Tudor Births, Marriages and Deaths Chronology – Henry VII

A son, John was born to Henry Colet in London. John Colet would become a notable christian humanist.

A son, Thomas Wolsey, was born to Robert Wolsey, an Ipswich butcher and his wife Joan. At this time the butchery trade was considered to be one of the lowest trades. Wolsey would become Henry VIII’s chief minister.

A son, Cuthbert was born, the illegitimate son of Thomas Tunstall of Thurland Castle. He would later succeed Thomas Wolsey as Bishop of Durham.

A son, Thomas was born to John More and his wife, Agnes. John More was a struggling lawyer living in Cripplegate, London. Thomas would later become Chancellor to Henry VIII.

A son, Thomas, was born to Walter Cromwell, a blacksmith and his wife Katherine in Putney, London. He would rise to become Chancellor to Henry VIII.

Anne Neville, Queen consort to Richard III, died probably from tuberculosis.

John Scott, Warden of the Cinque Ports, died.

A daughter, Catalina was born to Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain in the Archbishop’s Palace at Alcala de Henares. Catalina was named after her mother’s grandmother, Catherine of Lancaster who was the daughter of John of Gaunt by his second wife Constanza of Castile.

Henry VII aged 28 years married Elizabeth of York, the eldest daughter of King Edward IV, aged 20 years. The union was symbolised by joining the red rose of Lancaster with the white rose of York to form the Tudor Rose.

A son, Arthur, was born to Henry VII and Elizabeth of York at Saint Swithun’s Priory, Winchester. He was named after the legendary King Arthur to reinforce the lineage of the new Tudor dynasty.

Prince Arthur was baptised at Winchester Cathedral by the Bishop of Worcester.

A son, Thomas, was born to Geoffrey Audley and his wife in Earls Colne, Essex. He would go on to become Lord Chancellor to Henry VIII.

Myles Coverdale was born in Yorkshire. He would later produce the first translation of the Bible into English.

A son, Thomas was born to Thomas and Agnes Cranmer in Aslockton, Nottinghamshire. He would later orchestrate the English Reformation and become Archbishop of Canterbury.

A daughter, Margaret, was born to Henry VII and Elizabeth of York at the Palace of Westminster.

A second son, Henry, was born to Henry VII and Elizabeth of York at Greenwich Palace.

Prince Henry was baptised in the Church of Observant Friars at Greenwich Palace by Richard Foxe, Bishop of Exeter.

Elizabeth Woodville, Queen consort of Edward IV, mother of Edward V and Elizabeth of York, died at Bermondsey Abbey. She was buried at Windsor Castle.

A second daughter, Elizabeth, was born to Henry VII and Elizabeth of York at Sheen Palace in Surrey.

John was born the son of Richard Neville, 2nd Baron Latimer and Anne Stafford. He married 3 times, his third wife being the sixth wife of Henry VIII, Katherine Parr.

Cecily Neville, the mother of both Edward IV and Richard III, died.

Henry VII’s youngest daughter, Princess Elizabeth, died of atrophy at Eltham Palace.

Princess Elizabeth was buried in a tomb in Westminster Abbey.

Henry VII’s uncle, Jasper Tudor, died.

A daughter, Mary was born to Henry VII and Elizabeth of York at Richmond Palace.

Prince Arthur and Catherine of Aragon were formally betrothed at the Palace of Woodstock. The Spanish ambassador to England stood as proxy for Catherine.

To enable them to marry before reaching legal age, both Prince Arthur and Catherine of Aragon made formal appeals to the Pope to grant the necessary dispensation.

Edward Stafford, Earl of Wiltshire, died

A son, Edmund, was born to Henry VII and Elizabeth of York at Greenwich Palace.

The marriage of Prince Arthur and Catherine of Aragon took place at Prince Arthur’s manor house at Bewdley. The Spanish ambassador de Puebla stood as proxy for Catherine.

A son, Reginald, was bor to Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, daughter of Edward IV’s brother George, and Sir Richard Pole. He would become a Cardinal and fierce opponent to Henry VIII’s reformation.

Ferdinand of Aragon had learned of the meeting of Henry VII with Philip of Burgundy and was concerned that Henry was about to abandon the treaty with Spain and make a new marriage for Prince Arthur with Burgundy. He delayed sending Catherine to England until he was sure the marriage would go ahead.

Henry VII’s third son, Edmund, died at the Old Palace, Hatfield, Hertfordshire

Henry VII was confident that the marriage alliance with Scotland would go ahead and so obtained the necessary dispensation from the Pope. The dispensation was necessary because Princess Margaret and James were fourth cousins both descendants of John Beaufort.

John Morton, Archbishop of Canterbury, died.

A daughter, Anne, was born to Thomas Boleyn, Earl of Wiltshire and Elizabeth Howard, daughter of the Duke of Norfolk, at Blickling Hall, Norfolk.

Thomas Langton, Archbishop of Canterbury, died before his consecration.

A platform was constructed outside St Paul’s Cathedral so that Prince Arthur and Catherine of Aragon could be witnessed taking their vows by the people of London.

Prince Arthur and Catherine of Aragon were married at St Paul’s Cathedral by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Henry Deane assisted by the Bishop of London, William Warham. The couple took their vows on a raised platform so that they could be seen by the people.

Negotiators from Scotland arrived in London to discuss arrangements for the marriage of Princess Margaret to James IV of Scotland. They were invited to attend the wedding celebrations for the marriage of Prince Arthur and Catherine of Aragon and were impressed by their extravagance.

Prince Arthur died from a viral infection at his castle in Ludlow. Messengers were sent to London to take the news to King Henry VII.

The funeral service for Prince Arthur took place in the Parish Church at Bewdley. Arthur’s coffin was then taken to the Abbey of St Wulfstan in Worcester for burial.

The Spanish ambassador, de Puebla, suggested a possible marriage between Catherine and Prince Henry.

A son, Thomas, was born to Sir Henry Wyatt and his wife Anne at Allington, Kent.

A daughter, Katherine, was born to Queen Elizabeth and Henry VII at the Tower of London.

Queen Elizabeth died from complications following the birth of her daughter, Katherine.

Princess Katherine died.

The body of Queen Elizabeth had been embalmed and placed in a lead-lined coffin. The coffin was then drawn through the streets in procession to Westminster Abbey where it lay in state before burial.

With only one surviving male heir, Henry knew that the Tudor line was not secure. He therefore began to think of remarrying. His first choice was Arthur’s widow, Catherine of Aragon, who was in good health and looked strong enough to bear sons. Her dowry was settled and Henry thought that the Spanish sovereigns would approve the match.

Prince Henry and Catherine of Aragon were formally betrothed by the Bishop of Salisbury.

Isabella of Spain, who wanted to strengthen the relationship between England and Spain, offered the hand of her niece, Joan, Queen of Naples, to Henry VII.

Louis XII had heard that Henry VII was considering remarriage and offered Henry the hand of his niece, Germaine de Foix.

Princess Margaret married James IV of Scotland in the monastery of Holyrood House.

The Pope granted the necessary dispensation allowing the marriage of Prince Henry and Catherine of Aragon.

Henry sent an embassy to Spain to report on the widowed Queen Joanna of Naples. They were given a list of 24 points regarding her physical appearance that were to be satisfied. A portrait was also commissioned.

Thomas More married Jane Colt. The couple settled in Bucklersbury London.

The second part of Catherine of Aragon’s dowry remained unpaid. Henry VII was also concerned that Spain was not as strong as it was before and was having second thoughts about a marriage between Prince Henry and Catherine.

The Pope’s envoy, Silvestro de Gigli, brought a dispensation from the Pope allowing the marriage of Prince Henry and Catherine of Aragon to go ahead.

The embassy that had been sent to Spain to report on the suitability of Joanna of Naples as a bride for Henry VII, returned to England. Although they spoke favourably of the young widow, they also reported that she had no wealth of her own. Henry was cross that he had not been given this information earlier and abandoned all thoughts of this marriage.

On his father’s orders, Prince Henry made a secret but formal protest against marriage to his brother’s widow. The protest was made in the presence of Richard Foxe, Bishop of Winchester, the Lord Privy Seal and other members of the Privy Council. The protest took place in the east wing of Richmond Palace. The young prince stated that the treaty had been made when he was a minor and as such was null and void. Despite the protest, Henry VII did not formally break the treaty as he did not want to lose the first instalment of Catherine’s dowry which had been paid after her marriage to Henry’s brother, Arthur.

Philip of Burgundy gave his formal assent for the marriage of his sister, Margaret of Savoy, to King Henry VII of England. He agreed that she would bring a dowry of 300,000 crowns.

Margaret of Savoy stated that she would never marry the King of England who was old enough to be her father.

Philip of Burgundy died. His wife, Juana, who was Catherine of Aragon’s sister, refused to accept he had died and would not allow the funeral to go ahead.

Richard Nanfan, former Governor of Calais, died.

Henry VII’s daughter, Mary, was betrothed to Maximilian’s grandson, Charles. It was agreed that they would marry when Charles was 15 years old.

Jane Seymour was born to Sir John and Lady Margaret Seymour at Wolf Hall.

Negotiations for the marriage of Prince Henry to Maximilian’s granddaughter, Eleanor, broke down.

Ferdinand of Aragon wrote to King Henry stating that he would support the marriage of Princess Mary to his grandson Charles providing Prince Henry marry his daughter Catherine of Aragon.

A deputation of the nobility had an audience with the King. They knew that Henry VII was very sick and wanted to avoid problems with the succession. They urged the King to allow the marriage of Prince Henry and Catherine of Aragon to go ahead.

After a long illness, King Henry VII, aged 52 years, died from tuberculosis at Richmond Palace.