Lady Katherine Knollys

by Sarah-Beth Watkins

  Catherine Howard was executed on 13th February 1542. As she stood before the block she asked that ‘all Christian people…take regard unto her worthy and just punishment with death’. Lady Rochford followed her and was executed with the same axe, fresh with Catherine’s blood.

  Katherine mourned the loss of the pretty vivacious Queen and her late uncle’s wife but she had no time to dwell on it. With one son under a year old, she was now pregnant with her second child. Katherine had moved from childhood to a maid of honour to becoming a mother, and her family would be all important to her in the coming days.

  Chapter Five

  The Two Henrys

  Katherine and her brother, Henry, lost their mother Mary in the July of 1543. It must have been a quiet funeral with no great tomb or plaque erected in her honour. In fact, her final resting place is something of a mystery with places like Hever Castle, Westminster Abbey and the church at Rochford all being put forward as her burial place. We will never know if King Henry mourned the passing of his previous mistress or if he even acknowledged that she was gone. Given that there are no records of her burial and nothing to mark her final resting place, it seems that Mary, once loved and adored before all others, was now a memory of the past.

  Katherine attended the funeral service with her brother, Henry, whom she had seen little of while they were growing up. Henry’s parentage is as much discussed as Katherine’s and it was always believed that he was the elder child and therefore the King’s but we now know that he was Mary’s second child, born last, probably in 1526 although Weir has suggested that his birth date was actually in 1525. If this is the case it rules out that William Carey, Mary Boleyn’s first husband, was paid off to keep quiet about his parentage. A grant was given to him two weeks before Henry’s birth on the 4th March 1526 but if Henry had been born a year early then the grant does not correspond with his coming into the world. It is more probable that Mary’s affair had finished with King Henry before little Henry was born. But it may have been that this pregnancy was the cause of the ending of their affair.

  If Katherine was King Henry’s unacknowledged child then so too might have been her brother, Henry. In 1531, a Venetian ambassador, Lodovico Falier, reported that ‘The King has also a natural son, born to him of the widow of one of his peers; a youth of great promise, so much does he resemble his father’1 and he may have been referring to Henry Carey, as his mother Mary was a widow by this time but so too was Elizabeth Blount, mother of Henry Fitzroy whom the king had acknowledged. Which Henry Falier was discussing is not clear.

  As a toddler, Henry was made a ward of court after William Carey died of the sweating sickness and his aunt, Anne Boleyn, was given his wardship by the King. Anne was anxious to provide for Henry even though her relationship with her sister was on rocky ground and she arranged for him to be sent to a prestigious monastery for his education. Regardless of any family discord, Anne had a responsibility to the young Henry Carey and made sure that his education was a good one. Syon Abbey was in those days a monastery dedicated to the Bridgettine Order in Isleworth near Brentford, Middlesex. Established in 1415, Henry V had laid its first foundation stone. It was a place of learning with an immense library of over fourteen hundred books and was well known for the quality of its spiritual learning and the preachers who resided there. It was the obvious choice for starting a young child of the court on a learned path.

  Catherine of Aragon had spent much time at Syon but its favour with the king subsided as did his affection for his wife. In later years, the abbey would be the target of King Henry’s wrath. Richard Reynolds, confessor to the abbey’s nuns, was executed in 1535 and his body was displayed at the gateway to Syon. He had refused to accept that the King was the new head of the Church of England and, like many others who came up against the king and his will, he paid the ultimate price. By 1539, Henry VIII had dissolved this most wealthy of monasteries and its inhabitants fled abroad to the Netherlands. Today little remains of the abbey at the current location of Syon Park and what is left of its collection of books resides with the University of Exeter. For Henry though, his teachers at the abbey had provided an excellent start to his education.

  Mr Skidmore, a priest at Syon Abbey, had seen Henry there and added to the rumours that he might be the King’s son. The vicar of Isleworth, John Hale, who was vehemently against the Boleyns, also added to rumours about Henry but he was so anti-Boleyn we can hardly cite him as a credible witness. In the Letters and Papers, Foreign and Domestic of Henry VIII, Volume 8: January-July 1535, the discourse between Skidmore and Hale played out. One objection reads ‘That Skydmore says Hale called the King the “Molywarppe” that Merlin prophesied of, that turned all up, and that the King was accursed of God’s own mouth, and that the marriage between the King and Queen was unlawful‘. There was obviously bad blood between them and Hale was forced to defend himself.

  Hale told the Privy Council:

  I fell and hurt my leg at Wyngham, at Allhallowtide was twelve- month, and remained till about Candlemas next. On Saturday after Ash Wednesday I fell into a fervent ague. How long I continued, with various relapses, the parishioners of Isleworth know, so that I took not my journey through whole five weeks before Michaelmas last, and lost “our Lady’s quarter” ended the Midsummer before that by my sickness. I had several falls from my horse, from one of which I was troubled in my wits, as also by age and lack of memory. Will nevertheless report, as well as I can, with whom I talked, and in what manner, of the King’s grace. I remember, about two years ago, the fellow of Bristow showed, both to me and others of Syon, the prophecies of Marlyon; for, by my truth, Master Skydmore showed me also the same, with whom I had several conversations concerning the King’s marriage and other behaviours of his bodily lust. Once Cownsell the porter “sayd that our suffren had a short of maydons over oon of his chambyres at Farnam while he was with the oold lord of Wynchester.” Had also conversations with Skydmore, with Sir Thomas my priest, and with Master Leeke; and once, I think, about two years ago, of the Acts of Parliament made against churchmen, with the prior of Hounslow, who offered to show me a prophecy; but we had no leisure to speak together further, for we only met at the new inn, where Mr. Yowng, Awnsam and his wife, and others, dined with us. Skydmore also used to speak of young Sir Rice, saying that Welshmen and priests were sore disdained nowadays. As to Mr. Ferne, my wits were so troubled with sickness that I cannot perfectly remember what he rehearsed; but by Mr. Bydyll’s rehearsal, Mr. Steward of Syon told me it was likely to be enacted that no more tithe corn should be made. I was sick long after, and, being aged and oblivious, did not see him till we met at the Secretary’s at the Rolls. Also Mr. Waren, old surveyor, and the master of Ashford, in Kent, sometime steward to the bp. of Canterbury, spoke in the churchyard of Istleworth of the hard statutes made and to be made against the Church. Finally, I confess the four bills by Mr. Feerne, Mr. Leeke, Mr. Skydmore, and Sir Thos. Mody to be true, and that by such seditious ways I have maliciously slandered the King and Queen and their Council; for which I ask forgiveness of God, king Henry VIII., and queen Anne, and shall continue sorrowful during my life, which stands only in the King’s will. “Moreover, Mr. Skydmore dyd show to me yongge Master Care, saying that he was our suffren Lord the Kynge’s son by our suffren Lady the Qwyen’s syster, whom the Qwyen’s grace myght not suffer to be yn the Cowrte.”

  Seen in context, Hale was blaming Mr Skidmore (or Scudamore) for suggesting that Henry Carey was the King’s son. It was just one of many libellous statements that Hale made, including that Henry ‘had meddled with the Queen’s mother’ and his actions would lead to his execution in Tyburn later that year. But for his accusation that Henry was the King’s, he was the only person to have been recorded at the time of spreading the rumour, whether it was in fact truth or not.

  At nine years old, Henry was unaware of the insinuation Hale had made about his parentage and his aunt was continuing to take his education very seriously. Nicholas Bourbon, a French poet
, scholar and humanist that Anne Boleyn had saved from the French Inquisition was employed to give him tuition, which included learning the arts of rhetoric and logic, grammar, arithmetic, geometry and astronomy. Anne had been instrumental in securing Bourbon’s release from prison and when he arrived at the English court, she paid for him to take up lodging with the King’s physician, Dr Butts, while also employing him as a tutor for several of the wards of court.

  Henry wasn’t the only student of Bourbon’s. He spent his days of scholarly pursuit with Henry Norris’ son - whose father would be executed for his alleged indiscretion with Anne - and Thomas Hervey, both sons of prominent men of the Tudor court. He rarely saw his sister or his mother but his aunt Anne visited him in the December of 1535 and he came under her care until her downfall in 1536 and ‘probably then returned to his mother and stepfather’2 around the age of ten. Little is known of Henry’s whereabouts during these formative years but his education must have continued, giving him the skills and ability to take up at position at court at the age of nineteen.

  Life had settled down for his sister Katherine and she was concentrating on her family and motherhood. By the time Katherine was twenty one, she was the mother to four young children. Her daughter Mary had been born in 1542, the same year her husband Francis was made MP for Horsham, quickly followed by the births of Lettice in 1543 and William in 1545. These were days of the nursery so unlike the one Katherine had been sent to where she grew up with Elizabeth. This time Katherine was in charge.

  Katherine and Francis had made their home at Greys Court, Rotherfield Greys, in the Chiltern Hills of Oxfordshire. Although King Henry had granted the couple the estate of Rotherfield Greys around the time of their marriage, it took two further Acts of Parliament to secure their rights and for Katherine to be named joint tenant along with her husband. Greys Court was and still is a beautiful house with splendid gardens. Originally a 14th century castle with a fortified tower, a Tudor manor house was added and it was here the new Knollys family made their home. An incredible Tudor wheelhouse, operated by a donkey-powered treadmill to lift water from the well, was added in later years. Life was good for Katherine. It was a time for family and managing her own household; the kingdom was at peace but trouble was brewing.

  Yet there was still time for a family celebration. Henry had joined the King’s household by the time of his marriage in 1545 and he was a man who was ready to start his own family. Katherine might well have attended her brother’s wedding to Anne Morgan, the daughter of Sir Thomas Morgan and Anne Whitney. Anne was of Welsh origin but was born and raised at her family’s home in Herefordshire. It was a good match for Henry who was beginning to make his way in the world and it cemented his place at court. They probably had a typical Tudor wedding, conducted outside the church with the couple exchanging their vows and the bride being given a ring to wear on her wedding finger. Couples only really entered the church to receive a blessing. After they had left the church they would then travel to the bride’s home where both families would celebrate the joining of their kin. It was also a chance for the families to show off their wealth and prosperity by providing food and entertainment for the assorted guests as well as distributing gifts to those gathered. The most exciting part of the wedding was the bedding ceremony that caused much mirth to the guests but must have left the bride especially somewhat embarrassed. Marriages were not deemed solid unless consummation had occurred, as we have seen with King Henry and Anne of Cleves, so making sure the couple were delivered to the bed chamber held great import as well as sport for friends and family. For Henry, it was a happy period of his life before he enlisted in the English army under Viscount Lisle, and accompanied him to France.

  During this time, King Henry’s health was taking a turn for the worst. The leg injury that had troubled him for so many years was constantly aggravated and infection was coursing through his body. Time was running out for Henry. By the end of 1546, he was in horrendous pain and spent most of his days bed-ridden. In his final days, Henry had made a will that caused controversy. He stuck to the Act of Succession of 1544 that gave the throne to Edward, followed by Mary and finally Elizabeth as long as the girls made marriages approved of by the Privy Council. Edward was left the bulk of his father’s money and jewels and all his ships and artillery. The girls were made provision for by allocating them £10,000 in money and plate and £3,000 a year to live on. Of course, Katherine and her brother, Henry, were not included in his will, although he did grant small sums to his closest advisors. The controversy arose because the will was not signed in Henry’s hand but was stamped. The use of a dry stamp was employed by his privy councillors as Henry’s health was failing and he was no longer able to sign documents. It means Henry may not have been fully aware of what his will contained. Nor may he have been aware of the 86 documents that were also dry stamped in the month leading up to his death.

  Henry was able to say his goodbyes to his wife, now Katherine Parr, and send her from his bedchamber and the place of his impending death. Lady Mary was also called for and in floods of tears, she agreed to look after her brother, Prince Edward, who was only nine years old and about to inherit the throne. Mary was about to be one step closer herself. The King was close to death but to talk of his demise was treason. No-one wanted to broach the subject especially with the King himself but it had to be done when it appeared that Henry was entering his final hours. It fell to Sir Anthony Denny, Chief Gentleman of the Privy Chamber, to warn the King that ‘you are not like to live’ and to urge him to make his peace with God. Archbishop Cranmer was sent for to undertake the last rites at Henry’s bedside in his chambers at Westminster. On the morning of 28th January 1547, this once strong and proud King died in his fifty-fifth year, with his close confidant, Cranmer, by his side.

  Henry’s body stayed in his room for three days after his death. His demise was not proclaimed but kept secret while political wheels turned. His young son would have to be announced as King but his tender years meant that power play was afoot. Who would actually reign, managing the prince’s decisions and advising and aiding him, until he reached eighteen? Edward Seymour, the brother of Henry’s wife Jane and Edward’s uncle, had been made executor of the deceased King’s will. In it, there was no provision made for a Lord Protector to assist the young King but Seymour saw himself as fulfilling that role. The time taken between Henry’s death and Edward’s proclamation was spent in rallying his allies to him to convince the Privy Council that he should be Lord Protector until Edward came of age.

  Seymour had already ridden out to escort the young prince Edward from his apartments at Hertford Castle to where Elizabeth was staying at Enfield to ensure that Edward was in his care and control. It was there that the two youngest children of Henry VIII were told of their father’s demise and they clung to each other weeping for their loss. On 31st January, Edward was proclaimed the new King and Edward Seymour was firmly by his side.

  Two weeks later, King Henry’s body began its journey in a gilded chariot pulled by eight horses to St George’s Chapel in Windsor. The roads from Westminster to Windsor had been cleared and cleaned to allow the four mile long procession to pass. En route, it stopped at Syon Abbey for the night where it is said that his coffin burst open and dogs licked at his remains. People were horrified not just because of such a terrible thing befalling their once great King but because it had been prophesised. A friar had predicted way back when Henry had chosen Anne Boleyn over Catherine of Aragon that dogs would lick his blood ‘as they had done Ahab’s’ (Ahab being the seventh king of Israel whose blood was not only licked by dogs but by pigs according to the Greek translation of the Old Testament). To a superstitious people, this prophecy had the ring of truth and in the minds of the people, Henry’s treatment of Catherine of Aragon had been judged.

  Once the coffin was repaired, Henry continued on his journey to his final resting place alongside the wife he had loved the most, the wife that had given him his only legitimate son, Jan
e Seymour. King Henry was buried on 16th February in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle with none of his family present apart from Katherine Parr who watched from the privacy of the Queen’s Closet. After masses were said and Henry’s coat of arms, helmet, shield and sword were placed reverentially on the altar, the service was ended with the proclamation ‘Le roi est mort! Vive le roi!’ The reign of Henry’s son, the boy King, had begun.

  The day before Edward’s coronation on 20th February 1547, this young boy rode out from the Tower of London in great procession to Westminster Palace. The new King sat high on his horse dressed in white velvet decorated with lovers knots made from diamonds, rubies and pearls and covered with a sable cloak. Edward was led out by his gentlemen, trumpeters and chaplains on foot and behind them came the nobility on horseback. Edward Seymour rode in pride of place making sure he was always close by and the first to attend to Edward’s needs. The following day they sailed to Whitehall by barge where Edward donned his kingly robes of ermine and crimson velvet, ready for his procession to Westminster Abbey and his coronation.

  Archbishop Cranmer had been at work to make the proceedings easier for the nine year old by shortening the service from twelve hours to seven. Rest breaks were allowed and cushions were added to the throne to raise him up before his people. For Cranmer, it was also a chance to herald in forthcoming religious reform. For once the new King was not to swear an oath to Rome. He was head of the church as his father had been before him but this time it was set from the moment of his coronation. Cranmer told the waiting congregation that there was no need to anoint the new King because he was already God’s anointed: ‘elected by God, the King was accountable only to God’3. Edward was crowned three times with St Edward’s crown, the imperial crown and a crown made especially for the young boy. He was handed the orb and sceptre, St Edward’s staff and spurs and allowed each of the nobility to come forward and kiss his left cheek. The coronation ceremony was complete.