Just in case anyone comes looking for these after last night’s finale of “The Tudors”, I thought I would go ahead and post links to these on both of the blogs.
The first is an excerpt from Kingston’s letter to Cromwell and the second is Anne’s speech at the scaffold. Both are modernized spelling versions. I think I got them from “Eyewitness to History” or a similar book.
In “The Tudors” finale, Anne asks the witnesses to “judge fairly.” In the speech you linked to, she asked people to “judge the best,” which I always assumed meant “use your own best judgment of the matter.” But it could mean “have the best possible interpretation of my conduct,” which is closer to what the series’ writers suggested. Is there any definite ruling on what she meant?
I suspect Ives covers this in his bio, but I just haven’t had a chance to dip into it yet (I’m currently sorting through a pile of old magazines that feels a mile high!). I’ll try to have a look if no one else replies with any info.
Hmm, per your suggestion I’ve done some rooting around on the Internet — William Brereton also used the phrase “judge the best” in his execution speech, and Eric Ives gave a very interesting talk in 2001 to members of the present-day Brereton family, here:
http://www.brereton.org/professor_eric_ives.htm
And according to Ives, “judge the best” means: “In other words, don’t ask questions. And if you do ask questions, come up with a verdict on my side.”
It makes me wonder what Anne would think of what we think of her today. Obviously opinion is still very divided in our modern opinion of her, but the fact that we’re still discussing her life nearly 500 years later says a lot. 🙂
Whether or not she was guilty, I think she would be very gratified to know that most people think her conviction was a put-up job. But perhaps disappointed that we don’t actually refer to her as Queen Anne Lack-head.
I often wonder if our fascination with Anne comes only from the circumstances of her death. If Henry had given her a son and she lived out a normal span of years, would we still be talking about her?
According to some historians, Anne was quite a powerhouse. Would she have contributed to history for her religious persuasion or advice to Henry if she had lived?
Another queen was put to death…Catherine Howard, and in an even more gruesome fashion. No French sword for her. She is rarely talked about so it is most likely Anne’s personality which has put her to the forefront all these years.
Go…Anne!!!
May I point out that Anne Boleyn and Kathryn Howard were cousins therefore one would have out done the other by their actions.
Anne Boleyn has gone down in history because she is the reason the face of England has changed forever, not just because of her death even though she made history by being the first English Queen to be executed. Anne had done the same as Kathrine of Arogon:
*Given Henry a single living daughter
*Given Henry no suviving sons
But Henry could not use this excuse to get rid of Anne for he had done so with Katherine, which is where the issue of adultery comes into play.
Anne is remembered for her whit and intelegence not just by her death.
Kathryn Howard however is nit spoken of that much because she was a girl in a long list of wives. She is known however for bringing king Henry’s spirit back up and shedding some youth and fun into their marriage… Although she seemed to be having to much fun else where.