Kathryn Howard

Kathryn Howard was born to Edmund Howard and Joyce Culpeper in the mid-1520's; her mother died when she was a child, and her father had so many children to care for that Kathryn was sent off by the age of ten to live with the Dowager Duchess of Norfolk, her step-grandmother, at Lambeth Palace, not far from London.

Early Life
Not much is known about the early life of Kathryn, although her parentage seems likely. She was a niece of the Duke of Norfolk from her father's side, and was a first cousin of Anne Boleyn, who was executed when she was around eleven-years-old. There is no evidence that Kathryn knew Anne personally, but she certainly must have known how great Anne had been to the kingdom for several years.

Life at Lambeth and Promiscuity
Kathryn is first seen at the age of seventeen at Lambeth Palace during the spring of 1540, when she hears something, or someone, outside in the night. She goes to investigate the noise, thinking it is her lover come to find her, and accidentally awakens her cousin, Anne Carey. After Anne questions Kathryn enough, Kathryn tells her of her summers at Horsham Manor (likely Chesworth House) another manor in her family's estates, and tells her that she had a lover there. Anne Carey doesn't believe her, but Kathryn assures her that she had a lover, and that their grandmother caught them together holding hands. Her lover's ears were boxed and Kathryn was sent to confession. She later says that she and her lover lay together, and Anne is shocked by this notion.

Lady Rochford soon hears the commotion and comes upstairs, telling Anne to go to bed and that Kathryn has been summoned downstairs to speak to the Duke of Norfolk. Lady Rochford bundles the teenager in a blanket and takes her downstairs, whereupon she is told to leave the room, as the conversation is a private one for only Howards. Kathryn defends Lady Rochford to her uncle, but is quickly told that Lady Rochford does not matter.

The duke her uncle informs her that that king is dissatisfied with his marriage to Anne of Cleves and that the two of them will likely divorce. The duke further tells Kathryn that he wants her to fill the German queen's shoes, and then asks her what she knows of the current queen. Kathryn says that the king apparently dislikes her, and that he's not pleased with the match, and the duke commends her for her knowledge. He then informs her that he will take her to court once permission has been given to do so, and leaves. Kathryn is summoned to court in a new gown, and impresses the king with her beauty and knowledge of herbal remedies for the gout in his leg. The king is charmed by her and immediately moves to divorce Anne, giving the foreign lady a generous settlement, before marrying Kathryn in a lavish ceremony in July 1540.

Queen of England
Kathryn shines physically as the queen, and for her wedding present is given the head of Thomas Cromwell, who proposed the marriage between the king and Anne of Cleves. On her wedding night, she meets her cousin, Thomas Culpepper, and sparks immediately fly between them when a bauble is passed through their hands. The king is reluctant to consummate the union, as he fears that his old body will displease his new young wife. Kathryn, off-camera, strips off for her new husband, and the king is overwhelmed at what he sees. The following morning, Kathryn orders a lavish breakfast, and the king tells her that she can have whatever she likes now that she is the queen before leaving to start his day. Lady Rochford brings the new queen her breakfast, and Kathryn orders it sent away, for she is really quite broken up about the night before. Despite her previous experiences with men, and is horrified to discover that her new husband is indeed an old man and that she finds him ugly and his leg foul and that she cannot bring herself to love him.

Her uncle informs her that once she has a son as a spare for the kingdom, there will be the opportunity for a Howard upon the throne of England, and the king likely will not bother as much with the consummation aspect of their marriage. Thinking the king will be unable to get her pregnant, due to his age and ill-health, Kathryn begins an affair with her cousin Thomas, and the two fall madly in love. With Lady Rochford as a go-between, the lovers are able to meet many nights throughout Kathryn's two-year reign as queen.

Downfall & Execution
Kathryn's downfall begins when she appoints Francis Dereham, her old lover, as her private secretary as a bribe for keeping silent about their past relationship. There are whispers throughout the court of her rumored promiscuity, and the king is, at first, blind to them. However, the Seymour brothers convince Thomas Cranmer to inform the king of her pretty young wife's misdeeds, which breaks the king's heart.

Things come to a head when Lady Rochford discovers that Kathryn's lover, Thomas, is missing and does not know where he is. The Duke of Norfolk arrives and informs Kathryn that Thomas has been taken away and, under torture, admits to their affair. They have also arrested and tortured Francis Dereham, who admits to sleeping with Kathryn before she was married to the king. The duke then tells Kathryn and Lady Rochford that they are to be imprisoned in the Tower for their crimes against the throne. Kathryn tries to get away to speak to her husband, but finds that all her doors are surrounded by guards, their axes a symbol for what is to come. Kathryn is taken and imprisoned in the Tower while awaiting her trial; her uncle comes to see her shortly thereafter and informs her that she has been found guilty of adultery and treason and will be executed. He asks her if he can bring her anything, and she replies that she wants the block to practice with. When the duke leaves, Kathryn envisions her forthcoming execution, including the death drums, and works on her final words to be said to the onlookers, and ends with "Pray for me" before kneeling and throwing out her arms, thus consenting to her execution.