Mary I Tudor (years of her life - 1516-1558) is the Queen of England, also known as Mary the Bloody. She was not erected a single monument in her homeland (it is only in Spain, where her husband was born). Today, the name of this queen is associated primarily with reprisals. Indeed, there were many of them in the years when Mary the Bloody was on the throne. A lot of books have been written on the history of her reign, and interest in her personality does not fade to this day. Despite the fact that in England the day of her death (then Elizabeth I ascended the throne) was celebrated as a national holiday, this woman was not as cruel as many had imagined. After reading the article, you will see this.
Maria's parents, her childhood
Mary's parents are the English king Henry VIII Tudor and Catherine of Aragon, the youngest Spanish princess. The Tudor dynasty at that time was still very young, and Henry was only the second ruler of England relating to her.
In 1516, Queen Catherine gave birth to a daughter, Mary, her only viable child (she had previously had several unsuccessful births). The girl’s father was disappointed, but hoped for future heirs. He loved Mary, called a pearl in his crown. He admired the solid and serious nature of his daughter. The girl cried very rarely. She studied hard. Teachers taught her Latin, English, music, Greek, harpsichord and dance. The future Queen Mary the First Bloody was interested in Christian literature. She was very attracted to stories about the ancient virgins warriors and women martyrs.
Husband candidates
The princess was surrounded by a large retinue corresponding to her position: court staff, chaplain, maids and nannies, lady-mentor. Growing up, Maria the Bloody began to engage in falconry and horseback riding. Troubles about her marriage, as is usual with kings, began from infancy. The girl was 2 years old when her father entered into an engagement agreement with his son Francis I, a French dauphin. The contract, however, was terminated. Another candidate for the husbands of 6-year-old Mary was Charles V of Habsburg, Holy Roman Emperor, who was 16 years older than his bride. However, the princess did not have time to ripen for marriage.
Catherine turned out to be objectionable to Henry
In the 16th year of marriage, Henry VIII, who still had no male heirs, decided that his marriage with Catherine was not pleasing to God. The birth of an illegitimate son testified that Henry was not to blame. The case, it turns out, was in his wife. The king called his bastard Heinrich Fitzroy. He gave his son estates, castles and a ducal title. However, he could not make Henry the heir, given that the legitimacy of the creation of the Tudor dynasty was doubtful.
The first husband of Catherine was the Prince of Wales Arthur. He was the eldest son of the founder of the dynasty. 5 months after the wedding ceremony, he died of tuberculosis. Then Henry VII, at the suggestion of the Spanish matchmakers, agreed on the engagement of Henry, his second son (he was then 11 years old), with Catherine. The marriage was to be registered when they came of age. Fulfilling the last will of his father, at the age of 18, Henry VIII married his widow's brother. Usually the church forbade such marriages as closely related. However, as an exception, powerful persons were granted permission for this by the pope.
Divorce, Henry's new wife
And now, in 1525, the king asked the pope for permission to divorce. Clement VII did not refuse, but did not give his consent. He ordered as long as possible to drag out the "work of the king." Henry expressed to his wife his opinion on the futility and sinfulness of their marriage. He asked her to agree to a divorce and leave for the monastery, but the woman replied resolutely. By this she condemned herself to a very unenviable fate - to live in provincial castles under supervision and to be separated from her daughter. For several years, the "work of the king." The Archbishop of Canterbury, as well as the Primate of the church appointed by Henry, finally declared the marriage invalid. The king was married to Anna Boleyn, his favorite.
Announcement of Mary illegitimate
Then Clement VII decided to excommunicate from the church of Henry. He declared his daughter of the new Queen Elizabeth illegitimate. T. Cranber, in response to this, announced by order of the king the illegitimate and Mary, daughter of Catherine. She was deprived of all the privileges relying on the heiress.
Henry becomes head of the Anglican Church
Parliament in 1534 signed the “Act of Supremacy”, according to which the king led the Church of England. Some dogmas of religion have been revised and repealed. So the Anglican Church arose, which was, as it were, in the middle between Protestantism and Catholicism. Those who refused to accept her were declared traitors and subjected to severe penalties. From now on, property belonging to the Catholic Church was confiscated, and church requisitions began to flow into the royal treasury.
Mary's plight
Mary the Bloody with the death of her mother was orphaned. She became completely dependent on the wives of her father. Anna Boleyn hated her, in every possible way scoffed at her and even applied assault. The very fact that this woman, who wore jewelry and the crown of Catherine, was now living in the apartments that once belonged to her mother, caused great suffering to Mary. His grandmother and grandfather would intercede for her, but by this time they had already died, and their heir had enough problems in their own country.
The happiness of Anna Boleyn was short-lived before the birth of a daughter instead of a son, expected by the king and promised by her. Only 3 years she was queen and survived Catherine only 5 months. Anna was accused of treason and adultery. A woman ascended the scaffold in May 1536, and Elizabeth, her daughter, was declared illegitimate, like the future Maria Bloody Tudor.
Other stepmothers of Mary
And only when reluctantly did our heroine agree to recognize Henry VIII as head of the Church of England, while remaining in her soul a Catholic, she was finally returned to the retinue and access to the king’s palace. Maria Bloody Tudor, however, did not get married.
Henry a few days after the death of Boleyn married maid of honor Jane Seymour. She felt sorry for Mary and persuaded her husband to return her to the palace. Seymour gave birth to Henry VIII, who by that time was already 46 years old, the long-awaited son of Edward VI, and she herself died from a fever. It is known that the king appreciated and loved his third wife more than others and bequeathed to bury himself near her grave.
The fourth marriage for the king was unsuccessful. Seeing Anna Klevskaya, his wife, in kind, he became furious. Henry VIII, after a divorce from her, executed Cromwell, his first minister, who was the organizer of the matchmaking. He divorced Anna six months later, in accordance with the marriage contract, without entering into carnal relations with her. After the divorce, he gave her the title of foster sister, as well as a small possession. The relationship between them was almost kindred, as was the relationship of Klewski with the children of the king.
Katherine Gotthard, Mary's next stepmother, was beheaded at the Tower, after 1.5 years of marriage, for adultery. 2 years before the death of the king, the sixth marriage was concluded. Catherine Parr took care of the children, took care of her sick husband, was the mistress of the yard. This woman convinced the king to be friendlier to his daughters Elizabeth and Mary. Catherine Parr survived the king and escaped execution only because of her own inventiveness and by a lucky chance.
The death of Henry VIII, the recognition of Mary the legitimate
Henry VIII died in January 1547, bequeathing to Edward, his young son, a crown. If his descendant died, she had to go to her daughters - Elizabeth and Mary. These princesses were finally recognized as legitimate. This gave them the opportunity to rely on the crown and a worthy marriage.
Edward's reign and his death
Mary suffered persecution because of her commitment to Catholicism. She even wanted to leave England. For King Edward, the thought that she would ascend the throne after him was unbearable. On the advice of the Protector Lord, he decided to rewrite his father’s will. The heiress was declared 16-year-old Jane Gray, a second cousin of Edward and granddaughter of Henry VII. She was a Protestant, as well as a daughter-in-law of Northumberland.
Edward VI suddenly fell ill 3 days after the approval of his will. This happened in the summer of 1553. He soon passed away. According to one version, death came from tuberculosis, since he had been in poor health since childhood. However, there is another version. Under suspicious circumstances, the Duke of Northumberland removed physicians from the king. A sorceress appeared at his bedside. She allegedly gave Edward a dose of arsenic. After that, the king felt worse and gave up his spirit at the age of 15.
Mary becomes Queen
After his death, Jane Gray, who was then 16 years old, became the queen. However, the people rebelled without recognizing it. A month later, Mary ascended the throne. She was already 37 years old by this time. After the reign of Henry VIII, who proclaimed himself the head of the Church and was excommunicated from her by the pope, about half of all monasteries and churches were destroyed in the state. A difficult task was to be solved after the death of Eduard Maria Bloody. England, which she got, was ruined. She urgently needed to be revived. For the first six months, she executed Jane Gray, her husband Guildford Dudley, as well as father-in-law John Dudley.
The execution of Jane and her husband
Maria Bloody, whose biography is often presented in gloomy tones, by her nature did not differ in her penchant for cruelty. For a long time she could not send her relative to the chopping block. Why did Mary the Bloody still decide to do this? She understood that Jane was just a pawn in the wrong hands, which did not want to become a queen. The trial of her and her husband was initially conceived simply as a formality. Queen Maria Bloody wanted to have mercy on this couple. However, the fate of Jane was decided by the rebellion of T. Wyatt, which began in January 1554. On February 12 of the same year, Jane and Guilford were beheaded.
The reign of Mary the Bloody
Mary again brought closer to herself those who had recently been among her opponents. She understood that they could help her in running the state. The restoration of the country began with the revival of the Catholic faith, which was undertaken by Mary the Bloody. An attempt at counter-reformation is what it is called in scientific language. Many monasteries were reconstructed. However, during the reign of Mary, there were many executions of Protestants. Bonfires have been burning since February 1555. There are many testimonies of how people suffered while dying for faith. About 300 people were burned. Among them were Latimer, Ridley, Kramner and other church hierarchs. The queen ordered not to spare those who agreed to become a Catholic by facing a bonfire. For all these cruelties, Mary got her nickname Bloody.
Marriage of Mary
The Queen married the son of Charles V Philip (in the summer of 1554). The husband was 12 years younger than Maria. According to the prenuptial agreement, he could not interfere in the administration of the country, and children born from marriage should become heirs to the English throne. In the event of Mary's premature death, Philip had to return to Spain. The British disliked the spouse of the queen. Although Mary made attempts through parliament to approve the decision that Philip was considered the king of England, she was denied this. The son of Charles V was arrogant and pompous. The retinue who arrived with him behaved defiantly.
Bloody clashes between the Spaniards and the British began to occur in the streets after the arrival of Philip.
Illness and death
Mary in September showed signs of pregnancy. They made a will according to which Philip was to become regent of the child until he came of age. However, the child was not born. Mary appointed Elizabeth as her successor.
In May 1558, it became clear that the imaginary pregnancy was actually a symptom of the disease. Maria suffered from fever, headache, and insomnia. She began to lose her sight. In the summer, the queen contracted the flu. Elizabeth was officially appointed successor on November 6, 1558. Mary died on November 17 of the same year. Historians believe that the disease from which the queen died is an ovarian cyst or uterine cancer. The remains of Mary rest in Westminster Abbey. The throne after her death was inherited by Elizabeth I.