Romancing the Renaissance:
the Feminization of Early Modern Culture in Twentieth Century Mass Media

English 339

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Anne of Cleves

Biography

Anne of Cleves was born in 1515. She became the fourth wife of Henry VIII on January 6, 1540. The marriage of Henry and Anne was a direct result of Thomas Cromwell's advice to the King. In order to put pressure on Charles V in the Netherlands, Cromwell suggested that Henry marry the German-born Anne in order to form an alliance with her native country.

In order to convince Henry that this marriage would be beneficial to both the King and his country, Cromwell lied to Henry, telling him of Anne's great beauty and personality. The artist Hans Holbein was commissioned to paint a portrait of Anne. Unfortunately, the portrait was entirely too flattering. It seemed to ignore the fact that Anne was scarred by smallpox, amongst other physical flaws.

At their first meeting, Henry was extremely disappointed with his new wife-to-be. Anne was uneducated, preferred needlepoint to reading, and did not speak any English. To further complicate the situation, Henry spoke no German. Even though Henry was completely crushed by Anne's appearance, he married her in a lavish ceremony in January of 1540.

In private, Henry referred to Anne as "The Flanders Mare" because of her appearance. He was said to be so repulsed by her that he was unable to consummate their marriage, even after several attempts and a thorough examination by a doctor who pronounced him perfectly capable of performing with another woman.

Anne's German ladies-in-waiting were replaced by English women shortly after her arrival into Henry's court. One of these ladies was a strikingly beautiful woman named Katherine Howard. She soon caught the attention of the King, and it seemed apparent to all around Anne and Henry that their marriage would soon end.

In early July of 1540, Anne was sent to the castle at Richmond. The official story was that all believed that Richmond was a much "healthier" place than London, but it was clear that she had been sent there in order for Henry to get closer to Katherine Howard. On July 9th, some of Henry's men arrived at Richmond to ask Anne on Henry's behalf for an annulment.

The official explanation given was that a pre-marriage contract was in question. Henry claimed he wasn't even sure that they were truly married. And besides, they had never consummated the relationship. Henry offered to adopt Anne, giving her the honorary title of "King's Sister." She was also given a large pension that included a large sum of money and various manors and estates.

Anne was perfectly happy with end of the marriage. She was even happy to greet his new wife, Katherine Howard. Anne and Henry ended their marriage on perfectly amiable terms. She even attended the coronation of Mary.

Anne of Cleves died on July 16, 1557, and is buried in Westminster Abbey.

Films and novels

The hunt to find books and movies featuring Anne of Cleves was extremely difficult. Some consider Anne to be the most "boring" of Henry's wives because she basically gave up without a fight, and didn't lose her life in any elaborate manor. I could only find a handful of films with Anne as a character. Here is the extremely small list of what I could come up with.

MOVIES

The Private Life of Henry VIII 1933

Directed by Alexander Korda

Starring Elsa Lanchester as Anne of Cleves

Henry VIII and his Six Wives 1973

Directed by Waris Hussein

(limited information found on this film-inclusion is based entirely on my part that the character would appear in such a film)

The Six Wives of Henry VIII 1971 (TV Series)

Directed by Naomi Capon and John Glenister

Starring Elvi Hale as Anne of Cleves

BOOKS

Bowle, John. Henry VIII: A Biography. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1964.

Hume, Martin Andrew Sharp. The Wives of Henry VIII and the Parts They Played in History. London: Nash and Grayson (no date).

Morrison, N. Brysson. The Private Life of Henry VIII. New York: The Vanguard Press, Inc., 1964.

These are not necessarily the best books on the subject. They are simply a jumping off point for all who are interested in the life of Anne of Cleves. An interesting web site to visit is www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/9194/tudormai.html. It is a good place to visit if one wants to learn a little bit about Anne of Cleves, Henry VIII, and the rest of his wives.

Jennifer Stahl ([email protected])

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