THE LAST LETTER OF QUEEN ANNE BOLEYN

FACT OR FORGERY?

    Queen Anne Boleyn allegedly wrote the last letter of her life, to her husband, King Henry VIII, on 6 May 1536.

Queen Anne Boleyn, Unknown, c. 1550, Hever Castle

 

    The letter was purported to have been written during her incarceration in the Tower of London. In this letter, Anne claimed her innocence and even goes so far as to tell the king “But let not your grace ever imagine that your poor wife will be brought to acknowledge a fault, where not so much as a thought ever proceeded”. She asked for a fair trial and asked that Henry not listen to the falsehoods that came so easily from the mouths of her enemies. She also insinuated her situation arose from Henry’s wandering eye, aimed at Jane Seymour, and wrote she hoped God would pardon him and her enemies for the injustice done unto her. Anne pleaded with Henry that his daughter, Princess Elizabeth, is kept in his good graces and does not suffer the false rumors and accusations against her mother. Anne concludes the letter with sorrow for her fellow inmates with whom she was arrested. Anne requested that only she bear the burden of Henry’s wrath and not the innocent men.

               

Queen Anne Boleyn's Last Letter, curtesy of Luminarium.org

    So, was this letter indeed written by Queen Anne Boleyn or was it a forgery? The letter was initially discovered amongst Thomas Cromwell’s papers after his execution in 1540. It is thought this was a copy of an original letter Anne had written. But why would Thomas Cromwell keep a copy of this letter? Was he feeling sentimental perhaps? That’s not the Thomas Cromwell I have come to know over the last eighteen years.

     The arguments are enticing for Anne to have been the original author of this letter. Firstly, the handwriting does not match Anne’s. We have a few letters that have been authenticated as Anne’s penmanship, but this does not match. However, we need to keep in mind this letter is a copy of an original. Therefore, the handwriting would not have been Anne’s to begin with. It is also a possibility Anne could have dictated the letter to one of the ladies that were her companions during her incarceration in the Tower.

     Most historians claim the letter is too bold to have been written by Anne Boleyn. In fact, I would use this as an argument that perhaps the letter was written by Anne. Anne was a woman who spoke her mind and had a quick temper. This letter does just that. Anne stands her ground and lays out the facts, as she sees them. She feels responsible for the treatment that her daughter would receive and that the five men who were arrested with her, would lose their lives because of her. This sounds just like Anne to me. It is said that the letter is written in too familiar a fashion and there was no way a prisoner in the Tower of London would write to their King in this way. Well, Anne wasn’t just a prisoner in the Tower. She was his wife- of course she would write to Henry in this manner. They had been through hell and back again during the “Great Matter” and had a daughter together. I would also argue that perhaps Anne was trying to humanize Henry. She was trying to save her life and the lives of five innocent men. She was attempting to appeal to Henry’s affections and perhaps get him to see her the way he used to. It was, however, in vain.

     It is also interesting to note that Anne had given a spectacular speech during her trial. The letter echoes the sentiments of her trial speech, which leads to an assumption that she wrote the letter. However, Anne’s speech was recorded and this letter could have been authored at a later date reflecting the speech so as to give the reader the impression of Anne’s authorship.

     Lastly, there is no obvious sign for a motive in forging the letter. The letter did not prevent Anne’s death nor did it bring her back to life. The only motive I could potentially think of, is if the letter was forged during the Elizabethan era, perhaps one thought they would be in Queen Elizabeth I’s good graces if one happened to have found a long lost letter written by her mother.

     The arguments for the letter not being authentic are more profound. Henry would not have allowed Anne access to parchment and ink. Anne could have written letters to anyone about anything. I don’t believe Henry would have risked this. While this letter is written very eloquently, Anne tended to use complimentary persuasion as a tactic to obtain what she wanted. I don’t see any evidence of this in her last letter.

     Anne signs the letter as “Anne Bullen”. This may seem like a miniscule detail, however, it requires a closer examination. Most first thoughts would be, well, yeah… that was her name so it makes sense that she would sign it like that. However, Anne spelt her last name the way we do today, Boleyn. In 1525, Anne’s father was elevated to Lord Rochford. At this point, Anne dropped Boleyn and began styling herself Anne Rochford. It was not common for a daughter to use the title of her father. But this was SO Anne. Why should George be the only child allowed to use his father’s title? This would continue until 1532, when Anne was created Marquess of Pembroke in her own right. Anne would then sign her name as Anne Pembroke. In 1533, Anne married Henry and became Queen Consort. Until the end of her life, she would sign her letters, Anne the Queen. Henry and Anne’s marriage was not declared invalid until 17 May. So why would she sign her last letter reverting all the way back to Anne Bullen, when she was in fact, still Anne the Queen? She even states in the letter that she is his wife; why would she not sign the letter that way to let the thought hit home for Henry?

     Perhaps the most compelling evidence of all is the postscript. The postscript states that the letter was from “The Lady in the Tower”. Perhaps this could have been dark humor in her last days, or perhaps it shows that Anne did not write the letter.  The moniker, The Lady in the Tower, is in the third person- meaning that whoever wrote the postscript did not write the letter. But the letter is signed by Anne, in the first person. More importantly, the handwriting of the letter and the postscript match. They had to have been written by the same person, and for me, that person was not Queen Anne Boleyn.