Catherine of Aragon

Public Domain

Portrait of Catherine of Aragon by an unknown artist.

For a time, the marriage of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon was a happy one. Catherine was as smart as Henry, and even more devout a Christian. He showed her off with pride, confided in her and lavished gifts upon her. She served him well as regent when he was fighting in France; he rushed home ahead of his army to lay the keys of the cities he had captured at her feet. He wore her initials on his sleeve when he jousted and called himself "Sir Loyal Heart"; she accompanied him to every festivity and supported him in every endeavor.

Catherine gave birth to six children, two of them boys; but the only one who lived past infancy was Mary. Henry adored his daughter, but it was a son he needed to carry on the Tudor line. As might be expected of such a masculine, self-centered character as Henry, his ego would not allow him to believe it was his fault. Catherine must be to blame.

It's impossible to tell when Henry first strayed. Fidelity wasn't an entirely foreign concept to medieval monarchs, but taking a mistress, while not openly flouted, was quietly considered the royal prerogative of kings. Henry indulged in this prerogative, and if Catherine knew, she turned a blind eye. She was not always in the best of health, and the robust, amorous king could not be expected to go celibate.

In 1519, Elizabeth Blount, a lady in waiting to the queen, delivered Henry of a healthy boy. Now the king had all the proof he needed that his wife was to blame for his lack of sons.

His indiscretions continued, and he acquired a distaste for his once-beloved consort. Although Catherine continued to serve her husband as his partner in life and as queen of England, their intimate moments grew fewer and and less frequent. Never again did Catherine get pregnant.

Next: Anne Boleyn

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