Veritas Temporis Filia: Part 2
Even after satisfying her father with the oaths, Mary continued practicing her Catholic faith. She wasn't truly breaking any laws: the Church of England was still very Catholic in practice and doctrine, including belief in transubstantiation (the bread and wine truly becoming the Body and Blood of Christ). The only main difference was the authority figure at its head: for Catholics it was and still is the Pope, for Anglicans it was and still is the reigning monarch. Mary unabashedly remained a Papist, as Protestants disparagingly referred to those of the Catholic faith who followed papal authority, and retained the support of the Catholic nations of Europe, which naturally included her mother's native Spain. She was also friendly with the new Queen, wife #3 Jane Seymour, who was herself privately Catholic. When Queen Jane gave birth to King Henry's long-awaited son, Edward, Mary stood as his godmother. However, the joy over the new Prince was short-lived: his mother died two weeks later of post-natal complications.
Three more stepmothers followed. In 1540, King Henry married wife #4, Anne of Cleves. A Protestant noblewoman from a German province, she was chosen sight-unseen for political convenience to help forge relationships with the Protestant nations of Europe. Upon first meeting her, Henry was disgusted and railed at the people who had extolled her supposed beauty. To avoid insulting her family, her country, and the Protestant nations, he still married her, but he was so disenchanted that the marriage was never consummated. Despite religious differences, Anne and Mary became friendly and remained so, even after Henry had this fourth marriage annulled six months after the wedding.
Henry's fifth marriage was scandalous from beginning to end. Already nearly fifty years old, his choice fell upon a teenage bride from one of the more Catholic families in the nobility: Catherine Howard, a cousin to Anne Boleyn. Vain and silly, she clashed with her stepdaughter Mary, who was actually older than she. Unfortunately, this young Queen also had a past, which included a dalliance with a former music teacher and a secret consummated betrothal to another young man. Catherine only made things worse during her royal marriage by having an affair with one of the King's servants, Thomas Culpeper. All was found out eventually, and in 1542 she met the same fate as her cousin Anne Boleyn: execution by beheading.
Wife #6 came as a blessing in 1543. Catherine Parr (yes, that's three Catherines who married the same man, one at a time), though in love with another man and knowing the King's infamous marital history, obeyed what she believed was God's call to marry the aging Henry. She was more a nursemaid than wife, caring for him in his poor health, and she succeeded in bringing all the royal children to court to live and learn under her care. Again, there were significant religious difference between Mary and this Catherine, the latter having strong Protestant views, but the two women managed to maintain cordial relations. Catherine Parr was the only one to remain with Henry 'til death did them part.
Having endured five stepmothers and the birth of a Prince who finally displaced her as her father's legitimate heir, Mary finally lost her father. Henry VIII died in 1547, survived by the now-Dowager Queen Catherine Parr, but not before restoring both his bastardized daughters to the line of succession. Young Edward became King at age nine, and the crown would pass to Mary and then to Elizabeth if there were no intervening heirs from any of them. Being a minor, Edward was ruled by extremely Protestant councilors and regents who strongly influenced his faith. The Catholic faith was officially outlawed in England, but Mary continued to defy the law, openly celebrating Mass at her private home. For this, Edward's advisers constantly urged him to arrest her for heresy and treason and put her to death accordingly.
But he never did. As the summer of 1553 approached, Edward's health began to fail. He had always been sickly, and now his closest councilors prepared for what was to come. They feared Mary's succession to the throne, as she would doubtless bring England back into the Catholic fold and destroy the Protestant nation they had worked so hard to build. They also feared that the feisty Lady Elizabeth, King Henry's equally strong-willed second daughter, would also prove a challenge to manipulate to their agendas. Therefore, on his deathbed, Edward was persuaded to strike the names of both his sisters from the succession, citing their illegitimacy which had never been overturned. Instead, he left the crown to his Protestant cousin, Lady Jane Grey, a great-niece to Henry VIII and the daughter-in-law of Edward's current regent. Content that he was not abandoning his realm to be dragged back into Catholicism, Edward died on 6 July 1553. Three days after, Jane Grey was proclaimed a reluctant Queen.
But Mary would not hear of it. She was the only true heir. Jane was only a usurper, albeit an unwilling one being manipulated by her parents and in-laws. Mary made a stand for her claim to the throne, gathering support in East Anglia (the counties of eastern England) and Suffolk, where many were still sympathetic to Catholicism. As her supporters grew in number, those sent to arrest her surrendered and consented to her accession. Jane Grey was deposed, having been Queen for only nine days, and her family and supporters were arrested for treason. Half of them were put to death, but Jane and her husband remained in the Tower of London. Mary made a triumphant procession into London to claim her rightful place as Queen, accompanied by her half-sister Elizabeth and former stepmother Lady Anne of Cleves, among others. In October 1553, Lady Mary Tudor was crowned Queen Mary of England, the country's first Queen to succeed and rule in her own right.
Three more stepmothers followed. In 1540, King Henry married wife #4, Anne of Cleves. A Protestant noblewoman from a German province, she was chosen sight-unseen for political convenience to help forge relationships with the Protestant nations of Europe. Upon first meeting her, Henry was disgusted and railed at the people who had extolled her supposed beauty. To avoid insulting her family, her country, and the Protestant nations, he still married her, but he was so disenchanted that the marriage was never consummated. Despite religious differences, Anne and Mary became friendly and remained so, even after Henry had this fourth marriage annulled six months after the wedding.
Henry's fifth marriage was scandalous from beginning to end. Already nearly fifty years old, his choice fell upon a teenage bride from one of the more Catholic families in the nobility: Catherine Howard, a cousin to Anne Boleyn. Vain and silly, she clashed with her stepdaughter Mary, who was actually older than she. Unfortunately, this young Queen also had a past, which included a dalliance with a former music teacher and a secret consummated betrothal to another young man. Catherine only made things worse during her royal marriage by having an affair with one of the King's servants, Thomas Culpeper. All was found out eventually, and in 1542 she met the same fate as her cousin Anne Boleyn: execution by beheading.
Wife #6 came as a blessing in 1543. Catherine Parr (yes, that's three Catherines who married the same man, one at a time), though in love with another man and knowing the King's infamous marital history, obeyed what she believed was God's call to marry the aging Henry. She was more a nursemaid than wife, caring for him in his poor health, and she succeeded in bringing all the royal children to court to live and learn under her care. Again, there were significant religious difference between Mary and this Catherine, the latter having strong Protestant views, but the two women managed to maintain cordial relations. Catherine Parr was the only one to remain with Henry 'til death did them part.
Having endured five stepmothers and the birth of a Prince who finally displaced her as her father's legitimate heir, Mary finally lost her father. Henry VIII died in 1547, survived by the now-Dowager Queen Catherine Parr, but not before restoring both his bastardized daughters to the line of succession. Young Edward became King at age nine, and the crown would pass to Mary and then to Elizabeth if there were no intervening heirs from any of them. Being a minor, Edward was ruled by extremely Protestant councilors and regents who strongly influenced his faith. The Catholic faith was officially outlawed in England, but Mary continued to defy the law, openly celebrating Mass at her private home. For this, Edward's advisers constantly urged him to arrest her for heresy and treason and put her to death accordingly.
But he never did. As the summer of 1553 approached, Edward's health began to fail. He had always been sickly, and now his closest councilors prepared for what was to come. They feared Mary's succession to the throne, as she would doubtless bring England back into the Catholic fold and destroy the Protestant nation they had worked so hard to build. They also feared that the feisty Lady Elizabeth, King Henry's equally strong-willed second daughter, would also prove a challenge to manipulate to their agendas. Therefore, on his deathbed, Edward was persuaded to strike the names of both his sisters from the succession, citing their illegitimacy which had never been overturned. Instead, he left the crown to his Protestant cousin, Lady Jane Grey, a great-niece to Henry VIII and the daughter-in-law of Edward's current regent. Content that he was not abandoning his realm to be dragged back into Catholicism, Edward died on 6 July 1553. Three days after, Jane Grey was proclaimed a reluctant Queen.
But Mary would not hear of it. She was the only true heir. Jane was only a usurper, albeit an unwilling one being manipulated by her parents and in-laws. Mary made a stand for her claim to the throne, gathering support in East Anglia (the counties of eastern England) and Suffolk, where many were still sympathetic to Catholicism. As her supporters grew in number, those sent to arrest her surrendered and consented to her accession. Jane Grey was deposed, having been Queen for only nine days, and her family and supporters were arrested for treason. Half of them were put to death, but Jane and her husband remained in the Tower of London. Mary made a triumphant procession into London to claim her rightful place as Queen, accompanied by her half-sister Elizabeth and former stepmother Lady Anne of Cleves, among others. In October 1553, Lady Mary Tudor was crowned Queen Mary of England, the country's first Queen to succeed and rule in her own right.
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