Today’s post is a guest article by Karliene Reynolds from Karliene.com. She is the brains behind ‘An Eternal Love’, a story of reincarnation and second chances.
What does this have to do with Anne Boleyn or Tudor history? Well, the main characters are the reincarnated souls of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn!
Karliene has also written some songs based on The Tudors series. She takes the basic theme from the show and interprets them on piano – a very creative lady!
Without further ado, I welcome Karliene to On the Tudor Trail.
An Eternal Love By Karliene Reynolds
I grew up in Scotland where history is on every street and castles are nestled into every hill. We lived in an idyllic little village called Ellon in Aberdeenshire where there was always some beautiful old Abbey or stately home to go and visit on the weekend. I’ve always felt quite strongly, even at school, that I was born into the wrong age. I would write endless stories and plays in my room about ancient Lords and Ladies, Kings and Queens and sit up nearly every night drawing women in magnificent gowns and headdresses. My sister would read my little creations and store them all away so I couldn’t destroy them when I felt they were terrible later on.
I’m 26 now and have since moved to Australia with my partner of 3 years. I’m a dedicated video editor and love to make video fan fictions based on Showtime’s “The Tudors” which is my absolute obsession. I also compose and write music based on the series and other historical muses.
I have long loved Tudor history but became truly obsessed when I did a project at school on Elizabeth I. I’m not sure if it was the fact that we are both red heads or the fact that she was a Queen in a man’s world but something seemed to grab my heart and hold tight. To have seen her in the flesh must have been an incredible thing. I can’t tell you how many times I have stared at her paintings and wondered whom the woman was behind all the ruffles and red curls. I find that the most enticing part of history. The part they can’t write about in textbooks. The soul of a person.
Of course you can’t be captivated by Elizabeth without being equally infatuated with her raven-haired mother, Anne Boleyn. As an artist I find no end of inspiration when it comes to Henry’s second wife. It’s a love story that essentially ends in murder. The twist in the tale never ceases to amaze me.
I know I’m not alone when I say that Anne is by far my most favourite Queen and I think it’s because she was the most fiery and passionate of all his wives. It was well documented that she was incredibly intelligent and witty and even though her dark looks weren’t the fashion at the time she was considered very attractive due to her strong personality. She must have been quite dazzling at court and I can completely see why she would captivate a King.
Anne Boleyn really came to life for me when I watched Natalie Dormer’s feisty and sexy portrayal of her in “The Tudors”. Watching her seduce and fall in love with Henry played by the charismatic Jonathan Rhys Meyers was just magical for me. The Tudors made that era sparkle with new life and was a real gem of a TV programme. I don’t think anyone had ever portrayed Henry and Anne quite so passionately. The fierce and often tender way they loved each other throughout the series made Anne’s eventual downfall even more shocking. This eventually inspired me to write my own stories about Anne Boleyn, my most recent one being the reincarnation story, “An Eternal Love”.
I’ve always believed in reincarnation, which might be another reason why I love history so much. I believe that many of us have lived before maybe once or maybe many times. I think we take pieces of our past lives into the next and that’s why we have certain unexplainable fears or even certain affinities with a place or building.
I’d always wanted to write a story about reincarnation but hadn’t found the right inspiration until I watched one scene in The Tudors that made my heart flutter. Henry introduces his new wife Katherine Howard to his now teenage daughter Elizabeth and there is a beat where the camera closes in on his face and you just know he is thinking of Anne. It’s such a small moment but huge in what it could mean. Could Anne still have owned a little piece of Henry’s heart?
With that I began writing out the foundation of my story. Henry is now a guy called Chris who is dreaming of a dark haired girl from another time. His dreams take him on a journey through Tudor London until he meets the reincarnated soul of the beautiful Anne Boleyn. I wanted the story to be about love but also about the soul of Henry learning to be a better man by facing his worst mistakes. I wanted to write a story that I would love to read myself. It was all about righting the horrible wrongs of that time and giving the characters a chance to try again. The Tudors made it very hard for us to let go of Anne and Henry, as they seemed to fit together so beautifully so it was really my own selfish need to bring them back together that inspired me to write this.
I have written a few songs based on The Tudors series, one of my most popular is “Jane’s lament” which is set to the beautiful theme by Trevor Morris called “A Howling Wilderness”. I took the basic theme and made my own interpretation on piano. The song is written as if Jane’s ghost is whispering to Henry some last words of comfort before saying goodbye to him. I do believe they had a sweet, caring sort of love, very unlike any of his other wives. It is well known that she was his most loved and they are buried together in Windsor, which I mentioned subtly in the lyrics.
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I’ve done other songs for the wives including another popular one with Katherine Howard. Again it was an interpretation of a theme from The Tudors called “The Execution Ballet”. This one was written as Katherine’s last thoughts before her execution, declaring her love for Thomas Culpepper. I’ve always felt a great sorrow for little Katherine, as she was so young and very naive about her situation. It must have been a great challenge for her to die so young and so new to the world.
Fast Tube by Casper
I think people are still so captivated by The Tudors because the period was filled with so many iconic figures and so much of how we live today has come from this incredible era. It’s the gowns, the lifestyle, the drama; it’s better than any soap opera. Everyone will have a different reason for loving The Tudors but for me it will always be the people.
They are the heartbeat and without them I wouldn’t be half the person I am today.
Watch An Eternal Love
Part 1
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Part 2
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Part 3
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Part 4
Fast Tube by Casper
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