It is possible to remember the wives of Henry VIII using a mnemonic device.The king of England had a large number of wives, but is best known for his achievements in foreign policy, religion, and the arts.It's difficult to remember all of their names and the order in which they were married.There are a number of tricks you can use to keep Henry's queens straight in your head.You'll remember their names for a long time if you use a mnemonic device to learn them.
Step 1: The rhyme tells the fates of the queens.
Generations of British children have memorised this ditty.It isn't strictly accurate.The marriages to Catherine of Aragon and Anne of Cleves were legal.The king was outlived by both Anne of Cleves and Katherine Parr.
Step 2: The rhyme was "wedded" with "beheaded".
This version of the poem does not use the term divorced correctly.It does not tell you the order of the queens.It has a meter that is easy to remember.
Step 3: The queens have first names.
Jane rhymes with again if she adopts an English accent.There are two Kates at the end of the list, Catherine Howard and Katherine Parr.
Step 4: The queens had their last initials.
The most widely cited version is.You can remember this if you remember it.
Step 5: To remember the initials, connect them with history.
This is the version that runs.It is easy to remember because of the drama surrounding the lives and deaths of Henry's wives.Anne Boleyn had a plan to get close to the king.Catherine Howard, cousin to the dead Anne, was carrying on her affair behind the king.
Step 6: Use a phrase that sounds similar to the queens names.
This is a good one.Anne is Anne Boleyn, Seemed More is Seymour, Clever is Howard, and How to sounds like Howard.It has the benefit of being historically accurate.Anne Boleyn wanted to catch the wedding ring.
Step 7: You can learn something about each queen.
It is easier to remember the fate of Henry VIII's wives if you know more about them.They are real people, not just a list of names.
Step 8: Henry's brother, Arthur, was married to Catherine of Aragon.
Arthur died soon after.The marriage of Henry and Catherine took place in 1509.Mary I, also known as "Bloody Mary", was the daughter of Catherine of Aragon.Henry's first marriage lasted from 1509 to 1533.Henry was trying to get a son and he claimed that the marriage was invalid because Catherine was married to Arthur.Henry became head of the church in England after the pope refused to allow him to.
Step 9: Henry and Anne Boleyn were married in 1533
They were having an affair while she was one of Queen Catherine's ladies in waiting.Anne had two children, one of which would become Elizabeth I.Henry ended this marriage because he thought Anne was having an affair with another man.Anne was beheaded in 1536.
Step 10: Henry was finally given a son by Jane Seymour.
She was a lady-in-waiting who caught the king's eye.She gave birth to Edward in 1537.The king was plunged into grief by the death of Jane Seymour.
Step 11: In 1540, Anne of Cleves entered into a diplomatic marriage.
Henry thought she was unattractive.The diplomatic situation shifted and made the marriage less beneficial.Anne arranged for the marriage to be nullified.She died at her castle in 1557.
Step 12: The doomed lady-in-waiting was Catherine Howard.
She married Henry just days after his previous marriage was thrown out.Anne Boleyn shared her fate with Catherine Howard.She was beheaded for treason in 1542 after she was caught having an affair.
Step 13: Henry VIII's last wife was the second to outlive him.
Four years before the king died, they married.Katherine wanted to reinforce the Protestant Reformation.The Queen of England published a book under her own name.After King Henry's death, she would publish another.Her uncle to King Edward VI was Sir Thomas Seymour.After giving birth to her only child, christened Lady Mary, she died five days later.The most ornate tomb out of all of Henry's wives is that of Katherine.