“No!” Anne cried, alarmed. Without Henry, she was nothing, and the wolves would be waiting to pounce…
“Be at peace, sweetheart,” Henry soothed, “for I am assured there is no real danger. But if it could be proved that the Queen had any hand in this conspiracy, she must not expect to be spared.”
There was no real danger. Anne suspected that there was no real conspiracy.
Henry was waxing indignant. “My Council have advised me to separate from her, both at bed and board, and to take the Princess Mary from her.”
Anne did not believe that Henry would ever go so far, or not for long. If he did, she knew it would break Katherine. Momentarily she felt a sharp pang of sympathy for the Queen, but quickly reminded herself that Katherine did not need to be in this situation. It was her own fault that she was. Aloud, she said, “It might make her capitulate. She should not be courting popularity at such a time.”
“No, she should not,” Henry growled. “There is already too much sympathy for her. The common people, being ignorant of the truth, especially the women, say that I mean to take another wife for my own pleasure; and whoever speaks against it is much abhorred and reproved. Katherine has been warned that she must show herself less in public and adopt a more sober demeanor at this time—at the risk of my displeasure. And so, darling, when you come to Bridewell, you will not be troubled by her.”
He stood up. “I must go. I am seeing Cardinal Campeggio myself in the morning. And he had better not suggest that I return to the Queen!”
—
Henry arrived the next afternoon in a jubilant mood. He kissed Anne and led her through to the garden, where they seated themselves on a stone bench facing the Thames.
“It did not begin well,” he related. “At first the legate argued that I should return to the Queen. You can imagine my reaction. But then he showed me a Papal bull authorizing him to give judgment on my case. He said his Holiness had granted it, not to be used, but to be kept secret, as he desired to demonstrate the goodwill he has toward me. Truly, Anne, I think Pope Clement means for judgment to be given, but he dare not make that bull public for fear of the Emperor.”
It is just a sop to keep you sweet, Anne thought. What good is this bull if it cannot be used? But she went on smiling.
“I showed him,” Henry said, “that I have studied this matter with great diligence, and probably know more about it than any theologian or jurist. I told him in the plainest terms that I want nothing but a declaration whether my marriage is valid or not, although I said there could be no doubt that it is invalid. And then he came up with the ideal solution. Katherine should be persuaded to enter a nunnery. She’s pious, and would make a wonderful abbess. Then the Pope can issue a dispensation allowing me to remarry, and the Emperor could not possibly object. We can be married, and England will have hopes of an heir.”
It was the best, the perfect answer. Anne’s spirits soared.
“Do you think the Queen will agree?”
“I see no reason why not. She stands to lose only my person by entering religion; she knows I will not return to her, however things fall out. She could still enjoy any worldly comforts she desires, and I will allow her whatever she wishes, and above all I will settle the succession upon Mary, after any children we have, darling.” His eyes narrowed in that menacing way that betokened a steely determination to have his will. “Besides, she, of all people, will wish to preserve the peace of Europe and the spiritual authority of the Holy See.” He was growing bullish now. “Because if Clement ruled in her favor, I would lose all faith in his office, and so would many others. And I’ve made it very clear to Campeggio that if this divorce is not granted, I will annihilate the authority of the Pope in this kingdom.”
Anne felt as if she had been winded. Her heart began beating furiously. Did he really mean what he had just said? Would he overthrow a thousand years of England’s obedience to the Church of Rome to free himself? And for her?
For a moment she was speechless. Then she found her voice.
“You would do that?”
“Without hesitation!” Henry declared. “I could not countenance a corrupt Pope wielding spiritual authority over my realm. But it won’t come to that. Katherine will see reason.”
—
Henry’s words had left Anne thoughtful. That evening, as they dined and the conversation moved on to other matters, her thoughts kept straying to the momentous prospect he had opened up. It was a scandal that the Pope could not bring himself to pronounce on Henry’s case. But, as she had known since her days at the court of the Regent Margaret, there was a lot else that was scandalous in the Church. The sale of indulgences; priests who charged the poor for the sacraments necessary for attaining Heaven, and who flouted their vows of chastity by taking mistresses. And these were the men chosen to interpret the Scriptures for lay people! Look at the fabulous wealth of the Church, which enabled Popes, cardinals, and bishops to live in sybaritic luxury. Look at Wolsey! Look at those clergy who, like him, acquired parishes and benefices simply for their revenues, and never even visited them. Was this the Church that Christ had founded? Surely He had never intended it to be like this.
Small wonder that reformers like Martin Luther had spoken out against the abuses. Faith, Luther had said, should be based on Scripture alone. Man is justified through his faith in Jesus Christ. And in the eleven years since he had nailed his list of protests against the abuses to a church door in Germany, thousands had come to agree with him, even though the Church branded them heretics.