Henry VIII divorced, executed or had marriages annulled with all of his wives, save for one. Katherine Parr, Henry’s sixth and final wife, not only outlived the grossly obese and ill king, but also possessed maturity and maternal tendencies which none of Henry’s previous wives had. Katherine’s story plays out like a soap opera, one in which there were many heartbreaks and also many joys.
Katherine was born in 1512 and was the eldest daughter of Sir Thomas Parr and his wife Maud Green. Both had resided at court during Henry’s early reign. Maud had served as lady-in-waiting for Catherine of Aragon and named her eldest daughter after the beloved queen.
Katherine’s father died when she was only five years old, but her mother saw to her own and her children’s education and upbringing. Katherine took great pride in her education and was fluent in French, Latin and Italian when Henry married her. As queen, she began to take lessons in Spanish.
Katherine Parr’s Marriages before King Henry VIII
However, before that marriage, Katherine would have two others. She first married Edward Borough, son of the Third Baron Borough of Gainsborough in 1529. Katherine was seventeen and Edward died just a few years after their marriage, probably in early 1533.
In 1534, Katherine then married John Neville, the Third Baron Latimer of Snape Castle in Yorkshire. She was now twenty-two and her new husband was forty-one. Thanks to John, Katherine became a step-mother for the first time to his two children from a previous marriage. But, happiness was not to last long for Katherine yet again. She was widowed for the second time in 1543.
Katherine Parr, Thomas Seymour and Henry VIII
After her second husband’s death, Katherine caught the eye of two men simultaneously. One of them was Thomas Seymour, brother of Jane Seymour, third wife of Henry VIII. Katherine wished to marry Seymour, but the other man who paid her great attentions was none other than the king himself. When he requested her hand in marriage, she set aside her feelings for Seymour and, seeing it as her English duty, accepted Henry’s proposal.
Henry VIII and Katherine Parr were married at Hampton Court Palace with an audience of only about twenty people. The new queen quickly took the opportunity of her position to become involved in the reformed church. This, just as quickly, made her an easy target for conservative enemies. When a plot was discovered to have her arrested for owning banned books, Katherine conveniently became ill and was not in fact arrested.
At this time, Henry addressed her personally and chastised her for stepping out of her place to challenge him with questions regarding the religion; it was not women’s business anyway. Katherine wisely apologized and appealed to Henry’s ego when she explained that she challenged him only to learn from him as he possessed far superior knowledge of the subject. Henry was pacified and Katherine quickly forgiven.
Katherine was actively engaged in the management of her step-children’s education. She guided both Edward and Elizabeth in their courses of study. Katherine was also an author. In 1545, she wrote the first book published by an English queen in her own name: Prayers or Meditations. Another book, The Lamentation of a Sinner was published after the king’s death.
The Death of Henry VIII and Katherine Parr’s Marriage to Seymour
Henry VIII died in January 1547 and a few months after his passing, Katherine married Thomas Seymour in secret. The marriage and its circumstances caused a scandal and kept her from potential regency for Edward VI. She did, however, remain Elizabeth’s guardian, while Seymour purchased Lady Jane Grey’s wardship. Both ladies would be Tudor monarchs.
At the age of thirty-seven, Katherine became pregnant for the first time and in June 1548, she moved to Sudeley Castle for her confinement. On 30 August, she delivered a daughter, Mary, and soon caught puerperal fever, the same ailment which claimed her sister-in-law, Jane Seymour’s life, dying on 5 September 1548. She was buried at St. Mary’s Church as Sudeley Castle with Lady Jane Grey in mourning at her grave.
Katherine Parr, the sixth wife of Henry VIII lived a full life full of love and loss, giving history a poignant end to Henry’s serial marriages.
Sources:
Eakins, Lara E. “Katherine Parr,” from The Six Wives of Henry VIII. 1995-2009.
“Katherine Parr,” from Tudor-Tastic.
Starkey, David. Elizabeth: The Struggle for the Throne. Harper Perennial, 2007.
Starkey, David. Six Wives: The Queens of Henry VIII. Harper Perennial, 2004.
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