Site of the scaffold on Tower Hill
On the morning of Wednesday, 17th May 1536 George Boleyn, Henry Norris, Francis Weston, William Brereton and Mark Smeaton were led out of the western entrance of the Tower under close guard and beheaded on a high scaffold on Tower Hill. Large crowds had gathered to see the bloody end of these once great men – among the onlookers stood a number of courtiers.
It is often said that Anne witnessed the execution of her beloved brother and of the other men accused alongside her but for this to have happened the Tower officials would have had to have moved Anne from the Queen’s Lodgings in the south-east corner of the Tower, where she was detained for the duration of her imprisonment, to a room on the north or west side of the Tower – possible but highly unlikely according to Anne’s biographer, the late Eric Ives.
Tradition has it that Thomas Wyatt may also have watched the executions from his prison in the Bell Tower (or somewhere nearby), as described in a poem he wrote later that year:
“The Bell Tower showed me such a sight
That in my head sticks day and night;
There did I learn out of a grate…”
The injustice and futility of these judicial murders must have made them all the more tormenting to witness.
It was reported that all five men died in a dignified manner and observed scaffold etiquette by confessing their faults and confirming the justness of their punishments in their farewell speeches. What they did not allude to though, were the specific crimes that brought them to this terrible fate.
The highest ranking, being George Boleyn, faced the axe first but only after he had delivered a very long speech, of which several versions survive.
This version is in the Chronicle of Calais and has Rochford stating:
Christian men, I am born under the law and judged under the law, and die under the law, and the law has condemned me. Masters all, I am not come hither for to preach, but for to die, for I have deserved to die if I had twenty lives, more shamefully than can be devised, for I am a wretched sinner, and I have sinned shamefully. I have known no man so evil, and to rehearse my sins openly, it were no pleasure to you to hear them, nor yet for me to rehearse them, for God knoweth all. Therefore, masters all, I pray you take heed by me, and especially my lords and gentlemen of the court, the which I have been among, take heed by me and beware of such a fall, and I pray to God the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, three persons and one God, that my death may be an example unto you all. And beware, trust not in the vanity of the world, and especially in the flattering of the court. And I cry God mercy, and ask all the world forgiveness of God. And if I have offended any man that is not here now, either in thought, word or deed, and if ye hear any such, I pray you heartily in my behalf, pray them to forgive me for God’s sake. And yet, my masters all, I have one thing for to say to you: men do common and say that I have been a setter forth of the Word of God, and one that have favoured the Gospel of Christ; and because I would not that God’s word should be slandered by me, I say unto you all, that if I had followed God’s word in deed as I did read it and set it forth to my power, I had not come to this. If I had, I had been a liv[ing] man among you. Therefore I pray you, masters all, for God’s sake stick to the truth and follow it, for one good follower is worth three readers, as God knoweth. (Weir, Pg. 243)
Alison Weir believes this is a reliable account and one that ‘goes a long way towards confirming the theory that he had indulged in what were then regarded as unnatural sexual practices’ (Pg. 243) not that he had committed incest with his sister, as some might infer.
Norris, Weston, Brereton and Smeaton soon followed him.
It is difficult to imagine what these men must have been thinking and feeling whilst awaiting their brutal deaths. One can be sure that they would have been overcome by mounting fear as the axe claimed more victims and the scaffold became littered with mutilated corpses. To make matters all the more terrifying, the axe was never a kind bringer of death. It was observed that George Boleyn had endured three strokes of the axe to completely sever his head from his body.
Smeaton was the last to die. The sight that lay before him must have been horrendous. The block floating in a sea of red surrounded by bloodied bodies and butchered heads. Yet still he managed to find the courage to utter a few words and then lay his head on the block.
There their mutilated corpses remained until Tower officials stripped them of their clothes and piled them onto a cart that would transport them to their final resting places; the Chapel Royal of St. Peter Ad Vincula for Lord Rochford and the adjacent churchyard for Norris, Weston, Brereton and Smeaton.
Thomas Wyatt was obviously deeply affected by what he saw from his cell and responded by writing a poem about the fate of those who rise and fall at court. Read the full poem entitled ‘Innocentia Veritas Viat Fides Circumdederunt me intimici me’.
Wyatt later completed a longer poem about the sorrow he felt at the loss of his friends. Read ‘In Mourning wise since daily I increase‘ where he writes that after Rochford’s execution ‘many cry aloud
It is great loss that thou art dead and gone.’
I sincerely hope that these men are now resting in peace a long way away from their brutal Earthly departure.
I can’t believe that Henry VIII could be so cruel.
He was a Monster, so cruel, he had no mercy for queen Ann, i hate him, i pray every day for ann soul. rest in peace.
Today he would be a monster.
Then he was a King free to exert his will. Perfectly acceptable behavior.
He was a monster back then too. He was cruel and a tyrant. He showed no mercy for Anne, not even her brother and the other men who were accused with her.
So hard to understand what happened all those centuries ago. May they rest in peace. Henry may lie beneath St Georges floor. Not going anywhere else
I think he was deranged. All the falls from horses, plus all the medicines (that were probably chemicals that he THOUGHT helped ) And all the things he indulged in, from driking to eating.Horrible KING.
A well accepted theory is that the last fall from the horse im joust that knocked him unconcious for over an hour, gave him a concussion and permanent brain damage to the degree that he was known have MUCH crueler and unreasonable afterwards..It moat likley damaged the portion of the brain that governs morality.
No, Henry Viii was a monster even for those brutal times, he had over 57,000 people executed during his reign.
And why not? He wanted them to relieve himself of the burden of Anne and hers. He could not admit to the world that he was wrong. It was just the pill he needed to swallow. Those were barbaric times and a King’s strength was shown in his ability to rule ruthlessly and without waiver. Of course he could be that cruel. He was the epitome of a King.
actually they could have died much worse..drawn and quartered,or burned at the stake by Mary,cousin of Elizabeth.
W
Mary was Elizabeth’s half sister
He knew she was innocent. He just wanted her dead…
which proves he was evil, because he could have just divorced her like he did with Catherine
It was just business. Just another day at the office for Henry!
I am a new comer to your site. I love it! You’ve done such a tremendous job. I look forward to many conversations in future! Thank you for giving me & others who love so much the Tudor period this outlet of joy! Sincerely, Patti
Welcome Patti! Thank you for your comment, I am so glad that you are enjoying my website. I dedicate a lot of time and energy to it and love hearing from happy visitors. You might also be interested to know that I am currently co-authoring a book about historic sites connected to Anne Boleyn that will be published later this year. Watch this space for more information! PS. You can also join me on my writing journey here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/In-the-Footsteps-of-Anne-Boleyn-A-Time-Travellers-Guide/254288781275715
Natalie: Thank you for replying to me! I feel so honered that you contacted ME! I would love to follow your writing journey on Facebook. I don’t have a Facebook account but I’m going to get one so I can do that! I can’t wait to read your upcoming book. What a great idea for a book. I know I’ve said it before in my first comment but I just got to say again, thank you, thank you so much for the time & effort you put into your great site! You should have seen my face when I found it! I feel like I hit the Tudor jackpot! Please know you have made me & many others very happy!! Keep up the great work. I’m your biggest fan! -Patti
I just read Ann Boleyn by Norah lofts which states that to ensure that Ann died swiftly he hired a swordsman close by. Did not the 5 men get the same treatment. It states that the axe had to strike George’s neck thrice before it finally detached. Just curious. I love this part of history. Thx Lisa
The swordsman came from France and was a swifter death.
I love your site. I’ve long been a fan of Anne Boleyn, from the very first time I heard of her. Thank you for what you’ve put together here.
I just cannot believe how brave these men were to actually lay their head calmly on the block and not shout and scream their innocents! I can only assume their belief in God must have been so strong that they truly believed they would be seen to be innocent…makes you wonder what happened to Henry once he died!!! and maybe…just maybe, those ulcers was karma…a bit….
HI
Wonderful site!!!
I became interested in The Tudors after watching the showtime series this past summer and watching Anne of the thousand days
I’d like to think George Boleyn had the same wry, sly, spot-on sense of humour that Anne Boleyn had, and in his scaffold speech he was taking a swing at all the men who fell in behind the King on the witch-hunt – that basically, he was saying, “I cuckolded so many of you . . . and you didn’t even realize it until now . . . ” except I doubt that he really did – it’s Anne Boleyn’s “pallets/ballads” remark that made me have this thought.
what brave souls so very brutal ! How on earth Henry carried on like nothing had happened is beyond me he ruthlessly persued Ann in today’s terms sexually harassed her for 7 yrs then disposed of her when he didn’t get what he wanted .cold calculated murderer in my eyes ! I am so glad he suffered so much pain with ulsers got fat and smelly serves him right wicked tyrant !!!
What a great site,the Tudors are my guilty pleasure,I much admire Ann Boleyn,a lady born ahead of her time,strong and opionated at a time when women were seen but not heard,Al’s have empathy for Catherine Howard,very young,forced to marry an old,fat man with a suppurating ulcer on his leg,is it any wonder she was attracted to a young handsome man,such a tragedy.
acabo de ver por la TV de Argentina un film sobre Mary Boleyn y su familia.Es increíble no solo la solo la crueldad de Henry Tudor sino también la ambicion de la familia Boleyn.
i cannot conjur up any sympathy for this woman. She thought she could play cat and mouse with henry and she thought wrong. as well as being arrogant and ambitious, she was cruel, making Mary a servant to her daughter Elizabeth. Although I do not believe her guilty of having affairs i do believe she got what she deserved
She was guilty of treason at the moment the comment about ‘dead men’s shoes’ left her mouth, and she knew it.
Big mistake.
Can you at least feel sympathy for the 5 men killed along with her that WERE innocent of wwrongdoing?
Henry is glorified as one of the greatest kings England ever had, which just shows what the distance of time can do. In fact he was a petulent, spoilt, grasping and inadequate excuse for a man. Even considering the times he lived in he doesn’t measure up.
The tudors should never had ruled it was the York’s and Plantagenet that we’re the true English royals
Agreed!
The people that Vilify Anne are really odd. For example Paul Mansell describes her as being “arrogant and ambitious, she was cruel, making Mary a servant to her daughter Elizabeth”, he is using guess work here, but if it is true of Anne then it is far more correct about Henry. And then he comes up with the STUNNING and UNBELIVEABLE comment “Although I do not believe her guilty of having affairs i(sic) do believe that she got what she deserved”! Let’s all be thankful that he is not a Judge( well hopefully not) in his world people get murdered for arrogant and ambitious. A TRULY ODD man!
Being a descendant of her majesty, thank you, thats very kind. What an atrocious situation.
Thank you for this… I have been a huge supporter and fan of Anne from a very young age but this is the first time I have read such a detailed account of those poor men accused and condemned along with her. I have to say I am fighting back tears just thinking about what each of them must have went through, watching and preparing for death. I am fascinated by AB and think about her more often at this time of year but often forget to remember those who died shortly before she did. Thank you for a moving and informative article.
Poor old ‘enry. He’s the current great whipping boy of history isn’t he?. Despite the multiple wives (actually, only four, not six!) he was a very successful monarch, dragging England out of the middle ages and out of 100 years of warfare and civil strife, freeing her from the dominion of the Papacy, and making her a world power. True, he was a bit naughty, making more than a few people (and two wives) shorter by a head. Only two things I can say in mitigation. 1) when he was at his savage worst he was probably clinically insane due to the pain of his illness and 2) it’s a mistake to judge a 16th century person by 21st century mores. Sorry if I offend but there is more to Henry than the business with his wives; much more.
because of his so called freeing england of the papacy – millions of irish and and scottish and english died just because they practiced the Catholic religion and this is not in 1500s -up until 1980 irish ere being murdered just for being catholic in ireland
human nature is not always pretty. give people unlimited power, if he is narscisistic and stupid,( sound familiar). horrible things happen. yet, people allow and even help it unfold, trump and spineless speaker for example
Anne may have not have been unfaithful, but she did urge Henry to rid himself of Queen Katherine & Princess Mary. Who she knew to be her enemies. Also Sir Thomas More & Bishop Fisher. Who were beheaded. She was not an innocent. However there were plenty of lies said against her stop Henry could be rid of her. It was all very sad.
Anne had Wolesley pushed from power and others , I believe they were all as bad as one another in those days you were safer being a common man or peasant . I also think she would have had Thomas Commwell killed if he had not got her first under Henry’s wishes.
Following the physical descriptions and depictions of Anne, I could imagine she would look like a typical catwalk girl of today then a maid of 16th century. Alas, what a pity, what a human resource’s waste sending such a woman to the scaffold. If she had lived now sure she was a Hollywood star or a Big Brother’s winner!!!!!!
Reading so many of these comments makes me laugh because it makes me believe that people are basing their judgements of Henry and Anne on the show TUDORS. That show takes artistic license and puts words into the characters mouths and places them in situations that may not have actually happened, just to add a little additional drama to the show, ie…Mary being made Elizabeth’s servant.
Henry was a narcissistic, self-indulgent, megalomaniac, which of course, also, made him an insufferable, arrogant bully (have I used enough adjectives to describe him?). He thought nothing of sending innocent people to the scaffold – he was an anointed king (for God’s sake) and so had every right to do as he pleased! He was all powerful and showed it! He was KING! As you can tell I am not a big fan!
So in the 16th century it was ok to frame your wife with a kangaroo court..and kill 5 innocent men and her so you could marry you mistress to bear you a legitimate heir. Dispute you already having a Son with your wife’s sister…Trump waiting for your help…
Hi Alan, I just wanted to say that I think your comment regarding what Paul said is a little rude and critical. You can’t declare to the world that someone is odd for giving and opinion and suggesting that Paul said she deserved what she got because of her arrogance and ambition. After reading several books on Anne Boleyn, they do dipict her as being ruthless, selfish and potentially even murdering a bishop with poison. Perhaps she had committed several crimes and her character doesn’t make one sympathise much with her.
Yes she did not deserve the atrocities of a death sentence, but remember we are talking about a corrupted judicial system that existed 500 years ago.
Doing my family tree and George Boleyn has come up as a relative!
Did anyone see the movie “The Other Boleyn Girl”. Excellent movie and so sad at the end but if it’s true about how she became queen, she only cared for herself. She did a job on Henrys wife, Katharine of Aragon, her sister, Mary, and the king to get what she wanted. She played it..But still, what a barbaric way to die.
Who wrote this article please? I wanted to take a quote for an essay I’m writing but can’t find author or date x
Written by Natalie Grueninger on August 17, 2010. Good luck with your article!
Henry had his sycophants declare the marriage null and void, this was done whilst Anne was in prison awaiting her fate. If this was the case she could not be guilty of adultery or incest, because she was not married to Henry. Of course nobody dare tell Henry that…food for thought.
I admit I did not read all comments prior to this, but I noticed quite a few discussing the brutality of beheading. In fact, it was considered the quickest and most pain-free form of execution.
For comparison: breaking on the wheel could take days; drawing and quartering (maximum punishment at the time) a horrible half-hour; sword through the gut, several seconds to minutes; beheading, 10-30 milliseconds.
It comes down to something quite simple. Henry was a cruel, unforgiving, egotistical tyrant! He forced his lords and ministers to do his will. When things failed, he retaliated, executed, and tortured those advisers.
The man was a psychopath and terrified of being usurped. His justified fears of invasion by both France and Spain didn’t help and his need for money drove the demolition of the English church structures. Thomas Moore was an opportunist who pandered to Henrys desires but I believe that the Tudor bloodline was flawed at source. All of the players at court were trying to advance their cause and as far as I can tell the only one that came out with any credit was Anne of Cleves. And this despite marrying a noted maniac just to escape a brother who was just as bad.
He had 6 wives. Katherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard and the last was Catherine/Katherine Parr who outlived him.
I think he just wanted her out of the way so that he could marry Jane Seymour.