Charlie Fenton’s Reviews > Elizabeth of York and Her Six Daughters-in-Law: Fashioning Tudor Queenship, 1485–1547 > Status Update

‘is a useful exercise to study the reigns of Elizabeth of York and her six daughters-in-law because it provides insights into the private and public lives of royal women and into how their activities can be seen as representing both the wives’ family roles and their sovereign roles - not the ultimate authority, but extremely important secondary ones that could and often did enhance the rule of their royal husbands.’

‘The splendour of the funeral rituals for Elizabeth of York and Jane indicates the importance of the final celebration of their lives both on a religious and dynastic sense. It is interesting that when planning the funeral of Jane, Henry’s officials studied the previous arrangements for Elizabeth of York’s ritual.‘

‘Lists have survived of the king’s presents of plate, the ounces of which depended on the status of the gift receiver. For instance, in 1513, Henry VIII gave the following individuals, among others, a plate that was described, including its ounces: William Warsham, archbishop of Canterbury, obtained a cup with a gift cover weighing 34 ounces... Katherine of Aragon received a pair of great pots gilt of 575 ounces.’

‘clearly consorts with international relationships had more input and involvement than those without connections abroad... The consorts’ appointments as regents especially, and pleas as intercessors gave them some governmental experienced and interactions. Katherine of Aragon’s, Anne Boleyn’s, and Katherine Parr’s religious patronage and relationships with bishops attests to their pious leadership’

‘That the French ambassadors had asked Katherine in 1527, as they did not ask Anne in 1535, her opinion about her daughter’s marriage proves how much they respected the earlier queen. This respect could have arisen in part from their knowledge that the emperor, their enemy, was her nephew, but it could also have been based on their understanding of her diplomatic and political experience’

‘Normally the expectant queen entered it some four to six weeks before her expected delivery date. Usually the queen and king chose a chamber at one of the royal palaces, but in 1486, Elizabeth of York and Henry VII decided to establish her lying-in room at St. Swithun’s Priory, Winchester, a city traditionally associated with legendary King Arthur, and of course they named their heir after that famous individual.’

‘Henry granted Katherine of Aragon lands, fees, honours, castles, parks, and other holdings with an annual value of £4,129, 2s. 4d. Later he increased this amount to £4,751, 15s. 2d. Anne Boleyn’s jointure during her first year as queen amounted to £4,423, 3s. 1 3/4d., from English revenues. In addition, she retained £633, 13s. 10d., of her Welsh income. Jane Seymour’s revenue had a value of £4,623, 1s. 11 3/4d.’

‘Elizabeth’s somewhat unruly coronation had occurred at a time of political dissension caused by the struggle for the crown, while Anne’s took place amid national and international controversies over Henry’s attack on the church and on papal authority. Finally, Katherine’s shared coronation with her husband, despite her heritage as a king’s daughter, emphasised her dependent royal status‘

‘the queens’ coronations demonstrated divine approval of their marriages and celebrated their status as the kings’ wives, but not as authority figures. The anointing and crowning of queens seems to have arisen because of the emergence of the hereditary royal succession. The coronation publicly not only designated her as his legitimate wife but also as the possible mother of his future heirs.’

‘In examining how Henry VII and Henry VIII chose and wed their consorts, this chapter points out that special circumstances, the Wars of the Roses, the death of Arthur, prince of Wales, and the controversy surrounding Henry VIII’s attempt to have his marriage to Katherine of Aragon dissolved led both kings to adopt strategies that deviated from traditional patterns of royal courtship and marriage.’