Question from Leigh - Bond between Anne Boleyn and her daughter
posted by Lara | 6:36 PM
Hi there,
I'm interested to know about the 'bond' (if there was such a thing) between Anne Boleyn and her daughter, Elizabeth. Did Anne love her daughter? Or did she resent her for not being born a boy? Was there ever any evidence of a maternal bond between the two?
Many thanks!
I'm interested to know about the 'bond' (if there was such a thing) between Anne Boleyn and her daughter, Elizabeth. Did Anne love her daughter? Or did she resent her for not being born a boy? Was there ever any evidence of a maternal bond between the two?
Many thanks!
9 Comments:
The question is somewhat anachronistic in that it assumes that people in the sixteenth century behaved exactly the same as people do today. But that is not the case, as historians of the family and society have shown. It is a false start to try to find modern parental attitudes in a past era.
But to answer your question directly: Did Anne love her daughter [Elizabeth]? We don't know with certainty WHAT Anne felt toward her. Their relationship was a distant one, literally, because Elizabeth was placed in a separate household at Hatfield House, outside of London, shortly after birth. Anne did not raise her own daughter. Anne visited Elizabeth only infrequently in the months remaining before her own death. But this was customary behavior for English queens and their children (Katherine of Aragon was a notable exception, following Spanish custom instead of English). The children of most wealthy, noble, and royal parents were rasied by servants, seldom by the parents themselves. Neither did Anne leave any written record of her feelings toward her daughter. Nor is there any evidence of the extent of any "maternal bond" (a modern term unknown in the 1530s) between Anne and Elizabeth.
Did Anne resent Elizabeth for not being born a boy? Again, there is no specific evidence to say either way. Was she frustrated? Probably, since her husband placed massive importance on a male child. But we cannot reliably conclude that Anne "resented" Elizabeth's female-ness.
Elizabeth does not seem to have mentioned her mother once she was a monarch, but is known to have worn a necklace with Anne's initials on.
Before Elizabeth was born a letter had been written by Anne and in the letter she writes the word prince rather than the word princess because a prince had been what was expected.
After the birth an extra s had been put into the letter so no one was confused over the gender of the baby.
Once Elizabeth was born the king Henry refused to go to the christening.
Elizabeth was then taken away to a separate household and looked after by tutors and nurses.
As far as I know and from what I know regarding Anne's Maternal feelings and love for her daughter is when Elizabeth was born and then on Anne arranged and had clothes sent to her.
Even though Elizabeth grew up not really knowing her mother and not mentioning her throughout her life.
Although Elizabeth carried a locket ring with a picture of her mother Anne one side and Herself the other.she carried this ring with her all her life.
Parents did not attend the christenings of their own children in sixteenth-century England. Women were forbidden to do so on religious grounds, and social custom dictated that fathers not attend either. It is therefore incorrect to say that Henry "refused" to attend Elizabeth's christening. In fact, it would have been a striking violation of social custom had he actually attended. See David Cressy, "Birth, Marriage, and Death: Ritual, Religion, and the Life Cycle in Tudor and Stuart England" (Oxford University Press, 1997). Yes, Elizabeth was raised in a separate household. So was Henry's much-treasured son Edward. This was accepted practice for Tudor royalty during the period and not evidence of the presence or absence of any emotional bond. Yes, Anne had clothing sent to her daughter. It was her duty to do so. The sending of clothing cannot be interpreted as evidence for or against "maternal feelings" or "love." For my own education, I'd be very interested to know the source of the story regarding Elizabeth's carrying a locket ring with her mother's photo in it. This sounds like another of the many fanciful myths and legends that have grown up around Elizabeth Tudor.
'...carrying a locket ring with her mother's _photo_ in it.'
hmm? LOL
A cultural anachronism on my part, n'est pas? Should have said "portrait."
Anne was very insistent that her daughter have every mark of rank, which can be seen as an expression of affection, but also an effort to reinforce her own position.
Also, it appears, although it should be thoroughly investigated, that Anne placed Boleyn relations in key positions around her daughter - the ones that come to mind are Lady Shelton, Catherine Champernowne (Ashley), Blanche Parry (related to the Careys), possibly Richard Sandys, rather than Howard connections (numerous, and of higher status than the Boleyn affinity, so you'd think she would have preferred them, as she did for Elizabeth's christening when the Duchess of Norfolk was made a godmother). Even Lady Margaret Bryan, a natural choice because she'd previously been Mary's governess, was related to the Boleyns through her husband. Possibly Anne felt that Elizabeth's interests and personal safety would be more likely to be protected by the Boleyn side than the Howards.
What is interesting is that Henry did not disturb some of these arrangements after Anne was executed. You'd think that he'd be suspicious that the Boleyn relations would give Elizabeth an alternative view of Anne Boleyn than the "official history."
I had only just recently heard of the locket ring as well. I was researching Tudor and Elizabethan jewelry. Here is a link to a picture of the locket ring at the National Maritime Museum:
http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/Page2090.asp
And here is the inside of the ring (if it doesn't take you right to it, it is the second picture):
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/photo_gallery/2973697.stm
Yes that is true about the ring, I saw it in the 'Elizabeth I' exhibition at the Maritime Museum Exhibtion in Greenwich.
I found this page because I had just watched 'Anne of a thousand days' and remembered the ring. It was incredibly touching and I was trying to find some more information about her attitude to Anne. The ring seems to suggest that at least privately she had feelings for her mother. It's interesting that the portrait was in a locket type ring so the portrait of her mother was hidden from public view but was still with her, in some ways that seems to reflect her overall attitude to her mother. I would be really interested to here any more on this.
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