Anne of Cleves definitely got the best ending out of the 6 wives. She was super wealthy, she wasn’t expected to marry (a great thing for Tudor women) and she remained super popular among the public. Even Henry liked her, as she made the divorce super easy. They would often just hang out and play chess. Henry literally called her ‘the sister of England’ and ‘the most important woman in England aside from my wife and daughters’. She was also pretty well liked by all her step children. She really was just living her best life.
Just coming on to say the same thing. Weirdly, she was actually the one he got on best with and had the most in common with. She took her time to learn the language, learn the rules of court, befriend the right people, and eventually would be placed at his side for many political and family dinners. If he hadn't made knee-jerk reactions, their relationship would have been better, and history would have been very different.
@@acousticmonkey2209Assuming she had a son, and that Henry wasn’t one of those men who treats women he sleeps with like trash and women he doesn’t sleep with like people (but I don’t think so).
@@acousticmonkey2209that's common behaviour for males, particularly younger males. Getting on fabulous with an average looking person, spend years with em. Out of blue pick a pretty one and your done. Then when you don't get on divorce or separation. Rinse, repeat. See this everywhere..
She never got to go home. On one hand, yes she didn't get murdered by her new husband for failure to catch on to the roleplay started in previous relationships (always fun when someone drags something from their last relationship into their new one) but she was basically a VERY well kept prisoner in England.
@@kateherr2893yes but there is conjecture that she didn’t want to go home because her brother would just have married her off to someone else for another alliance. In England, she wouldn’t have been allowed to marry but she had wealth and more freedom than she ever would have been allowed in her own country. It is believed that she was happy with the arrangement.
Anne of Cleves may or may not have been what we today would consider beautiful, but way more importantly she was brilliant, practical, and by all accounts very kind.
I always think in the game of "Who was Henry's best wife?" Anne of Cleves comed out on top. She was a smart woman who, despite not knowing English, actually played the game best. She learned English, learned the court rules, made friends with the right people, didn’t make a fuss, just smiled, went on her way and won his affection over time. She knew how to play the long game. Catherine Parr was a close second with the skills to play to his ego and keep herself out of trouble.
It's hard to tell because Jane Seymour died of complications from the birth of Edward VI so we don't know. She married Henry *after* the death of Catherine of Argon so no divorce was required and Anne Boleyn was beheaded. Henry was buried beside Jane, on his request, in the grave he had made for her. Basically he considered Jane his true wife.
I think Catherine of Aragon was also a formidable woman. Her greatest failing (which wasn't even her fault) was that none of her children with Henry (except Mary) lived to adulthood. Her divorce with Henry did not end amazingly for her, but that was also out of her control. She definitely put up one hell of a fight and escaped with dignity.
@@hurricaneofcatsI think Catherine of Aragon's problem was that she couldn't have really understood what was happening. This hadn't happened in Europe before.
@@jonathanbuzzard1376 Weirdly, I made the same point when I had this discussion with my sisters a few months back. My exact words were, "Jane Seymour... we'll never really know what could have been." She was fortunate, unlike Lady Jane Grey, to live the rest of her life pretty much on her terms, with no interference from Henry or panicking court members about her religious views. My reply here was taken from that conversation, but I thought it was too long for a reply on just Anne of Cleves. I also said I thought Catherine of Aragon was actually extremely lucky in total. Anne Boleyn to me was screwed over, and that was quite a sad life. Pursued relentlessly, then killed when she didn't provide a son. Kathryn Howard was young, a bit reckless, maybe, but unlucky.
@@AllTheHappySquirrels The thing is he was not mediocre. He was pretty bright, athletic before his injury and generally what petite thought would make a good king. Problem was he wouldn't take no for an answer.
I saw a comment once on another one of YT’s history channels saying something like “If Anne of Cleves has a ghost it will be riding through all her castles at midnight and when her carriage passes by all people hear is “All I do is Win” by DJ Khaled because she got away with everything” and honestly I feel like that is the best description Ive ever heard of her.
The only thing I regret for Anne of Cleves is that she died so young, in her early 40’s. She ought to have had much longer to enjoy her unique freedom.
I've heard this story as Anne not being ugly, just not his type. I imagine an aging meglomanic being difficult to please, so Anne getting the best deal of all is a sign of her intelligence and character.
I remember some historian once argued that a large part of it was that Henry had a type and Anne didn't fit into it. Apparently Anne might have been a bit too voluptuous for his liking! It's interesting also that, post divorce, that Henry and Ann got on really well. He referred to her as a sister on multiple occasions, and often invited her to special events. So maybe they just had no spark. Shame that someone had to die and Cromwell ended up being that someone, but on the other hand he had done enough awful things that he deserved it on some cosmic karmic level.
And was loved BY her step children as well. Though she came as part of a Protestant alliance, she was personally basically a Catholic, so she got on well with Mary. She was part of a Protestant alliance so she got on well with Edward and Elizabeth. She was the second or third lady in rank in England. It can be argued that during Edward's reign, after the death of Catherine Parr, she was the First Lady of Rank in England.
She’s my favorite out of all of Henry’s wives. She wasn’t trying to become Queen. She wasn’t trying to stay Queen. She was just trying to adapt to a different culture than the one she grew up in. She kept on friendly terms with Henry and his court. Yet was able to stay away at her own pleasure. She got the best deal.
Anne has long been my favorite wife of Henry VIII, because she was the only one whose life wasn't ruined by Henry. Not sure if this was because she was really clever, or just really lucky, but considering the amazing divorce settlement she got (land, money, titles, a place at court, etc), I am betting she was far from stupid.
@@roberthudson1959 I would disagree. She had to give up the man she loved to marry Henry and when she did end up marrying him after Henry died, it was a huge scandal, the guy was more interested in Catherine's young step-daughter Elizabeth than Catherine, and Catherine ended up dying in childbirth. Yes, Catherine survived Henry, but she was hardly living her best life. Not to mention she had to play nurse to Henry VIII for years.
Six the Musical made me love Anne. In a competition over whose life was the worst because of Henry, she gleefully admits that she got the best deal out of everyone. Her song is all about how she's the queen of her own castle and Henry can't stop her from living her best life.
She’s the Queen of the Castle✨ They say “divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived”, but Anne of Cleves outlived Kateryn Parr, and even saw Mary I crowned.
Anne (Ms Cleves) was definitely the winner when it came to Henry viii. ❤ When I was little I called her Anne of Sleeves) 🤣but then again I also called my Dad’s friend Mr Shoes 🤣 His name was Hughes, Mr Hughes. I called him that lovingly well into my adult years, and so did my father 🤣🤣
I've long thought this too. Maybe not the taste of the time, but there's something about the Holbein portrait that almost has an air of a pretty modern girl cosplaying Anne of Cleeves.
Thank you!!!! Anne of Cleves has the most intriguing story of all his wives and yet she's often sadly treated as a footnote. Married a dangerous king, "insulted" him at their first meeting, married and divorced him, got lots of nice comfy houses, one of his closest and longest advisors was executed over the whole debacle and she kept her head, got to live in great comfort playing cards with that same king who referred to her as his dear sister. Where are the movies and TV shows? There's some stories there
Why do I picture Henry as a guy who used to be really hot but now is well past his prime but still think he's gotit 'cause everyone is too scared to tell him the truth
Because that's not too far off the mark. He was a physical imposing athlete in his youth and like many athletic guys, well, you know the rest of the story on that one.
That is the truth actually. He used to be adored by many and was popular among the women when he was young but he didn't realise that he grew up to be a crusty old angry man
As History Calling here on RUclips pointed out, Holbein was never punished for misrepresenting Anne. If he had made her look more beautiful than she really was, he would have faced some pretty severe repercussions from Henry VIII. Holbein was very well known by that point for painting true to life, so we can assume that Anne's portrait was accurate, and that Henry claiming that she was ugly has more to do to his bruised ego than anything else.
My favorite interpretations of Anne involve her being clever and coming to an agreement with Henry, and that they worked out a plan together to the mutially desired annulment/divorce, involving non-consummation and not fighting Henry even it was less than flattering to her. She was under-educated by English standards, but that certainly doesn't mean dumb, and i prefer to think of her having intelligence enough to make things work for her as much as was possible. And she did come out on the best side of it. I think in part she is perceived as unintelligent in part because she didn't know English, that portrait shows a very placid if pretty woman, and she seemingly went along with the tide (all of his other wives defied him in some fashion by comparison). Her reported quote about Henry coming to her bed and kissing her good night and then in the morning kissing her again, and then asking her ladies if that wasn't enough, probably doesn't help.
I love Anne’s song in Six. It really shows just how well Anne came out of this situation. I read a biography of her a while ago. Her brother was basically abusive and she escaped that, then escaped Henry and because of her ‘pre contract’ she got to live by her own rules with lots of money. She outlived Henry and Catherine Parr.
Im sure Anne wasnt a stunner, its just a fact of life that not everyone is, but Holbine didnt paint an *inaccurate* portrait of Anne, he merely *downplayed* her features and emphasized her jewlery and her magnificent gown. Even now the first thing you see when you look at her portrait is the colors and embroidery of her gown, the necklaces across her neck and chest and the lace detailing beneath them, her face is washed out under her hood but you see every single detail of a magnificent brooch pinned to one side, every single pearl sewn into her neckline is emphasized every single jewel is painted and her face is even facing forward which is unusual for his work but it would downplay any "undesirable" features. Holbein wasnt stupid, he knew not to completely *lie* if he had at best his reputation in England wouldve been ruined at worst Henry wouldve m*rdered him. I actually heard a really good explanation for Henry falling for Anne's portrait from a documentary years ago Basically with Annes face being painted in a way that essentially made it blank, Henry was able to project a fantasy onto the canvas so of course no one was going to hold up to it in the light of day. Henry was basically Lord Farquad in this whole thing.
@madtabby66 That's true, but also people called all sorts of things pox marks like severe acne or rosacia But you're right having those kinds of marks on your face wouldn't have been unusual
I had also heard that the alliance she was supposed to be cementing by marriage to Henry was also basically falling apart before she had even arrived in England, and I've always loved that after their divorce/annulment they actually got on extremely well. Out of curiosity, have you ever seen Six Wives of Henry VIII from 1970. Not the most historically accurate, but a brilliant series (as it its follow-up Elizabeth R).
Imagine getting titles, multiple castles, freedom from being forced to marry, and respect from a power mad king and his entire country, and the best best part of the deal is that you DON'T have to sleep with him!
She out lived the rest of Henry's wives. She was one of the wealthiest women in England and was out ranked only by the current queen. She lived long enough to see her step son become king and her oldest stepdaughter become queen. She was beloved by the people
I think she got the best deal out of all his wives! She still died fairly young though for a Nobel woman, considering that she didn't have the danger of childbirth. But cancer seems pretty rife in Tudor times.
The Tudors and their bedroom issues... Every time I hear about this I think of the poor Catalina de Aragón. She was in a bad place to be the good wife she was.
Only thing I liked about the Tudors series is when they cast Joss Stone as Anne of Cleves. She had the perfect image in would imagine of Anne … she even had a resemblance to the painting. Not a gorgeous woman, but still pleasant to look at, mild-mannered and polite.
Your words / his words " you're not that pretty anyway" accurately describes how a certain social media platform was started...... Also, point of interest is how many wives did that man actually have.. His first Mrs was engaged at the time of the marriage.. Vatican said So sad too bad... And he "married one of the Mrs when they were not even in the same country at the time of the wedding !!! & As always Thank you for your post
In "the tudors" (admittedly NOT super accurate), she was played by Joss Stone, and i remember thinking "odd, wasnt anne of cleves supposed to be ugly, or at least plain?" That was wheni leanred that the "flanders mare" thing started once she rejected henry. So, the tudors was actually on the money on that one :-)
They didn't divorce, they never consummated the marriage and it was annulled by agreement; Anne got land and became quite well off, and Henry always welcomed her at Court. They remained good friends till Henry's death. If Catherine of Aragon had agreed to an annulment, there's no reason to believe she wouldn't have been treated as well as Anne. But she was committed to aligning England with Spain and all that that would bring with it; that's the only reason she was here in the first place. Her daughter Mary was just a taste of what it would've been like.
Whilst I know that the showtime series "the Tudors" was a "based on" work of fiction rather than a historical documentary, i still really enjoy it. Now we know that in reality Henry said he thought she looked like a Flanders mare most likely so he could start building himself an out from the outset. But i could imagine being a fly on the wall during their production meetings for the show. "Ok, now we need to cast a woman to portray a woman Henry is going to say he finds unattractive. Who are we thinking?" "I got it! Joss Stone!" "GENIUS! SMITH THAT'S ABSOLUTELY GENIUS! we'll get an absolutely smokin hot pop singer to play a woman our protagonist is going to claim he thinks is ugly! BRILLIANT! SMITH! where's my coke? If we're out, you're fired" Joss Stone is very pretty.
!["But Everyone Thought That Back Then": Edward and Catherine Despard [Long Shorts]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/LMrmKX06e_I/mqdefault.jpg)
I remember a historian being interviewed for a podcast saying "there was only one ugly, smelly, non-virgin in that marital bed, and it wasn't Anne." 😂
🤣🤣🤣
Anne of Cleves definitely got the best ending out of the 6 wives. She was super wealthy, she wasn’t expected to marry (a great thing for Tudor women) and she remained super popular among the public. Even Henry liked her, as she made the divorce super easy. They would often just hang out and play chess. Henry literally called her ‘the sister of England’ and ‘the most important woman in England aside from my wife and daughters’. She was also pretty well liked by all her step children. She really was just living her best life.
True
I call that a win!
Just coming on to say the same thing. Weirdly, she was actually the one he got on best with and had the most in common with. She took her time to learn the language, learn the rules of court, befriend the right people, and eventually would be placed at his side for many political and family dinners. If he hadn't made knee-jerk reactions, their relationship would have been better, and history would have been very different.
@@acousticmonkey2209Assuming she had a son, and that Henry wasn’t one of those men who treats women he sleeps with like trash and women he doesn’t sleep with like people (but I don’t think so).
@@acousticmonkey2209that's common behaviour for males, particularly younger males. Getting on fabulous with an average looking person, spend years with em. Out of blue pick a pretty one and your done. Then when you don't get on divorce or separation. Rinse, repeat. See this everywhere..
Anne of Cleves didn't just outlive Henry, she outlived his subsequent wives. She just missed seeing her stepdaughter Elizabeth come to the throne.
Not having to sleep with the royal fart seems like the best perk apart from him not killing you lol.
Anne of Cleves was either the luckiest or the smartest of Henry's 6 wives.
Or better yet, both.
I think she saw the writing on the wall and took what she could get. And she took a lot lol
She never got to go home. On one hand, yes she didn't get murdered by her new husband for failure to catch on to the roleplay started in previous relationships (always fun when someone drags something from their last relationship into their new one) but she was basically a VERY well kept prisoner in England.
@@kateherr2893yes but there is conjecture that she didn’t want to go home because her brother would just have married her off to someone else for another alliance. In England, she wouldn’t have been allowed to marry but she had wealth and more freedom than she ever would have been allowed in her own country. It is believed that she was happy with the arrangement.
Batman’s a scientist.
Anne of Cleves may or may not have been what we today would consider beautiful, but way more importantly she was brilliant, practical, and by all accounts very kind.
I always think in the game of "Who was Henry's best wife?" Anne of Cleves comed out on top. She was a smart woman who, despite not knowing English, actually played the game best. She learned English, learned the court rules, made friends with the right people, didn’t make a fuss, just smiled, went on her way and won his affection over time. She knew how to play the long game.
Catherine Parr was a close second with the skills to play to his ego and keep herself out of trouble.
It's hard to tell because Jane Seymour died of complications from the birth of Edward VI so we don't know. She married Henry *after* the death of Catherine of Argon so no divorce was required and Anne Boleyn was beheaded. Henry was buried beside Jane, on his request, in the grave he had made for her. Basically he considered Jane his true wife.
I think Catherine of Aragon was also a formidable woman. Her greatest failing (which wasn't even her fault) was that none of her children with Henry (except Mary) lived to adulthood. Her divorce with Henry did not end amazingly for her, but that was also out of her control. She definitely put up one hell of a fight and escaped with dignity.
@@hurricaneofcatsI think Catherine of Aragon's problem was that she couldn't have really understood what was happening. This hadn't happened in Europe before.
@@jonathanbuzzard1376 Weirdly, I made the same point when I had this discussion with my sisters a few months back. My exact words were, "Jane Seymour... we'll never really know what could have been." She was fortunate, unlike Lady Jane Grey, to live the rest of her life pretty much on her terms, with no interference from Henry or panicking court members about her religious views. My reply here was taken from that conversation, but I thought it was too long for a reply on just Anne of Cleves. I also said I thought Catherine of Aragon was actually extremely lucky in total.
Anne Boleyn to me was screwed over, and that was quite a sad life. Pursued relentlessly, then killed when she didn't provide a son. Kathryn Howard was young, a bit reckless, maybe, but unlucky.
Why is Henry VIII that guy you tried to avoid from work, but he has his own kingdom?
He's a VERY bad boss. But don't take my word for it, ask Sir Thomas Moore, or Thomas Cromwell, or Cardinal Woolsey...
Never underestimate the audacity of a mediocre man.
@@AllTheHappySquirrels The thing is he was not mediocre. He was pretty bright, athletic before his injury and generally what petite thought would make a good king. Problem was he wouldn't take no for an answer.
I saw a comment once on another one of YT’s history channels saying something like “If Anne of Cleves has a ghost it will be riding through all her castles at midnight and when her carriage passes by all people hear is “All I do is Win” by DJ Khaled because she got away with everything” and honestly I feel like that is the best description Ive ever heard of her.
Henry definitely embodies the adage about what happens when you give a weak man power.
Henry was many things, most of them unsavory, but weak is not among them.
@richardbale3278 a complete lack of self-regulation is weakness
@@wallycola5653 I think he’s mistaking power for strength.
At this moment, you have an amusing number of likes.
Henry wasn’t weak. He fell victim to paranoia, the fate of everyone who holds too much power for too long.
The only thing I regret for Anne of Cleves is that she died so young, in her early 40’s. She ought to have had much longer to enjoy her unique freedom.
I've heard this story as Anne not being ugly, just not his type. I imagine an aging meglomanic being difficult to please, so Anne getting the best deal of all is a sign of her intelligence and character.
Never having to sleep with Henry VIII is probably the best part of that divorce settlement.
I remember some historian once argued that a large part of it was that Henry had a type and Anne didn't fit into it. Apparently Anne might have been a bit too voluptuous for his liking!
It's interesting also that, post divorce, that Henry and Ann got on really well. He referred to her as a sister on multiple occasions, and often invited her to special events. So maybe they just had no spark.
Shame that someone had to die and Cromwell ended up being that someone, but on the other hand he had done enough awful things that he deserved it on some cosmic karmic level.
Of the 6 wives, Anne of Cleves is my favorite. She was known to be kind to servants and loved her stepchildren.
And was loved BY her step children as well. Though she came as part of a Protestant alliance, she was personally basically a Catholic, so she got on well with Mary. She was part of a Protestant alliance so she got on well with Edward and Elizabeth. She was the second or third lady in rank in England. It can be argued that during Edward's reign, after the death of Catherine Parr, she was the First Lady of Rank in England.
I find that very hard to believe. It's like a fairytale. If they nade a story of this, GenZ will scoff at this saying she's a Mary Sue.
I don’t care what other people call her. Why is being kind a bad thing? @@MoeruAcckkountu
She’s my favorite out of all of Henry’s wives. She wasn’t trying to become Queen. She wasn’t trying to stay Queen. She was just trying to adapt to a different culture than the one she grew up in. She kept on friendly terms with Henry and his court. Yet was able to stay away at her own pleasure. She got the best deal.
Anne has long been my favorite wife of Henry VIII, because she was the only one whose life wasn't ruined by Henry. Not sure if this was because she was really clever, or just really lucky, but considering the amazing divorce settlement she got (land, money, titles, a place at court, etc), I am betting she was far from stupid.
She was also beloved by everyone. I think it's a mix of both.
Catherine Parr, Henry's widow, didn't do badly.
She was also from one of the few families willing to work with Henry and lend him support.
Now I’m picturing Henry as Walter White, and wondering who Anne was in the Breaking Bad-verse. Maybe the guy who sold the car wash (lol)?
@@roberthudson1959 I would disagree. She had to give up the man she loved to marry Henry and when she did end up marrying him after Henry died, it was a huge scandal, the guy was more interested in Catherine's young step-daughter Elizabeth than Catherine, and Catherine ended up dying in childbirth. Yes, Catherine survived Henry, but she was hardly living her best life. Not to mention she had to play nurse to Henry VIII for years.
Six the Musical made me love Anne. In a competition over whose life was the worst because of Henry, she gleefully admits that she got the best deal out of everyone. Her song is all about how she's the queen of her own castle and Henry can't stop her from living her best life.
Anne of Cleves is the only one of Henry's wives who hasn't got a ghost story.
She’s the Queen of the Castle✨
They say “divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived”, but Anne of Cleves outlived Kateryn Parr, and even saw Mary I crowned.
" ... and never had too sleep with Henry VIII" ... Or had her head chopped off.
and she survived it all...
Anne (Ms Cleves) was definitely the winner when it came to Henry viii. ❤
When I was little I called her Anne of Sleeves) 🤣but then again I also called my Dad’s friend Mr Shoes 🤣
His name was Hughes, Mr Hughes.
I called him that lovingly well into my adult years, and so did my father 🤣🤣
Just want you to know that I'm not having the best day but "Mr Shoes" gave me a much-needed chuckle 😄
I’m surprised Mr. Hughes didn’t give you the boot.
@@jameswolf133 ha ha good one 🙂
@@artyfowljrr oh I’m so glad. Your reply made me smile 🙂
If she was as pretty as Holbein painted her, I think she was a beautiful woman. She was smart too! Henry wasn't bright enough to know what he had
I've long thought this too. Maybe not the taste of the time, but there's something about the Holbein portrait that almost has an air of a pretty modern girl cosplaying Anne of Cleeves.
Thank you!!!! Anne of Cleves has the most intriguing story of all his wives and yet she's often sadly treated as a footnote. Married a dangerous king, "insulted" him at their first meeting, married and divorced him, got lots of nice comfy houses, one of his closest and longest advisors was executed over the whole debacle and she kept her head, got to live in great comfort playing cards with that same king who referred to her as his dear sister. Where are the movies and TV shows? There's some stories there
Tell me she's a demon without telling me she's a demon. She sounds too suspicious.
Honestly, I always considered her a winner in the grand scheme of it all🙌
Why do I picture Henry as a guy who used to be really hot but now is well past his prime but still think he's gotit 'cause everyone is too scared to tell him the truth
Because that's not too far off the mark. He was a physical imposing athlete in his youth and like many athletic guys, well, you know the rest of the story on that one.
That is the truth actually. He used to be adored by many and was popular among the women when he was young but he didn't realise that he grew up to be a crusty old angry man
As History Calling here on RUclips pointed out, Holbein was never punished for misrepresenting Anne. If he had made her look more beautiful than she really was, he would have faced some pretty severe repercussions from Henry VIII. Holbein was very well known by that point for painting true to life, so we can assume that Anne's portrait was accurate, and that Henry claiming that she was ugly has more to do to his bruised ego than anything else.
I just love Anne of Cleves! She was smart!
Never had to sleep with him was probably the best part of it. 😂
My favorite interpretations of Anne involve her being clever and coming to an agreement with Henry, and that they worked out a plan together to the mutially desired annulment/divorce, involving non-consummation and not fighting Henry even it was less than flattering to her. She was under-educated by English standards, but that certainly doesn't mean dumb, and i prefer to think of her having intelligence enough to make things work for her as much as was possible. And she did come out on the best side of it.
I think in part she is perceived as unintelligent in part because she didn't know English, that portrait shows a very placid if pretty woman, and she seemingly went along with the tide (all of his other wives defied him in some fashion by comparison). Her reported quote about Henry coming to her bed and kissing her good night and then in the morning kissing her again, and then asking her ladies if that wasn't enough, probably doesn't help.
Plus I'm that situation. It's better to be called stupid. You can easily tell your allies from your enemies.
Anne became much loved by Elizabeth and Mary.
"and she never had to sleep with Henry the 8th." Go Anne.
I love Anne’s song in Six. It really shows just how well Anne came out of this situation. I read a biography of her a while ago. Her brother was basically abusive and she escaped that, then escaped Henry and because of her ‘pre contract’ she got to live by her own rules with lots of money. She outlived Henry and Catherine Parr.
She dodged a bullet.
The most famous worse blind date in history
Im sure Anne wasnt a stunner, its just a fact of life that not everyone is, but Holbine didnt paint an *inaccurate* portrait of Anne, he merely *downplayed* her features and emphasized her jewlery and her magnificent gown. Even now the first thing you see when you look at her portrait is the colors and embroidery of her gown, the necklaces across her neck and chest and the lace detailing beneath them, her face is washed out under her hood but you see every single detail of a magnificent brooch pinned to one side, every single pearl sewn into her neckline is emphasized every single jewel is painted and her face is even facing forward which is unusual for his work but it would downplay any "undesirable" features.
Holbein wasnt stupid, he knew not to completely *lie* if he had at best his reputation in England wouldve been ruined at worst Henry wouldve m*rdered him.
I actually heard a really good explanation for Henry falling for Anne's portrait from a documentary years ago
Basically with Annes face being painted in a way that essentially made it blank, Henry was able to project a fantasy onto the canvas so of course no one was going to hold up to it in the light of day.
Henry was basically Lord Farquad in this whole thing.
That basically describes Henry VIII, period
I’ve read that she was heavily pox marked, but that wasn’t really uncommon then.
@madtabby66
That's true, but also people called all sorts of things pox marks like severe acne or rosacia
But you're right having those kinds of marks on your face wouldn't have been unusual
@@amandahealey2216
Yeah you're not wrong
The final concession mentioned in the divorce agreement may be the greatest victory of all
I think she lucked out, quite frankly.
I had also heard that the alliance she was supposed to be cementing by marriage to Henry was also basically falling apart before she had even arrived in England, and I've always loved that after their divorce/annulment they actually got on extremely well.
Out of curiosity, have you ever seen Six Wives of Henry VIII from 1970. Not the most historically accurate, but a brilliant series (as it its follow-up Elizabeth R).
Never had to bed him. Brilliant!
Anne of Cleves won the Game of Thrones and I love her for it!
Anne was the smartest wife she outlived Henry
She was so smart 😂 she knew things and she created the escape plan as soon as possible. She had a great deal and benefits from this
I love that they become friends after the divorce and she becomes like his sister 🤣
I love this take on Anne of Cleves. She definitely was the lucky one !
I can't think of many prizes better than not sleeping with Henry VIII
Imagine getting titles, multiple castles, freedom from being forced to marry, and respect from a power mad king and his entire country, and the best best part of the deal is that you DON'T have to sleep with him!
😂😂😂
Rather call me ugly and keep my head on my neck 😂 not too mention the other benefits. Lucky Anne…
Anne is my favorite character in the musical Six!
And she got to keep her head. That doesn't seem like it should be an achievement, but ... well ... here we are, aren't we?
She's one of the "survived"! Good for her! Not everyone needed to be miserable under Hank Ocho's watch.
I work that into as many of my contracts as I can - “doesn’t have to sleep with Henry VIII”
Replace that with Elon Musk to suit 21st Century.
She out lived the rest of Henry's wives. She was one of the wealthiest women in England and was out ranked only by the current queen. She lived long enough to see her step son become king and her oldest stepdaughter become queen. She was beloved by the people
I think she got the best deal out of all his wives! She still died fairly young though for a Nobel woman, considering that she didn't have the danger of childbirth. But cancer seems pretty rife in Tudor times.
You know, it's funny how we talk about that and never Henry's little...
Of the 6, seems like she came off best.
The Tudors and their bedroom issues... Every time I hear about this I think of the poor Catalina de Aragón. She was in a bad place to be the good wife she was.
Like so many questionable men who have come since, I doubt Henry had any concept of not being a hot catch himself. Those unfortunate women.
"No one tells me that I need a rich man.
I'm doing my thing in my palace in Richmond"
Anna of Kleves
I feel like anne was the real winner of the whole Henry the 8th saga
Only thing I liked about the Tudors series is when they cast Joss Stone as Anne of Cleves. She had the perfect image in would imagine of Anne … she even had a resemblance to the painting. Not a gorgeous woman, but still pleasant to look at, mild-mannered and polite.
Thanks again, British Lady
Anne also outlived every one of the other wives.
I can't help thinking of Elsa Lanchester in the role, trying to make herself look ugly by making faces 😂
Icon, damn, I love her. ❤
As a big ol pouffe I can assure you that the latter would have been the greater prize compared to all the land, titles and hard cash!!!😂❤
Lovely jacket by the by- Jenny's, that is.
Your words / his words " you're not that pretty anyway" accurately describes how a certain social media platform was started......
Also, point of interest is how many wives did that man actually have.. His first Mrs was engaged at the time of the marriage.. Vatican said So sad too bad... And he "married one of the Mrs when they were not even in the same country at the time of the wedding !!!
& As always Thank you for your post
She won for sure
Holbein didn’t mess around. If he painted you like that, you looked…like that! Go Anne!
He really had r/niceguy syndrome 😂
Wonderful! Thanks ❤❤
What's less known about her is she was actually called Anne of Sleeves because of how baggy her shirts were.
I read she had a good sense of humour.
I also read that Henry had been the fourth husband to Catherine Parr.
Never had to sleep with him AND kept her head! The luckiest of them all
Thank you for explaining the HISTORY of it, because I knew it was to weird (and unrealistic) but I didn't know what actually happened!
Good for Anne of Cleves! She won Henry's game!
So henry was the first "Nice guy™"
The luckiest of them all!
Probably dodged an sti
Was Anne of Cleves the reason why Thomas Cromwell got beheaded?
In fact there is a house in Lewes called the Anne of Cleaves House that was part of the agreement
I’ve learned so much from your videos!
The good ending
Good for her!
In "the tudors" (admittedly NOT super accurate), she was played by Joss Stone, and i remember thinking "odd, wasnt anne of cleves supposed to be ugly, or at least plain?" That was wheni leanred that the "flanders mare" thing started once she rejected henry. So, the tudors was actually on the money on that one :-)
And she kept her head!
They didn't divorce, they never consummated the marriage and it was annulled by agreement; Anne got land and became quite well off, and Henry always welcomed her at Court. They remained good friends till Henry's death.
If Catherine of Aragon had agreed to an annulment, there's no reason to believe she wouldn't have been treated as well as Anne. But she was committed to aligning England with Spain and all that that would bring with it; that's the only reason she was here in the first place. Her daughter Mary was just a taste of what it would've been like.
Anne got off lucky!
Very just, at last!
And she lived!
I learned her story at the musical Six 😂
Whilst I know that the showtime series "the Tudors" was a "based on" work of fiction rather than a historical documentary, i still really enjoy it.
Now we know that in reality Henry said he thought she looked like a Flanders mare most likely so he could start building himself an out from the outset.
But i could imagine being a fly on the wall during their production meetings for the show.
"Ok, now we need to cast a woman to portray a woman Henry is going to say he finds unattractive. Who are we thinking?"
"I got it! Joss Stone!"
"GENIUS! SMITH THAT'S ABSOLUTELY GENIUS! we'll get an absolutely smokin hot pop singer to play a woman our protagonist is going to claim he thinks is ugly! BRILLIANT! SMITH! where's my coke? If we're out, you're fired"
Joss Stone is very pretty.
Cute is relative. I don't mean Anne, but rather Henry's joke.
Anne of Cleves, For the Win.
What a delightful insight into toxic masculinity 😂
From the comments I see that he treated her very well. He called her his sister and even invited her to events.
It’s not even that. Henry was just very stubborn.
The Tudors took a lot of liberties but from what I've read they actually did a pretty decent job telling the story of Anne of Cleves.
Anne was one of the few women that were associated with the Tudors that didn't have some awful tragic story
Cue up 4th Wife Song from SIX.