Henry VIII (57 page)

Henry was in jovial spirits that summer, and on 17 June he staged a river pageant at Whitehall with a markedly antipapal theme. There was a mock battle between two barges, “one for the Bishop of Rome and his cardinals, and the other for the King's Grace,” which ended with the former being tipped into the Thames. None were drowned, for the chosen actors could all swim and the King's barge lay nearby to pick them up. Henry and his courtiers watched the “triumph” from the leads above the privy stairs, seated under a canvas canopy decorated with roses and green bows. The riverbank was crowded with small craft filled with ladies and gentlemen, while two other barges conveyed musicians up and down the river.
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In 1539, Henry VIII created the vast Honour of Hampton Court, an enclosed royal hunting domain that stretched across thirty-six square miles of the Surrey countryside, from Weybridge to Thames Ditton, and from Battersea and Balham to Epsom, Coulsdon, and Mortlake. The first royal forest for two centuries, it was intended to facilitate easier sport for the King, who was growing “heavy with sickness, age and corpulency of body, and might not travel so readily abroad, but was constrained to seek his game and pleasure ready at hand.”
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The new Honour was centred upon Hampton Court Chase. Several royal houses came within its compass, and there was provision for the days on which the King was unable to ride. The deer were then driven through two lines of nets past a small timber-framed building called a standing, which had a high gallery from which he and his companions would shoot them. The ladies would often come to watch, and refreshments would be served. Henry had several of these standings built in his later years. At the royal palaces, mounting blocks were raised so that he could mount and dismount easily, and elsewhere bridges were built over marshland for his safety while riding.
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By 1541, the King owned eighty-five hunting parks and forests, and was to create two more: Nasing Park, Essex, in 1542, and Marylebone Park (now Regents Park), north of London, in 1544.

Henry's mania for acquiring property did not abate. Seven houses came into his possession in 1539, three of them intended as residences for his children. Ashridge, formerly a thirteenth-century monastery with a collegiate church, was renowned for its healthy air and was used frequently by Edward and Elizabeth.
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They also stayed often at Elsynge Hall, north of Enfield, Middlesex, which had been built before 1524 by Sir Thomas Lovell and already had a suite of chambers for the use of the King. Henry reconstructed the outer court, which boasted a covered gallery, and updated the royal apartments. There was a well-stocked deer park, which bordered Enfield Chase; in the chase was a royal hunting lodge called Camelot, but virtually nothing is known about it. The King came to Elsynge occasionally, received ambassadors, and once held a Council meeting.
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Nearby was the fourteenth-century fortified manor house at Enfield, which reverted to the Crown on the death of Lady Wingfield. Henry created apartments for all his children here, but they lodged more frequently at Elsynge, which was larger and grander.
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The King obtained Halnaker House, Sussex, by exchange with Lord de la Warre; he also purchased a fourteenth-century hunting lodge at Bagshot, which he refurbished but rarely used,
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and two houses in the north, Hull Manor and the King's Manor at York, which he intended to visit on a future progress.

53

“Nourishing Love”

The Duke of Cleves, eager to form an alliance with England, signed the marriage treaty on 4 September 1539. Later that month, his envoys arrived in England to conclude the alliance. During the eight days they spent at Windsor, the King laid on feasts and hunting expeditions in their honour, then took them to Hampton Court, where he ratified the marriage treaty on 8 October. After the envoys had left, Henry began preparing for the arrival of his bride.

Cromwell, whose credit with his master had been somewhat restored as a result of these successful negotiations, now turned his attention to bringing about major reforms to the royal household. The Eltham Ordinances of 1526 had failed to eliminate extravagance and waste, and economy dictated that more stringent measures be imposed. The Greenwich Ordinances that Cromwell drew up, which came into effect on 24 December 1539, provided for the entire household to be placed under the control of a Lord Great Master, to whom the Lord Chamberlain would be subordinate. Since the ageing Lord Sandys was often absent from court, there was no danger of a power struggle, and when Sandys died in 1541, the office of Lord Chamberlain was left vacant for three years. The post of Lord Steward was abolished; the Earl of Shrewsbury, who had occupied it since Henry's accession, had just died, so this was an opportune moment to make the change. The office of Lord Great Master was based on that of the
grand maitre d'hostel du roi
of the French court, and the first to be appointed to it was the Duke of Suffolk.

Cromwell also streamlined household administration and cut down numbers in every department but the Chamber, where the King insisted on an increase in staff; his Gentlemen now numbered sixteen. The Household servants were reduced from 500 to 230. Each person's duties were laid down in writing, along with comments about their performance, and records of attendance were strictly kept. Stern measures were taken to keep out unauthorised retainers, beggars, boys, and animals, while tight spending controls were imposed, each department being made accountable to the Board of the Greencloth, which was presided over by the Lord Great Master assisted by four Masters of the Household, the Cofferer, and the White Sticks. The emphasis was on efficiency and good service, which the King prized very highly. So effective was Cromwell's system that it survived, in essence, until the nineteenth century.
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Cromwell's reforms also extended to the King's Council, where he designated nineteen of the most active and influential councillors as the Privy Council, a name that had hitherto been used for those councillors who were especially close to the King. The new Privy Council would, much later, evolve into the Cabinet. Naturally, Cromwell dominated this privileged group, much to the chagrin of Norfolk and other lords, but both the King and Cromwell held that promotion to it depended on merit, not birth. Their views were enshrined in an Act of Precedence that ranked the eleven great officers of state and household above the nobility, however ancient their title. However, as many of these offices were normally held by peers, there was always an aristocratic majority on the Council, which increased during the 1540s. Members of the Council were from now on to meet at court, rather than at Westminster, and would enjoy the privilege of lodging there and dining in their council chamber.

The King's own powers were now extended: his proclamations were to have the same force as an Act of Parliament, and his authority was to encompass doctrinal issues. Thomas Wriothesley and Ralph Sadler were appointed his joint Principal Secretaries of State early in 1540, Wriothesley acting as Secretary to the Council and Sadler as Secretary to the King. The King had rewarded Wriothesley's good service with the dissolved abbey of Titchfield, which Wriothesley was busily converting into his country seat. He easily dominated Sadler, and by 1542 it was being said that he “almost governed everything.”
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Ralph Sadler had graduated from Cromwell's household and, having impressed the King by his performance as an envoy in Scotland, was now embarking on a career as a politician and diplomat that would span four reigns and make him one of the wealthiest commoners in England. In 1540, Henry granted him land at Standen, Hertfordshire, where he built a fine courtyard house.

The Gentlemen Pensioners were refounded in 1539, under the Greenwich Ordinances, as an elite guard for the King, keeping watch in the presence chamber. Now numbering fifty well-born young men,
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under the captaincy of Sir Anthony Browne, they were expected to provide their own weapons—a poleaxe, a dagger, and a sword—and wear dark velvet doublets or a livery of red and yellow damask, but were given a gold medallion of office which was worn on a chain round the neck. This may be seen in the portrait of one Gentleman Pensioner, William Palmer, painted by Gerlach Flicke in about 1546, and in Holbein's drawing of William Parr, who was appointed their second Captain in November 1541.
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So many gentlemen wished to join that the King later created a separate band of Gentlemen at Arms, whose numbers had risen to forty-one by the end of the reign; there were then 150 Gentlemen Pensioners.
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Henry's devoted fool, Will Somers, who enjoyed the status of a Chamber servant, remained untouched by the reforms. Cromwell liked him, and had applauded the way in which he had, on many occasions, jokingly drawn the King's attention to the abuses within his household. Somers was that rare creature at court, a man of integrity and discretion, who refused to become embroiled in factional politics and who never took advantage of his privileged position. He remained one of the King's closest companions during Henry's later years: an illustration in the King's Psalter (c. 1540–1542) shows him listening while Henry plays the harp.
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Somers may also be the male figure standing on the right of the Whitehall family portrait.
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Somers was always on hand to offer comfort whenever the King's leg gave him trouble and forced him into tedious inactivity, as it did in the winter of 1539, when George Constantine confessed to a friend that it grieved him “to see His Grace halt so much upon his sore leg.”
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Henry was also suffering from constipation at this time, which did not help matters.
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But he was in high spirits, for his bride was at last on her way to England.

Everything was ready for the arrival of Anne of Cleves. The Queen's apartments at Hampton Court and elsewhere had been redecorated and put in repair. Two of the King's richest beds had been sent to Rochester and Dartford, where the Princess would stay on her way to Greenwich. The King planned to marry her there at the start of the Christmas season, and then enjoy twelve days of lavish celebrations. Anne would make her state entry into London on 1 January, and be crowned at Westminster Abbey on Candlemas Day, 2 February. Many courtiers had already ordered rich fabrics and garments for these coming events.

The new Queen's household was ready and waiting, with Rutland and Baynton restored to their offices of Chamberlain and Vice Chamberlain, and Sir John Dudley as Master of the Horse. There had been the usual stampede for places, more so because the King had limited the numbers to 126. The six ladies-in-waiting, who were now to be called “the great ladies of the household,”
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were Lady Margaret Douglas, the Duchesses of Richmond and Suffolk, the Countess of Sussex, Lady Howard, and Lady Clinton—the King's former mistress, Elizabeth Blount.
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Norfolk secured posts for his nieces, Katherine Howard and Mary Norris, and his great-niece, Katherine Carey (daughter of Mary Boleyn), as maids of honour. Katherine Howard was the daughter of Norfolk's ineffectual brother, Lord Edmund Howard, who had recently died after spending several unprofitable years as Controller in Calais. She had been raised, in the company of several other well-born girls, in the household of the Dowager Duchess of Norfolk at Horsham in Norfolk and at Lambeth, where discipline had been so lax that she had compromised herself with two young men—one her music master, when she was just eleven, the other her distant cousin, Francis Dereham, with whom she had been more deeply involved. Now aged about fifteen, she was tiny in stature, very pretty, and old in the ways of love.

Lady Lisle, having made certain of a post as maid of honour for Anne Basset, pleaded with the King to find one for her other daughter, Katherine. Henry, who had recently presented Anne with a fine horse and saddle, prompting rumours that she was his mistress, told Lady Lisle he had not yet decided how many maids the Queen would need, but he meant to ensure that they were all “fair, and meet for the room.”
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The Mother of the Maids was the strict Lady Browne, wife of Sir Anthony, who would not have allowed any levity, however fair the girls were.

The Princess Anne had left Cleves in November, but was delayed in Calais by fierce December gales. Lord Lisle entertained her with banquets and tournaments, while Lady Lisle wrote to Anne Basset that the new Queen would be “good and gentle to serve and please.”
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Soon the Lord High Admiral, the Earl of Southampton, arrived to escort Anne to England. With him were the Seymour brothers, Sir Nicholas Poyntz, Gregory Cromwell, and a young member of the Privy Chamber called Thomas Culpeper, to whom the King had recently shown special favour. Henry had instructed Southampton to “cheer my lady and her train so they think the time short,”
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so, with the help of an interpreter, since Anne had little English, the Admiral taught her to play Sent and other card games that Henry enjoyed, with Gregory Cromwell joining in.

After Christmas, the storms abated and the Princess of Cleves was able to cross the channel to Deal in Kent, arriving on 27 December. The Duke and Duchess of Suffolk were waiting to receive her, and they escorted her to Dover Castle, where she slept that night.

Anne brought with her a retinue of 350 Germans, of whom 100 were her personal servants, notably her ladies, household officers, a cook called Schoulenburg, a physician, Dr. Cornelis, a secretary, a footman named Engelbert, thirteen trumpeters, two drummers, and the artist Susanna Horenbout. Her escort was formed of noblemen and ambassadors. It had been agreed that most of these people would return to Cleves after the wedding.
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The appearance of Anne's twelve German maids caused great amusement in Calais and England, for they “dressed after a fashion so heavy and tasteless that it would make them appear frightful even if they were beauties.”
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In charge of them was a formidable matriarch called Mother Lowe, who effectively ruled the whole household.

On 29 December, Anne arrived in Canterbury, where she was welcomed by Archbishop Cranmer. After a night in the new Queen's lodgings in the former abbey of St. Augustine,
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she rode to Sittingbourne, and thence, on 31 December, was escorted by Norfolk to the Bishop's Palace at Rochester. Here she was received by Lady Browne, who was dismayed at what she saw. The King, she predicted, could never love Anne, for there was in her “such fashion and manner of bringing up so gross and far discrepant from the King's Highness' appetite.”
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Anne had been educated by her mother at a cultural backwater of a court where it was considered immodest for a woman to sing, play an instrument, dance, or be in any way learned.
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Nor was it thought necessary for her to speak any language other than German. Instead, Anne had been taught reading, writing, and needlework; Nicholas Wotton noted that she spent most of her time sewing.
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She had never been hunting, and her preferred exercise was a sedate walk in the gardens. Now she would be expected to preside over one of the most brilliant and cultivated courts in Europe. It is not surprising that Lady Browne had reservations.

Yet Anne did have excellent personal qualities. “Her manner was like a princess,”
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yet she was kind and good humoured, and amiable without being overfamiliar. She was anxious to please the King: at twenty-four, she was no giddy girl, and she had been trained to do her humble duty as a wife, although she was entirely innocent of sexual matters. The Duchess of Cleves had not thought it necessary to enlighten her.

The King spent Christmas at Whitehall. The court was exceptionally crowded because so many people had come to greet the new Queen, although Mary, Elizabeth, and Edward all kept the festival at Hertford Castle. Because of the delays in Anne's journey, the wedding had been deferred; it was due to take place as soon as she arrived.

On New Year's Day, Hans Holbein presented the King with a superb portrait of the two-year-old Prince Edward, wearing a wide-brimmed bonnet and clutching a gold rattle. The Prince appears in a solemn, mannerist pose, gazing steadily at the artist with all the gravity of an adult ruler, as the portrait was intended to convey. Below the portrait are verses written by Richard Moryson, Cromwell's propagandist, exhorting the boy to “equal your renowned father in greatness; no man can wish for more.”
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A delighted Henry gave Holbein a silver-gilt covered cup made by Cornelius Heyss.

Later that day, having learned that Anne of Cleves was at Rochester, the impatient King left the festivities and galloped off with a few gentlemen and a gift of furs to greet his bride and “nourish love.”