Catherine of Aragon
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Catherine of Aragon (December 16, 1485–January 7, 1536) was the daughter of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon. Catherine was first the wife of Arthur, Prince of Wales and then to his brother, Henry VIII.
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[change] Early Life
Catherine was born in 1485 as the youngest child of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon. As a child, it was decided that she would marry Arthur, Prince of Wales. In 1501, Catherine and Arthur married. They were sent to Ludlow Castle in Shropshire, England. This was to take control of the Council of Wales. Months later, Catherine and Arthur became ill possibly from sweating sickness, which was sweeping the area at the time. Prince Arthur died on April 2, 1502. Now Catherine was a widow.
[change] Queen of England
Henry VIII the king of England married Catherine in 1509. She was extremely popular with the people of England and governed the nation as Regent. In 1513, Henry VIII invaded France while she continued being a Regent.
[change] Annulment: End Of Marriage
Despite Catherine's popularity, she still had not produced a male heir. She had a daughter, Mary I of England. Henry's want of a male heir meant that he wanted to divorce his wife Catherine of Aragon. At first, Henry tried to convince Anne Boleyn to be his mistress in 1527. Anne refused, so Henry decided to marry her. Because divorce was not allowed in the Catholic faith, he used the pretext that as Catherine had been married to his older [and dead] brother Arthur that it was an invalid marriage and he was acting by his conscious and he would like nothing more than to be proved wrong. He quoted a verse in Levitius which states that "a man may not marry his brother's wife and such a union would be without the blessing of God and fruitless" and used this as his case. It became referred to as the kings "Secret Matter" and a special court was held with Cardinal Wosley leading it. An official from Rome was brought over and a trial was held. The official stated that he could not come to a conclusion and the case would have to be referred to Rome for the Pope to make a decision. The matter dragged on for quite some time, as the Pope would not agree to a divorce.
[change] Later Years
In 1532Anne Boleyn became pregnant. She was married to Henry on January 25, 1533 so that the baby could be a legitimate heir for the King. Henry's marriage to Catherine of Aragon was finally annulled in the following May by Archbishop Cranmer, thus ending the first of Henry VII of England's 6 marriages. The divorce created such a rift in the church Henry had to create a new one; The Church of England, the beginnings of Protestantism with the King as the head not the Pope. Until the end of Catherine's life, Catherine believed that she was the true wife of Henry VIII. Her servants called her their queen, but Henry VIII called her "Dowager Princess of Wales". In 1535, Catherine was transferred to Kimbolton Castle and was not allowed to see her daughter Mary. Henry VIII told her that if they declared Anne their queen, they would be able to see each other. Catherine nor Mary ever did. Catherine died of cancer in January of 1536, just five months before Anne Boleyn.
