On this day in Tudor history, 9th April 1533, Catherine of Aragon, who'd been banished from the royal court, received a visit from a delegation of the king's councillors. They were there to inform her that she was no longer queen.
Catherine was a tough cookie, though. Even when she was threatened by the king, she did not submit, she carried on calling herself queen right until the end - good for her!
Find out all about this visit, and their subsequent visit in July 1533, in today's video.
Also on this day in history:
- 1483 – Death of Edward IV at the Palace of Westminster. He was laid to rest in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, on 20th April. His cause of death is unknown. It may have been caused by a chill, but he was known for overindulging in food and drink, and that would not have helped his health.
- 1557 – Cardinal Reginald Pole's legatine powers were revoked by Pope Paul IV.
- 1582 – Death of Richard Bertie, evangelical, member of Parliament and second husband of Katherine Willoughby (other married name Brandon), Duchess of Suffolk, at Bourne. He had met Katherine when he became her Gentleman Usher. He was buried with Katherine, who died in 1580, at Spilsby.
- 1590 – Funeral of Ambrose Dudley, Earl of Warwick. He was laid to rest in the Beauchamp Chapel of St Mary's Collegiate Church, Warwick.
- 1626 – Death of Francis Bacon, Viscount St Alban, Lord Chancellor, politician and philosopher. It appears that Bacon died from inhaling nitre or opiates in a botched experiment.
Thank you Claire for talking about Catherine of Aragon. I feel she is so often overlooked and she is most certainly overshadowed by this decade’s fascination with Anne Boleyn. I think Catherine deserves so much more respect and recognition!
Cheers Claire for this informative and the reaction to the title “Princess Dowager” and her great stance of being the true Queen of England. I agree, Barbara, she is too often dismissed and deserves respect and honour. This was an insult to a woman who was crowned as Queen, jointly with her husband, King Henry viii back in June 1509. She was married to Henry for more than twenty four years and he cast her aside for a younger model because he needed a son. I am sure Henry may well have treated Katherine better if she had have accepted her new title but he certainly didn’t need to bully her. She was loved among the people and they all supported her stand as Queen, but Henry used another threat in the law and used her daughter as a target for his anger. That was very cruel and the fact that mother and daughter were separated for so long took a toll on her health. She was a very redoubtable lady and she certainly has my deepest respect.
Go Katherine, you tell him!