Made famous thanks to the film “Two Sisters for a King ”, Mary Boleyn holds a particularly important role in the History of England. In addition to being the sister of a scorned and ultimately beheaded queen, Mary Boleyn turns out to be an influential woman at the English court. Through this article, I invite you to discover the portrait of Mary Boleyn.
Mary Boleyn, member of an aristocratic family
A childhood in England
Mary Boleyn was born in Hever Castle in Kent in England. Doubt still hovers for historians concerning her year of birth, who define her between 1409 and 1508. This brings uncertainties concerning her place in the siblings . Sister of the famous Anne Boleyn, one of the wives of Henry VIII, and of Georges, Mary Boleyn is known to be the eldest of the siblings.
Mary Boleyn spent her childhood surrounded by her sister, brother and parents in England. She studied at Hever Castle and acquired all the necessary knowledge to a young girl of English nobility. With her sister Anne, Mary Boleyn learned mathematics, reading and writing, as well as dance, music, embroidery and everything you need to know about etiquette.
Youth on French soil
She spent her entire childhood until she was 15, when her father decided to send her to France to accompany the sister of Henry VIII, Marie Tudor, future wife of Louis XII and Queen of France. For several months, Mary served the wife of Louis XII and evolved within the court of France . But the young queen becomes a widow shortly after her wedding. Many of her servants are asked to return to England. This is not the case of the Boleyn daughter, who remains at the court of the new sovereign Francis I . His father's position as French Ambassador helped him a lot.
Mary Boleyn is gaining a reputation as a seductress
During her stay in France, Mary Boleyn is joined by her father and her sister Anne Boleyn, who has just finished her studies in the Netherlands. Many historians agree that the beautiful Mary had an affair with the young Francis I , recently ascended the throne of France. It must be said that Mary Boleyn is a beautiful young woman, bringing together all the criteria of beauty of the time. White skin, ebony eyes and hair, no wonder the King of France fell under her spell . This relationship was short-lived, however, with Mary Boleyn not enjoying any benefits from this position. This initiation into love pushed Mary Boleyn into the arms of many other men. Even if the young Englishwoman has forged a reputation as a great seductress , it is somewhat exaggerated. King Francis I still defined her as "a great whore, the most infamous (or sadly famous) of all .
This unsuitable reputation at the court of France pushes his family to bring him back to England in 1519. She then joined the circle of Catherine of Aragon, wife of King Henry VIII, as a lady-in-waiting.
Mary Boleyn becomes wife and royal mistress
Her marriage to William Carey
In 1520 Mary Boleyn met William Carey of Aldenham, a courtier at the court of Henry VIII, and one of her favourites. Beautiful Boleyn marries wealthy William. It's a wedding with great pomp which is organized. The most influential people are present, including the King of England Henry VIII.
King Henry VIII falls under his spell
Even if the marriage between Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon is a marriage of love, that does not prevent the King of England from fooling around. The sovereign fell, like his rival François I, under the spell of the young and beautiful Mary Boleyn. The eldest of the siblings enters the intimacy of the king and shares his bed . However, this relationship remains obscure and very mysterious. It is not known exactly how long this affair lasted, or when it began. As with Francis I, the beautiful Mary does not benefit from the advantages that the role of royal mistress can bring. Following her marriage to William, Mary Boleyn gives birth to two children :Catherine Carey in 1524 and Henry Carey in 1526. Many rumors circulate concerning the paternity of little Henry. Is it the result of the intimate relationship between Henry VIII and Mary Boleyn? At present, there is no evidence to support these rumors.
Anne Boleyn supplants her sister Mary Boleyn
As she returns to the shadows, another young woman takes the light from the king, Anne Boleyn. Mary's younger sister has just returned from France, and has changed a lot since her last stay in England. The shy and frivolous girl gave way to a beautiful young woman, confident, seductive and above all very ambitious . In France, she learned the art and how to please, fashion and beauty tips. Arriving at the English court, suitors rush to her doorstep, including Henry VIII. The Monarch leaves Mary for Anne .
Widowage and misfortune
In 1528 an epidemic of sweating sickness struck the kingdom of England with many casualties. One of them is none other than William Carey, husband of Mary Boleyn. He died on June 22, 1528 at only 32 years old, leaving Mary a widow and crippled with debts. In this kind of situation, it is customary to leave your children to the wealthier members of the family. Mary therefore decides to leave the education of her daughter and young son to Anne, who sends them to a monastery. Anne Boleyn also arranges for her sister Mary to be able to obtain an annual pension of 100 pounds. Mary's living comfort is therefore maintained at the goodwill of his sister.
Mary Boleyn's second marriage
The young couple must leave the English Court
After the death of her husband, Mary Boleyn falls under the spell of William Stafford, a commoner and soldier of minor nobility, without fortune or rank. They end up getting married without any permission , stoking the resentment of the Boleyn tribe. Mary is rejected by her family, the newlywed couple is forced to leave the English court on the orders of her sister Anne, became Queen of England and wife of Henry VIII.
William and his wife settled together in Essex at Rochford. Shortly after their wedding, Mary Boleyn becomes pregnant. Their first child, Anne Stafford, was born in 1534. The following year, she gave birth to Edward Stafford, who would live only a few years. The years following her second marriage, Mary Boleyn will live in misery and in total isolation, away from his family.
Mary Boleyn lives a life of misfortune and disgrace
The former mistress of Henry VIII will then work to regain her honor and the affection of her family. She tries to approach her father, her uncle and her brother. It's a failure, they no longer want to deal with the one who disgraced the family with this union . Perhaps they compare Mary's situation to that of their daughter Anne, who became the wife of one of the most powerful sovereigns in Europe, and Queen of England.
Against all odds, only Anne answers her sister's call and comes to her aid. The Queen of England sends Mary a gold cup accompanied by money . Despite this beginning of reconciliation, Mary is still denied access to the English court, and must remain isolated with her husband.
The Boleyn family falls from grace
The life of the Boleyn family is turned upside down when Anne and George Boleyn are locked up in the Tower of London. The Queen of England falls from grace with the king and is accused of treason, adultery and incest. She was beheaded on May 19, 1536 inside the Tower of London. Shortly after the deaths of two of their children, Sir Thomas Boleyn and Elizabeth Howard, Countess of Wiltshire, also died. Mary Boleyn is the sole survivor of her siblings, and at the same time the sole heiress. All the Boleyn land therefore goes to Mary and her husband, providing them with a comfortable life.
The last surviving Boleyn died July 19, 1543 in his forties. The reasons for his death remain mysterious at present, as does a large part of his existence.
Descendants of Mary Boleyn
Mary Boleyn's first daughter, Catherine Carey, becomes maid of honor of two of the wives of Henry VIII , Anne of Cleves and Catherine Howard. On April 26, 1540, she married the Puritan Francis Knollys. She then became lady-in-waiting to her cousin Queen Elizabeth I of England, only daughter of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII .
Henry Carey, the alleged son of the King of England, borrows a political career and became MP for Buckingham. His cousin Queen Elizabeth I of England knighted him in November 1558.
Nothing is known of the life of his second daughter, Anne Stafford. His son Edward Stafford died when he was very young.
