Discussion: The Duke and the Princess?

"From all that I have read they had a loving marriage for 18 years until she died and he didn't cheat on her. He did risk his head to marry her after all! Henry knew they were in love and had promised to let them marry if Brandon managed to get her jewels and dowry from the new French King, after the old one, her husband, had died. Henry was NOT thrilled when Mary panicked while still in France and faced Brandon with the ultimatum of 'marry me within four days or I'm going to a nunnery' and Brandon gave in, although he had promised Henry he wouldn't and that could have caused a political disaster!

Brandon did have to get the divorce from one of his former wives confirmed by a papal dispensation though while he was married to Mary, because otherwise their children could have been considered illegitimate. lol"

"Nah, I think she was the tamest of all the three Tudor siblings. She was just totally panicked and afraid, when she issued her ultimatum! She had to wait in France for a two month mourning period in a darkened room and there had been a couple of friars sent by (possibly) Norfolk to tell her that Henry intended to marry her to someone in Flanders next, contrary to his promise. She was slowly gettting more desperate in there and when Brandon came to France as ambassador she confronted him with what the friars had said and told him she believed he had been sent by Henry to lure her back to England, so she could be married into Flanders. He denied it but she wouldn't believe him no matter what he said. Then she started weeping, so much so that Brandon wrote to Henry in his 'please forgive me letter' afterwards that he had never seen a woman weep like that! Poor thing. But she got what she wanted in the end! :-)

Other than this little marriage adventure she seems to have been very sweet and loved by most people, except the Boleyns of course. No love lost between them and the Suffolks! Funnily enough Anne or Mary Boleyn or both were one of Mary's Maids of Honour during her brief 3 month marriage to the King of France."

"Just out of curiousity, what was the relationship like between Charles Brandon and Princess Mary, as i can't find a book outlining this!

With my luck now, i've just named the wrong sister! I know they were very much in love to begin with, but did he partake in several affairs while he was married to her?"