As Henry VIII’s sixth and final wife, it’s tempting to

cast Catherine Parr as just a closing chapter on his story. After all,
Catherine is continually defined in terms of others: her dead husbands
before Henry, the stepchildren she reunited, and the king she helped
“heal” to his end, etc. In reality, Catherine Parr’s life—before and
after Henry—was a romantic saga in its own right. Like it or not,
though, Catherine Parr will forever go down in history as the
“survivor” of Henry VIII.
In addition to being “queen,” Catherine was a bestselling author, a
polyglot, a scholar, a religious radical, and a serial widow with marital
scandals that rivaled those of her own royal husband. Under the image
of Catherine as a pious bluestocking there lay a real woman whose
passions ran both spiritual and carnal. Separate the myth from the
legend with these 43 resilient facts about Catherine Parr.
Janet Wertman

43. Fourscore
With four husbands under her bejeweled belt, Catherine Parr is
England’s most-married queen. In that sense, Henry VIII found his
match.

42. Queen of the Bibliography

Catherine may be the “last” of Henry’s wives, but she has won “firsts”
in English women’s literary history. For one, her Prayers or
Meditations (1545) is the first book ever to be authored by English
woman under her own name. Impressively, it is first book to be openly
published by a woman in the Englishlanguage itself. Earlier,
Catherine had published an English translation of Latin psalms
called Psalms or Prayers, but she had to do so anonymously.
Pinterest

41. In Every End is a Creepy Beginning

Catherine Parr was actually likely named after Henry’s first wife,
Catherine of Aragon. Parr’s mother served as lady-in-waiting to the
first Queen Catherine. In turn, the older queen served as godmother to
baby Catherine. Thus, Henry VIII’s long marital career comes to a full
and creepy circle.
Wikimedia Commons

40. I Learned It from You

Catherine was raised as the eldest child of her formidable single
mother, Maud Green. Her accomplishments certainly set an example
for Catherine. A woman of apparently great intellect, Maud was
entrusted by the queen to manage the court school. But when Maud
was only 25 years old, Sir Thomas Parr died and left Maud as a
widowed mother to their three children, including the 5-year-old
future Queen Catherine Parr. Despite her youth, Maud never
remarried for fear of endangering her kids’ inheritance. Instead, Maud
devoted the rest of her life to her children’s education and to snagging
them advantageous marriages. It’s not a reach to speculate that Maud
taught the “surviving” Queen of Henry VIII a lot about how to, well,
survive.
Showtime

39. Master of Tongues

Unsurprisingly, when you consider her mother ran the court school,
Catherine was a lifelong learner. She had a passion for languages and
was fluent in French, Latin, and Italian. Upon becoming Queen,
Catherine took time to learn Spanish as well.
EdTechReview
38. Who Needs Homework When You’re Gonna Be
Queen?
One biographer popularized a story where Catherine foresaw her own
queenly destiny. The tale goes that, as a girl, Catherine hated the
tedium of needlework; she would tell her mother, “My hands are
ordained to touch crowns and sceptres, not spindles and needles.”
Sounds too good to be true—and a bit hubristic—which is probably
why most historians think this is more “legend” than fact.
sho

37. Not to Be Confused with His Grandpa

At the age of 17, Catherine made the first of her four marriages. This
time, it was to Sir Edward Burgh, a knight in his 20s. For years,
biographers mistook Catherine’s first husband to be his grandfather,
the elderly Edward Burgh, 2nd Baron Burgh. They have the same
name, so it’s understandable, but maybe the idea of Catherine
marrying three old rich dudes in a row was too tempting a resist
repeating? In either case, it’s pretty moot; the younger Burgh bounced
out of life in 1533, just four years after their marriage. Not for the last
time, the 21-year-old Catherine was a young and childless widow.
Isha Sadhguru

36. Second Time’s the Charm

Just one year after becoming a first-time widow, Catherine married
John Neville, 3rd Baron Latimer, in 1534. Unlike her first husband,
this one was independently wealthy and twice her age—which better
aligns with the young serial widow image that’s come to be stuck with
Catherine.
Venuelust

35. Trouble in Paradise

During the 1536 Northern Uprisings, Catherine and her stepchildren
by her second husband were taken as hostages. The rebels informed
Lord Latimer that he had to come back home, or they would kill
Catherine and his children—at least, that was the alleged case.
Latimer somehow managed to persuade the rebels to let them go,
which raised the question: was Catherine’s husband was really a
victim, or a co-conspirator with the Northerners? If this was the case,
the family’s lands would be forfeited, and they’d be left penniless.
Bunkyo

34. Two Down, Two to Go

It looks like Lord Latimer’s health—like his reputation—never
recovered from the family’s close encounter with treason. While no
charges were ever filed against her husband, Catherine became a
widow (due to natural causes) for a second time in 1543.

ThoughtCo

33. Will I?
Upon her second husband’s death, Catherine inherited guardianship of
her stepdaughter, choice properties, and a handsome income. At 31
years old, Catherine was finally rich enough to marry on her own
terms. But alas…
shariaeconomicforum

32. My Dad Thinks You’re Cute

Catherine appeared to have been a youthful friend of King Henry’s
eldest daughter, Mary Tudor. With her second husband’s death,
Catherine renewed their friendship and found a place in her entourage
her at court. In this position, Parr probably attracted the attention of
Henry VIII. Just a reminder that while Catherine was 31 and mature,
she was also four years older than her new suitor’s daughter…and
Henry had known Catherine since she was a child.
Pinterest

31. Head and Shoulders Above Them All

In terms of notable features, Catherine possessed bright hazel eyes and
a great height; in some sources, she stood as tall as 5’10”. Being very
tall himself, perhaps Henry liked the idea of finally seeing eye-to-eye
with a subject.
Today in Tudor History

30. Royal Book Club

Some spend the spoils of their rich widowhood at designer boutiques;
others host salons of controversial religious debate. As Lady Latimer,
Catherine took a huge interest in the Protestant beliefs and
philosophies of the Reformation. Catherine’s spiritual and intellectual
pursuits would be a huge influence on her writing and her younger
stepchildren, but they would also later end up threatening her
marriage.
Humane Pursuits

29. Move Over, Bozo

Right before Henry took an interest, Catherine was being courted by
Thomas Seymour, the brother of Henry’s third wife, Jane Seymour.
After the death of Lord Latimer, Catherine and Seymour seriously
discussed marriage; Seymour was, by all accounts, handsome,
charming, and about Catherine’s age. Henry didn’t exactly have all
that by 1543, but his other qualities were hard to pass up. A letter in
which Catherine ultimately rejects Seymour indicates where her
preferences laid, as she wrote, “[M]y mind was fully bent to marry
you before any man I knew. Howbeit, God… made that possible
which seemed to me most impossible.”
BBC

28. Ya Snooze, Ya Lose

Just two weeks before Catherine’s second husband died, Henry sent
her gifts of pleats and sleeves, in addition to stylish Italian gowns.
Henry himself was old, but perhaps no less limber in securing what he
wanted.
Pre Wedding Naija
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27. 7th Wife? More Like Six Degrees of Separation
In the last months of Catherine’s reign, there was a failed plot to
replace her with a new queen—the king’s own widowed daughter-in-
law, Mary Howard, Duchess of Richmond. To reinforce just how
small the noble dating pool was, Mary disclosed under interrogation
that her brother had intended that she marry Thomas Seymour—
Catherine’s ex—and, from there, slide into the position of King
Henry’s mistress. It must have made sense back then.
Pinterest

26. Two for the Price of One

Upon her marriage to Henry on July 12, 1542—just four months after
her second husband died—Catherine became the first Queen of
England to also be titled Queen of Ireland. Henry had just adopted the
title of Ireland’s King.
HD Image galleries

25. Bitter Much?

Catherine was never the only surviving wife of Henry VIII; Anne of
Cleves, wife #4, was alive, well-favored, and still living in
England…but she did not like Catherine. While Anne had gotten
along with wife #5 (Catherine Howard, who actually supplanted
Anne), she weirdly didn’t think highly of #6. Apparently, Anne didn’t
think Parr was pretty enough to replace her and was said to have
sniffed, “A fine burden Madame Catherine has taken upon herself!”

Westminster Abbey

24. Wed to Give a Damn

Catherine was an adept nursemaid for Henry’s body and spirits. Not
only did she soothe and attend to his leg ulcers herself, she also
convinced him to finally ditch his vanity and embrace his reading
glasses.
Magnolia Box

23. Seal of Obedience

Catherine’s official badge featured a long-haired maiden rising from a
large Tudor rose. Her official queen’s motto was “To Be Useful in All
I Do.”
Pinterest

22. Sowing the Seeds

As Queen, Catherine’s Protestant sympathies were readily apparent.
Not only did she secure the release of several Protestant prisoners, the
queen also placed leading Protestant scholars in the household of her
stepson, Prince Edward, thereby ensuring the future remained for the
Reformers.
EnglishHistory
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21. Learning From the Best

The future Elizabeth I of England was the stepchild to whom
Catherine was closest and with whom she shared a love of learning
and language. At 11 years old, Elizabeth gifted her father and
stepmother with a translation of Catherine’s Prayers or Meditation in
French, Italian, and Latin. Catherine would also take charge of
Elizabeth’s welfare after Henry’s death.
Queen Elizabeth I
20. Come Together Over Me
Catherine famously brought Henry’s much-fraught royal family back
together. Henry’s only surviving son, Prince Edward, took a shine to
his latest stepmother. When he was only nine years old, he encouraged
his stepmother’s efforts to improve her own Latin and also asked her
to keep his Catholic sister Mary away from “evil” influences. It’s
generally believed that Catherine was a big influence in both Edward
and Elizabeth Tudor’s Protestant learnings and leanings.
Filmstarts

19. Queen Academy

After Henry’s death, Catherine took custody of his youngest daughter,
the 13-year-old Elizabeth Tudor. She also took another studious royal
girl as her ward: the future “Nine Days Queen” Lady Jane Grey.
Unknowingly, Catherine mentored two queens of England.

Celebrations Cake Decorating

18. Gotcha
In 1546, Lord Chancellor Thomas Wriothesley and the Catholic
faction at court plotted to oust Catherine as a heretic. This involved
implicating her with Anne Askew, an Evangelist who was herself
under arrest for heresy and to whom Catherine was rumored to be
sympathetic.
Wikipedia

17. Say Her Name

Did a female Evangelist die tortuously to protect Catherine Par? While
being “questioned” for heresy, Anne Askew became the first woman
on record to be ever tortured in the Tower of London. Many suspect
that this was done so Askew would give up Catherine and/or her close
ladies-in-waiting as Protestant themselves. In either case, it didn’t
work, as Anne Askew was burned without ever implicating the Queen.
But that didn’t spell the end of danger for Catherine…
Pinterest

16. Agree to Disagree

Spousal disagreements shouldn’t end in arrest, but here we are. By
1546, Henry’s suspicions about Catherine’s radical beliefs were
inflamed by some religious argument between them. Apparently
convinced of her heresy, Henry signed a warrant for the arrest of his
sixth wife.
tudorqueen6

15. Old Habits Die Hard?

As Catherine’s arrest warrant was drawn in 1546, rumors swirled that
Henry’s wandering eye had resurfaced. Most scandalously, the alleged
“other woman” was Catherine Brandon née Willoughby—the widow
of his late best friend who was also Catherine’s own good friend and
lady-in-waiting. Nevertheless, the whispers came to naught; it’s
generally agreed that, by this point, Henry’s sexual appetite might
have bee too battered by life to cheat.
The Tudors Wikia

14. The Ultimate Hall Pass

So why didn’t Henry VIII go down as the king who executed half his
wives? Catherine was lucky; somehow, the warrant for her arrest
managed to fall conveniently outside her door, perhaps planted by an
ally. Thus, this queen got a life-saving heads-up that her condemned
predecessors—such as Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard—did not.
PropTech Consult

13. Little Old Me?

Armed with news of her impending arrest, Catherine was able to
defend herself from Henry’s rage with the ultimate weapons: complete
self-deprecation and capitulation to his ego. The next time Henry
talked religion with her, Catherine claimed she only argued with
Henry in order to distract him from his festering leg wounds…but she
also yearned for his wisdom. After all, she was in her own words “but
a woman, with all the imperfections natural to the weakness of my
sex.” Despite her vigorous education and writing career, Catherine
would never assume to know better about religion than her husband.
He bought it. After all, entering the dating scene again—especially at
his current stage of health—might have literally killed him.
Pinterest

12. I Feel Like I’m Forgetting Something…

Despite his forgiveness of Catherine, Henry didn’t have enough time
(or will) to call off her arrest. The Lord Chancellor and guards came to
follow through with the warrant against Catherine while she was in
front of the king himself. Henry angrily ordered them away with
shouts of “Fool!”, “Knave!”, and other sick 16th century burns.
Milled

11. On Her Own

From July to September 1546, Henry waged one final war against
France. At this point, he still held Catherine in high regard, as evident
by her appointment to Regent in his stead. Not only that, she was
entrusted to keep acting as Prince Edward’s Regent in the potential
event of Henry’s death. By all accounts, Catherine carried her office
with skill and dignity. It’s believed her stepdaughter Elizabeth, future
Elizabeth I of England, was alongside her at this period and took notes
on Catherine’s influence.
Pinterest

10. The Best Thanks Has £ Signs

On his deathbed, Henry thanked God for finally delivering him “so
faithful a spouse.” Most importantly, Henry showed his thanks by
bequeathing Catherine a £7,000/year pension (millions of dollars a
year in today’s money), plus the right to keep all of the queen’s jewels
and clothes. We should all express gratitude like Henry.
National Portrait Gallery

9. Can’t Hardly Wait

On January 28, 1547, Henry VIII officially passed away and left
Catherine as Queen Dowager. She had no role in the reign of her
beloved stepson, Edward VI, partly because she scandalously married
her “true” love, Thomas Seymour, less than four months after Henry’s
death. Hey, Catherine’s third husband was barely one to wait between
his marriages. Why should she?
Pinterest

8. Free to Write Her Heart out

After Henry’s death, Catherine felt safe enough to come out as a full-
blown Protestant. This is evident in her final 1547 book, Lamentations
of a Sinner, in which she makes an argument for then-radical doctrine
of salvation based on faith alone. Such beliefs ran completely counter
to the doctrine of the Catholic Church and (most fatally) Catherine’s
late husband, Henry VIII. Waiting until Henry’s death to vocalize her
full beliefs is understandable, if you considered what happened the
last time…
Pinterest

7. Little Miracles
At the age of 35 (and one year after Henry’s death), Catherine became
pregnant for the first known time. She hadn’t been able to get
pregnant in any of her first three of her marriages, so this must have
come as a welcome surprise for the career stepmother.
Rodice

6. The Family Jewels

Widowhood wasn’t all bliss and bling. King Henry’s will left
Catherine with the crown jewels. However, Catherine’s new brother-
in-law, Lord Protector Edward Seymour, refused to hand them over
because they were traditionally worn by the ruler of England’s wife.
As England’s de facto ruler as Lord Protector, of course Edward
Seymour gave them to his own wife, Anne Stanhope. This soured the
friendship between Catherine and Stanhope, but it also furthered her
husband Thomas’s bitterness towards his older brother—Thomas
perceived Catherine’s deprivation as a personal attack by his brother
against him, of course.
The Tudors Wikia

5. Denial Ahead…
Ironically, Catherine’s “love” match with Thomas Seymour was the
one that left her most vulnerable to true heartache. Upon moving in
with Catherine, Seymour became inappropriate with her young
stepdaughter, Elizabeth Tudor. Seymour would surprise the girl in bed
at odd hours for horseplay and even tried to kiss her. Initially,
Catherine brushed off his attention as innocent. As if to demonstrate
his lack of harm, Catherine sometimes joined in the “romps” and
helped hold Elizabeth down as Seymour tickled her. But at one point,
this ended with Seymour “playfully” cutting the girl’s dress to bits…
strategicdc

4. Not Suitable for Children

As Catherine advanced in her pregnancy, her husband’s attention to
Elizabeth became increasingly inappropriate. In May 1548, the tension
climaxed with Catherine finding Thomas Seymour and Elizabeth in an
embrace. What exactly happened is ambiguous, but it certainly ended
with 14-year-old Elizabeth being sent away from her favorite
stepmother’s home. Perhaps it was to protect Elizabeth from Seymour,
or to remove her as a third wheel in Catherine’s longed-for domestic
bliss, or to preserve everyone’s reputation, or some combination of the
three. In any case: while they would have some kind contact via
letter, Catherine and Elizabeth would never see each other again.
Pinterest

3. Outlived, But Not by Much

Despite being known as “the one who survived,” Catherine outlived
Henry VIII by just less than two years. On September 8, 1548,
Catherine Parr died— aged 36—of postnatal complications, eight days
after giving birth to her only child, Mary Seymour.
Crumpets in Camelot

2. So Much for Honoring Her Memory

Nobody stays single for long in this saga. After Catherine Parr’s
death, her fourth husband Thomas Seymour renewed his intent to
marry her stepdaughter, Elizabeth. Apparently, Elizabeth was always
his first choice, but the council denied his request before he “settled”
for her rich stepmother, Catherine—what a classy dude. In a confusing
chain of events that belong on another list, Seymour’s plan to
circumvent the council got botched so horribly that he ended up
executed for treason on March 20, 1549—just six months after
Catherine’s death.
Wikipedia

1. A Lost Legacy
For centuries, the fate of Catherine’s only daughter, Mary Seymour,
has been a minor debate. After her father’s execution, the six-month-
old baby was taken in by her mother’s close friend—and rumored
would-be replacement—Catherine Brandon, Duchess of Suffolk. The
duchess chafed at the high expense of raising a queen’s daughter (and
her noble household) and requested more funds from Seymour’s
estate. While Seymour’s lands were fully restored to Mary, she never
had a chance to enjoy it. The last mention of the baby relates to her
second birthday; after that, she disappears from historical record.
While some hopeful people think Mary grew up to wed and settle into
a private life, most are in doubt. After all, could the daughter of Henry
VIII’s last queen—even if by another man—descend that deeply into
obscurity? Catherine Parr’s only child most likely died in infancy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catherine_Parr

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prayers_or_Meditations

https://www.thirteen.org/wnet/sixwives/meet/cp_handbook_main.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Seymour,_1st_Baron_Seymour_of_Sudeley#Questionable_rel

ationship_with_Elizabeth