‘By her that is yours to serve and obey during her life’ – The Passion of Kateryn Parr by Laura Adkins

A guest post by Laura Adkins

Kateryn Parr, the one who ‘survived’ Henry VIII was a survivor most of her life, she was not just a noblewoman whom the King married and outlived, but a member of a family who had close links with the Tudor family, a queen, a stepmother, an author in her own right and the first female in England to have a book printed using her own name. Like Henry VIII, Kateryn wanted to find love and to have a family of her own, and after Henry died she was finally free to do that. Kateryn married for the fourth time and for love to Thomas Seymour, brother to the late queen Jane Seymour and uncle to the now King Edward VI.

Katherine Parr, attributed to Master John. © National Portrait Gallery, London

This final marriage of Kateryn’s, although a love match for the two, brought harm to Kateryn, she allowed herself to become blinded by love for this man and it brought scandal into her life and that of her ward, Princess Elizabeth. It led to a longed-for child of her own only to come to a sad end a few days later where Kateryn succumbed to ‘childbed fever’ and died, leaving Thomas heartbroken.

It is not known exactly when Kateryn and Thomas Seymour first met, nor when they realised they were attracted to one another. It was evident, however, by 1543 that they both were drawn to one another. Kateryn’s heart must have been racing at the thought of Thomas; knowing her current husband, Lord Latimer, was not long for the world she could see true happiness on the horizon. But by this point it was clear that the King had an interest in Kateryn too. Knowing she could not risk turning the king down, and believing it must have been God’s intention for her to become Queen, she agreed to become Henry’s sixth wife. 

The two began, at Kateryn’s request, to have secret meetings and she would rendezvous with him at her home of Chelsea Manor. The letters the two sent to each other reveal a fondness they both reciprocated, and that they wanted to get married. Thomas would sign his letters as ‘from the body of him whose heart ye have’ and Kateryn by ‘her that is and shall be your humble trusty and loving wife during her life’.  She requested he visit in secret and burnt the letters the two of them exchanged. But this soon changed. Protocol dictated that Kateryn should wait three months before remarrying but fuelled by passion for Thomas she wed him in secret only three weeks after the death of the King.  

When news did reach the court of their marriage it caused a scandal. Even Thomas’ brother, Edward Seymour, who had initially thought it would have been a good match, was against their union. The marriage caused a breach in the brothers’ relations, one which never healed. Kateryn and Thomas found that they’d alienated some powerful people. They manipulated young Edward into thinking the match was perfect, knowing if he approved the Council could do nothing.

Kateryn and Thomas were well suited to one another, and it could not have come as a surprise to people that they had found comfort in each other’s arms. They were close in age and held similar interests such as hunting and literature. Thomas was well travelled, wrote poetry and music, and he was the opposite of what Kateryn’s previous husbands had been. In religion they both were drawn to the reformist beliefs. Both members initially of the minor nobility, they found themselves in close proximity to the crown through marriage, which brought them into contact with the power players of the day too. They enjoyed the power which they held and enjoyed the busy court life rather than the quiet life of the country.

Kateryn and Thomas’s lust and passions for one another began to simmer down after their marriage became public knowledge. Kateryn for a time lived her life in ignorance of Thomas’ anger and childish behaviour. As time progressed, he found it a little harder to cover his anger and jealousy. A volatile man with outbursts of importunate anger, he was known by his servants for outbursts of ‘by God’s precious soul’. Thomas began to grow jealous of Kateryn’s dowager status and the expense of her household. Kateryn had married him and accepted his behaviour and his position as head of the household, where no doors were to be denied him.

Thomas did love Kateryn, but this love did not stop his thirst for power nor his wandering eye. His attention started to focus on the teenage Princess Elizabeth residing with Kateryn. At first, he started to play games with her and it probably inflated his ego to find this young girl in awe of him. This behaviour soon started to become inappropriate and he crossed boundaries which, as a stepfather and married man, he should not have done. He began visiting Elizabeth in the early mornings before she was fully dressed, he would slap and tickle her buttocks and after a time even entered in his own nightclothes and attempted to kiss her.

Realising the scandal Thomas would bring to her, Elizabeth’s governess Kat Ashley approached Kateryn and revealed what he had been doing.  Rather than confronting her husband, Kateryn it seems, did not take immediate action upon hearing what was going on under her roof. Maybe it was her hormones as she had recently found out she was with child, maybe her love for Thomas blinded her to this inappropriate behaviour or maybe she realised the only way to control him was to be involved in his games herself with Elizabeth. On one occasion, Kateryn is noted as having held the princess in the gardens while Thomas approached her and cut the princess’ gowns to shreds, leaving her in her undergarments. Apparently, all in jest. Kateryn soon came to her senses, she told Kat not to leave the two alone together. It was during this time that Thomas began to manipulate his wife. He informed Kateryn that Kat had been neglectful in her duties towards Elizabeth as he had seen Elizabeth alone in the arms of another man. Kateryn soon realised this was untrue and reportedly caught Thomas and Elizabeth in a close embrace, and finally decided to send Elizabeth away.

Kateryn and Thomas would go to their home of Sudeley to have the baby. Maybe Kateryn hoped being away from temptation would bring Thomas back to his senses. She gave birth to a baby girl, Mary, on 30th August, 1548. A few days later it was clear Kateryn was dying. In a fever, she raved ‘I am not well handled, for those that be about me careth not for me, but standish laughing at my grief, and the more good I will to them, the less good they will to me’

Thomas was heartbroken when Kateryn died. For all his faults and his flirtation with the princess, his heart did reside with Kateryn. For a time he grieved, he was saddened by Kateryn’s passing. He had gone from giddy father to be, to an ecstatic parent and then a grieving widow in a matter of days. He would have known that she was not long for the world and her ravings would have made it even harder to bear. Although Queen dowager, Kateryn was not a rich widow and would not have brought Thomas huge amounts of wealth. Like he did her, Kateryn brought Thomas happiness in his life, and he loved her for that. They each brought happiness and love into one another’s lives.

Thomas was Kateryn’s passion, and she gave into it fully and wholeheartedly. After spending most of her adult life doing her duty, Kateryn was finally free to love for herself and her marriage to Seymour illustrates her passionate nature.  Kateryn was blinded by her love for Thomas and for a time her emotions were like that of a 14-year-old. She came to her senses enough to act before he ruined himself completely and Elizabeth’s reputation. Her love for her stepdaughter had also been swept away by her passion for Thomas but this soon returned. It was just tragic that she finally gained what she most likely had always wanted in her heart, only to leave the world soon after.

‘By her that is yours to serve and obey during her life’ – The Passion of Kateryn Parr

Kateryn Parr, the one who ‘survived’ Henry VIII was a survivor most of her life, she was not just a noblewoman whom the King married and outlived, but a member of a family who had close links with the Tudor family, a queen, a stepmother, an author in her own right and the first female in England to have a book printed using her own name. Like Henry VIII, Kateryn wanted to find love and to have a family of her own, and after Henry died she was finally free to do that. Kateryn married for the fourth time and for love to Thomas Seymour, brother to the late queen Jane Seymour and uncle to the now King Edward VI.

This final marriage of Kateryn’s, although a love match for the two, brought harm to Kateryn, she allowed herself to become blinded by love for this man and it brought scandal into her life and that of her ward, Princess Elizabeth. It led to a longed-for child of her own only to come to a sad end a few days later where Kateryn succumbed to ‘childbed fever’ and died, leaving Thomas heartbroken.

It is not known exactly when Kateryn and Thomas Seymour first met, nor when they realised they were attracted to one another. It was evident, however, by 1543 that they both were drawn to one another. Kateryn’s heart must have been racing at the thought of Thomas; knowing her current husband, Lord Latimer, was not long for the world she could see true happiness on the horizon. But by this point it was clear that the King had an interest in Kateryn too. Knowing she could not risk turning the king down, and believing it must have been God’s intention for her to become Queen, she agreed to become Henry’s sixth wife. 

The two began, at Kateryn’s request, to have secret meetings and she would rendezvous with him at her home of Chelsea Manor. The letters the two sent to each other reveal a fondness they both reciprocated, and that they wanted to get married. Thomas would sign his letters as ‘from the body of him whose heart ye have’ and Kateryn by ‘her that is and shall be your humble trusty and loving wife during her life’.  She requested he visit in secret and burnt the letters the two of them exchanged. But this soon changed. Protocol dictated that Kateryn should wait three months before remarrying but fuelled by passion for Thomas she wed him in secret only three weeks after the death of the King.  

When news did reach the court of their marriage it caused a scandal. Even Thomas’ brother, Edward Seymour, who had initially thought it would have been a good match, was against their union. The marriage caused a breach in the brothers’ relations, one which never healed. Kateryn and Thomas found that they’d alienated some powerful people. They manipulated young Edward into thinking the match was perfect, knowing if he approved the Council could do nothing.

Kateryn and Thomas were well suited to one another, and it could not have come as a surprise to people that they had found comfort in each other’s arms. They were close in age and held similar interests such as hunting and literature. Thomas was well travelled, wrote poetry and music, and he was the opposite of what Kateryn’s previous husbands had been. In religion they both were drawn to the reformist beliefs. Both members initially of the minor nobility, they found themselves in close proximity to the crown through marriage, which brought them into contact with the power players of the day too. They enjoyed the power which they held and enjoyed the busy court life rather than the quiet life of the country.

Kateryn and Thomas’s lust and passions for one another began to simmer down after their marriage became public knowledge. Kateryn for a time lived her life in ignorance of Thomas’ anger and childish behaviour. As time progressed, he found it a little harder to cover his anger and jealousy. A volatile man with outbursts of importunate anger, he was known by his servants for outbursts of ‘by God’s precious soul’. Thomas began to grow jealous of Kateryn’s dowager status and the expense of her household. Kateryn had married him and accepted his behaviour and his position as head of the household, where no doors were to be denied him.

Thomas did love Kateryn, but this love did not stop his thirst for power nor his wandering eye. His attention started to focus on the teenage Princess Elizabeth residing with Kateryn. At first, he started to play games with her and it probably inflated his ego to find this young girl in awe of him. This behaviour soon started to become inappropriate and he crossed boundaries which, as a stepfather and married man, he should not have done. He began visiting Elizabeth in the early mornings before she was fully dressed, he would slap and tickle her buttocks and after a time even entered in his own nightclothes and attempted to kiss her.

Realising the scandal Thomas would bring to her, Elizabeth’s governess Kat Ashley approached Kateryn and revealed what he had been doing.  Rather than confronting her husband, Kateryn it seems, did not take immediate action upon hearing what was going on under her roof. Maybe it was her hormones as she had recently found out she was with child, maybe her love for Thomas blinded her to this inappropriate behaviour or maybe she realised the only way to control him was to be involved in his games herself with Elizabeth. On one occasion, Kateryn is noted as having held the princess in the gardens while Thomas approached her and cut the princess’ gowns to shreds, leaving her in her undergarments. Apparently, all in jest. Kateryn soon came to her senses, she told Kat not to leave the two alone together. It was during this time that Thomas began to manipulate his wife. He informed Kateryn that Kat had been neglectful in her duties towards Elizabeth as he had seen Elizabeth alone in the arms of another man. Kateryn soon realised this was untrue and reportedly caught Thomas and Elizabeth in a close embrace, and finally decided to send Elizabeth away.

Kateryn and Thomas would go to their home of Sudeley to have the baby. Maybe Kateryn hoped being away from temptation would bring Thomas back to his senses. She gave birth to a baby girl, Mary, on 30th August, 1548. A few days later it was clear Kateryn was dying. In a fever, she raved ‘I am not well handled, for those that be about me careth not for me, but standish laughing at my grief, and the more good I will to them, the less good they will to me’

Thomas was heartbroken when Kateryn died. For all his faults and his flirtation with the princess, his heart did reside with Kateryn. For a time he grieved, he was saddened by Kateryn’s passing. He had gone from giddy father to be, to an ecstatic parent and then a grieving widow in a matter of days. He would have known that she was not long for the world and her ravings would have made it even harder to bear. Although Queen dowager, Kateryn was not a rich widow and would not have brought Thomas huge amounts of wealth. Like he did her, Kateryn brought Thomas happiness in his life, and he loved her for that. They each brought happiness and love into one another’s lives.

Thomas was Kateryn’s passion, and she gave into it fully and wholeheartedly. After spending most of her adult life doing her duty, Kateryn was finally free to love for herself and her marriage to Seymour illustrates her passionate nature.  Kateryn was blinded by her love for Thomas and for a time her emotions were like that of a 14-year-old. She came to her senses enough to act before he ruined himself completely and Elizabeth’s reputation. Her love for her stepdaughter had also been swept away by her passion for Thomas but this soon returned. It was just tragic that she finally gained what she most likely had always wanted in her heart, only to leave the world soon after.

About the Author

Ever since being inspired by her history teacher in secondary school and the 1997 movie Titanic, Laura has had a passion for history, especially medieval and Tudor eras. She writes her blog the Local History Blogger which focuses on her home county of Essex, England. In her past jobs, she has been fortunate to work in historic locations such as the Tower of London and Banqueting House, Whitehall where she gave public talks on its history and talks on the Tudors and Stuarts. Her other passion in life is her daughter who now joins Laura on her history trips and outings. When she is not exploring Laura enjoys reading and adding to her growing collection of books. Katheryn Parr: Henry VIII’s Sixth Queen is her first book.

Book Blurb

Kateryn Parr is mainly remembered today as being the sixth wife of King Henry VIII, the one who ‘survived’. Kateryn was not only a wife but a queen, mother, reformer, and author.

Kateryn would face a number of events in her lifetime including being held to ransom during the Pilgrimage of Grace, being placed as regent while Henry was in France, a role which only one of his five previous wives held, her namesake Katherine of Aragon, and overcame a plot which would have led to her arrest and execution. While Queen she was able to unite the Tudor family and establish some form of happiness for Henry VIII’s three children.

Raised by her mother Maud Parr, under a humanist education, Kateryn was intelligent enough to understand her role in life and was not afraid to do her research. Although raised a Catholic, Kateryn became a reformer and went on to write a number of religious texts, being the first female in England to ever have a book published under her own name. She was loyal not only to her family but her servants and the women of her court. She loved her stepchildren and provided them with a mother’s love and a role model which her stepdaughters could learn from. Her views on what was expected of her placed her into an open conflict with her brother-in-law Edward Seymour and his wife Anne.

This book explores the various roles she had in her lifetime and the passion and duty she put into them, even if it meant putting others first. It will explore her love for Thomas Seymour and how it blindsided her and led to a sad end of her life, and the book will finally look at her legacy – the influence she had on Princess Elizabeth, the future Queen Elizabeth I.

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