16th-century woodcut of the coronation of Henry VIII of England and Catherine of Aragon showing their heraldic badges, the Tudor Rose and the Pomegranate of Granada.
Catherine of Aragon was Queen of England from June 1509 until May 1533 as the first wife of King Henry VIII; she was previously Princess of Wales as the wife of Henry's elder brother Arthur.
Background
Catherine was born on 16 December 1485, at the Archbishop's Palace in Alcalá de Henares near Madrid, on the night of 16 December 1485. She was the youngest surviving child of King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile.
She was descended, on her maternal side, from the English royal house; her great-grandmother Catherine of Lancaster, after whom she was named, and her great-great-grandmother Philippa of Lancaster were both daughters of John of Gaunt and granddaughters of Edward III of England. Consequently, she was third cousin of her father-in-law, Henry VII of England, and fourth cousin of her mother-in-law Elizabeth of York.
Education
Catherine was educated by a tutor, Alessandro Geraldini, who was a clerk in Holy Orders. She studied arithmetic, canon and civil law, classical literature, genealogy and heraldry, history, philosophy, religion, and theology. She had a strong religious upbringing and developed her Roman Catholic faith that would play a major role in later life. She learned to speak, read and write in Spanish and Latin, and spoke French and Greek. She was also taught domestic skills, such as cooking, dancing, drawing, embroidery, good manners, lace-making, music, needlepoint, sewing, spinning, and weaving. Scholar Erasmus later said that Catherine "loved good literature which she had studied with success since childhood".
Career
Knowing that the union of their daughters to other powerful nations could strengthen their foothold in Europe the King and Queen chose these alliances carefully. The Treaty of Medina del Campo in 1489 contained the promise of a bride for Prince Arthur of England, son of Henry VII. The daughter chosen was Catherine, but the actual treaties of marriage did not occur until August 1497 at Woodstock, England. In May 1499 the first of the wedding ceremonies occurred in Worcestershire after a Papal dispensation allowed Arthur, who was below the age of consent, to make his vows.
A second proxy marriage occurred in 1500 in Ludlow, but it was not until the summer of 1501 that Catherine finally arrived in England as the Princess of Wales. The trip was physically difficult for her, but she was welcomed in England with great fanfare. Her final marriage vows were said in November 1501 in St. Peter's Cathedral, and a mere five months later, the Prince of Wales died. Until her death Catherine insisted that this marriage to Arthur was never consummated, a fact that her second husband was never able to publically deny.
The comforts that Catherine had enjoyed as a new bride were soon stripped as King Henry VII refused to support her household because her complete dowry had never been paid. In humiliation she was forced to live meagerly at court. She worried about her women in waiting who had accompanied her from Spain and for her own future as well. For seven years she continued in a state of limbo as the Princess Dowager (widow) of Wales, no longer under the care of her father and refused care by her father-in-law.
The death of Henry VII and the ascension of Henry VIII brought Catherine new hope of a marriage and the chance to take her rightful place as Queen of England. The king's council preferred a Hapsburg or a French marriage, as was the wish of Henry VII when he betrothed his son to the child Eleanor of Austria. Catherine insisted to those in her household that her marriage to Henry would occur although privately worried about her fate. Those fears were put to rest when Henry VIII went against council and took Catherine as his bride, a mere six weeks after ascending the throne. They were married in a church outside Greenwich Palace on June 11, 1509. The King was 18 years old and Catherine was five years his senior.
While Henry was at war he named Catherine as the Queen Regent of the Kingdom which showed the great faith that he had in her. Given her upbringing amidst war she was well equipped to serve in the regent capacity. Reminiscent of her mother she addressed the English army as they prepared for an invasion by the Scots. Catherine sent Henry the bloodied coat of the Scot King who was killed in the battle as proof of her devotion and service to him.
As was customary of the time, Henry and Catherine maintained two separate households with large suites near one another. With over 140 persons attending her Catherine still insisted on embroidering the king's shirts herself.
As time passed, it became more clear that two groups were present in the English court, those who were French-minded in their speaking, socializing, and dress, and those who were scholars and theologians. The King associated with both groups but Catherine isolated herself with the scholars. She presided in state functions but declined to participate in the dancing and antics of the court.
In June 1519, Henry's mistress, Bessie Blount, a maid in the court, gave birth to a son. This event did not bother Catherine until 1524 when the illegitimate child was given the title Duke of Richmond by Henry along with rights for ascension to the throne behind Princess Mary. Henry loved his daughter Mary and his later poor treatment of her was viewed as only a punishment to Catherine. In 1518, at the age of two, Mary was betrothed to the Dauphin of France which did not please her mother. Catherine campaigned for an alliance with her nephew Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (was also King Charles I of Spain) instead and began the instruction of Mary as Queen of Spain. Henry counted on this alliance for political gain and was furious when Charles married another.
A king with no male heir feared for the succession of his throne. It was around this time that Anne Boleyn, a lady in waiting to Catherine, caught Henry's eye. Anne refused to be anything less than queen, so Henry needed a way out of his marriage. In 1527, Henry used a passage of Leviticus from the bible as proof that his marriage to his brother's wife was not viewed favorably by God and therefore was cursed with no sons. He claimed his conscience could not allow him to continue in the marriage and requested what in modern terms would be an annulment. Cardinal Wolsey set-up an official court to investigate the validity of the marriage. The Pope refused to allow the English court to try the case since a papal dispensation had been issued in 1509 at the time of the marriage, but delayed in making a decision for many years. Wolsey tried to get all the English bishops to agree that the marriage was invalid to force the hand of the Vatican but John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester (who was later executed by Henry VIII) refused.
Catherine refused to withdraw from public life and retire to a nunnery. She firmly believed that her marriage to Henry was divinely ordained and to interfere with this would jeopardize her soul. Another concern to Catherine was the legitimacy and safety of her daughter. She was encouraged by some to invoke the aid of her nephew, Charles V, as many believed he controlled the pope. Others hoped he wouldn't stand for his aunt being cast aside and would return her to her rightful position, but Catherine refused. It is questionable whether he would have obliged and Catherine believed that a war would harm the citizens of England. The Catholic Church also attempted to pressure Charles V into re-instituting Catherine's claim as Queen, but that may have had more to do with keeping power in England rather than concern for a queen.
In 1531, Princess Mary and her household were removed to Ludlow by the King which greatly saddened Catherine. She was told that she could travel to be with Mary only when she accepted that her marriage to Henry was not valid. Catherine refused to deny her marriage and continued to view herself as Queen of England. Since Catherine refused to leave her husband he moved the entire court without her and secretly married Anne Boleyn. Before the birth of his first child by Anne, Catherine was moved to Bickden Palace in Huntingdonshire. In 1533 her marriage was declared invalid by the Archbishop of Canterbury and by order of the King she was to return to her title of Princess Dowager of Wales (meaning she was the widow of Prince Arthur).
In 1534 the Pope found for Catherine and validated her marriage but this made little difference as the King was preparing for the birth of his second child by Anne Boleyn. Henry officially broke away from the Roman Catholic Church and the Archbishop Lee of York and Bishop Tunstall of Durham brought the Oath of Succession for Catherine to swear to, which named Henry as head of the Church of England, her as Dowager to Prince Arthur, and Henry's children by Anne as his rightful heirs. Catherine refused. Parliament soon passed the Act of Supremacy, which made Henry head of the Church of England.
In the end, Henry was cruel to Catherine, forcing her to live in seclusion and refusing to allow her to see their daughter. She died at Kimbolton Castle near Huntington in 1536. In the end she was maintained less in the style of royalty and more like a nun. She had been stripped of her jewels by order of the King years earlier. Catherine was buried in Peterborough Cathedral under the emblem of Wales and Spain, not of England. Henry continued to seek an heir and in his rush to marry his third wife, his marriage to Catherine was eventually re-affirmed and his second marriage was deemed invalid.
Achievements
Catherine of Aragon was to represent a political union between a strong and powerful Spain and the up-and-coming England; instead, she became a paragon of virtue. She was the first wife of King Henry VIII who never gave up the crown even after her husband had forsaken her in his quest for a male heir.
Every year at Peterborough Cathedral there is a service in her memory. There are processions, prayers, and various events in the Cathedral including processions to Catherine's grave in which candles, pomegranates, flowers and other offerings are placed on her grave. There is a statue of her in her birthplace of Alcalá de Henares, as a young woman holding a book and a rose.
Catherine was devoutly religious and defended the Catholic faith as evidenced by her title Fidei Defensor.
Views
Quotations:
"I choose what I believe, and say nothing. For I am not as simple as I may seem."
"Lastly, do I vow, that mine eyes desire you above all things."
"My tribulations are so great, my life so disturbed by the plans daily invented to further the King's wicked intention, the surprises which the King gives me, with certain persons of his council, are so mortal, and my treatment is what God knows, that it is enough to shorten ten lives, much more mine."
"Keep your heart with a chaste mind."
"None get to God but through trouble."
Personality
Physical Characteristics:
Catherine was quite short in stature with long red hair, wide blue eyes, a round face, and a fair complexion.
Connections
Catherine was three years old when she was betrothed to Arthur, Prince of Wales, heir apparent to the English throne. They married in 1501, but Arthur died five months later.
Catherine subsequently married Arthur's younger brother, the recently ascended Henry VIII, in 1509.
By 1525, Henry VIII was infatuated with Anne Boleyn and dissatisfied that his marriage to Catherine had produced no surviving sons, leaving their daughter, the future Mary I of England, as heir presumptive at a time when there was no established precedent for a woman on the throne. He sought to have their marriage annulled, setting in motion a chain of events that led to England's schism with the Catholic Church. When Pope Clement VII refused to annul the marriage, Henry defied him by assuming supremacy over religious matters. In 1533 their marriage was consequently declared invalid and Henry married Anne on the judgement of clergy in England, without reference to the Pope. Catherine refused to accept Henry as Supreme Head of the Church in England and considered herself the King's rightful wife and queen, attracting much popular sympathy. Despite this, she was acknowledged only as Dowager Princess of Wales by Henry.
Father:
Ferdinand II
(10 March 1452 – 23 January 1516)
He was King of Sicily from 1468 and King of Aragon from 1479 until his death.
