King vs. Queen
The ultimate struggle of Catherine of Aragon's life began when she was 42. After 18 years of marriage, King Henry declared himself troubled by whether or not he had sinned in marrying his brother's wife. The king cited a verse from the biblical book of Leviticus that stated that a man who took his brother's wife would be punished by childlessness.
But his real concern was much more carnal: Anne Boleyn.
The king's counselors pulled out all the stops. The pope had erred when he had granted a dispensation for the marriage of Catherine and Henry. An offer from Pope Clement VII for a second dispensation was declined. Scholars and theologians throughout Europe were solicited for their ruling.
Queen Catherine did not take this turn of events passively. She refused to retire to a nunnery. She argued the validity of her marriage with the king. She petitioned relatives to intercede on her behalf. At a speech before the papal inquisitors' tribunal in May 1529, she threw herself on the ground at the king's feet, begging him to reconsider.
Popular support for Catherine was strong. So strong that Spain's ambassador suggested that she petition her nephew, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, to invade England and prevent the divorce. She declined.
Despite the alleged uncertainty about the outcome of this investigation, the Spanish ambassador reported that "Both the King and his lady, I am assured, look upon their future marriage as certain, as if that of the Queen had actually been dissolved."
As talks with the Vatican stonewalled, the king took a more expedient option : a break with Rome. Instead, he would become the head of the church in England, able to decide his own affairs. On May 23, 1533, Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, granted the king's divorce.
For love-besotted Henry, it did not come a moment too soon. He had already been married to his second wife for roughly seven months. In Henry's mind, this was not bigamy. If his marriage to Catherine of Aragon had never been valid, hen he did not have a wife and was free to take one. The wedding is thought to have taken place in November 1532, in secret, at Dover. The queen's reaction to the news is not known, but she would refuse to surrender her jewels to Anne, upon the latter's demand, telling Henry that his new wife "is the scandal of Christendom and a disgrace to you."
The coronation of Anne Boleyn would take place shortly following the 1533 divorce ruling. She was already six months pregnant.
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