire. I wonder about mother Elizabeth’s feelings throughout; what sort of man Thomas really was (I stood over his tomb back in 2000 and prayed he found some peace, but wondered how a parent, any parent, could stand-by and watch two of their children condemned as he did, then logically wonder what he COULD have done anyway). Thanks to your site, I’ve learned more about George than I ever knew, and mourn that his writings and poetry may be lost forever. I’m glad you’ve tried to debunk a lot of George myths that are as rampant as those about AB. Mary remains an amazing enigma (I will NEVER see her as played in TOBG however). But Anne…WOW! I had no idea there was still such hatred against a woman dead almost 475 years, but when someone mentioned Team Anne and Team Kofi arguing over screen time on final ep of The Tudors, I realized that not much has changed. So obviously she continues to fascinate, even now.
I hope and pray that your site stays strong and keeps up the great work, not to make Anne a martyr or saint, but to attempt to discover the true woman (or as close to the true woman) as we can after all this time, and the loss (or destruction) of documents that could point us in the right direction. I’m sorry I wasn’t there at the beginning of the AB Forum, but I’m glad I’m here now. I love the articles and interviews; I love the jewelry and costumes. I especially love the regard the members have for each other. We can disagree and not get catty, nasty or arrogant. I’ve been involved in forums for years, and have seen questioners and commenters ridiculed and flamed ONLINE, the moderators sitting by and allowing it to happen. I’ve watched group members backstab and spread rumors about others as they formed sides. I have NEVER seen this behavior on the AB Forum. We may not agree on everything, but we’re learning from one another, sharing opinions, AND ACTING LIKE LADIES AND GENTLEMEN when we do so. That goes a long way in making yours a strong group.
I’ve gone on way longer than I intended, but Claire, as we start 2011, I look forward to my first full year with the Forum! I can’t wait to see what you have planned!
Thanks for your show of support and for all your comments and forum posts, I really appreciate them.
I love running this site and feel very blessed to be able to do what I love and “meet” such wonderful people, albeit in a virtual sense. I agree with you about the comments and forum, although I have comment moderation turned on the only comments I ever delete are the spam ones. All of you are polite, friendly and welcoming and I thank everyone for that.
Tina, I know what you mean about some other forums. I’ve
even seen mods actively form cliques in order to cause
trouble….shudder.
Claire!
Thank you for you excellent informative Website! Your blog is so resourceful and educative and yet, like a fairy tale. I enjoy reading every word of it! I could hardy wait for your next piece of work. It is amazing!
Happy New Year!
Thank you! Happy New Year to you too!
Happy New Year, Claire!! 2011 sounds really promising for the Anne Boleyn Files!
I would like to thank you once more for your great job. I learned soo much about Anne Boleyn in this site and that I shall never forget!!
Keep up the good job, you have our support!
Happy New Year, Eliza! I’m really excited about this year.
To keep it short and sweet, this is why I love The Anne Boleyn Files. I love coming here and reading all kinds of information about Anne, the REAL Anne. Thank you for your dedication and fabulous insights, Claire! I look forward to 2011 and being part of the Anne Boleyn Files community! 🙂
Thanks, Victoria, you’re very welcome x
Hello Claire. I’m not sure if you’ve already done an article on the gifts and inventory of gifts given to Anne by Henry. Also the inventory of items she had for Elizabeth. Just in general to give an idea of the clothing, jewellery, etc. It would be good to know what a day would be like, with her ladies, on her own, if she ever had a day to herself; her days with Elizabeth, how were they arranged. thank you.
I’ll definitely add that to my list, Rosalie, thank you.
I love this site because of the constant questioning about what we know about history and how we know this. I found our from reading Roman history that reading primary sources was not enough. You needed to understand the bias and even the time when the information was recorded, so information written down 100 years after an event is not to be treated as a first hand account written about the time it happened. I found your site by accident but I now question what I know about Tudor history and where that information came from. I have also learned that often times there are no clear answers and that a lot of things fall into a gray area due to lack of information. What I have learned here has carried over to other interests, even in my teaching profession so when someone makes a statement that is too vague or more of an opinion I will ask them to name the source of that information..
I am sorry to say that I have for a number of months found the subject of Anne Boleyn boring – If she were alive (or comniicate from wherver she is) I am sure that she would be laughiing her head off
I for one don’t think I could ever get bored of Anne Boleyn, she’s such a puzzle. I’m not sure what she would think of this site and the books that have been written about her, she’d probably be bemused by the attention and I hope she’d like the fact that she is so important to some of us today, nearly 474 years after her death.
Hi Claire. I ususally read and don’t post but I just wanted to thank you for the work you do on this site. I was channel surfing one Sunday and came across the Tudors on Showtime. It was the beginning of the last season but I was hooked. My fascination with the show led me to do some research to find out the true history of the Tudor times and now I’m more hooked than ever. In fact, I was a little worried about my almost obsession with all things Tudor. That’s why I was glad to find this site and realize I’m not alone. I find Anne Boleyn to be a very interesting historical figure so I find this site invaluable. I find her daughter Elizabeth to be fascinating as well so I love the Elizabeth Files too. Thanks for all you do and I am looking forwarding to what’s to come in 2011!
Hi Ideana,
I’m so glad you found us. It’s such a great feeling when you realise that you’re not the only person passionate about Tudor history. Thanks for your support x
Hi Claire, I think the website is fantastic and you do a great job. I have learned so much from reading your posts. Keep up the good work! When I was at secondary school I had been reading an article about Henry VIII’s wives (can’t remember who buy as it was 20 years ago!) and it said in the article that Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard were cousins. I asked my history teacher if this was correct and he said no, of course not, they couldn’t possibly be related as Anne was Protestant and Katherine was Catholic! Just goes to show how misinformed a lot of people are! This site is fantastic because it encourages us to draw our own conclusions and to search for the truth about who people really were, rather than what we’ve always been told. I hope 2011 brings many more insights!
Hi Valerie,
That made me laugh! I wonder what he thought of the Seymour family, with Jane Seymour being seen as a conservative Catholic and her brother Edward being the one who brought in such Protestant measures during Edward VI’s reign! I used to be a teacher and we’re far from perfect but I think teachers do need to admit when they’re not sure about something rather than saying something silly like that!
Hello again all. I am so impressed, Claire, with your
view:, that you take the facts and discuss. However, if Anne had
married someone else – what would she be like – given the few known
facts about her? would she be dominant; would she be a homebody; if
she had a large family to raise; would she still be dominant and
have the interests that she had before, and becoming queen; her
strong personality would be affected how?
Claire, as ive told you before, you have brought me much
joy over the past year. I have learnt so much and my opinions have
also changed on many a topic. I love your mission statement and
also the fact that its not a snobbish place and that all members
are kind to one another. Keep up the awesome work, Anne would be
proud of you xx
I find it intrigueing that even to this day people well the
public in general think of the Boleyns but of Anne in particular
the way people did back then. I am surprised by that to be honest
with you all. Nothing seems to have moved with the times as the
days, weeks, months, years and centuries have gone on well not as
far as the general public are concerned anyway! I am glad to see
aswell as find that the historians, well not all but most of them
agree that she was infact innocent of all the charges brought
against her aswell as George. That has put a smile on my face but
there is still the odd one that would say the opposite but as they
say everyone is entitled to raise aswell voice there own opinions
when and if certain situations arrive. I am also surprised by what
somebody said to one of the guides and not just any guide but to
the one playing Anne. I take it that this was at either Hever or
Hampton court !? I wonder what she must have felt upon hearing this
be said to her. If it were me I would not of liked that but at the
same it is something that you can ignore or get away with ignoring.
I take it that the person saying this was a catholic and not a
protestant !? Or someone who was just Anti-Anne and Pro-Catherine,
or just Anti-Anne full stop. I think it more the latter. Anne would
be turning in her grave to hear that or to see that even to this
day people are or still can be quite harsh about her. Though it
would deffinately have the catholics and Annes enemies smiling
especially the likes of Chapuys and King Charles V and the Lady
Mary and the Abbot of Whitby. I myself beleive Anne aswell her
brother and the other men arrested and tried to all be
innocents.They had all been victims of the king and Cromwell and
that is how I see things. No of course Cromwell did not act alone,
he would not of done that without the Kings consent, the main mans
consent unless he wanted to risk his position of even life which I
doubt he would of wanted. He on the otherhand would have only
risked such a thing if he had, had first the whole of if not the
most of everybodys backing and the people on his side and second
the confidence to do so, the confidence that he would win but I
highly doubt this I think it was done at both the Kings and
Cromwells backing as to say who had the idea first I would say
Henry or both Henry and Cromwell decided and came to a compromise
on the issue/problem together and as things go nothing would have
been able to be done like I said earlier without the “His
majesties” consent so there you have things.
Happy 2011! I have had people in the past who have made
rude comments to me about my necklace. Most think it means that
ugly word, but some of them known what it really is, and most of
those comments relate to the book “The Other Boleyn Girl.” Ugh, how
I wish that book had never been written!
Hello Claire and Happy New Year. I have a question about
Anne, Mary Queen of Scots, and other ladies that have been
be-headed. In films these womem go to the scaffold with grace,
dignity, and praising their King. I don’t even know if this
question can be answered as there is no eye witness but if it were
me I would be scared to death and probablly fighting all the way
and not putting my head down without being held down. Do you think
this is just a fairy tale? I look forward to receiving your emails
and look for them everyday like a kid looking for a present. This
is an amazing site and I’m so glad that I found it! Thank you,
Karen
Thank you Claire for all your hard work and dedication to
Anne and the Tudors and for making this site such a treat to visit
– can’t seem to stay away even when I’m supposed to be on holiday!
I love the real ‘community’ feel to it and reading your posts and
chatting to other Anne admirers has helped me to learn more deeply
about the people, the personalities and the politics of the 16th
century in a way that is sometimes more satisfying and immediate
than books – if those are the right words!!! It’s also brilliant
that now there is a place I can come to and talk about the Tudors
to my hearts content and not get the exasperated look of ‘here we
go again’ from family and friends 🙂 Good luck with all your
projects for the year and I look forward with anticipation to all
the new goodies you have in store for us!
Claire, Thank you for the great website! I’m a HUGE Tudor
history fan and I just love love love learning about Anne Boleyn
and all the Tudors. I’m lawyer — but I even have that I’m a fan of
‘Tudor history’ on my resume. Thank you for helping bring history
alive. Best in 2011!! Cheers, Kara
Hi Claire, thank you for the last 2 weeks of my life, full
of reading! I was interested in Anne since I saw “Anne of a
thousand days” as a child, and I always hated when she was
portrayed as a bad person, like in TOBG. Stories of strong women
speak to me strongly, no matter the time and place, so I always
felt a strange, special sympathy for Anne. Looking for some
accurate information, I found your website and WOW!!! That was
it!!! She is now as familiar to me as possible and I find the story
of her life and fall inspiring. Even though she fell from her high
position and suffered a terrible end, I can’t stop thinking: well,
she might’ve been happier with someone else, leading a normal quiet
life, but after all, everyone has to die – today most of the people
from her times are long gone and forgotten, yet she is remembered.
She met a tragic end but her life, though short, was meaningful and
she left a mark. Isn’t it what matters in the end? That is why I
find her so inspiring: it is worth to take a risk, even if the
price is very high, and to live one’s dreams. Claire, for me it
would be interesting to find some more information about every day
life in the Tudors times, especially on the court, what it looked
like, even what meals they ate. Thank you for the wonderful
job!
Happy new year and thank you for a good historical blog
from a swedish Tudor fan
Hi Claire – I remember stumbling upon your site when doing a normal google search for Anne Boleyn. I came, I saw and I stayed. It’s so refreshing for once to read up on this famous queen and not hear opinionated articles how she was a wh*re and heretic, yadi-yadi-ya!
And then when you released the Anne Boleyn experience…well, let’s just say that by the end of my raving all my friends and family were prepared to ship me off to England just to get some piece and quiet. Watch out 2012 because I’ll be there!
I hope 2011 brings you much joy and success both in your professional life as well as your personal life.
Happy new year Claire and the Anne Boleyn Files.
Caroline.
Just want to add my own thanks for both the Anne Boleyn Files and Elizabeth Files! I love the fact that this site is such a melting pot of information on Anne and her world and that your dedicated to finding out the truth about Anne, both good and not so good.
I’m always excited about your blogs and I’m forever looking forward to them…I check this site so often I’m surprised I found it only a few months ago!
Again, thank you!
Claire! You ROCK 🙂
I am so pleased that you have gone the extra mile to get this site up and running and that you maintain it with such devoted fervor.
What I believe that the general population misses time and time again is the role of the Church in the image their view of Anne Boleyn. Anne “without” Henry VIII was dangerous to the agenda of the early 16th century Catholic church… She along with many, many others saw a desperate need for mandatory change in how the church conducted itself as an entity separate and higher from all men. This change that Anne & so many other reformers sought to educate and move others into was ultimately the downfall of Anne Boleyn… Why on EARTH anyone would believe anything else is the same reason why we have so SO many sheep within this planet still. ~Fear: For it is far safer and easier to go with the norm – to not buck the system. ….And Anne’s outcome is what can often happen to someone who makes “danger” within a system where the public should just follow along, play nice, & pay the church to keep them safe and out of trouble.
It really reddens my hair & also causes me to laugh when I read physical descriptions of what Anne looked like… Think about it: the easiest thing to attack is the way someone looks. We have only a handful of physical descriptions of what Anne really looked like. Look at any rendition of this woman: She was a looker… She was beautiful and the only person who would say that she wasn’t very “attractive” and that it was her “style” that successfully drew Henry VIII to her didn’t like her and certainly wasn’t about to credit that woman with a beautiful face in addition to a beautiful mind. ~The fact is we have been robbed. Nearly every written depiction we have is biased (Nicholas Sander & the ugly throat and 6th finger) & there really are very few artifacts left from anyone of significance during the 16th century. ~This really irritates me…I have a image in my mind of so many pieces of artwork, clothing, & jewelry that were literally pulled apart and burned after people were “disposed of” during the 16th century. What a short-sighted & arrogant bunch. I’m sure that many members of the church & likely Henry himself were under the impression that they would live forever… I dare say that the life of Anne Boleyn holds more interest in this world than the life of Henry Tudor VIII.
Both your websites are very informative, and I’ve learnt alot about the Tudors from your blogs! Thank you and continue all the good work!
Last January I was looking up information on Francis Weston. This site came up, and I’m so glad it did. Claire, you have made this site a pleasant place to learn and comment on our feelings about the Tudor era. The forum is such a great place to ask questions and leave comments knowing that everyone here will try to answer with respect. I am looking forward to the coming year.
Well, my passion began a few years ago when i first saw the movie Elizabeth, i was preparing myself for my nightshift (i’m a nightnurse) like i always do a day before my shifts begin, i stay up all night and watch movies or read books, and i’ve gotten the movie and thought it was nothing for me, untill it started. I was fascinated with this young woman, was thinking whole the time, please do not kill this girl. After i finished the movie, it stayed in my mind and i thought it was not a real story, i started to google, and learned that this woman was one of the greatest queens england had ever had (shame on me, because i’ve always been interested in history, but the dutch history, Willem of Orange), i was obsessed, spent my nightshifts looking for information about this good old bess. Then i read about her father and his six wives. I was intrigued by two of his wives, Catherine and Anne (i admire them both, whatever their believes are), i wanted to know more, began buying books of every tudor member i could find. Not fiction, cause i wanted to know what really happened, then i found your blog, loved it, spent nights (on my free time) reading and searching, then found your blog on Elizabeth and i must say, i am a fan, in the beginning i did not want to respond, thinking my english would be to bad to explain my thoughts, responded for the first time a few weeks ago and how friendly you were, i can only say great!
Another great thing about it is, i love history for years, i love how everything evolved, changed, how people lived (even when it was a really hard time, for example the Netherlands have had many people burned alive for their believes and for witchcraft, heresy etc), but i myself love how they live or better say, how they survived. I’m not basing my personal favorites on what they believed, i myself have a passion for strong woman, who stood up for theirselves, who fight their own battles and were not affraid to do it, whatever the cost. These woman present that to me. I also love it that i finnaly find people who are really into history like me, if i talk to people around me, they do not often know what i am talking about, they watch the Tudors, TOBG etc and see it as entertainment serie/ movie, to me it is much more, it is a passion, i love to talk about it, read about, see television about it and dream away. I have a few personal favorites, and all of them are woman. I love the Boleyn family and can not read enough about them, so please keep up your great work. I would love to know more about Lady Rochford, in some way she interest me. Also i woul like to know, were can i find this forum?
Happy new year, and looking forward to your three books! Your sites are my favorites and they are well apreciated!
Kelly
From the Netherlands
I appreciate what you are trying to do here, but what about a website devoted to the injustices surrounding Queen Katharine of Aragon and Mary I? Love her or hate her Anne always gets all the attention, something that irritates me to no end.
Hi Mary,
I’ve actually written many articles on her in support of Catherine of Aragon and in support of Mary I over at The Elizabeth Files. See https://www.theanneboleynfiles.com/bios/catherine-of-aragon/ and http://www.elizabethfiles.com/category/mary-i/
I’m afraid I don’t have time to do a website dedicated to Catherine on top of this one, but I do write about her as I admire her.
Claire, were you wearing one of the necklaces from the Products list in theanneboleynfiles.com?
Hi Savarnah,
I’m wearing the Jane Seymour Pearl Swag Wedding Set – the JS Pearl Swag Necklace and JS Chandelier Earrings. I love that set.