Catherine of Aragon

Catherine of Aragon was Queen of England from June 1509 until May 1533 as the first wife of King Henry VIII. She was previously Princess of Wales as the wife of Henry’s elder brother, Arthur. Catherine refused to accept Henry as supreme head of the Church in England and considered herself the king’s rightful wife and queen. After being banished from court by Henry, she lived out the remainder of her life at Kimbolton Castle, and died there on 7 January 1536 of cancer.

About Catherine of Aragon in brief

Catherine of Aragon was Queen of England from June 1509 until May 1533 as the first wife of King Henry VIII. She was previously Princess of Wales as the wife of Henry’s elder brother, Arthur. Catherine refused to accept Henry as supreme head of the Church in England and considered herself the king’s rightful wife and queen. After being banished from court by Henry, she lived out the remainder of her life at Kimbolton Castle, and died there on 7 January 1536 of cancer. Catherine won widespread admiration by starting an extensive programme for the relief of the poor. She successfully appealed for the lives of the rebels involved in the Evil May Day, for the sake of their families. Catherine was born at the Archbishop’s Palace of Alcalá de Henares near Madrid, on the night of 16 December 1485. Her maternal side was descended, on her maternal side, from the House of Lancaster, an English royal house. Her great-grandmother Catherine of Lancaster was named, after whom she was named. Catherine had a strong religious upbringing and developed her Roman Catholic faith that would play a major role in later life. She learned to speak, read and write Spanish and Latin, spoke French and Greek, and was also taught domestic skills, such as drawing, lace-making, needlepoint, sewing, spinning, and good literature. At an early age, Catherine was considered suitable for wife for Arthur, Prince of Wales, heir apparent to the English throne due to her mother’s English ancestry.

In 1533 their marriage was declared invalid and Henry married Anne Boleyn on the judgement of clergy in England, without reference to the pope. Catherine’s death set off tremendous mourning. She had a stronger claim to the throne than Henry VII through the first wives of his first wives, John Gaunt of Lancaster and Constance of Lancaster. In contrast, Henry VII was the descendant of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Blanche of Lancaster; Constance was the daughter of Constance of Lancaster and Duke of Castile. Catherine died of cancer in 1536, and her death was followed by a great outpouring of grief and mourning in the English capital, London. She is buried in the St James’ Palace in London, along with her husband, Henry VIII, and their two children, Mary and William. Catherine is the first known female ambassador in European history, and the first woman to serve as regent of England while Henry VIII was in France in 1513. She also served as ambassador to England in 1507, the firstknown female ambassador to do so. She died in 1535, and Henry VIII died the following year, leaving their daughter Mary as heir presumptive to the British throne. Catherine was the youngest surviving child of King Ferdinand II ofAragon and Queen Isabella I of Castiles. Her mother and father were both daughters of John of Gaunt and granddaughters of Edward III of England, and consequently, she was third cousin of her father-in-law.

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