Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Question from Koren - Elizabeth receiving books from her mother

Hello,
I've read that Anne Boleyn left a few books when she died to Elizabeth. Do you know what the titles were?
Thanks.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Anne Boleyn did leave books behind (Eric Ive's biography of her mentions them) but none were specifically meant for Elizabeth.

Foose said...

Strickland has an interesting comment about a book bequeathed by Anne Boleyn, alas not to Elizabeth:

To this true friend [Mary Wyatt, Thomas Wyatt's sister] Anne Boleyn gave as a parting gift, her last possession, -- a little book of devotions, bound in gold, and enamelled black ...

The note ascribes this to the Life of Wyatt, in Strawberry-hill MSS. However, phd historian has elsewhere pointed out that convicted criminals had all their property confiscated by the Crown by the time they were executed. Perhaps this book came into the Wyatt family's possession well before Anne's condemnation and execution, and a more romantic tale was spun about its origins as the centuries past.