If you want to join me for my special livestreamed 90-minute Mary Boleyn Masterclass and Q&A session this Saturday, 12th February, you’ll need to buy your ticket for my virtual conference “Anne Boleyn, the Woman who changed England”, before the end of today, 8th February.
In my masterclass, I’ll be looking at the many myths that surround Mary Boleyn, mistress of Henry VIII and sister of Anne Boleyn, and fleshing out the real Mary Boleyn. Novels and movies like The Other Boleyn Girl have had such an impact on people’s views of this Tudor lady and many of these views are not backed up by history. Join me in exploring this interesting Boleyn girl and have your questions answered in real time. Scroll down to the bottom of the post to see what I’ll be covering.
I’ll be speaking live twice on 12th February, so that you can join me in whatever time-zone you’re in, plus I’ll also be recording it and preparing a transcript afterwards. I hope you can join me.
The masterclass is a bonus for ticketholders of online event, “Anne Boleyn, the Woman who changed England”.
If you haven’t heard about “Anne Boleyn, the Woman who changed England”, then let me tell you more…
It’s a week of daily talks and live Q&A sessions with THE best Anne Boleyn experts where you’ll meet a very new Anne Boleyn and understand why she changed the course of English history. It’s completely online and you can attend from home.
You may have binge-watched Anne Boleyn series, movies and documentaries, and you may have read all the books you can find and listened to every podcast you can, but you haven’t had chance to spend a week learning from eight Boleyn experts and ask them your burning questions in real time. I’m so very excited about giving you unique and exclusive access to me and these seven other experts in a smaller and more intimate setting than usual. You don’t want to miss this!
Find out more and buy your ticket by clicking below. You’ll find full details and FAQs there.
In the bonus masterclass, I’ll be covering:
I will be covering:
- Mary Boleyn’s early life – Her birthdate, her upbringing – was she given the same opportunities as her sister, Anne? Did she go to France
- Her relationship with King Henry VIII – What was the nature of their relationship? Was it consensual? What do we know about Mary and the king? Did he father her children? Did the relationship affect her reputation and prospects?
- Was Mary the mistress of King Francis I?
- Was Mary a pawn? Did her family use her for advancement and then disregard her when she wasn’t useful anymore?
- What were her relationships with her parents and siblings like? Was she close to Anne? Were her and Anne rivals? Was she the black sheep of the family? Did she reconcile with her family in her last years? Did her sister, Anne, steal her son?
- How did she come to marry William Carey?
- Mary’s marriage to William Stafford – Did she marry Stafford for love? Did they have a child together? What happened to Mary and Stafford after Mary was banished? How did Mary avoid getting caught up in the events of 1536? What were the last years of her life like?
- Mary’s appearance – What did she look like? Are there any definitive portraits of her?
- Mary’s character – What do we know about Mary as a woman? Was she intelligent? Was she less intelligent than her siblings but more attractive and agreeable? Was she interested in religious reform? Was she less ambitious than the rest of her family? Was she the good sister? Was she a “harlot”? Did she choose to take control of her destiny and go her own way?
- Mary and her niece, Elizabeth – Did Mary see Elizabeth after 1536? Did she take Elizabeth after Anne’s execution? Did she play any role in Elizabeth’s life?
- Mary’s death – When did she die and where was she laid to rest?
- Mary’s descendants – How are so many people descended from Mary? What are her links to the royal family?