(c.
1500 -
July 19 ,
1543 ) was granddaughter to
Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke Of Norfolk , daughter to
Elizabeth Howard and leading diplomat
Thomas Boleyn, 1st Earl Of Wiltshire , sister to
George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford and
Anne Boleyn (by whose fame she has been eclipsed).
Mary was the mistress of
Henry VIII Of England and is purported to have been mistress of
Francis I Of France as well. She was married twice to members of Henry's court and bore children who were in the court of her niece
Elizabeth I Of England .
Mary was born in
Blickling Hall in
Norfolk sometime between
1499 and
1504 . She is generally believed to have been older than her famous sister Anne, though there is some controversy regarding this. It was once believed that it was Mary who spent time as a companion to
Archduchess Margaret Of Austria , daughter of
Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor and
Mary Of Burgundy , but it is now clear that it was Anne.
In her biography of Anne Boleyn, Joanne Denny writes that Mary's grandson, Lord Hunsdon stated he was certain that Mary was the elder sister. In 1597 he claimed the Earldom of Ormonde through his grandmother. If Anne had been the elder sister then it would have been her daughter, Queen Elizabeth who would have had the right to the title.
Several books mention that Mary Boleyn accompanied
Mary Tudor , daughter of
Henry VII Of England and
Elizabeth Of York who had become the new
Queen Consort of
Louis XII Of France , to
France , as
Maid Of Honour . While many of the Queen's English maids were ordered to leave France, Mary Boleyn was allegedly permitted to remain, probably because of her father's connections as the new English ambassador.
When
Mary Tudor left France after Louis' death on
January 1 ,
1515 , Mary Boleyn allegedly stayed in the court of the new king and queen,
Francis I and
Claude Of France .
This is believed to have led to Mary becoming mistress to the new king of France who reportedly called her "my English
Mare " and "a great whore, the most infamous of all" in his later years. Many believe this story, given that Mary subsequently later embarked on numerous, scandalous affairs. As for the rumor regarding
Francis I Of France , there is no definitive proof. It is generally accepted by many historians.
Her sister Anne and her father eventually joined her in France, both of them apparently mortified by Mary's actions. She was sent home in either
1519 or
1520 following the illicit marriage of Queen
Mary Tudor . She was then placed in the service of
Catherine Of Aragon , daughter of
Ferdinand II Of Aragon and
Isabella I Of Castile . Catherine had served as the
Queen Consort of Henry VIII since
June 11 ,
1509 .
Shortly after going back to England,
February 4 ,
1520 , Mary married Sir
William Carey , a
Courtier . Henry VIII was a guest at the couple's wedding, and Mary soon became the king's lover. Popular legend states that Mary bore Henry two
Illegitimate children, but this seems unlikely. One witness did note that Mary's son had a strong resemblance to Henry VIII, but this could have been conjecture, flattery or a lie. Henry usually acknowledged all male bastards as his own and when he finished with Mary he had not yet fallen for her sister Anne, thus meaning that there was no reason for him to deny paternity of the child if he had been the father. Furthermore, recent evidence suggests that Mary's youngest daughter Catherine was not born until 1529, by which time Henry's affair with her had been over for almost six years. Mary's children both bore the surname of Carey and it has been suggested that Sir William Carey received his knighthood and lands because he was married to the king's mistress or official father of the king's bastards. However, even before his marriage to Mary Boleyn, Carey was a prominent courtier and a favourite of the king.
Mary's sister was called back to England in
1522 , and it is uncertain how much effect either sister had on the rising fortunes of their father, who was created a Viscount in
1525 . But, by mid-
1523 , Mary's affair with Henry was finished. A year or so later, Henry fell victim to the charms of the brilliant, bewitching and cultured
Anne Boleyn . Henry was so determined to possess Anne(to the point of citizens suspecting
Witchcraft on her part) that by
1527 , he had proposed marriage.
A year later, when Mary's husband died during an outbreak of the sweats, Henry VIII promptly granted Anne Boleyn the wardship of her nephew (and possibly his son), two-year-old Henry Carey. At the time of William's death, Mary was pregnant with his daughter - who was born in
1529 and named Catherine. Anne arranged for Mary's son to be educated at a respectable
Cistercian Monastery . Mary's callous father showed no intention of helping her in the financial plight resulting from her husband's death. It was only Anne's intercession with Henry that secured Mary a small annual pension.
When Anne went to
Calais with Henry VIII in
1532 , Mary was one of Anne's companions. Anne was crowned Queen on
June 1 ,
1533 . In
1534 , Mary secretly married Sir William Stafford, an usher of no rank and small income. When this was discovered, her family disowned her for marrying beneath her station, and the couple was banished from the Court.
In late 1534, while her father and brother received numerous grants, titles, and other gifts, Mary was reduced to begging
Thomas Cromwell to speak to Henry on her behalf. Mary hoped Henry would persuade Anne to forgive her but her former lover was less than helpful. So Mary asked Cromwell to speak to her father, her uncle, and her brother to no avail. Anne sent Mary a magnificent golden cup and some money. This partial reconciliation was the closest the two sisters ever came again, since they did not meet between
1534 and Anne's death in
1536 .
Her life between 1534 and her sister's execution on
May 19 1536 is difficult to trace. Mary did not visit her sister when Anne was imprisoned in the
Tower Of London . Nor did she visit their brother George also condemned to death on charges of
Treason (they were accused of
Incest ). There is no evidence that she wrote to them, either. Like their uncle,
Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke Of Norfolk , she may have thought it wise to avoid association with her disgraced relatives.
She seems to have resided at
Rochford ,
Essex and lived out the rest of her days in anonymity with her husband. She died on July 19, 1543.
Her marriage to William Carey (d.
June 22 ,
1529 ) reportedly resulted in the birth of two children:
- Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon ( March 4 , 1525 / 1526 - July 23 , 1596 ). Ennobled by Queen Elizabeth I just after her coronation, ---not--- on his deathbed. Knight Of The Garter . Elizabeth offered Henry the title of Earl of Ormonde, which he had long sought, when he was dying; but he refused the honor.
- Catherine Carey (c. 1529 - 1568 ). Maid of Honor to Anne of Cleves, Henry VIII's fourth wife. She was married to Sir Francis Knollys , Knight Of The Garter since 1593 , in 1540 . One of their daughters, Lettice Knollys , became the second wife of Robert Dudley, 1st Earl Of Leicester , the favorite of Elizabeth I's who was reputed to have been romantically involved with her, and married Lettice out of spite.
It is actually possible that Catherine was the elder of Mary's first two children, as the exact dates are still uncertain.
Both children have been suggested as illegitimate offspring of
Henry VIII Of England , although many historians consider this to be unlikely.
Her marriage to Sir William Stafford (d.
May 5 ,
1556 ) resulted in the birth of a son. He is considered to have been born in
1535 and to have died in
1545 ; there was also a daughter, named Anne. This, however, is open to much speculation.
Mary appeared in the
1969 movie "
Anne Of The Thousand Days ", where she is presented as
Pregnant , dejected and bitter. She was played in that movie by Valerie Gearon, opposite
Genevieve Bujold as
Anne Boleyn ,
Richard Burton as
Henry VIII and William Squire as
Thomas Boleyn .
Mary is the subject of ''.
"
The Other Boleyn Girl " was made into a BBC television drama in January,
2003 , starring
Natascha McElhone as Mary, Jodhi May as
Anne Boleyn , Jared Harris as
Henry VIII and Steven MacIntosh as
George Boleyn .
Her character also briefly appeared in the also-inaccurate
2003 drama "Henry VIII" although it was a non-speaking part. The drama was dominated by
Ray Winstone as
Henry VIII ,
Helena Bonham Carter as
Anne Boleyn and Assumpta Serna as
Katherine Of Aragon .
Mary's character also features in the novels "The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn" by Robin Maxwell, "I, Elizabeth" by Rosalind Miles, "The Lady in the Tower" by
Jean Plaidy , "Mistress Anne" by Nora Lofts, "Anne Boleyn" by Evelyn Anthony, and "Young Royals: Doomed Queen Anne" by Carolyn Meyer.
Her character is also mentioned in the movie "Henry VIII and His Six Wives" with Keith Michell as Henry VIII and
Charlotte Rampling as Anne Boleyn; and in the six-part
BBC television series "
The Six Wives Of Henry VIII " with Keith Michell again playing the king,
Annette Crosbie as Katherine of Aragon and Dame
Dorothy Tutin as
Anne Boleyn .
