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Catherine Parr was a worried woman. As the Sixth wife of King Henry VIII she didn’t have a very secure future – not judging by the record of those who went before her. Two of them had been executed. And, now, just a year after her marriage, she has learnt of heretical charges against her. Will she be the next wife to be beheaded?
Catherine became the King’s wife on July12, 1543. She was 31 years of age, twice married and about to marry eligible bachelor Thomas Seymour. But a proposal by the King changed things for Catherine. To turn down Henry was a dangerous thing. She accepted his proposal.
Henry had been an athletic and handsome man in his youth. By the time of his marriage to Catherine, however, he was grossly overweight and suffering from multiple health problems, including an ulcerated leg. At times the 52 year old Monarch could hardly walk.
Catherine decided to work hard at making a success of the marriage. She became a friend to Henry’s three children from previous marriages. She entertained and distracted Henry when his physical pain and the pressures of matters of state overwhelmed him. Things seemed to be going well between the two of them.
There are others, however, who are not happy with Catherine’s presence. Principal among Catherine’s detractors is the bishop of Winchester, Stephen Gardiner. Gardiner is strongly opposed to religious change and resents Catherine’s interests in the subject as well as her influence with the King. Gardiner was also smarting because he had been overlooked for the position of Archbishop of Canterbury in favour of Protestant sympathiser Thomas Cranmer.
Bishop Gardiner has recently been influential in having a young woman by the name of Anne Askew imprisoned for heresy. She has been an outspoken advocate of religious reform. Gardiner is determined to get this woman to state that she has had contact with the Ladies of Court, hoping to incriminate the Queen. Anne is thoroughly interrogated and when she fails to reveal any names she isstrapped on the rack, an instrument of torture that would stretch a person almost to breaking point. Still the incriminating evidence is not forthcoming.
Despite this, Gardiner approached the King with accusations that Catherine was a heretic. He said that given time he would provide the evidence. The King, angered by this turn of events, signed a bill of articles against his wife.
Catherine learns of what has happened from her Doctor. He advises her to confront the King and seek his forgiveness. One night she decides to do just that. She finds Henry in a good mood. However, Henry soon turns the conversation to religious matters, trying to trap Catherine into saying something that will incriminate her. She, however, sees the trap. She defers to the King’s wisdom stating that she can teach him nothing. She also says that her earlier conversations on religion were designed only to distract him from the pain caused by his infirmities. This pleases the king who embraces and kisses his wife. They then engage in pleasant conversation until Catherine retires at around midnight.
The next day Henry takes his walk around the Royal Garden accompanied by the Queen. This was the pre-planned time for Catherine’s arrest. While the couple are enjoying themselves, Sir Thomas Wriothesley, an accomplice of Gardiner, arrives with a 40 man guard to arrest Catherine. Now, however, the tables are turned and the King sends Wriothseley packing, calling him a fool and beast.
Bishop Gardiner fell from grace and spent time in the Tower of London. In 1550 he was deprived of his bishopric. The king died in 1547. Catherine then married her former love Thomas Seymour. She died in 1548 at the tender age of 36.
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