by Isabelle Esteves

Created on: July 15, 2008   Last Updated: May 31, 2011

The downfall of Anne Boleyn has fascinated historians for centuries. It was so spectacular and so rapid. Anne was neither beautiful nor wealthy. Her family was only well connected on her mother's side. What was it about Anne that made her so irresistible to Henry VIII that he was willing to divorce his wife, defy the pope and ignore the advice of his counselors? None of her portraits seems to have been able to capture what must have been her charm and vivacity. There was a strength and determination in Anne. It would eventually lead to her downfall. She forgot a very important lesson on her climb to the top; you need powerful friends to help you to stay at the top. Her climb involved crushing any opposition and along the way, she made some very powerful enemies. They were very happy to help her fall.

For many years, the Pope through his papal legate Campeggio had held Henry at bay with the promise of an annulment of his marriage to Katherine of Aragon. When Anne became pregnant, everything came to a head. It was obvious that the annulment wasn't coming. Henry married Anne and declared himself head of the Church in England. This way he could give himself an annulment, it also meant no more Cathedraticum payments had to be paid to the Roman Church; Henry would be collecting them himself and that 10% would help him to finance his many extravagances.

At this point Anne had won the main battle but as time would tell, the war was far from over. Henry had married her and he had her crowned as his queen. By all accounts Anne was neither loved nor accepted by the people in the street. Her response to this was to take as her motto "grumble all you like, this is how it is going to be." She was notorious for her sense of humor and often it was cutting and dark and this is a fine example. She eventually changed that motto but she had let her contempt for public opinion be known.

What had attracted Henry to her was her style, her sense of irreverence, her lack of awe at his grandeur. While these were attractive qualities in a woman he lusted after, they began to pale quite quickly once she was his wife. Had their first child been the male heir that Henry so desperately wanted she would have guaranteed her future in spite of her sharp tongue. However, she produced a daughter. Everyone was disappointed, especially Anne. This was more than just regular disappointment over the sex of a child, this was the ultimate failure. She had kept Henry at bay all these years with the promise

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