Anne’s Fall: A Queen Condemned

Anne’s fall and death is a somber chapter of British history. Anne was labeled a “whore” and accused of affairs and even witchcraft. In reality, the accusations against Anne probably had more to do with her inability to provide Henry with a male heir than any truth. Three years into her marriage and rule as Queen of England, she was arrested, imprisoned in the Tower of London, and beheaded. The “Condemnation of Anne Boleyn,” an 1804 illustrated folio seen below, depicts Anne receiving news of her fate, as she looks up pleading into the light of an omnipotent force or figure. 

Condemnation of Anne Boleyn, 1804

Below are two versions of Anne’s final plea for freedom. First is a poem imagined to be from Anne to Henry. Anne writes of “unhappy Anne at least to mourn,” (fourth line of first paragraph) and references “What Nature most to Womankind endears” (fourth line of second paragraph). 

A poem imagined to be from Anne to Henry.

While Anne’s tragedy is her own, her story is also that of “womankind” held to their husbands’ will, a horrific reminder of power imbalances.

Second is a transcribed letter attributed to Anne in her final months in the Tower and addressed to Henry. Anne’s final letter has become incredibly famous. On the displayed page, she begins to plead her case stating that, “Your Grace’s displeasure and mine imprisonment are things so strange.” Throughout the letter, Anne will defend her role as a “Wife more Loyal in all Duty, and in all true Affection.” She will warn that God will call them both to “his General Judgement Seat,” where “mine Innocence shall be openly known,” before her final request that “my self may only bear the Burthen of your Grace’s Displeasure, and that it may not touch the Innocent souls of those poor gentlemen [her accused lovers].” Her plea of innocence and mercy are striking, as is the hint of defiance to Henry, warning him of the moral consequences of his own actions.

Some scholars question if these words were actually written by Anne or simply attributed to her.

Anne’s prose is distinctive; viewers can only imagine her final moments, doomed at the hands of her own husband. Yet, whether written by Anne or mythologized as such, these pieces serve as a thought-provoking reflection of the fall of one of history’s forgotten queens. Finally, one sees a print imagining Anne’s execution, with a Dutch inscription below. The final image is tragic and impactful, showing Anne standing by her innocence until the end.

An imagining of Anne’s execution.