Catherine Howard Part II

After her lover’s departure, Catherine got a position at court as maid of honor to Henry’s new bride Anne of Cleves. Her youth and charm were enough to attract the King who was horrified his new wife’s plainness and lack of courtly grace. Henry blamed Cromwell for arranging a marriage for him with the German princess, whom he did not find attractive... and within a few months, had managed to arrange an annulment of the marriage. Anne was content to stay in England, and be adopted as the “Kings sister”, with a handsome income. She had not found her marriage very happy but she and Henry got on well, once they had ended their marriage. He was now madly in love with the young and lovely Howard girl. The Howards and the Catholic faction in general were delighted at the downfall of Cromwell, and because the King’s wife was now a catholic and the Protestant alliance was over… Henry at first was devoted to his young wife, but he began to find “keeping up with her”, exhausting. He was around 50, an old man by the standards of the day, and his obesity was causing him serious health problems. She was young and lively and very immature. Pain from his ulcerated legs made him bad tempered. Catherine, before long, found a young man of the court, Thomas Culpepper, more attractive. Culpepper was a distant relative of hers, and had become a great favourite of Henry’s. However, there is a possibility that he was involved in the rape of a lower class woman. Henry pardoned the offender (who might have been Thomas’ older brother who was also called Thomas) but he remained unware that his new wife had not been a virgin when she married him, and that she was now involved in a relationship with Culpeper. When he and Catherine went on a progress in the North, her behaviour became very indiscreet. Her lady in waiting Jane, Lady Rochford, the widow of Anne Boleyn’s brother, seems to have played a dangerous role of helping the lovers to meet, in secret. Other ladies in her service were increasingly aware that something was going on. Some of Catherine’s women had been her friends during her days living with the Duchess Agnes, so they knew her secrets. Mary Lassells, one of the women of the Norfolk household, was sister to the Protestant reformer, John Lassells. When he suggested that she apply for a post in Catherine’s household, as other young women had done, she said that she would not do so because “Catherine was light in behaviour”. Catherine’s past was about to catch up with her and her lack of intelligence and self-discipline was now leading her towards disaster. She was engaged in an indiscreet affair with Culpepper, which was known to Lady Rochford and suspected by her other ladies. She had people in her household, including Dereham, who knew about her past in the Duchess of Norfolk house. Thomas Cranmer, who was the Archbishop and leader of the Reformed faction, was made aware of her previous affairs…. Henry was still in love with his wife, and Cranmer hardly dared to tell him that the bad news about her. He left a paper in the King’s seat in Church, In November 1541, to tell him what had been found out about the young Queen. Henry was devastated, as evidence emerged of Catherine’s pre-marital lovers and then the fact that she was involved with Culpepper and that the 2 of them had been cuckolding him. Catherine refused to admit a pre contract with Dereham though that might have meant there was a slight chance that she would not be considered guilty of treason as she would not have been the King’s legal wife. She refused to admit her affair with Culpeper. The two men were however convicted of high treason in December 1541 and were executed. Henry was sunk in gloom and did not immediately proceed against his wife, who had been taken from court and sent to Sion Abbey. Her Howard relatives were imprisoned and accused of concealment of treason... on the ground that they knew of Catherin’s sexual history. In February 1542, she was taken to the Tower, and she and Lady Rochford were executed on 13th February. Unlike her cousin, Anne Boleyn, Catherine was a foolish young girl who had little substance. but she was very young and had indeed been ill served by the Howard family, who had not done much to ensure she was trained or educated, and who had encourage the match with Henry, without caring that she was too childish, selfish and irresponsible to cope as a royal consort.