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Queen Katherine of Aragon

Motto: "Humble & Loyal"

See also: The Tudors Cast | The Tudors Episode Guide

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Katharine, Queen of England, Infanta of Aragon and Castile as played by Maria Doyle Kennedy

Born December 16th, 1485
Crowned June 25th, 1509
Divorced & banished January 1533
- died January 7th, 1536

Character's backstory:
Infanta of Spain, headed for England at the age of 15 to wed Arthur, Prince of Wales. After Arthur’s death Catherine lived in abject poverty for many years while her father and her father-in-law argued over what was to become of her, because the notoriously miserly Henry VII did not want to have to return Katherine and her dowry to Spain; at one point he even considered marrying her himself after the death of his wife Elizabeth of York. At first, she was betrothed to Henry VIII when he was a boy, but he later repudiated her at his father's instigation so Henry VII could perhaps find a more advantageous marriage for his son. With the death of Ferdinand - Isabella had passed sometime before - , the balance of power in Europe had shifted away from Spain and Katharine had lost her status as a desirable match.

While she awaited her fate, Katherine led an isolated, lonely, poverty-stricken, and miserable life because Ferdinand withheld the balance of her dowry, and Henry VII kept Katherine's household on a very tight financial budget; she often went without all but the most basic necessities. However, upon the death of Henry VII his son, the 18-year-old Prince Henry, who had fallen in love with his pretty Spanish sister-in-law who was six years his senior long before, but had been subject to the will of his father, rescued her from her plight and crowned her his Queen.

Gentility:
Princess, daughter of Isabella of Castille and Ferdinand of Aragon , Queen of England.

Position:
Infanta of Spain, Princess of Wales, Princess Dowager of Wales, Queen of England.

Personality type: She had a more reserved character than her husband and blushed at his ribald jests, but she entered into the spirit of frivolity which pervaded their court.
Strong willed and always aware of her royal heritage & role in life. Chastized Henry regularly but still knew her "place".
Henry openly sought her advice and opinion. It was clear that they loved and respected one another in the early years which made his eventual disinterest all the more painful for the queen to bear.
She was a deeply pious woman, growing more so as she aged. She thought Wolsey far too worldly to be a man of the church. She was also peeved that her role as Henry's confidante and advisor was slowly stolen away by Wolsey. Katherine was jealous of the Cardinal's influence with her husband, particularly since it meant a subsequent decline in her own influence.

Signature look:
Dignified,formal in demeanor, light and strawberry blond in complexion (unlike mosth motion picture portrayals) Katherine had English ancestry in John of Gaunt and her maternal grandmother and namesake, Catherine of Lancaster and was more of an English, than a Spanish complexion. She wore the formal attire of the Spanish court and the old-fashioned gabled hood; Anne Boleyn would popularize the French hood.
Although Katherine was attractive in her youth, the years and repeated childbearing were not kind to her.

Negative feature:.
Blind unwavering affection for Henry

Endearing trait(s):
Compassion, courage, intelligence, devotion to her daughter Mary, loyalty, patronage of education, tenacity, (her strength in adversity!) A devoted & pious catholic.

Annoying trait(s):
She blames the wrong person (Anne Boleyn) for the alienation of Henry's affections. She believes unquestioningly in Henry's blamelessness and thinks that he has been led astray by an evil woman. In reality, as usual, Henry who has none who dare say him nay is following his hormones.

Health :
By 1526 at age 41 and after 6 pregnancies, it became evident that Katherine would not be able to have any more children.
(However, there are indications that Henry explored the idea of divorcing Katherine as early as 1518. An English courtier had supposedly visited the Vatican on an exploratory mission earlier that year. Special doctors had been summoned from Spain to help the queen conceive again.They were unsuccessful.)
It is thought that she had cancer at her death because her heart was revealed to be blackened. This gave rise to some rumours of poisoning.

Queen Katherine of Aragon as played by Maria Doyle Kennedy

Royal seal of Katherine of Aragon
(Catalina de Aragon)

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'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.'
Katherine of Aragon to Charles V, November 1531

Comments:
One thing I don't see mentioned here at all about Katherine was her faith. She was extremely devout and one reason that Henry probably strayed like he did was because everything that I have read about her states that she would pray the entire time that he was "with" her. She also wore hair shirts and prayed for hours on end. She raised Mary to be the same way. Another thing that I find fascinating is that I have known for years that it is suspected that Mary died of cancer but I didn't know that it was suspected of Katherine too! Mary was thought to finally be pregnant in the end of her life because her belly was swollen and her breasts leaked a discharge. She wasn't pregnant though. It is now thought that she had some kind of cancer.

Annulment:

It is doubtful Henry ever blamed Katherine for the failure to produce a male heir after witnessing the endless cycle of pregnancies and prayer. Yet why had he and Katherine been unable to produce a living son between them?

Naturally enough and ironically for Katherine who was so religious, the king's mind turned to God. It must be God's will that they had no male heir. But what had he done to offend God?

Henry searched for an answer and soon found it quite easily. In the Bible, Leviticus XVIII, 16 clearly stated 'Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy brother's wife: it is thy brother's nakedness'.

And, later, in chapter XX, 'If a man shall take his brother's wife, it is an unclean thing: he hath uncovered his brother's nakedness; they shall be childless'.

What could be more clear? The Bible itself condemned his marriage to Katherine. And by childless of course, it meant male children.

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CHARACTER CONNECTIONS

Family members:

Father: Fernando II de Aragon (Ferdinand II of Aragon)
Mother: Isabel de Castilla
Sister: Juana the mad, Queen of Castille after he mother's death and wife to Philip the Beautiful
Brother: the Infante Juan
Nephew: Charles V,Holy Roman Emperor (also known as Charles I of Spain)
Great-nephew: Philip II
Great grandmother: Katherine of Lancaster.

Marriage(s):
Arthur Tudor -Prince of Wales - married 14 November 1501 - 2 April 1502 - Arthur died of the sweating sickness
King Henry VIII in 1509.

Children:
Daughter - still born 31 January 1510
Prince Henry, Duke of Cornwall born 1 January 1511 - died 52 days later
Henry Born November 1513 - died a few hours later
Daughter - still born 18 February 1516
Princess Mary Tudor - born 10 November 1518

Friends: Ambassador Mendoza, Ambassador Chapuys.

Enemies:
The Protestant & Reformer Faction.
The Boleyn and Howard Factions.

UNFORGETTABLE CHARACTER QUOTES

"I take God as my judge. I was a fair maiden, pure without the touch of men. And whether or not it be true, I put it to your conscience."

"Chastity? You talk to me about chastity when you have a mistress and two children, your Imminence."

DEFINING EPISODES | MEMORABLE UNFORGETTABLE CHARACTER QUOTES

"Chastity? You talk to me about chastity when you have a mistress and two children, your Eminence."

" You're taking my child from me; my child! You are tearing her from me as if you were tearing her from my womb".

"God never called me to a nunnery, I am the King's true and legitimate wife" Katherine to the legates.

"Sir I beseech you. For all the love that has been between us. Let me have justice & right. Give me some pity & compassion for I am a poor woman & a stranger born out of your dominion. I have no friend here & little counsel. I plea to you as head of justice in this realm. I call God and all the world to witness that I have been to you a true humble and obedient wife ever compliant to your will & pleasure. I have loved all those whom you have loved for your sake whether or not I had cause. Whether they be friends or enemies. By me you have had many children. Although it has pleased God to call them from this world. But when you had me at first , I take God as my judge , I was a true maid without touch of men. And whether or not it be true, I put it to your conscience." Katherine to Henry in the Legatine Court

DEFINING EPISODES | MEMORABLE SCENES

Episode 8 where she bows and defies Henry in front of the whole court showing she is still in the game, and if you can't stand the heat as you say, then stay out of the kitchen.

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PHOTOS

Portraits of the Real Katherine of Aragon C. 1525	Katherine of Aragon
c.1502 aged 16-17 approx.
Miniature portrait, approx. 1526 or 1527 the same year her husband might have met Anne Boleyn Miniature by Lucas Horenbout / Horenbolte.	Promotional still of the Tudors, with Maria Doyle Kennedy as Katherine of Aragon





	Maria Doyle Kennedy as Katherine of Aragon on the center, Jonathan Rhys Meyers as King Henry VIII.
	Katherine looks on as Henry is distracted by Anne Boleyn


Katherine is devastated after Henry tells her their marriage is invalid	Katherine looking every inch a queen pleads her case at the legat hearing




More calls Katherine "the queen of Hearts"

The tomb of Katherine of Aragon in Peterborough Cathedral Note gold lettering spelling 'Katharine Queen of England'.	Short history of Katherine in words & pictures.
The arms or coat of Arms of Henry and Katherine of Aragon appear on the Christ Church Gate where Katherine married Henry's brother Arthur in 1501.	18th Century Engravings Katherine of Aragon many Portraits were done after her death, like many of other wives, ie. Anne Boleyn, Catherine Parr and Katherine Howard.
Stained Glass Window of Katherine of Aragon when the beginning of her Reign.	Wax Figures of Katherine of Aragon, to the left is Katherine of Aragon when she was more young, probably c.1502-1509 by the time she suffered the death of Prince Arthur or the time she was married to Henry, on the right is a copy of Katherine's Portrait by the time she and Henry drew apart from each other, c.1525-26?

Queen Katherine of Aragon continued on Page 2

See also: The Tudors Cast | The Tudors Episode Guide

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MissBrit

Katherine of Aragon - was she really innocent? (page: 1 2)

Wednesday, 4:01 PM EDT by angelosdaughter

Thread started: May 10 2008, 4:54 PM EDT Watch

Many historians have different views on whether Katherine was a virgin when marrying Henry. She assured Henry she was as Arthur was "too ill" not long after they married. I think at the time Henry married her as he loved her, wanted her and her country as an ally against the French (at the time) and believed she was so. But when he became interested in Anne, he thought she was lying as I remember reading a quote from Henry that he had said something like "What, a hot blooded Tudor male?" when he was asked if he thought the marriage was consumated. If Katherine did lie, I think it was just a small white lie. But Henry used that to his advantage. So do you think she was innocent?

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jamais.de.fin_boleyn

Katherine was fabulous! (page: 1 2 3 4)

Apr 7 2008, 9:27 AM EDT by angelosdaughter

Thread started: Jan 21 2008, 5:30 PM EST Watch

I think Katherine was a great woman who was obviously loved by the crowd.

Anne Boleyn pushed her off the throne, and i love Anne oh-so-much but i think Katherine was a great queen!

I'm not sure if i think her marriage to Arthur was consummated... who knows! But she was awesome!

READ "THE CONSTANT PRINCESS" BY PHILLIPA GREGORY!

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RE: Katherine was fabulous!
By: angelosdaughter, Apr 7 2008, 9:27 AM EDT

"I agree, she did blame Anne for all her woes and could not blame Henry. Anne was blamed for everything by everyone. Most portrayals of her tend to be negative. In the Tudors, she comes off a bit more sensitive."

Lettice, have you seen Genvieve Bujold in "Anne of the Thousand Days"? I have it on a tape that I recorded when it was on one of the movie channels years ago. That is a sympathetic portrayal and one of the movies that got me interested in the Tudors and sparked my reading on the history of the period. I saw the other day that this movie is now available on DVD. It was made in 1969, but has worn very well. Bujold is more Anne's physical type (although much prettier than portraits I've seen of Anne; but then Irene Pappas, an actress I just love as Katharine is much prettier and too dark complexioned, however she does have Katharine's dignity and manner.) Bujold is a French-Canadian actress who also has the slight French accent that Anne might have had from her years in the French court. Her portrayal of Anne is spirited, feisty, and yes, sympathetic. Her eyes fit the historical description of Anne's stiking dark eyes. It is easy to see why Henry fell in love with this Anne. As I have said,whatever sympathy I have for Anne started with this portrayal and before I started reading history; I still have some sympathy for her. Richard Burton portrays the spoiled, petulant, frightening Henry.
One of the glaring historical innaccuracies (and there are a couple of others; I just can't think of them right now) in this movie places Mary at Katharine's deathbed. In real life, Mary, imprisoned at Hatfield, was not allowed to go to her mother at her death; she was not even allowed to attend her funeral. On the whole, though, this movie is right on in its characterizations.

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rae4150

If anyone's interested

Mar 27 2008, 5:35 PM EDT by lettice

Thread started: Mar 27 2008, 9:54 AM EDT Watch

There are some really good books on this subject written by a woman named phillipa gregory. It was the Boleyn sisters that first got me interested in the Tudors. But she has written 3 books, as far as I know of, that are all about this subject. There is a book just about Queen Katherine called "the constant princess". I'm sure the stories are embellished for entertainment purposes, but it is all based on history. And, for the record, from my own research, Queen Katherine was a great queen that was very loved by the people from the first time they laid eyes on her.!!

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Queen Katherine of Aragon

Katharine, Queen of England, Infanta of Aragon and Castile as played by Maria Doyle Kennedy

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