Anne Boleyn, the Woman who changed England – Instant Access Replay
Find out why Anne Boleyn was far from the social climber fiction so often makes her out to be by delving into her ancestry and family background.
Discover the true Anne Boleyn who arrived at the English court in 1522 and turned the heads of a courtier, poet and king.
Understand why this maid of honour was so very different to her contemporaries, what made her tick and how she was a true Renaissance woman.
It's only by looking at Anne Boleyn's background and her formative years, spent at two Renaissance courts, that we can truly understand her.
Includes TEN UNIQUE expert talk videos on Anne Boleyn including:
- Anne Boleyn's Irish Ancestry - 1 Hour Talk by Gareth Russell. For too long, Anne Boleyn's aristocratic Irish ancestry has been downplayed, ignored, or overlooked. Gareth Russell looks at how the shadow of Kilkenny Castle, the ancestral home of her Irish family, loomed over every major decision in her early life.
Not only that, but the Boleyns played a major role in the development of the so-called 'Irish constitutional revolution' of the sixteenth century. It was Irish Margaret Butler, not English Geoffrey Boleyn, who was the ancestor that mattered more to Anne's family and this talk explores the fascinating, magnificent story of Anne's Butler family tree. - Anne Boleyn's royal blood, the Boleyns and Howards - 50 Minute Talk by Claire Ridgway. The Boleyns are often depicted as a family of merchants, a lower-class family of social climbers who rose above their allotted station, but that's simply not true.
In this talk, Claire explores Anne Boleyn's family tree, her descent from royalty, the status of the Boleyn family and their rise before Anne was even born, and her link to the Howards, one of the premier families of England. - Forging a Queen: Thomas Boleyn's influence on his daughter - 38 Minute Talk by Lauren Mackay. Anne Boleyn's story is one of the most famous of the Tudor Age, but that of her father, Thomas Boleyn, is less known. Far from the myth of a grasping courtier who sacrificed his daughters to the royal bedchamber, Thomas Boleyn enjoyed a successful career as one of the Tudor period's most highly skilled ambassadors and courtiers, serving as one of Cardinal Wolsey’s right-hand men and cultivating impressive personal connections with European monarchs and the nobility.
The relationship between father and daughter is reflected in the sophisticated education he secured for Anne in the courts of Europe, as well as the connections he helped her create at the English court. Lauren Mackay delves into this underappreciated element of Anne’s life, to discover just how instrumental Thomas was in shaping the extraordinary woman we have come to know. - In the Footsteps of the Early Years of Anne Boleyn - 1 Hour 20 Minute Talk by Natalie Grueninger and Sarah Morris. Have you ever wanted to know more about some of the places Anne Boleyn knew intimately during her early years in England, Mechelen and France? Drawing upon the extensive research undertaken for the writing of their No 1 Amazon bestseller, "In the Footsteps of Anne Boleyn", join co-authors Sarah Morris and Natalie Grueninger for a lively adventure as they reimagine Anne’s early years through the places she visited and called home.
From Blickling Hall to Paris and the glorious chateaux of the Loire, Natalie and Sarah will describe the buildings she knew, and explore some of the early, cultural forces that we believe shaped Anne Boleyn's later character and tastes. Pack your virtual bags and get ready to time travel! - Anne Boleyn and her tumultuous relationship with France - 33 Minute Talk by Estelle Paranque. Anne Boleyn spent her formative years in France, first serving Mary Tudor, Queen of France and wife of Louis XII, and then his daughter, Queen Claude of France, wife of Francis I.
These seven years in France had a huge influence on Anne, the woman she became and the queen consort she was, and in this talk, Dr Estelle Paranque discusses how Anne Boleyn’s upbringing in France changed the course of her life. - Anne Boleyn's return to England - 31 Minute Talk by Claire Ridgway. Anne Boleyn was recalled from France in late 1521 and in this talk, Claire explains why she returned, what we know about her debut at the English court, and the lavish Shrovetide pageant in which she participated, and her new role serving Queen Catherine.
- Representation, Image and Agency in the Life of Anne Boleyn - 46 Minute Talk by Owen Emmerson and Kate McCaffrey. One of Anne Boleyn’s most defining characteristics, one that marked her out as different from the traditional model of English court ladies and captured the eye of the king of England, was her agency.
In many aspects of her life, Anne was the opposite of passive, the opposite of the expected. In her style, her language, her religious beliefs, her boldness, her airs and graces, Anne was unexpected. She did not follow the grain. She stood out. Equally, however, she knew the importance of using the established gender roles to her advantage, of presenting herself as the ‘lovynge and kynde’ wife-in-waiting. This talk will examine the ways in which Anne consciously created and curated her own image working both within, and outside of, expected gender norms. - The Woman who stole the hearts of a courtier, poet and king - 47 Minute Talk by Claire Ridgway. Following her return to England, Anne Boleyn, who was originally destined for a life in Ireland as the wife of James Butler, embarked on an ill-fated romance with a courtier and heir to an earldom. After that romance was halted, she caught the eyes of both a famous Tudor poet and diplomat and the King of England.
Find out about Anne's first few years back at the English court and the men who loved her, from Claire Ridgway. - Interview with Natalia Richards and Rebecca Monet - 1 Hour Hosted by Claire Ridgway
- EXCLUSIVE: When was Anne Boleyn Born? - 1 Hour 30 Discussion with Claire, Dr Owen Emmerson and Gareth Russell
By the end of these talks, you will have met a very new Anne and understand just why King Henry VIII changed the course of English history to be with her, and why they were such a powerful union.
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Thank you Claire and everyone for many good talks and exchanges. Great zooms and talks from a great cast of experts. Thank you so much. I really enjoyed it.