“If not for her sex, she could have defied all the heroes of History.”
Catherine of Aragon was born 16 December 1485, the youngest child of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon. By the time she was four (before her second husband was even born), she was already betrothed to Arthur, son and heir of the newly enthroned Henry VII of England. The marriage scheme was part of Henry’s efforts to shore up his line’s tenuous claim to the throne; besides being from a long-established royal house, Catherine was descended, like Henry, from Edward III by way of John of Gaunt. She was a highly educated child, writing and speaking multiple modern and classical languages and tutored in what was considered a Liberal Arts education.
Her marriage to Arthur proved short-lived, leaving her a widow at 17. She was betrothed on and off to the new heir, Henry, and finally married him when he ascended the throne as Henry VIII. They remained married for twenty-four years - over twice as long as the rest of Henry’s subsequent marriages combined. Although Henry annulled their marriage (ostensibly) over their lack of surviving sons, their daughter Mary would become the first female monarch to successfully hold the throne of England.
The above quote was from, of all people, Thomas Cromwell, the chief engineer of her downfall. Even those who opposed her could not deny her intelligence, talent, forceful personality, and bravery.
