Monday 3rd – Sunday 9th March, 2025
Explore Anne Boleyn’s early life in this week-long online event beginning on Monday 3 March, 2025. Join Natalie Grueninger and Dr Owen Emmerson as they discuss the transformative experiences and interactions that shaped the woman—and queen—Anne would become.
Delivery Mode
Solely online via six pre-recorded lectures and one live Zoom discussion. Participants will receive links to each lecture over the course of the week and will be able to access the recordings for two months following the completion of the event. Each lecture will also be accompanied by discussion/reflection questions.
If you have any questions about this event, please contact drowenemmerson@gmail.com or natalie@onthetudortrail.com.
What is Included?
- Six pre-recorded lectures by Natalie Grueninger and Dr Owen Emmerson.
- A live Zoom Q&A with Natalie & Owen, who will answer your questions.
- Access to all lectures for two months from the upload date.
- Entry into an exclusive prize giveaway.
COST: £35.00 per person, plus booking fee.
Concessions
We are pleased to offer discounted concessionary price places for carers, senior citizens, NHS/healthcare workers, students, recipients of Universal Credit, and for those who are unwaged. Please contact Owen at the below email address to receive a discount code.
Lecture Schedule
Session 1 – Origins
It is often stated that Anne Boleyn’s story is a rags-to-riches one. Yet, this historical record shows that the Boleyn family rose from obscurity three generations earlier and that Anne Boleyn was born into considerable wealth and privilege. How did the Boleyn family rise from becoming minor Norfolk landowners to the throne of England? In this session, we will chart the extraordinary rise of the Boleyn family from a life marked by petty crime to a family with substantial wealth, property and prospects. Who were the key players in the Boleyn family’s rise to prosperity, and how did they consolidate their wealth and power?
Session 2 – The Birth Debate
The date of Anne Boleyn’s birth and the relative ages of her brother and sister have caused much discussion over the years. There are two prominent schools of thought when it comes down to Anne’s date of birth: circa 1501 and the other circa 1507. In this lecture, we’ll explore the arguments and scrutinise all available evidence. We’ll also consider whether a third date range is indeed a possibility.
Session 3 – The Early Years
In this session, we will chart Anne Boleyn’s early years from Norfolk to Kentish Weald. We will ask how we can recover Anne’s scantly documented early years with comparative research. We will consider what kind of culture Anne was born into and the types of education afforded to girls of Anne’s station. We will then evaluate the influence of humanist thought and the outlook of the parents and broader family Anne was born into to better understand the unique opportunities afforded to her and her siblings.
Session 4 – Journey Across the Sea
This lecture will explore Anne’s time at the Habsburg court at Mechelen in Brabant. How did Thomas Boleyn secure this advantageous position for his daughter and what lessons and skills did Anne learn from her mistress Margaret of Austria, who ruled the Low Countries as regent for her nephew, the future Holy Roman Emperor? We’ll consider these questions and more in this illustrated presentation.
Session 5 – A French Education
This session will chart Anne’s placement at the highly sophisticated French court. Did Anne travel to France to serve King Henry VIII’s sister, Mary, or did she arrive later? What was service to Queen Claude like for a girl of Anne’s age? What kinds of culture and ideas was Anne exposed to? This lecture will focus, in particular, on the powerful female figures at the French court who shaped Anne’s idea of queenship and the more radical religious teachings that flourished at the Valois court.
Session 6 – Farewells & New Beginnings
Sometime in late 1521, Anne Boleyn was recalled to England. In this lecture, we’ll explore the political backdrop to this event and the reasons behind this recall. We’ll also take a close look at the sources relating to Anne’s debut at the English court and question some longstanding beliefs about this period.
Session 7 – Live Zoom Q & A
Join Dr Owen Emmerson and Natalie Grueninger for a live Zoom Q&A. Submit your questions in advance or use the chat function to ask during the session.
When?
Sunday 9 March at 8.30pm GMT
A recording of the live session will be published at the conclusion of the event.
About the Presenters
Natalie Grueninger
Natalie Grueninger is an independent researcher who specialises in the life, reign and times of Queen Anne Boleyn. She’s authored and co-authored six books, including the ‘In the Footsteps’ series. Her latest book, ‘The Final Year of Anne Boleyn’, was published in November 2022. Natalie has written for a number of history magazines, including Inside History and Tudor Places, and runs the website www.onthetudortrail.com. She’s the creator and host of the popular ‘Talking Tudors’ podcast and the founder of Women’s History Circle, dedicated to amplifying women’s voices and promoting the work of women creatives with a passion for history. Natalie is deeply interested in the lives of medieval and Tudor women and in the networks which they built and used, especially those with other women. She’s an avid bibliophile and a lifelong learner. When not at her desk, she can often be found indulging in her insatiable passion for travel.
Dr Owen Emmerson
Dr Owen Emmerson is a social and cultural historian, the author of four books, and an expert contributor to several television documentaries. He works as Assistant Curator at Hever Castle in Kent. He has appeared in seventeen documentaries about the Tudor era, and most recently worked consulting on the BBC drama Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light. His most recent book, entitled Holbein’s Hidden Gem: Rediscovering Thomas Cromwell’s Lost Book, was published in 2023. It tells the story of the ground-breaking discovery made by Emmerson, Kate McCaffrey and Alison Palmer of the Book of Hours depicted in Hans Holbein’s painting of Thomas Cromwell. Dr Tracy Borman dubbed their efforts as ‘the most exciting Thomas Cromwell discovery in a generation – if not more’. He is currently working on a project on the cultural history of The Six Queens, the ‘image’ of Anne Boleyn, and a complete history of Hever Castle.
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