Why was Anne Boleyn Henry VIII favourite wife?

Answer 1

Anne Boleyn was NOT Henry VIII's favorite wife. Though we known he had six wives he felt he only had two.

He was married to Katherine of Aragon from 1509 to 1533 and they had one surviving child: Princess Mary Tudor later Queen Mary I of England but commonly known as "Bloody Mary" He had this marriage annulled siting that since Katherine had been his older brother Arthur's wife and they did have dispensation from the Pope their marriage was invalid.

He married Lady Anne Boleyn from 1533 to 1536 and they had one surviving child: Princess Elizabeth Tudor later Queen Elizabeth I of England also known as the "Virgin Queen" He had her tried and executed on trumped up charges of adultery so he could be free to marry again. Before her execution he had their marriage annulled on the grounds that he had had sex with her sister Mary.

He married Jane Seymour from 1536 to 1537 and they had one child: Prince Edward later King Edward VI. This wife WAS his favorite because she did the one thing he most desired and the previous two failed to do-she delivered him a son. She died a few days after the birth of infection.

He married Anne of Cleves from January 1540 to July of 1540. They had no children. He annulled the marriage 1. Because it was not consummated(they didn't have sex) 2. He did not like her so he used her previous betrothal to another man to make their marriage invalid. Unlike Katherine of Aragon who never surrendered and fought till her death, Anne agreed and retired with a very large salary and numerous palaces living out her days as "the king's sister."

He married Katherine Howard from 1540 to 1542. They had no children. At the end of their marriage Henry was 51 and her age is estimated at 16. He was an overweight old man who had a violent temper and an open sore on his leg that would not heal so it literally rotted causing a horrible smell. She was tried and executed on charges of adultery just like her cousin-his second wife Anne Boleyn. Before her execution he annulled the marriage on the grounds that she was not a virgin when they married.

His final marriage was to Katherine Parr from 1543 to 1547 upon his death. They had no children. She acted more as a nurse to him than a wife and was a comfort in his old age. She brought together his three children and tried to make them a family. Mary from his first marriage was stubborn and strictly Roman Catholic-like her mother. Elizabeth from his second marriage was fiery and Protestant-like her mother. And Edward from his third was quiet and Protestant-like his mother.

So in his eyes he only had two wives-Jane Seymour and Katherine Parr.

Answer 2

No doubt Henry VIII (1491 to 1547) thought of second wife Anne Boleyn (c1501-07 to 1536) as his favourite at a time when their love was still intact. There are some surviving love letters from Henry to Anne, showing his passion for her. However, when that all ended in tragedy and Anne was executed, Henry was already on the verge of marrying another queen. That Queen was Jane Seymour (c1504-09 to 1537), his third wife, whom Henry was betrothed to the day after Anne was executed. Jane was the only wife to give Henry a legitimate male heir, which he so desperately wanted. Sadly, she died within days of giving birth to Edward, later Edward VI (1537 to 1553). But, just before he died, Henry asked to be interred next to Jane Seymour in St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England - which is where they are to this day. I suppose you might say that in the end, Jane was his favourite wife after all.