The Marriage Settlement of Henry VIII and Anne of Cleves

From History Calling

How was the marriage of Henry VIII and Anne of Cleves meant to pan out? As with virtually all royal unions at the time, the pair had a marriage settlement. It was drawn up in 1539, before the wedding in January 1540 and it explained what should happen directly before the ceremony, what Anne should get in money and goods if she was widowed and what would happen to her depending on if she had children and if she became her brother’s heir or not. Of course, as we all know, Henry VIII’s fourth marriage lasted just six months and was one of the shortest royal marriages in English history. In July 1540 he annulled their union so that he could marry Anne’s lady-in-waiting, Katherine Howard and had his former favourite, Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex, executed in part because he had promoted the union. In the end, the Tudor-Cleves marriage settlement wasn’t worth the paper it was written on, as a new agreement was negotiated for the ex-Queen once she became Henry’s legal sister. In this week’s six wives documentary from History Calling, we look at a series of historical what ifs. What if Henry VIII hadn’t left Anne of Cleves? What if they’d stayed married and she’d become his widow? What if they’d consummated their union and she’d become the mother of one or more of his children? In short, what if the marriage settlement of Henry VIII and Anne of Cleves had actually been followed? Within the video, I’ll tell you how much money Anne of Cleves was scheduled to bring as part of her dowry, how much money this Tudor Queen should have received as Henry VIII’s widow and how the life of Anne of Cleves was intended to play out.