prince of Wales Arthur

 

Arthur Tudor (19 September/20 September, 1486– 2 April, 1502) was the first son and, therefore, heir of King Henry VII of England and Wales, and Elizabeth of York.

Early life

Birth

Henry VII, in order to strengthen his otherwise dubious claim to the throne (Henry came from bastard stock), set his personal genealogists to trace back his heritage to Cadwallader and ancient British kings. Henry identified Winchester in Hampshire as Camelot, and it was there that the first Tudor Prince of Wales, Arthur, was born to Henry and his Queen, Elizabeth of York. He was named after the legendary King Arthur of the Round Table. His christening took place at Winchester Cathedral, his godfathers being Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby and John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford who was late to the ceremony. Elizabeth Woodville, his maternal grandmother, was his godmother and carried him during the ceremony. He was made a Knight of the Bath at his christening. It is not known if Arthur was a robust child when born. In Arthur's Church History it says: ". . . [Arthur Tudor was] yet vital and vigorous" while Francis Bacon describes him as, "Born in the eighth month, as the physicians do prejudge," yet "strong and able". Some historians suggest that he had been weak his whole life long, and that was what led him to his death.

His only original surviving portrait^[1] shows a teenage boy growing into his skin, though some say he looks weak in it. He certainly differed from his athletic younger brother, the future Henry VIII. There is no evidence to show that Arthur did athletics, but he may have been fond of archery. In the portrait he has the red Tudor hair, small eyes, and a high-bridged nose. He bears a resemblance to both his father and brother.

Betrothal and alliance

Arthur's father, Henry VII, was eager to strengthen his kingdom through an alliance with newly-united Spain, seeking the support of the Catholic Monarchs Isabella of Castile (Isabel de Castilla) and Ferdinand of Aragon against French interests and possible aggression. When Arthur was two years old, a marriage with the Spanish princess, Catherine of Aragon (in Spain, Catalina de Aragón) was arranged for him as part of the Treaty of Medina del Campo. The auburn-haired Catherine was the youngest daughter of Isabella and Ferdinand. However, Ferdinand was more than ready to break the treaty if all of the pretenders to the throne of England did not vanish. Isabella and Ferdinand were in no hurry to have their daughter married, and, though a treaty had been made, they were still open. Therefore, in 1499, Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick was beheaded, and the pretender Perkin Warbeck, who some contemporaries asserted was Edward IV's illegitimate son, was hanged.

Childhood

When Arthur was a little boy of three, he was made the Prince of Wales and the Earl of Chester, and when five he was made a Knight of the Garter. He, being the heir, was trained specially. Some historians maintain that he had some kind of bond with Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk who was also the Earl of Surrey, and who defended the border of England whenever the Kingdom of Scotland attacked. His tutors were John Rede and the blind poet Bernard André. When he was fourteen to fifteen years old Thomas Linacre (or Lynaker) began to teach him. His tutor, Bernard André, wrote an unfinished biography of Henry VII in which he inserted the information that Arthur was familiar with all the best Latin and Greek language authors. The Prince's governor and treasurer was Sir Henry Vernon. Arthur may have frequently lived with Henry Vernon at his house, Haddon Hall, in the peak of Derbyshire where there was an apartment called 'The Prince's Chamber', with Arthur's arms cut in several places.

Marriage

For two years, Arthur wrote numerous letters in Latin to his bride, and she would formally reply back. However, the letters were more polite than passionate, since the young couple barely knew each other. When Arthur was fourteen, the Spanish monarchs promised that they were going to send their daughter Catherine over to England, but it was not until after her bridegroom turned fifteen that Catherine and her retinue finally started their journey. The Spanish Infanta (Princess) finally reached land in the autumn, and on November 4, 1501, the couple met at last at Dogsmersfield Palace in Hampshire. Little is known about their first impressions of each other, but Arthur did write to his father- and mother-in-law that he would be 'a true and loving husband' and he later told his parents that he was immensely happy to behold the face of his lovely bride. Ten days later, on November 14, 1501, they were married at St. Paul's Cathedral. At the end of the festive day came the Bedding Ceremony, in which most of the court put the young couple to bed, and thus began one of the most controversial wedding nights in history.

Death and aftermath

The couple soon went to Ludlow castle on the Welsh border, where Arthur normally resided in his capacity as Prince of Wales and President of The Council of Wales and Marches. He then abruptly died at the young age of fifteen. The cause of his death is unknown. It may have been consumption, diabetes, tuberculosis, or the mysterious sweating sickness, which modern theorists tie to a hantavirus. Catherine was sick as well, but unlike her unfortunate husband, she survived. His brother, Henry, Duke of York, became heir upon Arthur's death. He would come to the throne in 1509, and would not be prepared. It would soon be obvious, for he would constantly be under other people's influences, such as Cardinal Thomas Wolsey. Plans had been made for Henry to enter the church, and maybe become Archbishop of Canterbury, but Arthur's sudden death left almost everyone confused. Henry was not made Prince of Wales, until everyone was certain that Catherine wasn't carrying Arthur's child. Catherine would later marry Henry (who was six years younger than she was) after eight years, during which time Catherine was left in penury.

Funeral

Arthur was buried in Worcester Cathedral where "Prince Arthur's Chantry" silently stands today. Sir Griffith Ryce, a man part of Arthur's household, was an official mourner, and his tomb isn't far away from Arthur's. Arthur's father, the King, did not attend the funeral. The reasons for his absence are unknown, though many conjecture that the journey was too long or Henry VII was too upset. Elizabeth of York did not attend the funeral either, and as was the custom, Catherine of Aragon also stayed at home.

Question of consummation

Immense controversy surrounds this subject. Some think that if a young fifteen-year-old couple were to share a bed, the result would naturally be sexual intercourse. There is also the fact that Catherine needed to produce an heir for England, and the two (being royal, of course) would have viewed it as their 'duty.' It was perfectly common then for a teenage girl to have her marriage consummated, as Margaret Beaufort had hers consummated at age twelve with Edmund Tudor. But Doña Elvira, Catherine of Aragon's duenna said that the marriage was not consummated in any way. However, some historians argue back that Doña Elvira was never close to the girl, for she would later betray Catherine. Arthur, before the wedding night, said that he was feeling very 'lusty and amorous'. His friends also claimed that the following day, he proudly called for some water, saying that he had "been in Spain" and being a husband was "thirsty work." It is not known if Arthur was just saying this to cover up the fact that he failed, or if it really was the truth.

Arthur, as some historians say, was feeble and not robust, like Catherine's late brother, Juan, Prince of Asturias. Juan had been married to Archduchess Margaret of Austria, and, like Catherine and Arthur, Juan died after six months of marriage. It was believed for a time that Margaret had ruined Juan's health by seducing him too much. Some maintain that Arthur and Catherine had a normal sexual relationship throughout their marriage, and that this, as with Catherine's brother, led Arthur to die of over exertion. Others suggest that the couple engaged in sexual intercourse but did not do it properly.

What most find hard to believe is that the fervently devout Catholic Catherine would lie. In the Christian Bible it states that it is unclean for a man to take his brother's wife, and if a man did so, the union would be childless. The first time Catherine publicly said that her marriage with Arthur was not consummated was when Henry sought a divorce; it was never mentioned before that, and some historians say that it makes sense that Catherine would have lied to protect her flawless reputation. Catherine claimed that they only shared a bed for seven days, though while in Ludlow, such was not recorded. What Henry really wanted was a son, and though Catherine was pregnant many times during their marriage, only one child survived infancy, the Princess who would later be Mary I. Henry was having a notorious love affair with Anne Boleyn, who he would marry after divorcing Catherine, and claimed that his marriage to Catherine had produced no living sons because he had disobeyed Scripture and married his brother's widow.

This dispute, and Henry's inability to obtain the Catholic dissolution of his marriage, would be the main reason for the English Reformation. Catherine insisted that she was never Arthur's lover, and was a virgin when Henry married her. Whether Henry found her a virgin during their wedding night or not has never been recorded; however, when he was trying to annul his marriage with Catherine, he ordered bloodstained bedsheets, supposedly from his brother's marriage, to be paraded around his palace as proof of the consummation.

Historical fiction novelist Philippa Gregory believes that Arthur and Catherine's marriage was consummated, and that the pious Catherine lied; others, such as Tudor historian Alison Weir, believe that Catherine was telling the truth.

Further research

Christopher Guy, the archaeologist of Worcester Cathedral, said that he found it odd that, if Arthur was unhealthy, he was sent to the cold remoteness of Ludlow Castle. Peter Vaughan, of the Worcester Prince Arthur Committee, finds it strange as well. He says: "He wasn't a strong character, unlike his younger brother. Could it be that his father was strong enough to see that the best interests of the Tudors were to be served by Henry Duke of York, rather than Arthur?"

However, historians such as David Starkey and Julian Litten have dismissed ideas of neglect or murder. "There is nothing fishy about his demise", said Litten. "He was in Ludlow as an ambassador for a King setting up a new dynasty."

Litten believes that the real mystery in Arthur's death is the disease. If not consumption or the historical English sweating sickness, it could have been a genetic condition that may have been passed on to his nephews, Edward VI and Henry Fitzroy.

Arthur in fiction

Arthur has appeared in several novels about Catherine of Aragon. One of these, The King's Pleasure, was featured in the 1969 issue of Reader's Digest Condensed Books which also included My Life with Martin Luther King Jr. Katharine, The Virgin Widow by Jean Plaidy has Arthur in it as well. Vanity Fair magazine declared the book "Outstanding". The Constant Princess, by Philippa Gregory, tells the story of how Catherine and Arthur fell in love, consummated their marriage, and how he suddenly died. In it, Katherine promises Arthur she will become Queen of England by marrying his brother. In order to do so, she must lie about the fact that their marriage was consummated. Gregory, who also wrote the New York Times bestseller The Other Boleyn Girl, leaves a note at the end of that book as well, saying she believes that Catherine lied.

Ancestors

Arthur's ancestors in three generations

Arthur, Prince of Wales	Father: Henry VII of England	Paternal Grandfather: Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond	Paternal Great-grandfather: Owen Tudor
			Paternal Great-grandmother: Catherine of Valois
		Paternal Grandmother: Lady Margaret Beaufort	Paternal Great-grandfather: John Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset
			Paternal Great-grandmother: Margaret Beauchamp of Bletso
	Mother: Elizabeth of York	Maternal Grandfather: Edward IV of England	Maternal Great-grandfather: Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York
			Maternal Great-grandmother: Cecily Neville
		Maternal Grandmother: Elizabeth Woodville	Maternal Great-grandfather: Richard Woodville, 1st Earl Rivers
			Maternal Great-grandmother: Jacquetta of Luxembourg

Notes

1. ^ Philip Mould (1995) devotes a chapter to the rediscovery of this portrait and its validation through historical research.

Additional reading

• Fraser, Antonia, The Six Wives of Henry VIII, ISBN 0-7493-1409-5
• "Royal Tutors in the Reign of Henry VII", David Carlson, Sixteenth Century Journal Vol. 22, No. 2 (Summer, 1991), pp. 253-279
• Mould, Philip. (1995) Sleepers. London: Fourth Estate. ISBN 1857022181
• Weir, Alison The Six Wives of Henry VIII
• Weir, Alison The Princes in the Tower

External links

• Prince Arthur biographical sketch on Find-A-Grave
• "Intimate Strangers," a popular account of the hantavirus theory, and one which assumes Arthur was indeed a victim of the sickness.
• "The Death of Prince Arthur Tudor, 1502" from EnglishHistory.net
• Short biography of Prince Arthur http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/Bios/ArthurTudor.html
• An Alternate history Timeline of what might of happened if Arthur had lived to become King

Arthur, Prince of Wales House of Tudor Born: 19 September 1486 Died: 2 April 1502
Preceded by Edward of Middleham, Prince of Wales	Prince of Wales 1486 — 1502	Succeeded by Henry, Duke of York later became King Henry VIII

Dukes of Cornwall

HRH The Prince Charles, Duke of Cornwall Edward, the Black Prince (1337-1376) · Richard II (1376-1377) · Henry V (1399-1413) · Henry VI (1421-1422) · Edward of Westminster (1453-1471) · Edward V (1470-1483) · Edward of Middleham (1483-1484) · Arthur, Prince of Wales (1486-1502) · Henry VIII (1502-1509) · Henry Tudor (1511) · Henry Tudor (1514) · Henry Tudor (1534) · Edward Tudor (1536) · Edward VI (1537-1547) · Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales (1603-1612) · Charles I (1612-1625) · Charles II (1630-1649) · Charles James (1629) · The Old Pretender (1688-1689) · George II (1714-1727) · Prince Frederick (1727-1751) · George IV (1762-1820) · Edward VII (1841-1901) · George V (1901-1910)· Edward VIII (1910-1936)

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