Chapter 1 - The English Channel in October of 1532
Chapter 1 – The English Channel in October of 1532
It seemed like the storm had come out of nowhere. When the King of England had disembarked from Dover onboard the ship The Swallow the weather had been perfectly fine. The newly titled Marchioness of Pembroke, Anne Boleyn had come with him on the trip that was supposed to head to Calais where they were to meet the King of France. The purpose of the meeting was for Henry to gain support for his Great Matter, his annulment from his Spanish wife, Catherine of Aragon. During their twenty-three years of marriage only one child had survived infancy, a daughter. Mary Tudor was now a sixteen-year-old girl and the heiress presumptive to England. The king wished to marry Anne instead in order to conceive a son and heir to secure the Tudor line. His Spanish wife had the support of the Emperor, Charles V, also king of Spain and the fight had started in 1527. Henry already had a bastard son, Henry Fitzroy, who’s mother was Bessie Blount. His goal was to ensure that Anne would give birth to a legitimate Prince of Wales. In order to do that, he needed to annul his marriage to Catherine.
The King and his entourage never reached Calais. The storm that blew into the English Channel took the ship by surprise. The sailors onboard struggled to keep the ship from afloat, while high waves crashed into the deck and into the compartments inside. Both the King and Marchioness were drenched from the water that gathered in their cabins, while clothes and jewels flew all over the rooms. The coffer with the Queen’s jewels had been handed to Anne with great reluctance by Catherine, as Henry had wished to give them to the woman he intended to supplant her as Queen of England. The new gowns and jewels were meant to show off Anne’s status before France. Both fabric and jewels would sink into the sea along with Anne Boleyn, the Queen to be, or as she would be known to history, The Queen who never was.
Henry VIII of England and Anne Boleyn who perished in the storm in the English Channel
And so did Henry VIII, King of England, the second monarch of the Tudor Dynasty. The quest to annul his marriage had led to his death in the cold and dark waters in the Channel. It would be his sole daughter, Catherine’s only surviving child who ultimately would succeed him as Monarch, becoming by the Grace of God, Mary I of England.
Author's Note: So I had a idea of writing a timeline where this scenario happened. No Queen Anne, no Elizabeth and Mary becomes queen of England earlier. I have a vague outline of where I want this to go, so any help will be graciously received. I know the chapter is rather short, but hopefully the next ones will be longer. Credit to @isabella for helping me brainstorm.
It seemed like the storm had come out of nowhere. When the King of England had disembarked from Dover onboard the ship The Swallow the weather had been perfectly fine. The newly titled Marchioness of Pembroke, Anne Boleyn had come with him on the trip that was supposed to head to Calais where they were to meet the King of France. The purpose of the meeting was for Henry to gain support for his Great Matter, his annulment from his Spanish wife, Catherine of Aragon. During their twenty-three years of marriage only one child had survived infancy, a daughter. Mary Tudor was now a sixteen-year-old girl and the heiress presumptive to England. The king wished to marry Anne instead in order to conceive a son and heir to secure the Tudor line. His Spanish wife had the support of the Emperor, Charles V, also king of Spain and the fight had started in 1527. Henry already had a bastard son, Henry Fitzroy, who’s mother was Bessie Blount. His goal was to ensure that Anne would give birth to a legitimate Prince of Wales. In order to do that, he needed to annul his marriage to Catherine.
The King and his entourage never reached Calais. The storm that blew into the English Channel took the ship by surprise. The sailors onboard struggled to keep the ship from afloat, while high waves crashed into the deck and into the compartments inside. Both the King and Marchioness were drenched from the water that gathered in their cabins, while clothes and jewels flew all over the rooms. The coffer with the Queen’s jewels had been handed to Anne with great reluctance by Catherine, as Henry had wished to give them to the woman he intended to supplant her as Queen of England. The new gowns and jewels were meant to show off Anne’s status before France. Both fabric and jewels would sink into the sea along with Anne Boleyn, the Queen to be, or as she would be known to history, The Queen who never was.
Henry VIII of England and Anne Boleyn who perished in the storm in the English Channel
And so did Henry VIII, King of England, the second monarch of the Tudor Dynasty. The quest to annul his marriage had led to his death in the cold and dark waters in the Channel. It would be his sole daughter, Catherine’s only surviving child who ultimately would succeed him as Monarch, becoming by the Grace of God, Mary I of England.
Author's Note: So I had a idea of writing a timeline where this scenario happened. No Queen Anne, no Elizabeth and Mary becomes queen of England earlier. I have a vague outline of where I want this to go, so any help will be graciously received. I know the chapter is rather short, but hopefully the next ones will be longer. Credit to @isabella for helping me brainstorm.
