- The ages of Mary, Anne, and George Boleyn: Gregory sets their birth years at about 1508, 1507 and 1503. Based on a letter written by Mary's son Henry Carey, it is commonly believed that Mary was the oldest of the siblings, born between 1499 and 1500. Personally, I agree that Anne was born in about the summer of 1507 for various reasons, among these being how this year is engraved at Hever and referenced in two primary documents, though historians set her birth-year at 1501. George Boleyn's birth year is thought to be about 1504.
- The Henry VIII/Mary Boleyn affair began in 1522? False! It could have begun as early as 1519 and ended 1520, began in 1519 and ended as late as 1525, began and ended in 1520, or began in 1520 and ended as late as 1525. According to The Other Boleyn Girl, Mary was in Henry's bed till late as 1527, and an option for him still in 1528. Historically, if the affair lasted till 1525, while Mary was lying in for the birth of her son in 1526, Henry probably forgot about her upon meeting and falling for Anne, and their relationship reached its conclusion at this point.
- Mary, Henry VIII's innocent and sexually-naive mistress? Portrayed as a timid and virginal fourteen-year-old upon becoming the king's mistress, Mary Boleyn had factually already been a mistress, and of yet another king -- the French king, Francis I. Between 1514 and 1519 Mary served as a maid to his wife, and eventually became for some time his mistress, receiving from him the nickname 'the English Mare' for he 'rode her often', and even called her a [slut] 'infamous above all'. That she was already having intercourse and by all accounts much of it pretty much disproves that she was born in 1508, which would mean that she was as young as six or seven throughout some of these affairs.
- Catherine and Henry Carey, Henry VIII's bastards? Henry did not acknowledge Mary's two children throughout her marriage to William Carey as his illegitimate daughter and son as he did with former mistress Bessie Blount, who borne him Henry Fitzroy. There is a chance that, if their relationship went through 1520-1525, that these children were his, though personally I don't believe they were, but Henry had relations with many other women who became pregnant and claimed to be the mothers of his bastards, and so given how they were not acknowledged they might just be added to the list.
- Henry disliked difficult women? Well, it was just one line toward the beginning of the novel that really bothers me to the extent that I must actually write about it. Henry was not compelled to difficult women? Initially Henry did not pay Anne much or any attention till about 1526 according to most historians, but the very reason he remained with her seven years (which may not sound like much, but in those times and for a man like him who would eventually have six wives, it's pretty incredible) struggling and fighting to wed her, beyond his desire for a son, was that she was difficult, and would not heed until she was his Queen.
- Mary and Anne as rivals? No. There was never a time when Henry VIII loved Anne and Mary simultaneously. When he fell for Anne, there was no other woman in the world to him. Though it was not until 1527 that he was firmly hers, Henry would never sleep with another woman whilst courting Anne -- he was that enchanted.
- Henry's 1527 letter to Clement regarding 'first affinity' indicated Anne and Mary? The letter stated that in the event of Henry's freedom from his marriage to Catherine, he might have a dispensation to contract a new marriage with any woman even in the first degree of affinity, whether the affinity was contracted by lawful or unlawful connection. By first degree of affinity, Henry means that despite how he bedded her sister, he might still be allowed to marry Anne; ironically, his reasoning for the annulment of his marriage to Catherine was for her alleged sleeping with his brother, making her his sister and thus their marriage incest. However, The Other Boleyn Girl claims that what Henry was petitioning for was permission to wife a woman he had already bedded, indicating that he might still harbor interest in wedding Mary.
- Mary Boleyn's son, potential heir? Sort of a continuation of the previous bullet, in the novel Mary's family believes that Henry might marry her upon receiving annulment as she is the mother of his alleged son Henry Carey. However, whilst kings might get lucky twisting the words of Bible verses or religious tracts, nobody on Earth could move the planets and make Henry Carey a valid heir. Firstly, there was the very large chance that in reality he was not Henry VIII's son. Next, there was the fact that Mary Boleyn was married and divorces were difficult to come by in those times. Alas, Henry VIII could not simply marry his discarded whore without facing great opposition. Anyway, without acknowledgement from Henry VIII there is no chance whatsoever that upon his death Henry Carey could ascend; there was barely a chance that Henry Fitzroy might.
- Unnatural Anne? According to The Other Boleyn Girl, maintaining her place as the king's mistress and the center of the court took an immense toll on Anne, forcing her to hide her face behind a mask of cosmetics, fall gravely ill and by night be near-to-death exhausted. However, sources describe Anne as a naturally gifted courtier, who shined by being 100% herself -- that was bold beyond what was expected or wanted for a woman, clever, and witty.
- Anne, the murderess? In The Other Boleyn Girl it is more than heavily implied that Anne used poison to inflict illness upon Mary Tudor (Henry VIII's daughter), Catherine, Fisher, that she might have killed Wolsey and even others. However, Mary Tudor was known to be frail and sickly, Wolsey had been arrested and most likely caught illness during the rough travel, and it is not recorded that any of those listed contracted illness at this time. Beyond that, whether a kind and benevolent soul or not, Anne Boleyn, like the rest of her time, was raised a devout believer in God and thus the afterlife. Life in Tudor times was centered around the afterlife, and so the real Anne Boleyn wouldn't dare to threaten her immortal soul.
- Anne, the son-stealing b*tch? Anne Boleyn is more than just a man-stealer but also a son-snatcher in The Other Boleyn Girl! Historically: In 1528/9 at the death of Mary's husband, Anne takes Henry Carey as her ward for William Carey left Mary much debt to pay due to his gambling, leaving her and her children in poverty. Anne set up a 100 pound a year pension for her sister and helped her to raise her son. In The Other Boleyn Girl: Anne gives Mary a hundred pounds a year as cruel compensation for stealing her son so that in Henry VIII's eyes, marrying Anne he will automatically have a son of Tudor blood. Well, I don't even know where to begin. Firstly, taking Henry Carey as her ward would not make Anne Boleyn his mother, and so thus he could not be a Tudor heir. Henry Carey is also recognized as but Mary's son by Henry Carey: what would Anne gain having him as her ward? Without Anne's help God knows what would have happened to Mary and her family; it's just disgusting how this great act of kindness was so twisted. In all reality Henry Carey probably wasn't so in-demand, just a deceased knight's son in the eyes of England.
- Mary, the country girl? When Mary leaves court in 1522, she finds a love for riding and the great outdoors at Hever Castle and from then on wishes solely for independence where she will not have to be reliant on family, a husband or any man and might be free; in The Other Boleyn Girl, this dream is only fueled when she is discarded by the king. While this could never be disproven it is most likely that after the death of her husband she simply continued to live off her pension and the fortunes Anne brought for the Boleyn family.
- George Boleyn in a homosexual ring with Henry VIII's other grooms? Gregory's idea that George was homosexual and in love with another courtier, Francis Weston, is built entirely off the slightest theory by Retha M. Warnicke that at his execution in 1536, his wordy speech of a thousand confessions of sins included homosexuality. Could George have been homosexual? That's definitely a possibility but it was one exploded and fictionalized in The Other Boleyn Girl.
- William Stafford, Mary's escort and lover? In The Other Boleyn Girl Mary knew William Stafford since the mid 1520s and eventually married him in about 1533. It is most likely that since they were both guests to Calais, they met in France or on board and continued to meet in England before wedding, as oppose to falling in love while he was allegedly in the service of her uncle, the Duke of Norfolk.
- Anne was ashamed of Elizabeth? Considering the primary reason for his break from the Roman Catholic Church was for a male heir, only naturally Anne was disappointed that she borne a daughter as oppose to the coveted male heir, and if indeed she was born in 1501 and was 32 already at this time, becoming pregnant again would be difficult. However Anne was said to be in the short time she was, a loving mother, whilst in The Other Boleyn Girl she feels only shame for mothering Elizabeth crying out something along the lines of "What good is a girl?" It is believed that she is one of few queens who breastfed her child and strongly against the king's wishes. That's some tough, real love.
- Anne slept with her brother, George? Is it really all that difficult for anybody to believe that two siblings can simply be loving and close without having sex? What bothers me most is that in an interview Gregory said something along the lines of, if Anne was indeed so desperate for a son that she would seek a more potent father for it, then George would be the 'obvious choice'. It's disgusting. Anne was a woman of Christian values who feared God and was careful to keep safe her immortal soul; there is no way that she would seek another man, let alone George to get her pregnant.
- A clemency for Anne was a 'sure thing'? In The Other Boleyn Girl, it was commonly believed by the people and Anne's family that she would receive a clemency and be sent to live in some nunnery. However, in reality, given all of the charges, though infamously fabricated, that were brought against her, she could not just simply be excused. Had the charges been less extreme meaning minus the adultery, treason in plotting his death, seducing him with the use of witchcraft, she might have had a chance at receiving clemency. But with these charges, real or not, Henry really had no choice but to condemn her. Beyond that, Henry had managed to truly, deeply convince himself of Anne's guilt and so it was easy for him to let her to die.
Statistics
Pages: 661
Publisher: Touchstone Books
Year Published: 2001
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