Free The Boleyn Women: The Tudor Femmes Fatales Who Changed English History by Elizabeth Norton Page A

Raynold Carnaby, that there is supposed a precontract between the queen and me; whereupon I was not only heretofore examined upon my oath before the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, but also received the blessed sacrament upon the same before the Duke of Norfolk, and other the king’s highness’ council learned in the spiritual law; assuring you Mr Secretary by the said oath, and blessed body which afore I received, and hereafter intend to receive that the same may be to my damnation, if ever there were any contract or promise of marriage between her and me. 5
    This letter, which was written the day before Anne’s death when five men had already been executed for their perceived romantic associations with her, must be taken with some caution. Even Percy’s oath on the sacrament is not conclusive, in spite of the highly religious time he lived in. He was in fear of his life at the time: if he admitted to a betrothal with Anne then he was confessing to failing to inform the king that the woman he had married was actually unavailable, something that jeopardised the succession and was treason under the first Act of Succession passed in 1533. Another of Anne’s early suitors, Thomas Wyatt, was arrested at the time of her fall and, although not charged, Percy probably watched his fate with alarm. Henry VIII annulled his marriage to Anne in the days before her execution, although the pretext for this annulment is not certain, with sources variously claiming that it was due to Anne’s earlier betrothal to Percy or, alternatively, due to the king’s own relationship with Mary Boleyn. 6 The relationship between Anne and Percy probably did extend to a formal promise to marry, something which, when made by two adults, was as binding as marriage itself.
    Percy’s love for Anne is clear, particularly as, socially, she was far beneath him. Anne’s feelings are less certain. She had a high view of her own worth and the idea of becoming Countess of Northumberland must have appealed to her. Percy was of a similar age to Anne and there is evidence that she did indeed have feelings for him. The roots of her enmity towards Cardinal Wolsey lie in the Cardinal’s role in breaking the relationship and, while this could have been due more to Anne’s disappointment at the loss of Percy’s status rather than his person, the evidence suggests that there was more to it than this. Anne was deeply involved in the fall from power of Cardinal Wolsey in 1529 and when Henry finally gave the order for him to be arrested in 1530, it was Percy who was sent to take him into custody, with Cavendish commenting significantly that Anne sent ‘her ancient suitor’ to do the deed. This vindictiveness suggests that she was still angry over the loss of Percy, in spite of the fact that, by 1530, she knew that she was to become queen. It therefore seems highly likely that the couple were indeed in love. Percy was one of the peers who sat in judgement on Anne at her trial in 1536, but it proved too much for him. He was taken ill before the trial of Anne’s brother which followed.
    Anne and Percy were unable to keep their relationship secret, with news of it soon reaching the king. Although Henry, at that stage, had no interest in Anne, he was angered by the proposed match, perhaps due to the disparity in their status or the fact that it jeopardised the Ormond settlement. Henry instructed Wolsey to break the engagement, with the cardinal immediately sending for Percy and rebuking him for his presumption. The young man, who burst into tears, gallantly attempted to defend his fiancée, declaring that
    I considered that I was of good years, and thought myself sufficient to provide myself with a convenient wife whereas my fancy served me best, not doubting but that my lord my father would have been right well persuaded. And, though she be a simple maid, and has but a knight to her father, yet she is descended of right noble parentage. For by her mother she is