Sex with Anne Boleyn

         At the beginning of Henry VIII's infatuation with Anne Boleyn, she famously refused to have sex the King. What made Anne's refusal so dangerous was that it coincided with Henry VIII’s doubts about the validity of his marriage to Katharine of Aragon. The King had pondered repudiating Katharine in 1514, but the idea was dropped, and two years later, on 18 February 1516, the Queen gave birth to a healthy daughter, Princess Mary. Henry consoled himself that both he and Katharine were still young and thus able to have sons, but no son was born, and by 1527 Henry had given up hope.

A heart enclosing Anne Boleyn’s initials with a motto “H. aultre A.B. ne cherse R.”, which means “Henry seeks no other than Anne Boleyn”(© Vatican Library)

Anne Boleyn’s refusal to grant the King’s sexual desires has been variously interpreted over the course of history. Some historians see her rejection of the King’s advances as a first step towards becoming the Queen of England, but this is applying too much hindsight to Anne’s actions at this point. The reason why it is generally assumed that Anne envisaged becoming queen at this early stage of her relationship with Henry VIII is because all that we know about her character from sources describing her later life affirms that she was an ambitious, intelligent and cunning young woman who knew well how to navigate through the courtly intrigues during the years of her ascendancy.  The fact that Henry VIII was desperately trying to make her his mistress for more than a year attests that Anne held on to her virginity to preserve her honour rather than to become the King’s wife and queen.

Sexualization of Anne Boleyn in The Tudors

 

Yet there's convincing evidence that when Henry VIII initiated the annulment proceedings, Anne yielded to his passion. One of Henry's famous love letters to Anne reveals that he couple indulged in intimate relations. The letters are undated but the letter in question offers some clues as to when it was written. Henry wrote:

"But now that I am coming towards you, methinketh my pains be half removed; and also I am right well comforted in so much that my book maketh substantially for my matter; in looking whereof I have spent above four hours this day, which causeth me now to write the shorter letter to you at this time, because of some pain in my head; wishing myself (especially an evening) in my sweetheart’s arms, whose pretty dukkys I trust shortly to kiss."

This later can be firmly dated to November 1528. In September 1528, shortly before the papal legate Lorenzo Campeggio came to England, Henry VIII sent Anne Boleyn to Hever Castle so as to avoid the impression that he pursued his divorce because of Anne. Things didn't go quite as planned and by November both Henry and Anne were miserable, missing each other immensely. Henry mentioned that he was "coming towards you" so he was going to leave London and visit Anne who was temporarily lodged at Beddington Place in Surrey, some five miles from London (oh irony, eight years later another royal mistress, Jane Seymour, would be waiting for the news of Anne's trial at this very place). 

This letter throws light upon the intimacies between Anne and Henry. Although the couple stopped short of consummating their match, they were certainly intimate with each other. The King’s sexual desire underpins many of Henry’s letters to Anne; in this particular letter, the prospect of seeing Anne, holding her in his arms and kissing her “pretty dukkys”—that is, breasts —gave Henry energy to continue on in his quest for divorce.