The Truth About Henry VIII’s “Reject Queen”

Almost immediately after Henry VIII saw a portrait of the isolated, enigmatic Anne of Cleves, he made her his bride. But when they finally met, his stomach dropped: she was unthinkably ugly—or so he claimed.

@TheHistoryExpose - The best stories in history.
@SplashTravels - Explore the globe, uncover its secrets.

[barbm]

How ironic he claimed Anne smelled funny. She complained of his smelly leg abscess, which I find more believable.

[pamelachristie]

When Anne and her entourage stopped for the night in Rochester, Henry had the 'brilliant' idea of showing up in his nightshirt in Anne's bedroom, entering via a secret door, after the exhausted Anne had retired for the night. Whether his aim was to seduce her prior to the wedding, to test her chastity or merely to divert the members of his court, we'll never know. In any event, the poor woman was terrified and furious at finding this gross, obese old man in her bedroom. She screamed at him, and called him every insulting thing she could think of, effectively emasculating the vain and arrogant Henry in front of witnesses. (Probably things like 'old' 'ugly' 'disgusting' 'vile' 'fat' 'perverted' 'smelly'...all sorts of things that were no doubt perfectly true, but which no one had ever dared to say to his face. Afterwards, Anne claimed not to have recognized him, (because how could she have anticipated such lewd behavior from a king?) which may or may not have been the case. But the damage was done. Henry's monstrous ego was bruised for the first and only time in his life. He had glimpsed the way he actually appeared to women, and he could never recover his libido, as far as Anne was concerned. If you look at Holbein's portrait, which we have reason to believe was accurate, and then read Henry's complaints about her, you can see that something doesn't add up. Most likely, Henry was attempting to defend himself by turning Anne's insults around and accusing her of being all the things she'd called him. And how do we know that Holbein's portrait was accurate? Henry had his chancellor, Thomas Cromwell, executed for arranging the match. But he didn't execute Holbein, whose painting Henry said had deceived him, because everyone who saw Anne and saw the portrait knew that the likeness was perfectly accurate. This is a story about what happens when you hurt the king's feelings.

[jenniferkelly]

He burst in on her in disguise and unannounced with a stinking leg ulcer the smell of which allegedly filled a room. She probably objected to the stench and chased him out .He became affronted and took his petty revenge claiming it was her who smelled. Henry was always a spoiled brat.

[profpartout]

I think there is a lot to be said for her force of personality to navigate Henry's court and come out as a beloved member of the extended 'family' despite her rejection. She must have been a very smart woman who was charismatic enough to warrant the respect that Henry and the court showed her throughout her lifetime. She made more than the best out of being 'rejected' and seemed to have outplayed all the stereotypes of Early Modern Noblewomen in Tudor England (and was not the only one) Cheers to you Anne of Cleves

[MyGardenCams]

Anne was a smart and astute young lady.
She dodged a bullet by escaping marriage to Henry, and quite cleverly remained somewhat of a sister to him.
She became a quite powerful, rich single lady in England who could live her life in peace doing what she enjoyed.
I think she got more than what she wanted in the end, don’t you?

[sandyberger-rj]

Anne was the lucky one who got away. She lived a long life with honors and without the dangers of childbirth.

[amaracrow]

What sucks is she was horribly homesick and missed her sister and mother very much but a stipulation of her settlement was that she had to stay in England. To go home was to basically come back as not only humiliated by the rejection but destitute as well. This also ensured that her family would not retaliate against England for the injury to the leaders sister. I always doubted the rumour she was hoping to be his queen again. Remember Henry was not only huge and ill tempered the older he became but the leg wound of his reportedly smelled of infection.

[julzmgrforll]

There is no mystery about Henry calling Ann ugly. He was a childish old man and the worse thing he could say about her without having to prove any problem with her was to say she was ugly. Hateful people still use it to be insulting and express frustration.

[SewardWriter]

I've never heard anything about Anne wanting Henry back. Why would she? He was an awful person.

[daniellemusella]

Anna, as she preferred to be called, was probably so happy, to have been left alive. She simply enjoyed all her new wealth and prestige, and she was never going to do anything that would risk Henry, taking it all away from her. I don't blame her one bit for that. Also, though it's not a 100% consensus, the historians' works I've read say that they believe she died from breast cancer. (typed 10/20/2023)

[theophilos]

Anne of Cleves was politically savvy & acted like a professional card-shark apparently at the games table—her generous alimony settlement (which included several palatial estates & massive land-holdings) was worth $1Billion in modern dollars — she may have been homely but shrewd as a snake — and did very well for herself by making ‘lemonade’ out of a lemon fate handed her…

[heronimousbrapson]

Anne of Cleves, like Catherine of Aragon, would likely not have been executed as they were foreign. This would have been politically risky. Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard were English, so were much more likely to be executed without repercussions.

[kaliwindx]

The music is way too loud. It is detracting from being able to hear the narration.

[robert]

I've heard this theory the first time. And it's the most credible I must say.
I mean he trusted Holbein. He was the painter by choice because of his accurate depictions. Why would he suddenly betray Henry after being ordered to paint it accurately?

[myragroenewegen]

I love the thought of this person who was rejected so mysteriously and somehow came out apparently better for it and better than Henry's other wives. Who knows--ANYTHING could have gone down and we'll never know. The excuses of "not pretty enough" and "didn't know what sex even was" and "probably wasn't virgin anyway" all sound so absurd and fabricated. Maybe Anne immediately told Henry that he was wonderful, but that she was terrified of being the queen, although she was equally terrified to tell her family her fears. Maybe she couldn't forgive Henry for deceiving her with his robber dress-up game and making her possibly fear for her life or safety right before marriage and it was just too bad a stat to overcome with two big egos in the room. Henry often comes off vengeful, stupid and petty, so how this apparently cast out woman eventually gained treatment as all-but-royalty has to be a really interesting story.

[GothosRedux]

I don’t know why you consider Anne’s burial place to be insignificant.

What you saw was a marker on the north face of her sarcophagus, not her tomb itself. It’s in a very prominent position.

If you watched the coronation of Charles III, then you noticed the large, long table-like structure that had all the regalia placed upon it.

THAT is the tomb of Anne of Cleves!

You want to see an insignificant tomb? All Henry got was a niche in the mausoleum at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle. Which he shares with Jane Seymour, Charles I and and infant child of Queen Anne (last of the Stuart monarchs). His only memorial is a slab with his name and those of his roommates in the choir floor above him.

[kathleenclark]

Apparently, her family, although of the aristocracy was penurious. This match would have been a life line for the family. She pretty much did not have a choice. Also, Holbein, the artist of the infamous portrait, was rumoured to have fallen in love with her and painted her through a lover’s eyes. Poor girl! However, she managed to parlay her position into a perfect life for herself without Henry but as an apparent great friend of his for the rest of her life. Had she stayed at home, her life would have been really rather awful. It is unfortunate she died so young but certainly not executed or in childbirth. I can only imagine how dreadful Henry was later in life, with an ulcerous leg, ever increasing weight and having lost his youthful promise. He became a real tyrant. My historical heroine will always be Elizabeth I. She avoided assassinations and political traps all of her life. Tough as nails she was in a male dominated society. She learned life lessons from the number of her step mothers who died early. Something to keep in mind!

[wg]

Im glad Anne came away better off. And I know he said that he didn't like her. I think he did. Maybe not as a wife. He declared her to be his sister. Both of his natural sisters were deceased by that time. Sometimes people meet someone they like but no romantic interest. He didn't seem to mind having her around. He gave her property and living expenses. A lot more i could say. She did well anyway.

[LisaG]

She got the best deal of all the wives. He was so grateful she went without a fight he styled her “sister” which made her second only to a Queen in precedence. He took care of her financially and never remarried making her truly independent. Unheard of for a woman in those days. All around winner .

[teresawelter]

If I could travel back in time, Anna would be the first I'd want to visit. We know so very little about her thoughts, feelings, her talents, likes and dislikes...But she must have had a sharp wit to navigate a situation like hers with such dignity and grace. I also heard she was quite fond of the young Elizabeth and wrote to her frequently. Maybe one smart woman recognised another...