Mary I Tudor (years of her life - 1516-1558) - the English queen, also known as Mary the Bloody. Not a single monument was erected to her in her homeland (it is only in Spain, where her husband was born). Today, the name of this queen is associated primarily with massacres. Indeed, there were many of them in the years when Mary the Bloody was on the throne. Many books have been written on the history of her reign, and interest in her personality has not faded to this day. Despite the fact that in England the day of her death (at the same time Elizabeth I ascended the throne) was celebrated as a national holiday, this woman was not so cruel as many imagined her. After reading the article, you will be convinced of this.
Mary'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 was still very young at the time, and Henry was only the second ruler of England to belong to it.
In 1516, Queen Catherine gave birth to a daughter, Maria, her onlya viable baby (she had several unsuccessful births before). The girl's father was disappointed, but he hoped for the appearance of heirs in the future. He loved Mary, called the pearl in his crown. He admired the firm and serious character of his daughter. The girl cried very rarely. She studied hard. The teachers taught her Latin, English, music, Greek, playing the harpsichord and dancing. The future Queen Mary the First Bloody was interested in Christian literature. She was very attracted by stories of ancient warrior maidens and martyrs.
Candidates for husbands
The princess was surrounded by a large retinue, corresponding to her position: court staff, chaplain, maids and nannies, lady mentor. Growing up, Bloody Mary began to engage in falconry and horseback riding. The worries about her marriage, as is usual with kings, began from infancy. The girl was 2 years old when her father entered into an agreement on the engagement of his daughter with the son of Francis I, the French dauphin. The contract, however, was terminated. Another candidate for the husband of 6-year-old Mary was Charles V of Habsburg, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, who was 16 years older than his bride. However, the princess was not yet ripe for marriage.
Catherine turned out to be objectionable to Heinrich
In the 16th year of his marriage, Henry VIII, who still had no male heirs, decided that his marriage to Catherine was not pleasing to God. The birth of an illegitimate son testified that Henry was not to blame. Case,Turns out it was in his wife. The king named his bastard Henry 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 Prince Arthur of Wales. 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 reached the age of majority. Fulfilling the last will of his father, at the age of 18, Henry VIII married his brother's widow. Usually the church forbade such marriages as closely related. However, as an exception, powerful persons were granted permission to do so 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 he did not grant his consent either. He ordered to drag out the "case of the king" as long as possible. Heinrich expressed his opinion to his wife about the futility and sinfulness of their marriage. He asked her to agree to a divorce and go to a monastery, but the woman replied with a decisive refusal. By this, she doomed herself to a very unenviable fate - living in provincial castles under supervision and being separated from her daughter. The "king's case" dragged on for several years. The Archbishop of Canterbury, as well as the primate of the church appointed by Henry, finally announced the marriageinvalid. The king was married to Anne Boleyn, his favorite.
Declaring Mary illegitimate
Then Clement VII decided to excommunicate Henry. He declared his daughter from the new Queen Elizabeth illegitimate. T. Cranber in response to this declared, by order of the king, Mary, the daughter of Catherine, was also illegitimate. She was stripped of all the privileges of an heiress.
Henry becomes head of the Church of England
Parliament in 1534 signed the "Act of Supremacy", according to which the king headed the Anglican Church. Some dogmas of religion were revised and cancelled. This is how the Anglican Church arose, which was, as it were, in the middle between Protestantism and Catholicism. Those who refused to accept it were declared traitors and severely punished. From now on, property belonging to the Catholic Church was confiscated, and church fees began to flow into the royal treasury.
Mary's plight
Mary the Bloody was orphaned by the death of her mother. She became completely dependent on her father's wives. Anna Boleyn hated her, mocked her in every possible way and even used physical assault. The very fact that the apartment that once belonged to her mother was now occupied by this woman, who wore the jewels and the crown of Catherine, caused great suffering to Mary. Spanish grandparents would have interceded for her, but by this time they had already died, and their heir had enough problems in his own country.
Anne Boleyn's happiness was short-lived - before her daughter was borninstead of the son expected by the king and promised by her. She spent only 3 years as queen and survived Catherine by only 5 months. Anna was accused of state and adultery. The woman ascended the scaffold in May 1536, and Elizabeth, her daughter, was declared illegitimate, as was the future Mary Bloody Tudor.
Mary's other stepmothers
And only when, reluctantly, our heroine agreed to recognize Henry VIII as the head of the Anglican Church, while remaining a Catholic in her soul, she was finally returned to her retinue and access to the king's palace. Mary Bloody Tudor, however, did not marry.
Heinrich a few days after the death of Boleyn married the maid of honor Jane Seymour. She took pity on 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 of puerperal fever. It is known that the king valued and loved the third wife more than others and bequeathed to be buried near her grave.
The fourth marriage for the king was unsuccessful. Seeing Anna Klevskaya, his wife, in kind, he was furious. Henry VIII, after divorcing 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. He gave her after the divorce the title of adoptive sister, as well as a small property. The relationship between them was practically kindred, as was the relationship of Klevskaya with the children of the king.
Katherine Gotward, Mary's next stepmother, was beheaded in the Tower after 1.5years of marriage, for adultery. 2 years before the death of the king, the sixth marriage was concluded. Catherine Parr took care of the children, cared for her sick husband, was the mistress of the yard. This woman convinced the king to be more kind to her daughters Elizabeth and Mary. Catherine Parr survived the king and escaped execution only because of her own resourcefulness and by a lucky chance.
Death of Henry VIII, recognition of Mary as legitimate
Henry VIII died in January 1547, having bequeathed the crown to Edward, his infant son. In the event that his descendant dies, she was to go to her daughters - Elizabeth and Mary. These princesses were finally recognized as legitimate. This gave them the opportunity to count on the crown and a worthy marriage.
Edward's reign and death
Mary was persecuted because of her commitment to Catholicism. She even wanted to leave England. King Edward could not bear the thought that she would take the throne after him. On the advice of the Lord Protector, he decided to rewrite his father's will. The 16-year-old Jane Grey, Edward's second cousin and granddaughter of Henry VII, was declared heir. She was a Protestant and also Northumberland's sister-in-law.
Edward VI suddenly fell ill 3 days after the approval of his will. This happened in the summer of 1553. He soon died. According to one version, death came from tuberculosis, since he was in poor he alth from childhood. However, there is another version. Duke of Northumberland under suspiciouscircumstances removed from the king of the attending physicians. A sorceress appeared at his bedside. She allegedly gave Edward a dose of arsenic. After that, the king felt worse and expired at the age of 15.
Mary becomes Queen
After his death, Jane Gray, who was 16 at the time, became queen. However, the people rebelled, not recognizing her. A month later, Mary ascended the throne. By this time she was already 37 years old. After the reign of Henry VIII, who proclaimed himself the head of the Church and was excommunicated by the Pope, about half of all monasteries and churches in the state were destroyed. A difficult task had to be solved after the death of Edward, Maria the Bloody. England, which she inherited, was ruined. It needed to be revived urgently. In the first six months, she executed Jane Grey, her husband Gilford Dudley, and father-in-law John Dudley.
Execution of Jane and her husband
Mary the Bloody, whose biography is often presented in gloomy colors, by nature was not distinguished by a tendency to cruelty. For a long time she could not send her relative to the chopping block. Why did Bloody Mary decide to do this anyway? She understood that Jane was just a pawn in the wrong hands, who did not want to become queen. The trial of her and her husband was originally conceived as a mere formality. Queen Mary the Bloody wanted to pardon the 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 Guildford were beheaded.
Reign of Bloody Mary
Mary againbrought closer to itself those who until recently were among its 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 Bloody Mary. An attempt at a counter-reformation - that's what it is called in scientific language. Many monasteries were reconstructed. However, during the reign of Mary there were many executions of Protestants. The bonfires have been blazing since February 1555. There are many testimonies of how people suffered, dying for their faith. About 300 people were burned. Among them were Latimer, Ridley, Crumner and other hierarchs of the church. The queen ordered not to spare even those who agreed to become a Catholic, being in front of a fire. For all these cruelties, Maria received her nickname Bloody.
Marriage of Mary
The Queen married Charles V's son Philip (summer 1554). The husband was 12 years younger than Mary. According to the marriage contract, he could not interfere in the government of the country, and children born from marriage were to become heirs to the English throne. Philip, in the event of the premature death of Mary, had to return to Spain. The British disliked the queen's husband. Although Mary made attempts through Parliament to approve the decision that Philip be considered king of England, she was denied this. The son of Charles V was arrogant and pompous. The retinue that arrived with him behaved defiantly.
Bloody clashes between the Spaniards and the British began to take place in the streets after arrivalPhilippa.
Sickness and death
Mary showed signs of pregnancy in September. They made a will, according to which Philip was to become the regent of the child until he came of age. However, the child was not born. Mary appointed her sister Elizabeth as her successor.
In May 1558, it became clear that the alleged pregnancy was in fact a symptom of the disease. Maria suffered from fever, headache, insomnia. She began to lose her sight. In the summer, the queen contracted the flu. Elizabeth was formally 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 was an ovarian cyst or uterine cancer. Mary's remains rest in Westminster Abbey. The throne after her death was inherited by Elizabeth I.
