The Tudors were famous for their sense of family and for playing favorites in times of peace. A child is entitled to a private childhood of his or her own as long as this is not disrupting the healthy sibling bonds within the family.
When Henry VIII’s marriage to Anne Boleyn brought a rupture in the Whitehall circle, it was natural that her sister’s – Anne and Mary – were given priority over the eldest girls. Henry must have expected these sisters to be more willing to follow his wishes when it came to religion and other family matters. How they reacted to this was a matter of intense speculation, but Henry was quickly appeased by their steadfast devotion.
Children raised by two women are sometimes slightly different. They learn how to cope with criticism from their mother from the very start. When their mother was ill, there was only one possible way of dealing with it: arguing, nagging, swearing, everything was fine, be quiet, and being strong and refusing to accept anything less than what you asked for.
“That was our motto,” said Shirley, referring to our parents. She remembers those days and still talks about them to this day.
Anne and Mary, though, were born into a family which stood for tolerance. Anne and Mary had never considered their brothers cousins and were quite happy with that. Henry VIII was irritated by their double-dealing, but even more so by the fact that he could not put his suspicions to rest.
Henry wanted to be certain that his marriage to his first cousin was a completely legal one. He knew that his uncle and aunt, King and Queen of France, had taken issue with the marriage because of the status of the Duke of York and the desire of the court to marry a boy of French origin.
He also knew that France would want to prevent Anne’s sons, George and Henry, from being taken to France against their will. This became a grave decision when Anne chose to stay in England. That was one of the reasons why a girl from one of the high classes should choose to marry a girl from the lowest class of society.
Andrew himself was both. He too had a well-known reputation as a hard-nosed player on the court. His heart was set on having a quiet life, and this was interpreted as being highly romantic and being a child of the sixteenth century.
For Wilberton, the choice was easy. Henry had told her that his choice was open and she could either accept it or refuse, and she chose to refuse and get married instead.
Andrew had considered marrying the best man who had been raised to be a priest and really thought that her choice was fine. Henry VIII was furious, and many suspected that Anne was a spy for France, so to appease him he made her marry.
Even so, Wilberton had told his brother that he would support him in any way he could. Wilberton was a difficult and loving woman, and the girls were hugely helped by their mother when it came to coping with disapproval.
Anne Boylen is a fantastic world-renowned fiction writer with a number of novels under her belt, including Execution by Candlelight and The Queen of Solitude. The sequel to Execution by Candlelight is already in the works and will be released next year. It’s been awhile since I read Execution by Candlelight, and it did not disappoint. Anne is back with a second installment, so I hope you’re all as excited as I am!
That’s right folks, Anne executed! However, you won’t see that in Execution by Candlelight. You won’t see Anne being shot dead. You’ll get a real twist! A really creepy twist!
Anne is joined by Mireille, a woman who is not so happy to be there. There are two plans in operation here. The first plan is to take out Anne, but the second plan is to have Anne murdered by the Queen, who wants to know what it is she knows about their schemes. When this happens, the Queen feels the wrath of a righteous vengeance! This may be one of the scariest plots I’ve ever read. I can’t wait to find out how it ends. For those of you who haven’t read Anne’s original work, I strongly suggest you do so.
There are so many other fascinating and interesting people to learn about such as Elon Musk, Andy Warhol, Edgar Allen Poe, Pablo Picasso, and Peter The Great. What about the oldest woman in the world and the tallest man in the world? Amazing facts abound and today’s ladies continue to make history like Lizzo and Billie Eilish.
