The 29th May 1533 saw the start of the pageantry and celebrations which led up to the coronation of Queen Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII’s second wife, at Westminster Abbey on the 1st June.
The Milanese ambassador estimated that the celebrations cost the City of London around £46,00o and Henry half that again, but the King was not worried about the cost, he was intent on showing the whole world that Anne Boleyn was his rightful Queen and that the baby she was carrying was the legitimate heir to the throne. The coronation was not just a ceremony to make Anne queen, it was the celebration of new beginnings and hope for the future. It was a moment of triumph for the couple.
I wrote about this day in detail last year so please do read my account of the lavish celebrations of 29th May 1533 in my article “Queen Anne Boleyn”.
