{"id":6475,"date":"2021-10-27T08:17:32","date_gmt":"2021-10-27T06:17:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.historyextra.com\/?p=189999"},"modified":"2021-10-27T08:30:12","modified_gmt":"2021-10-27T06:30:12","slug":"do-we-have-to-be-team-catherine-or-team-anne-when-it-comes-to-henry-viiis-wives","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbchistory\/rss_feed\/do-we-have-to-be-team-catherine-or-team-anne-when-it-comes-to-henry-viiis-wives\/","title":{"rendered":"Do we have to be \u2018Team Catherine\u2019 or \u2018Team Anne\u2019 when it comes to Henry VIII\u2019s wives?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Kev Lochun\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Wednesday, 27 October 2021 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn are two of 16th-century England\u2019s most recognisable names: the first two of Henry VIII\u2019s six wives<\/a>. For centuries, they have been pitted against one another, with historical narratives delighting in their famed rivalry and perpetuating their differences. They were adversaries in love, in power and in religion. Whilst they may have shared a husband, they shared little else.<\/p>\n

This traditional history, which has often painted Catherine of Aragon<\/a> as the scorned Catholic wife and Anne Boleyn<\/a> as the bewitching reformist seductress, has never been a fair portrayal of either queen. It is a reductive tale that succeeds by tapping into the outdated social dynamic of praising one woman only to the direct detriment of another.<\/p>\n

There has been a confused rush to declare oneself as either \u2018Team Catherine\u2019 or \u2018Team Anne\u2019, which has only ever increased the division between them. Of course, the two queens had many crucial differences, but a closer look might remind us that they also shared a lot in common.<\/p>\n

Sharing in their devotion<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A newly uncovered connection between Catherine and Anne might just be the necessary spark for us to remember what united, as well as divided, these remarkable women. The link in question was found amidst recent research into a humble, printed \u2018Book of Hours\u2019<\/a> once owned, and written in, by Anne.<\/p>\n

Books of Hours, perhaps most succinctly described as scriptural prayer books, are generally acknowledged as the first popular books of the medieval era. Written primarily in Latin, they contained prayer cycles and psalms from the eight canonical hours (hence the name) that governed everyday life.<\/p>\n

These beautifully illuminated devotional books were meant to be used frequently \u2013 in fact, some wealthy people owned more than one copy. The fashion of having a Book of Hours rose even more after the advent of print and their increased accessibility. Even when printed, they were often highly decorated and customised with the addition of certain prayers and illuminations. It was also common for owners to write on the pages themselves, inscribing them with passages, dates and names of personal significance.<\/p>\n

\""Anne\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Anne Boleyn\u2019s Book of Hours at Hever Castle. At the bottom left of the book, in Anne\u2019s own hand, are the words \u2018Remember me when you do pray\/that hope doth lead from day to day\u2019 (Photo by Alamy)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Today, because of this level of personalisation, they offer intimate insights into their individual owners. They are also remembered for their \u2018special relationship\u2019 with women, as an \u2018appropriate outlet\u2019 for female literacy. It is known that both Catherine and Anne owned at least three Books of Hours each.<\/p>\n

Anne\u2019s printed Book of Hours, the subject of new research, was produced by the prolific Parisian printer Germain Hardouin in 1527 and is currently held at Anne\u2019s childhood home, Hever Castle in Kent. One discovery of this research was that a copy of this same Hardouin printing is held in the Morgan Library in New York and was once owned by none other than Anne\u2019s supposed rival, Catherine.<\/p>\n

This is an intriguing connection between our two opposing queens. Despite all their differences, Catherine and Anne both owned and used the same prayerbook, possibly even at the same time.<\/p>\n

Different, but the same<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Reflecting their famed differences, the level of decoration across both copies of this book of hours is revealingly varied. Anne\u2019s copy is illuminated to a significantly greater standard than Catherine\u2019s.<\/p>\n

Anne\u2019s book has full-length, gold borders adorning pages featuring images, extra red and blue corner decoration, and elliptical frames around every section inscribed with prayers. Catherine\u2019s copy does not feature this extra decoration.<\/p>\n

Of course, this could simply be representative of Anne\u2019s personal preference, as it is well-known that she enjoyed opulently illuminated books, but it could be an insight into something more suggestive: Anne\u2019s personal ambition. In owning a book decorated to a higher standard than even the queen\u2019s, she was arguably emulating a royal status that Catherine currently held and in only seven years\u2019 time, Anne would hold instead.<\/p>\n