The Fall of Anne Boleyn: A Countdown (17 page)

Also the Queen, 2 Nov. 27 Hen. VIII. and several times before and after, at Westminster, procured and incited her own natural brother, Geo. Boleyn, lord Rocheford, gentleman of the privy chamber, to violate her, alluring him with her tongue in the said George's mouth, and the said George's tongue in hers, and also with kisses, presents, and jewels; whereby he, despising the commands of God, and all human laws, 5 Nov. 27 Hen. VIII., violated and carnally knew the said Queen, his own sister, at Westminster; which he also did on divers other days before and after at the same place, sometimes by his own procurement and sometimes by the Queen's.

Also the Queen, 3 Dec. 25 Hen. VIII., and divers days before and after, at Westminster, procured one Will. Bryerton, late of Westminster, gentleman of the privy chamber, to violate her, whereby he did so on 8 Dec. 25 Hen. VIII., at Hampton Court, in the parish of Lytel Hampton, and on several other days before and after, sometimes by his own procurement and sometimes by the Queen's.

Also the Queen, 8 May 26 Hen. VIII., and at other times before and since, procured Sir Fras. Weston, of Westminster, gentleman of the privy chamber, &c., whereby he did so on the 20 May, &c. Also the Queen, 12 April 26 Hen. VIII., and divers days before and since, at Westminster, procured Mark Smeton, groom of the privy chamber, to violate her, whereby he did so at Westminster, 26 April 27 Hen. VIII.

Moreover, the said lord Rocheford, Norreys, Bryerton, Weston, and Smeton, being thus inflamed with carnal love of the Queen, and having become very jealous of each other, gave her secret gifts and pledges while carrying on this illicit intercourse; and the Queen, on her part, could not endure any of them to converse with any other woman, without showing great displeasure; and on the 27 Nov. 27 Hen. VIII., and other days before and after, at Westminster, she gave them great gifts to encourage them in their crimes. And further the said Queen and these other traitors, 31 Oct. 27 Hen. VIII., at Westminster, conspired the death and destruction of the King, the Queen often saying she would marry one of them as soon as the King died, and affirming that she would never love the King in her heart. And the King having a short time since become aware of the said abominable crimes and treasons against himself, took such inward displeasure and heaviness, especially from his said Queen's malice and adultery, that certain harms and perils have befallen his royal body.

And thus the said Queen and the other traitors aforesaid have committed their treasons in contempt of the Crown, and of the issue and heirs of the said King and Queen".
¹

The language used in the indictment and the details of the alleged offences aim to shock those reading or listening. Anne Boleyn is described as "seduced by evil" and having malice in her heart and "frail and carnal appetites", and then we have the details of her seducing her brother by "alluring him with her tongue". Anne was being painted as the Devil incarnate, a woman so possessed with evil and lust that she would even seduce her brother, and who appetites were so insatiable that rather than just taking one lover, she took five! Her lust and appetite knew no end. Shock was the aim and shock was what was achieved.

The Queen was accused of:-

• "Entertaining malice against the King" and following her lustful desires.
  
• Procuring her servants to be her lovers.
  
• Seducing and committing adultery with Sir Henry Norris, Sir William Brereton, Sir Francis Weston and Mark Smeaton.
  
• Committing incest with her brother, George Boleyn, Lord Rochford.
  
• Encouraging the men with gifts.
  
• Plotting with the men to kill the King.
  
• Agreeing to marry one of them after the King's death.
  
• Never having loved the King.
  
• Causing harm to the King.
  
• Committing treason by her actions.
  

The five named men were also obviously accused of these crimes, but there was no mention of Sir Richard Page or Sir Thomas Wyatt who were also among those imprisoned in the Tower of London at that time.

The Middlesex Indictment had covered all the bases – Anne Boleyn and the men were guilty of adultery and high treason (by plotting the King's death), and Anne was an evil seductress who had caused the King great harm. Any problem with the dates chosen for the alleged offences was covered by "divers days before and since" and "several times before and after", wonderful catch-all phrases which made it impossible to refute these dates. The Crown must have been pleased with itself – the jury would be shocked by Anne's behaviour and also by the harm done to their lord, the King, and they would surely want to please the King by doing his will. Anne Boleyn never stood a chance.

Arrangements for Trial

Also on 10th May 1536, Sir William Kingston, the Constable of the Tower of London, was ordered "to bring up the bodies of Sir Francis Weston, knt. Henry Noreys, esq.William Bryerton, esq. and Mark Smeton,gent. at Westminster, on Friday next after three weeks of Easter",
²
i.e. 12th May. Both Alison Weir
³
and Eric Ives
⁴
point out that this order was sent before the meeting of the Grand Jury in Kent and may even have been sent before the Middlesex meeting. Sir John Dudley wrote to Lady Lisle on the 10th May:

"Is sure there is no need to write the news, for all the world knows them by this time. Today Mr. Norres, Mr. Weston, William a Brearton, Markes, and lord Rocheforde were indicted, and on Friday they will be arraigned at Westminster. The Queen herself will be condemned by Parliament. Wednesday, 10 May."
⁵

Obviously Dudley did not realise that Rochford, like the Queen, would be tried on the 15th May, but he correctly predicted that she would be condemned.

11th May 1536 – The Kent Indictment

Just as the Grand Jury of Middlesex met at Westminster on 10th May 1536, the Grand Jury of Kent met on 11th May in front of Chief Justice John Baldwin and six of his colleagues at Deptford. They met to rule on the alleged crimes committed at Greenwich Palace, East Greenwich, and Eltham Palace by Queen Anne Boleyn, Sir Henry Norris, Sir William Brereton, Sir Francis Weston, George Boleyn (Lord Rochford) and Mark Smeaton. Unsurprisingly, this was a repeat of the previous day's meeting and it was ruled that the Queen and the five men would stand trial.

Here is a transcript of the Kent Indictment:

"Record of indictment and process before Baldewyn, Luke, and others, in co. Kent.

The indictment found at Deptford, on Thursday, 11 May 28 Hen. VIII., is precisely similar in character to the Middlesex indictment, except as regards times and places; viz., that the Queen at Estgrenewyche [East Greenwich], 12 Nov. 25 Hen. VIII., and divers days before and since, allured one Hen. Noreys, late of Est Grenewyche, to violate her, whereby he did so on the 19 Nov., &c.; that on 22 Dec. 27 Hen. VIII., and divers other days, at Eltham, she allured Geo. Boleyn, lord Rocheford, &c., whereby he did so, 29 Dec., &c.; that on the 16 Nov. 25 Hen. VIII., and divers, &c., at Est Grenewyche, she allured one Will. Bryerton, late of Est Grenewyche, &c., whereby he did so, 27 Nov., &c.; that on the 6 June 26 Hen. VIII., &c., at Est Grenewyche, she allured Sir Fras. Weston, &c., whereby he did so, 20 June, &c.; that on the 13 May 26 Hen. VIII. &c., at Est Grenewyche, she allured Mark Smeton, &c., whereby he did so, 19 May 26 Hen. VIII.

And further that the said Boleyn, &c. grew jealous of each other; and the Queen, to encourage them, at Eltham, 31 Dec. 27 Hen. VIII., and divers times before and since, made them presents, &c.; that the Queen and the others, 8 Jan. 27 Hen. VIII., conspired the King's death, &c., and that she promised to marry one of the traitors whenever the King was dead, affirming she would never love him, &c."
¹

The alleged offences were the same as the Middlesex indictment – seduction, adultery, incest, jealousy, plotting to kill the king etc. – just at different venues, so it is no wonder that the jury decided to send it to trial after the previous day's decision. The indictment also included the same catch-all phrase as the Middlesex Indictment, regarding various days before and after these dates.

The Dates of the Alleged Offences

If we combine the Kent and Middlesex Indictments, we get a clearer picture of the dates of the alleged offences:

• 6th and 12th October 1533 – Anne and Sir Henry Norris at Westminster.
  
• 16th and 27th November 1533 – Anne and Sir William Brereton at Greenwich.
  
• 3rd and 8th December 1533 – Anne and Sir William Brereton at Hampton Court.
  
• 12th April 1534 – Anne and Mark Smeaton at Westminster (date for Anne procuring Smeaton).
  
• 8th and 20th May 1534 – Anne and Sir Francis Weston at Westminster.
  
• 6th and 20th June 1534 – Anne and Sir Francis Weston at Greenwich.
  
• 26th April 1535 – Anne and Mark Smeaton at Westminster.
  
• 13th and 19th May 1535 – Anne and Mark Smeaton at Greenwich.
  
• 31st October 1535 – Anne and some of the men plotted the King's death at Westminster.
  
• 2nd and 5th November 1535 – Anne and her brother George Boleyn,Lord Rochford at Westminster.
  
• 27th November 1535 – Anne gave gifts to the men at Westminster.
  
• 22nd and 29th December 1535 – Anne and her brother George Boleyn, Lord Rochford, at Eltham Palace.
  
• 8th January 1536 – Anne plotted the King's death with Rochford, Norris, Weston and Brereton at Greenwich.
  

These dates actually do not make sense. Historian Eric Ives
²
comments that three quarters of the alleged offences can be disproven because Anne Boleyn or the man involved were actually somewhere else, as shown below.

The Case for the Defence

On 6th and 12th October 1533, Anne Boleyn would still have been unchurched after giving birth to her daughter, Elizabeth, the previous month. Furthermore, at the time she was at Greenwich, not Westminster.

3rd and 8th December 1533 – Records
³
show that the royal court was at Greenwich on 8th December, so Anne could not have been committing adultery with Sir William Brereton at Hampton Court Palace.

April, May and June 1534 - A letter from George Taylor to Lady Lisle dated 27th April 1534 says that "The Queen hath a goodly belly, praying our Lord to send us a prince"
⁴
and in July, Anne's brother, Lord Rochford, was sent on a diplomatic mission to France to ask for the postponement of a meeting between Henry VIII and Francis I because of Anne's condition: "being so far gone with child she could not cross the sea with the King".
⁵
So, there is evidence that Anne was visibly pregnant at this time, a time when she was allegedly seducing and sleeping with Mark Smeaton and Sir Francis Weston. Sexual intercourse was not commonly practised when the woman was pregnant.

Anne could also not have slept with Weston on 20th June at Greenwich when the court was at Hampton Court from 3rd to 26th June.

13th and 19th May 1535 – It would have been difficult for Anne to be sleeping with Mark Smeaton at Greenwich on the 19th when she was in Richmond at the time.
⁶

27th November 1535 - Seeing as Anne Boleyn miscarried a baby of 15 weeks' gestation on the 29th January 1536, she would have been pregnant at this time, although in the early stages. If she had had an inkling that she was pregnant, what benefit would it be for her to give gifts to the men to get them on side? Also, Anne was not at Westminster on this date, she was at Windsor.

22nd and 29th December 1535 - Would a woman in the early stages of pregnancy really have the reason or the inclination to seduce her brother?

8th January 1536 – Would Anne really be plotting the King's death while also celebrating Catherine of Aragon's death with Henry?

The dates listed in the indictments are pure nonsense, but the catch-all phrases "and on divers other days and places" and "on several days before and after" meant that if the dates were challenged then the indictment was still valid. Interestingly, the date that Anne Boleyn argued with Sir Henry Norris and accused him of looking "for dead men's shoes", the 30th April, is not in the indictments, yet Anne admitted to talking to Norris on that day and mentioning the King's death. Odd!

Looking at the dates of Anne's alleged adultery I find it difficult to believe that a woman, never-mind a queen, could hop from bed to bed like that over a period of just over 2 years and not be caught sooner. How could she possibly have had five lovers and not have been gossiped about? It beggars belief.

The Prisoners Interrogated

Sometime shortly before their trials, Anne Boleyn, George Boleyn, Sir Henry Norris, Sir Francis Weston, Sir William Brereton and Mark Smeaton were visited in the Tower of London by members of the King's council. The Spanish Chronicle records that Thomas Cromwell, the Duke of Norfolk, Chancellor Thomas Audley and Archbishop Cranmer were the ones chosen for this mission and were ordered by the King "to treat her with no respect or consideration".
¹
Cranmer was chosen as the spokesperson and he addressed the Queen:

"Madam, there is no one in the realm, after my lord the King, who is so distressed at your bad conduct as I am, for all these gentlemen well know I owe my dignity to your good-will;"

Anne interrupted him, saying, "My lord Bishop, I know what is your errand; waste no more time; I have never wronged the King, but I know well that he is tired of me, as he was before of the good lady Katharine."