Thomas Penn’s “Winter King” review

Winter King: Henry VII and the Dawn of Tudor England
Thomas Penn
Simon & Schuster (US)

Although founder of one of the most popular dynasties in English history, Henry VII tends to get overlooked in favor of his more colorful descendants, especially his successor Henry VIII. But those who have pursued an interest in the reign of Henry VIII without reading about his father’s are missing a piece of the puzzle since several prominent figures of the latter’s time on the throne get their start in the first Tudor’s court.

Penn starts with an overview, setting the stage for Henry VII as the Winter King before the “summer” of his son Henry VIII’s early reign, and then moves into the prologue of Henry Tudor’s early life, his unlikely rise to Lancastrian heir, and victor at Bosworth. This pre-1485 era of Henry’s life is still somewhat under-explored – 1985’s The Making of the Tudor Dynasty is still one of the best treatments that I’m aware of, and Chris Skidmore’s upcoming book has promise – but this work is not meant to focus on that area. There is then a quick overview of Henry setting up his royal household, marrying Elizabeth of York and the birth of Prince Arthur – the representation of the union of the houses of Lancaster and York.

Penn chronicles the policies and actions of Henry VII and makes them understandable without excusing them. We are given an overview of the various threats, plots, and rebellions against Henry’s throne, setting the stage for his paranoia. Readers are introduced to Perkin Warbeck, Lambert Simnel and the de la Poles (the most obvious threat since they didn’t need pretenders to claim Yorkist blood, they had it). Edmund de la Pole in particular was an issue for Henry throughout his reign. As things began to settle down around 1500, the plans moved forward in earnest to marry Prince Arthur to the youngest daughter of the Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain: Catherine of Aragon.

Although Henry VII is known for his grasping monetary policies, he knew when it was wise to flaunt his wealth and the reception and wedding of Catherine of Aragon is a prime example. When Prince Arthur died suddenly in April 1502, Edmund de la Pole’s threat becomes even more important, although Henry still had one “spare heir”, Henry Duke of York. And there was still hope for more, since Queen Elizabeth was soon pregnant again. Unfortunately in early 1503 she went into premature labor and both the baby and she died. The funeral plans were left to the King’s formidable mother, Lady Margaret Beaufort, and Henry went into seclusion. This seems to be a big tipping point for Henry – although he already was already mvoing towards paranoia and crushing financial policies, Queen Elizabeth was a stabilizing and moderating force in his reign (Penn portrays her, correctly I believe, as far from the complacent doormat that some have viewed her as). It is telling that Henry would mark the anniversary of Elizabeth’s death for the remainder of his reign.

Readers who are more familiar with Henry VIII’s court will appreciate the foreshadowing of important figures of his reign who first came to prominence in Henry VII’s including: Thomas More, Thomas Wolsey, and Charles Brandon. After Arthur’s death, negotiations begin with Spain and the Pope to allow Prince Henry, the new heir, to marry his dead brother’s widow, Catherine of Aragon. Of course these proceedings will come back into play several decades later.

Midway through the book the “villains” of the later part of Henry’s reign emerge – Richard Empson and Edmund Dudley. Again, readers more familiar with Henry VIII, Edward VI and Elizabeth I will recognize the name “Dudley” and may know that the father of John Dudley Duke of Northumberland, or that Robert Dudley’s father and grandfather were both executed, but probably aren’t very familiar with the senior Dudley’s career in the reign of the first Tudor monarch.

Those interested in Henry VIII’s youth and training as king will gain some insight from Winter King. Prince Henry comes to live at court at age 13 in 1504 to begin his proper education to succeed his father. Meanwhile, the King, perhaps to secure another “spare heir” looked to re-marry and negotiations were begun with Margaret of Savoy, daughter of the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I. The portrait of Henry VII in the National Portrait Gallery was made in 1505 as part of these negotiations and is the earliest portrait in the Gallery’s collection.

In 1506, through a lucky turn of chance, Juana of Castle (sister of Catherine of Aragon and now Queen of Castile after the death of their mother Isabella) and her husband Philip of Burgundy (son of Maximilian I and brother of Margaret of Savoy) were wrecked off the Dorset coast while on their way to Spain. Henry wined and dined Philip and made him a member of the Order of the Garter. Henry pressed and eventually got the arrest of Edmund de la Pole, Yorkist claimant and continuous thorn in Henry’s side who had been living at the court of Philip’s father Maximilian. De la Pole was eventually brought to the Tower of London and his fellow plotters were rounded up. (De la Pole would be executed in the reign of Henry VIII.) Not long later Philip died, leaving Juana a widow (this is the infamous time when she traveled around with her husband’s body) and Henry VII expressed interest in marrying her, which Catherine of Aragon used to her advantage to prove her value to Henry.

Princess Mary, the remaining daughter of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York at the English court (Margaret was already married to James IV and was in Scotland) made an impression at court events and Henry began negotiations for her marriage to Philip and Juana’s son Charles of Ghent – later King of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor and father of Philip II of Spain, husband of Mary I and who sent the Armada against Elizabeth I. In another foreshadowing of future events, in the 1507 jousts, organized by Prince Henry and his companions, Princess Mary is celebrated as Lady May and Charles Brandon distinguished himself at the tourney. Eight years later, they would be married.

As we progress towards what we know to be the end of Henry’s reign, we see that he begins to fall ill every winter. In 1507 he falls so ill that it was feared he may die. In 1505 Margaret Beaufort had moved from Collyweston in the Midlands to Hatfield, just north of London, in order to care for her son and ease the transition to Henry VIII should his father die. We also see new building projects done in the name of both Henry VII and Prince Henry. By 1508 Henry VII’s health worsened and, in comparison to Henry IV and his Prince Henry (the future Henry V), everyone was now just waiting for the old king to die.

In early 1509 Henry relapsed into his now-regular winter illness and thought he was dying, and this time he was correct. He moved to his palace at Richmond and summoned his daughter Mary (now formally betrothed to Charles of Ghent, although the marriage would never take place) and Catherine of Aragon to visit him. He died on the night of April 21st, with Henry VIII just shy of 18 years old, but the death was not immediately announced. The new king went to the Tower as precautions were taken to ensure a smooth transition of power. Henry VII’s agents, such as Empson and Dudley, were rounded up to be scapegoats for Henry’s oppression and as a popular move by the new king.

Readers with an established interest in Tudor history will probably have already learned about bits and pieces of Henry VII’s reign, such as in biographies of Catherine of Aragon detailing her life at Henry’s court after Arthur’s death. But those who have avoided reading about Henry VII may have missed the inter-connectedness of all the figures of the tumultuous 118 years of the Tudor dynasty in England and abroad. Things that occurred in Henry VII’s reign played themselves out all the way into the 17th century, including the accession of James VI of Scotland as James I of England due to Henry marrying his elder daughter Margaret to James IV of Scotland. Penn’s Winter King provides important threads that weave throughout the tapestry that is Tudor history.