Ranking the Tudor Consorts | Which Tudor Consort Was Best? Six Wives of Henry VIII

From History Calling

WHICH TUDOR CONSORT was the best and which Tudor consort was the worst? There are eight to choose from: Elizabeth of York, Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard, Catherine Parr and Philip of Spain. Of these, six were the wives of Henry VIII, and one was his mother. Philip of Spain was Henry VIII’s only son-in-law, having married his daughter, Mary I. In this Tudor history documentary from History Calling, I give you my personal ranking of the Tudor consorts from worst to best and the reasons why I have placed them there. I’ll think about what was expected of a Tudor Queen, from producing a male heir to the throne, to engaging in charitable works, providing foreign alliances (or helping to stop the Wars of the Roses in the case of the former White Princess), looking beautiful, running the court and of course making her husband happy. I’ll also look at what was expected of Philip of Spain when he married Mary I and how far he fulfilled those expectations. Topics discussed will include the execution of Anne Boleyn, the execution of Katherine Howard, the annulment of Catherine of Aragon and Henry VIII’s marriage and the popularity of the Tudor queens and Philip with the wider populace. The video is not a Tudor popularity contest, however. The rankings do not reflect my opinions of how likeable each Tudor Queen was, or King Philip.