The compromising conversations of Anne Boleyn with Norris, Weston, and Smeaton, and her conversations in the Tower, are based on Sir William Kingston’s detailed reports to Cromwell. Some of these conversations seem disjointed and make little sense in parts, and I suspect that not every utterance was recorded; therefore, using the creative freedom of a novelist, I have tried to make better sense of them.
The quotation “Orders is orders” is what Sir Edmund Walsingham, Lieutenant of the Tower, famously said to Sir Thomas More.
Some sources mention Anne’s father being among the peers who condemned her. I have discussed the evidence for this in my book The Lady in the Tower: The Fall of Anne Boleyn.
George Boleyn’s scaffold speech went way beyond the conventional acknowledgment of sins expected of those about to die, suggesting he was carrying a burden of guilt for some heinous deed(s). I have outlined the evidence for his sexual relationships in The Lady in the Tower.
I do not subscribe to the view that Henry VIII suffered from impotence during his marriage to Anne, as alleged at George Boleyn’s trial. The fact that Anne became pregnant four times in three years rather counterbalances it. Nor do I subscribe to the popular theory that Henry VIII suddenly changed character after a fall from his horse in January 1536; the source that states he lay without speaking for two hours is an unreliable one.
Writing the final scenes of Anne’s life was a grueling experience that stayed with me for days, and in case anyone wonders about my portrayal of her actual beheading, I must point out that a judge, Sir John Spelman, who witnessed her execution, recorded seeing “her lips moving and her eyes moving” afterward. There is a discussion about the survival of consciousness after decapitation in The Lady in the Tower. In 1983, a medical study found that “no matter how efficient the method of execution, at least two to three seconds of intense pain cannot be avoided.” Research undertaken in the late nineteenth century suggested that most victims of the guillotine died within two seconds, but a more modern estimate would be an average of thirteen seconds. In 1905, a French doctor observed a decapitated criminal taking twenty-five to thirty seconds to die.
Severing the spinal cord causes death only when the brain has been completely deprived, through massive hemorrhaging, of the oxygen in the blood that nourishes it. In 1956, two French doctors concluded: “Death is not instantaneous: every element survives decapitation. It is a savage vivisection.” Anne Boleyn did possibly experience a few dreadful moments in which she was aware of what was happening.
As has been the case before when I’ve written historical novels, telling the fictional version of Anne’s story from her point of view has afforded me new insights into what might have happened. I feel I understand better what shaped her into the person she was, her enmity toward Cardinal Wolsey and Thomas Cromwell, what went wrong in her marriage to Henry VIII, and why she was so unkind to Katherine of Aragon and the Lady Mary. This has made it possible for me to portray her in a more sympathetic light than I could as a historian keeping within the confines of the sources and credible speculation.
I wish to express huge appreciation of my editors, Susanna Porter at Ballantine and Mari Evans and Flora Rees at Headline, for their inspiring enthusiasm and creative support. Warm and grateful thanks go also to my agent, Julian Alexander, who has been the guiding force, and a tower of strength, throughout my literary career.
I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Sarah Gristwood, for taking the time to read this novel when she was under great pressure to finish her marvelous book, Game of Queens. I’m indebted to Sarah for generously sharing her research on feminist thought in Renaissance Europe and on the female rulers of the period, and for her creative suggestions. She conjures unique insights and has a huge talent for joined-up thinking, which, coupled with the emotional intelligence that underpins her work, makes for a new and vivid understanding of all the subjects about whom she writes. This book has benefited greatly from that expertise.
I wish also to express my gratitude to the great, highly professional team at Ballantine who have supported me in the production of this book: Emily Hartley, assistant editor; Melanie DeNardo, my publicist; Maggie Oberrender, for marketing; Victoria Allen, for the beautiful cover design; and Shona McCarthy, the production editor. You’re all stars! Another big thank-you goes to Pete Rendeiro, who suggested the subtitle.
Lastly, but by no means least, thank you to my wonderful husband, Rankin, who, despite a difficult year of illness, has remained an enormous support and struggled manfully through his recovery to sustain and encourage me in my work.
To Rankin, my wonderful husband, and Julian, my brilliant literary agent, without whom none of my books would be possible.
BY ALISON WEIR
FICTION
SIX TUDOR QUEENS:
Anne Boleyn, A King’s Obsession Katherine of Aragon, The True Queen The Marriage Game
A Dangerous Inheritance Captive Queen
The Lady Elizabeth
Innocent Traitor
NONFICTION
The Lost Tudor Princess: The Life of Lady Margaret Douglas Elizabeth of York: A Tudor Queen and Her World Mary Boleyn: The Mistress of Kings The Lady in the Tower: The Fall of Anne Boleyn Mistress of the Monarchy: The Life of Katherine Swynford, Duchess of Lancaster Queen Isabella: Treachery, Adultery, and Murder in Medieval England Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Murder of Lord Darnley Henry VIII: The King and His Court Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life The Life of Elizabeth I The Children of Henry VIII The Wars of the Roses
The Princes in the Tower The Six Wives of Henry VIII
About the Author
ALISON WEIR is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels Katherine of Aragon, The Marriage Game, A Dangerous Inheritance, Captive Queen, The Lady Elizabeth, and Innocent Traitor, and numerous historical biographies, including The Lost Tudor Princess, Elizabeth of York, Mary Boleyn, The Lady in the Tower, Mistress of the Monarchy, Henry VIII, Eleanor of Aquitaine, The Life of Elizabeth I, and The Six Wives of Henry VIII. She lives in Surrey, England, with her husband.