.gif)
Mary Tudor (queen consort of France)
Encyclopedia
Mary Tudor was the younger sister of King Henry VIII of England
and queen consort
of France
through her marriage to Louis XII
. The latter was more than 30 years her senior. Following his death, which occurred less than two months after her coronation
as his third wife, she married Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk
. The marriage, which was performed secretly in France, took place without her brother Henry's consent. This necessitated the intervention of Thomas Wolsey and the couple were eventually pardoned by King Henry, although they were forced to pay a large fine.
Mary's second marriage produced four children; and through her eldest daughter Frances, Mary was the maternal grandmother of Lady Jane Grey
, who was the de facto
monarch of England for a little over a week in July 1553.
Mary was the fifth child of Henry VII of England
and Elizabeth of York
, and the youngest to survive infancy. She was born at Richmond Palace
. She and her brother, Henry, were close as children—he named his daughter, the future Queen Mary I
, after her. The warship Mary Rose
was also named in her honour.
When Mary was a young girl, the Duke of Milan attempted to arrange a marriage between her and his young son Massimiliano Sforza as a way to get Henry VII to help his father against the French. Henry rejected this as he was at peace with France, having no wish to be involved in the Italian Wars
.
Known in her youth as one of the most beautiful princesses in Europe, Mary was betrothed in December 1507 to Charles of Castile
, later Holy Roman Emperor
. However, changes in the political alliances of the European powers meant this wedding did not take place. Instead, Cardinal Wolsey negotiated a peace treaty with France, and on 9 October 1514, at the age of 18, Mary married its 52-year-old King Louis XII at Abbeville
. One of the Maids of Honour
who attended her in France was Anne Boleyn
. Mary was described by the Venetian Ambassador as "a Paradise—tall, slender, grey-eyed, possessing an extreme pallor". She wore her glorious silken red-gold hair flowing loose to her waist. Despite two previous marriages, Louis had no living sons, and sought to produce an heir; but he died on 1 January 1515, less than three months after marrying Mary, reputedly worn out by his exertions in the bedchamber. Their union produced no children. Following Louis' death, the new King Francis I
made attempts to arrange a second marriage for the beautiful widow.
to Louis, as at this time she was almost certainly already in love with Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk
. Henry knew of his sister's feelings but wanted any future marriage to be to his advantage. When he sent Brandon to bring Mary back to England in late January 1515 he made the Duke promise that he would not propose to her. However, the couple married in secret in France on 3 March 1515. Technically this was treason
, as Brandon had married a Royal Princess without Henry's consent. The King was outraged, and the Privy Council
urged that Brandon should be imprisoned or executed. Because of the intervention of Thomas Wolsey, and Henry's affection for both his sister and Brandon, the couple were let off with a heavy fine. They were officially married on 13 May 1515 at Greenwich Palace.
Mary was Brandon's third wife, and he had two daughters, Anne Brandon and Mary
by his second marriage to Anne Browne. She had died in 1511. Mary would raise the girls alongside her own children.
Even after her second marriage, Mary was normally referred to at the English Court as "the French Queen", and was not known as "the Duchess of Suffolk" in her lifetime. Mary spent most of her time at the Duke's country seat of Westhorpe Hall in Suffolk
.
Relations between Henry VIII and Mary were strained in the late 1520s when she opposed the King's attempt to obtain an annulment
of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon
, whom Mary had known for many years. She had developed a strong dislike for the future Queen, Anne Boleyn
, whom she had first encountered in France.
Mary died at Westhorpe Hall
, Westhorpe, Suffolk on 25 June 1533, and was initially buried at the abbey at Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. Her body was moved to nearby St. Mary's Church, also in Bury St Edmunds, when the abbey was destroyed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries
. Her husband soon married their son's fiancée, who was also their ward, fourteen-year-old Catherine Willoughby
, by whom he had two sons.
Mary and Charles's two sons, both named Henry, are commonly mistaken for being the same son. Both boys died when they were children.
star Marion Davies
in the 1922 film When Knighthood Was in Flower, reputed to have been, at the time of its release, the most expensive film ever made. It was one of Davies's biggest hits. Another fictionalized version of Mary's marital adventures is portrayed in the 1953 Walt Disney
film The Sword and the Rose
starring Richard Todd
and Glynis Johns
.
She is also the subject of the novels Mary, Queen of France by Jean Plaidy, The Reluctant Queen by Molly Costain Haycraft
, Princess of Desire by Maureen Peters, and The Secret Bride: In the Court of Henry VIII by Diane Haeger. The novel of When Knighthood Was in Flower, by Edwin Caskoden (the pen name of Charles Major
) was published in 1898, and was the source material for both the Davies and the Disney films. She was also fictionalized in the historical fiction novel The Last Boleyn by Karen Harper
.
The drama series The Tudors
: portrays the relationship between Mary and Charles Brandon, though the character is named Princess Margaret, and is a composite of Mary and her sister Margaret Tudor
, portrayed by Gabrielle Anwar
. Charles Brandon is portrayed by Henry Cavill
. Many liberties have been taken with the story. For example, in the television series, Henry arranges his sister's marriage with the aged King of Portugal, not of France, in the late 1520s. Margaret/Mary then kills her husband. Another fictitious sub-plot has Henry making Charles Brandon Duke of Suffolk so the latter would be of appropriate rank to give away Henry's sister at her supposed wedding to the King of Portugal. In the story, the Tudor/Brandon marriage soon cools and no mention is made of their four children. Yet another discontinuity relates to Henry's sister dying before Wolsey (who died in 1530).
|-
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
and queen consort
Queen consort
A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king. A queen consort usually shares her husband's rank and holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles. Historically, queens consort do not share the king regnant's political and military powers. Most queens in history were queens consort...
of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
through her marriage to Louis XII
Louis XII of France
Louis proved to be a popular king. At the end of his reign the crown deficit was no greater than it had been when he succeeded Charles VIII in 1498, despite several expensive military campaigns in Italy. His fiscal reforms of 1504 and 1508 tightened and improved procedures for the collection of taxes...
. The latter was more than 30 years her senior. Following his death, which occurred less than two months after her coronation
Coronation
A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...
as his third wife, she married Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, 1st Viscount Lisle, KG was the son of Sir William Brandon and Elizabeth Bruyn. Through his third wife Mary Tudor he was brother-in-law to Henry VIII. His father was the standard-bearer of Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond and was slain by Richard III in person at...
. The marriage, which was performed secretly in France, took place without her brother Henry's consent. This necessitated the intervention of Thomas Wolsey and the couple were eventually pardoned by King Henry, although they were forced to pay a large fine.
Mary's second marriage produced four children; and through her eldest daughter Frances, Mary was the maternal grandmother of Lady Jane Grey
Lady Jane Grey
Lady Jane Grey , also known as The Nine Days' Queen, was an English noblewoman who was de facto monarch of England from 10 July until 19 July 1553 and was subsequently executed...
, who was the de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
monarch of England for a little over a week in July 1553.
First marriage: Queen of France
Henry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
and Elizabeth of York
Elizabeth of York
Elizabeth of York was Queen consort of England as spouse of King Henry VII from 1486 until 1503, and mother of King Henry VIII of England....
, and the youngest to survive infancy. She was born at Richmond Palace
Richmond Palace
Richmond Palace was a Thameside royal residence on the right bank of the river, upstream of the Palace of Westminster, to which it lay 9 miles SW of as the crow flies. It it was erected c. 1501 within the royal manor of Sheen, by Henry VII of England, formerly known by his title Earl of Richmond,...
. She and her brother, Henry, were close as children—he named his daughter, the future Queen Mary I
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
, after her. The warship Mary Rose
Mary Rose
The Mary Rose was a carrack-type warship of the English Tudor navy of King Henry VIII. After serving for 33 years in several wars against France, Scotland, and Brittany and after being substantially rebuilt in 1536, she saw her last action on 1545. While leading the attack on the galleys of a...
was also named in her honour.
When Mary was a young girl, the Duke of Milan attempted to arrange a marriage between her and his young son Massimiliano Sforza as a way to get Henry VII to help his father against the French. Henry rejected this as he was at peace with France, having no wish to be involved in the Italian Wars
Italian Wars
The Italian Wars, often referred to as the Great Italian Wars or the Great Wars of Italy and sometimes as the Habsburg–Valois Wars, were a series of conflicts from 1494 to 1559 that involved, at various times, most of the city-states of Italy, the Papal States, most of the major states of Western...
.
Known in her youth as one of the most beautiful princesses in Europe, Mary was betrothed in December 1507 to Charles of Castile
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
, later Holy Roman Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
. However, changes in the political alliances of the European powers meant this wedding did not take place. Instead, Cardinal Wolsey negotiated a peace treaty with France, and on 9 October 1514, at the age of 18, Mary married its 52-year-old King Louis XII at Abbeville
Abbeville
Abbeville is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Location:Abbeville is located on the Somme River, from its modern mouth in the English Channel, and northwest of Amiens...
. One of the Maids of Honour
Maids of Honour
Maids of honour were the junior attendants of a queen in the royal households of England and later of the United Kingdom. Anne of Brittany is said to have instituted the queen's maids of honour at the court.-Role:...
who attended her in France was Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn ;c.1501/1507 – 19 May 1536) was Queen of England from 1533 to 1536 as the second wife of Henry VIII of England and Marquess of Pembroke in her own right. Henry's marriage to Anne, and her subsequent execution, made her a key figure in the political and religious upheaval that was the...
. Mary was described by the Venetian Ambassador as "a Paradise—tall, slender, grey-eyed, possessing an extreme pallor". She wore her glorious silken red-gold hair flowing loose to her waist. Despite two previous marriages, Louis had no living sons, and sought to produce an heir; but he died on 1 January 1515, less than three months after marrying Mary, reputedly worn out by his exertions in the bedchamber. Their union produced no children. Following Louis' death, the new King Francis I
Francis I of France
Francis I was King of France from 1515 until his death. During his reign, huge cultural changes took place in France and he has been called France's original Renaissance monarch...
made attempts to arrange a second marriage for the beautiful widow.
Second marriage: Duchess of Suffolk
Mary had been unhappy with her marriage of stateMarriage of state
A marriage of state in ancient use is a diplomatic marriage or union between two members of different nation-states or internally, between two power blocks, usually in authoritarian societies and is a practice which dates back into pre-history, as far back as early Grecian cultures in western...
to Louis, as at this time she was almost certainly already in love with Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, 1st Viscount Lisle, KG was the son of Sir William Brandon and Elizabeth Bruyn. Through his third wife Mary Tudor he was brother-in-law to Henry VIII. His father was the standard-bearer of Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond and was slain by Richard III in person at...
. Henry knew of his sister's feelings but wanted any future marriage to be to his advantage. When he sent Brandon to bring Mary back to England in late January 1515 he made the Duke promise that he would not propose to her. However, the couple married in secret in France on 3 March 1515. Technically this was treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
, as Brandon had married a Royal Princess without Henry's consent. The King was outraged, and the Privy Council
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
urged that Brandon should be imprisoned or executed. Because of the intervention of Thomas Wolsey, and Henry's affection for both his sister and Brandon, the couple were let off with a heavy fine. They were officially married on 13 May 1515 at Greenwich Palace.
Mary was Brandon's third wife, and he had two daughters, Anne Brandon and Mary
Mary Brandon, Baroness Monteagle
Lady Mary Brandon, Baroness Monteagle , was an English noblewoman, and the daughter of Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, by his second wife, Anne Browne...
by his second marriage to Anne Browne. She had died in 1511. Mary would raise the girls alongside her own children.
Even after her second marriage, Mary was normally referred to at the English Court as "the French Queen", and was not known as "the Duchess of Suffolk" in her lifetime. Mary spent most of her time at the Duke's country seat of Westhorpe Hall in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
.
Relations between Henry VIII and Mary were strained in the late 1520s when she opposed the King's attempt to obtain an annulment
Annulment
Annulment is a legal procedure for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning almost as if it had never taken place...
of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon , also known as Katherine or Katharine, was Queen consort of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII of England and Princess of Wales as the wife to Arthur, Prince of Wales...
, whom Mary had known for many years. She had developed a strong dislike for the future Queen, Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn ;c.1501/1507 – 19 May 1536) was Queen of England from 1533 to 1536 as the second wife of Henry VIII of England and Marquess of Pembroke in her own right. Henry's marriage to Anne, and her subsequent execution, made her a key figure in the political and religious upheaval that was the...
, whom she had first encountered in France.
Mary died at Westhorpe Hall
Westhorpe Hall
Westhorpe Hall was a manor house in Westhorpe, Suffolk, England.It was the residence of Mary Tudor, Queen of France and her second husband, Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk. There they raised their children, Frances , Eleanor and Henry Brandon, 1st Earl of Lincoln...
, Westhorpe, Suffolk on 25 June 1533, and was initially buried at the abbey at Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. Her body was moved to nearby St. Mary's Church, also in Bury St Edmunds, when the abbey was destroyed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
. Her husband soon married their son's fiancée, who was also their ward, fourteen-year-old Catherine Willoughby
Catherine Willoughby
Catherine Willoughby, Duchess of Suffolk, suo jure 12th Baroness Willoughby de Eresby , was an English noblewoman living at the royal courts of King Henry VIII, King Edward VI and later, Queen Elizabeth I...
, by whom he had two sons.
Issue
Mary and Brandon had four children, two daughters and two sons:- Henry Brandon (11 March 1516 - 1522)
- Lady Frances Brandon (16 July 1517 – 20 November 1559), who married Henry GreyHenry Grey, 1st Duke of SuffolkHenry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk, 3rd Marquess of Dorset, KG was an English nobleman of the Tudor period and the father of Lady Jane Grey.-Henry VIII's reign:...
, 3rd Marquess of DorsetMarquess of DorsetThe title Marquess of Dorset has been created three times in the Peerage of England. It was first created in 1397 for John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset, but he lost the title two years later. It was then created in 1442 for Edmund Beaufort, 1st Earl of Dorset, who was created Duke of Somerset...
, and was the mother of Lady Jane GreyLady Jane GreyLady Jane Grey , also known as The Nine Days' Queen, was an English noblewoman who was de facto monarch of England from 10 July until 19 July 1553 and was subsequently executed... - Lady Eleanor Brandon (1519 – 27 September 1547), who married Henry CliffordHenry Clifford, 2nd Earl of CumberlandHenry Clifford, 2nd Earl of Cumberland was a member of the Clifford family which held the seat of Skipton from 1310 to 1676. He was married to Lady Eleanor Brandon, a niece of Henry VIII of England.-Family:...
, 2nd Earl of CumberlandEarl of CumberlandThe title of Earl of Cumberland was created in the Peerage of England in 1525 for the 11th Baron de Clifford. It became extinct in 1643. See also Duke of Cumberland.The subsidiary title of the first three earls was Baron de Clifford...
. - Henry Brandon, 1st Earl of LincolnHenry Brandon, 1st Earl of LincolnHenry Brandon, 1st Earl of Lincoln was the youngest child and second son born to Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk and Mary Tudor, Queen of France, who was a daughter of Henry VII of England. Thus Henry Brandon was nephew to Henry VIII of England...
(c.1523 - March 1534).
Mary and Charles's two sons, both named Henry, are commonly mistaken for being the same son. Both boys died when they were children.
Popular culture
Mary was portrayed by silent screenSilent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
star Marion Davies
Marion Davies
Marion Davies was an American film actress. Davies is best remembered for her relationship with newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst, as her high-profile social life often obscured her professional career....
in the 1922 film When Knighthood Was in Flower, reputed to have been, at the time of its release, the most expensive film ever made. It was one of Davies's biggest hits. Another fictionalized version of Mary's marital adventures is portrayed in the 1953 Walt Disney
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
film The Sword and the Rose
The Sword and the Rose
The Sword and the Rose, is a United States family and adventure film, produced by Perce Pearce and Walt Disney and directed by Ken Annakin...
starring Richard Todd
Richard Todd
Richard Todd OBE was an Irish-born British stage and film actor and soldier.-Early life:Richard Todd was born as Richard Andrew Palethorpe-Todd in Dublin, Ireland. His father, Andrew William Palethorpe Todd, was an Irish physician and an international Irish rugby player who gained three caps for...
and Glynis Johns
Glynis Johns
Glynis Johns is a South African-born Welsh stage and film actress, dancer, pianist and singer . With a career spanning seven decades, Johns is often cited as the "complete actress", who happens to be a trained pianist and singer...
.
She is also the subject of the novels Mary, Queen of France by Jean Plaidy, The Reluctant Queen by Molly Costain Haycraft
Molly Costain Haycraft
Molly Costain Haycraft is a Canadian author. She was born in Toronto, Canada, and spent her childhood in Philadelphia, where her father, the well-known novelist Thomas B. Costain, was an editor for The Saturday Evening Post. She is the author of several novels about women in English royal history...
, Princess of Desire by Maureen Peters, and The Secret Bride: In the Court of Henry VIII by Diane Haeger. The novel of When Knighthood Was in Flower, by Edwin Caskoden (the pen name of Charles Major
Charles Major
Charles Major was an American lawyer and novelist.Born to an upper-middle class Indianapolis family, Major developed an interest in both law and English history at an early age and attended the University of Michigan from 1872 through 1875, being admitted to the Indiana bar association in 1877...
) was published in 1898, and was the source material for both the Davies and the Disney films. She was also fictionalized in the historical fiction novel The Last Boleyn by Karen Harper
Karen Harper
Karen Harper is an historical fiction and contemporary fiction author. She is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author.-Writing career:...
.
The drama series The Tudors
The Tudors
The Tudors is a Canadian produced historical fiction television series filmed in Ireland, created by Michael Hirst and produced for the American premium cable television channel Showtime...
: portrays the relationship between Mary and Charles Brandon, though the character is named Princess Margaret, and is a composite of Mary and her sister Margaret Tudor
Margaret Tudor
Margaret Tudor was the elder of the two surviving daughters of Henry VII of England and Elizabeth of York, and the elder sister of Henry VIII. In 1503, she married James IV, King of Scots. James died in 1513, and their son became King James V. She married secondly Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of...
, portrayed by Gabrielle Anwar
Gabrielle Anwar
Gabrielle Anwar is an English actress. She is known for her role as Margaret Tudor on The Tudors, for dancing the tango with Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman and for her current role as Fiona Glenanne on USA's Burn Notice.- Early life :...
. Charles Brandon is portrayed by Henry Cavill
Henry Cavill
Henry William Dalgliesh Cavill is a British actor. He has appeared in the films The Count of Monte Cristo and Stardust, and played the role of Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, on the Showtime series The Tudors, from 2007 until 2010...
. Many liberties have been taken with the story. For example, in the television series, Henry arranges his sister's marriage with the aged King of Portugal, not of France, in the late 1520s. Margaret/Mary then kills her husband. Another fictitious sub-plot has Henry making Charles Brandon Duke of Suffolk so the latter would be of appropriate rank to give away Henry's sister at her supposed wedding to the King of Portugal. In the story, the Tudor/Brandon marriage soon cools and no mention is made of their four children. Yet another discontinuity relates to Henry's sister dying before Wolsey (who died in 1530).
External links
- A short biography
- Mary Tudor Gallery
- Longer Biography
- studies about famous tapestries representing Mary Tudor
- Images from the Festival Book of the Betrothal to Charles of Castile
|-