Yes,and no. Anne was the first queen charge with adultery,however she was the first queen charge with adultery with 5 guys. Adultery wasn't a crime punishable by death, which is why they charge Anne with treason. Treason was a crime punishable by death.
As far as I know, there had not been a queen tried or convicted of adultery before, so Anne was the first. Isabella, Edward II's queen, may have had an adulterous relationship with Roger Mortimer, but once Edward III took control of the government and executed Roger, he took no steps to punish his mother for adultery. Margaret of Anjou, Henry VI's queen, was the subject of rumors (politically motivated, and probably false) that she had been unfaithful to her husband, but again there were never formal charges against her. As I recall there were also tales of adultery associated with King John's queen, but I'm not particularly familiar with that period of history.
Susan is correct- both of John's wives, both caused Isabelle, were the targets of probably untrue allegations of adultery. Of queens who were suspected of having commited adultery - Eleanor of Aquitaine was suspected of having had an affair during her first marriage (to King Louis VII of France), John's two Isabelles were likewise suspected (and there's a rather scurillous legend that John hanged all four of Isabelle's lovers from her bedposts as a warning of what would happen if she strayed again - but this seems to be a highly improbable story!), Isabella of France almost certainly had a long-standing sexual affair with Roger Mortimer, both during and after her marriage to Edward II - but, as Susan says, only he was ever punished for it. Joanna of Navarre, Henry IV's widow, was imprisoned for witchcraft (although not adultery) and this was financially-motivated and as Susan rightly points out, Marguerite of Anjou was the target of various and probably untrue rumours regarding her faithfulness to Henry VI. However, Anne was in fact, technically, the only queen to ever actually be put on trial for adultery in English history. Which is doubly ironic considering that, pace G.W. Bernard, she was almost certainly innocent. The other queens who came after her and who probably (or certainly) had taken lovers during their marriages - Catherine Howard, Sophia-Dorothea of Celle and Caroline of Brunswick - were never formally put on trial for their actions. And, with Catherine's exception, it's therefore ironic and unfortunate that the two queens often described as adulteresses in popular histories - Marguerite of Anjou and Anne Boleyn - were almost certainly innocent of the charge.
Yes,and no. Anne was the first queen charge with adultery,however she was the first queen charge with adultery with 5 guys. Adultery wasn't a crime punishable by death, which is why they charge Anne with treason. Treason was a crime punishable by death.
ReplyDeleteOh, what queens had been convicted before her?
ReplyDeleteAs far as I know, there had not been a queen tried or convicted of adultery before, so Anne was the first. Isabella, Edward II's queen, may have had an adulterous relationship with Roger Mortimer, but once Edward III took control of the government and executed Roger, he took no steps to punish his mother for adultery. Margaret of Anjou, Henry VI's queen, was the subject of rumors (politically motivated, and probably false) that she had been unfaithful to her husband, but again there were never formal charges against her. As I recall there were also tales of adultery associated with King John's queen, but I'm not particularly familiar with that period of history.
ReplyDeleteSusan is correct- both of John's wives, both caused Isabelle, were the targets of probably untrue allegations of adultery. Of queens who were suspected of having commited adultery - Eleanor of Aquitaine was suspected of having had an affair during her first marriage (to King Louis VII of France), John's two Isabelles were likewise suspected (and there's a rather scurillous legend that John hanged all four of Isabelle's lovers from her bedposts as a warning of what would happen if she strayed again - but this seems to be a highly improbable story!), Isabella of France almost certainly had a long-standing sexual affair with Roger Mortimer, both during and after her marriage to Edward II - but, as Susan says, only he was ever punished for it. Joanna of Navarre, Henry IV's widow, was imprisoned for witchcraft (although not adultery) and this was financially-motivated and as Susan rightly points out, Marguerite of Anjou was the target of various and probably untrue rumours regarding her faithfulness to Henry VI. However, Anne was in fact, technically, the only queen to ever actually be put on trial for adultery in English history. Which is doubly ironic considering that, pace G.W. Bernard, she was almost certainly innocent. The other queens who came after her and who probably (or certainly) had taken lovers during their marriages - Catherine Howard, Sophia-Dorothea of Celle and Caroline of Brunswick - were never formally put on trial for their actions. And, with Catherine's exception, it's therefore ironic and unfortunate that the two queens often described as adulteresses in popular histories - Marguerite of Anjou and Anne Boleyn - were almost certainly innocent of the charge.
ReplyDelete