Quotes
Here are some famous quotes about Queen Anne Boleyn…
The very ink of history is written with fluid prejudice
No English Queen has made more impact on the history of the nation than Anne Boleyn, and few have been so persistently maligned.
Though God cannot alter the past, historians can.
I have never had better opinions of woman than I had of her.
For her behaviour, manners, attire and tongue she excelled them all.
Her excellent grace and behaviour
She (Anne) knew perfectly how to sing and dance…to play the lute and other instruments.
Imbued with as many outward good qualities in playing on instruments, singing, and such other courtly graces, as few women were of her time.
Very beautiful.
I find her so bright and pleasant for her young age that I am more beholden to you for sending her to me than you are to me.
He’s marrying the perfect wife for him [Jane Seymour], and he’s learned that he doesn’t need an Anne Boleyn – another partner in crime to help him take over the world. He just needs a wonderful, supportive wife to take care of him when he comes home from a hard day beheading people.
I will not give them up to a person who is the scandal of Christendom and a disgrace to you.
The King’s Grace is ruled by one common stewed wh*re, Anne Boleyn, who makes all the spirituality to be beggared, and the temporality also.
Your Majesty must root out the Lady and her adherents…. This accursed Anne has her foot in the stirrup, and will do the Queen and the Princess all the harm she can. She has boasted that she will make the Princess her lady-in-waiting, or marry her to some varlet.
If it be true that is openly reported of the Queen’s Grace… I am in such perplexity that my mind is clean amazed; for I never had better opinion in woman than I had in her; which maketh me to think that she should not be culpable… Next to Your Grace, I was most bound to her of all creatures living… I wish and pray for her that she may declare herself inculpable and innocent… I loved her not a little for the love which I judged her to bear towards God and His Gospel.
It was not a coalition of factions that brought down Anne but Henry’s disaffection caused by her miscarriage of a defective child, the one act, besides adultery, that would certainly destroy his trust in her.
She who has been the Queen of England on earth will today become a Queen in Heaven.
As an avid Anne admirer, I have read all I can ever find on her and never have I read so many beautiful quotes about her, thankyou so much for making them available. Always I have thought the information most widely published must be one sided, for whatever her pitfalls, she must have been an extraordinary woman for so many people such as myself to still be so interested in finding out all we can after 500 years!
Thank you, June! I really must get round to adding some new quotes here! Yes, I believe she was an extraordinary woman and she would be bemused, honoured and humbled, I think, to know that we are still discussing her today. Thanks for your comment.
well……maybe not “humbled”.
Dear Claire, She is indeed. Thank You so much.
Does anyone know if Anne Boleyn did say ‘My blood shall have been well spent’, (talking of her and Henry’s daughter Elizabeth I), while awaiting execution in the tower?
I haven’t been able to find any record of her saying that in the Tower. I love the speech that Anne makes to Henry in that scene in “Anne of the Thousand Days” and I would love it to have happened in real life. Here’s the whole of what she says:
“But Elizabeth is yours. Watch her as she grows; she’s yours. She’s a Tudor! Get yourself a son off of that sweet, pale girl if you can – and hope that he will live! But Elizabeth shall reign after you! Yes, Elizabeth – child of Anne the wh*re and Henry the Blood-Stained Lecher – shall be Queen! And remember this: Elizabeth shall be a greater queen than any king of yours! She shall rule a greater England than you could ever have built! Yes – MY Elizabeth SHALL BE QUEEN! And my blood will have been well spent!”
Wonderful! And that scene does show Anne’s spirit and courage in the face of impending doom.
I am so amazed by the story of Anne Boleyn and all that goes along with her changing history history in many ways. I also am a history buff and inpaticular in love with the Tudors Dynast. I also love the movie Anne of a Thousand Days. Old but still captures her in a new light. Also the way she was made into character during the Showtime series The Tudors. I think that series captured both King Henry the Eighth and Anne Boleyn,along with all the major counter parts that were influencial in henry’s court in that time. Such as Charles Brandon, Thomas Moore, Cardinal Wolsey. I just really enjoy any education,stories about that specific time in England. Also am very interested in Queen Elizabeth.
Hi, I know I am really late to this! But I love this scene in ‘Anne of a Thousand days’. I watched it all through childhood as Anne fascinated me. I do not know if anyone else knows of this but during filming of this scene Elizabeth Taylor was still with Richard Burton. Genevieve Bujold and Liz did not get on and with this scene Liz was going to watch the filming, to which Genevieve said she would show Liz how to really act ( I think there may have been a swear word in there). And well I think she did, the most memorable scene ever for me! Elizabeth Taylor does also make a cameo in the film as a masked courtesan. It has been a while since I saw it but she is the courtesan in white who runs into a scene where Anne and Henry are alone.
Thank you so much for a great site Claire!
I love this part of the movie. Something tells me that Anne knew her Daughter would be Queen. To die at the hand of her husband was the ultimate betrayal. And she knew her Redemption would someday be Elizabeth
No you got that out of Anne of the thousand days that was fictional.
But isn’t that what Claire said? It was from the movie ‘Anne of a Thousand Days.’ Claire just wishes it could have been true, as it sums up the strength, power and passion, that was Anne Boleyn….
Yes she did say she was quoting the movie.
In my heart that is what she said.
Although I thought she announced ” My daughter Will be Queen ” at some period.
Hi Miriam,
Yes, I did say that it was from the movie but I would love for it to have happened in real life. Hope you had a good Christmas x
My favorite Anne Boleyn quote; “Thus it will be: Grudge who grudge.”
That, along with her initial pendant, will be my next tattoo =-)
she did it is in her journals she kept, that are locked up in england close to were she was killed. if you have the tudors first season and there is a part they tell and show what is made up set and not it shows the memorial for the queen.i could be wrong but well may be real wrong but her daughter when took thrown built it, now it is a very buitiful glass center peice. but their is a spot all the journals from the kings and queens are kept near by, and only select few pages are availible that would basically be in the historian books. i have a friend over their and she told me, so this is hear say also but something to think on. just amagine what those books hold.
I love the quote by Thomas Cranmer so much, i’ve had it tattooed down my right leg x
I SURE WISH THAT I LIVED IN THE UK.. I SIMPLY CAN’T GET ENOUGH OF ANNE BOLEYN, THEN I COULD SEE WITH MY OWN EYES, WHERE ALL HISTORY TOOK PLACE, MAYBE ONE DAY I CAN MAKE A TRIP THERE….CAN ANYONE IMAGINE THE ABSOLUTE TERROR ANNE FELT WAITING HER EXECUTION?? IT IS TOO AWFUL THINKING ABOUT IT….
A brave, brave woman! 🙂
I live in the area where Anne spent most of her life and the good news is you could visit all the places in one trip here, even in a week if you dedicated yourself to it! I would suggest making Hever Castle and the Tower of London your priorities as Blickling Hall is still an interesting visit but most of the place Anne Boleyn would have known has been demolished. They don’t have as many artifacts as Hever either. At Hever you can see needlework she herself made and even the very bible she is rumoured to have carried to the block, bless her
Thankyou for showing an interest in one of the greatest women to walk on this earth!
The scene from ‘Anne of the Thousand Days’ truly does show her character to perfection. These quotes really provide you with another deeper insight into the psychological profile of Queen Anne Boleyn.
I wanted to comment on the Anne of the Thousand Days speech, yes it was fiction but how well it played for those of us who beleive Anne to have been maligned. I saw it at age 10 and became an avid reader of all things Anne.Of course Genvieve Bujold could not have been better in my opinion, it is her I see when I think of Anne.
No English Queen has made more impact on the history of the nation than Anne Boleyn, and few have been so persistently maligned.— Joanna Denny “Anne Boleyn: A New Life of England’s Tragic Queen”
(My favouirte) It makes me smile everytime I read it!
Anne was the center of attention. She was very smart. “Exquisite”. There was something special about her, not just being the king’s wife, mother of a princess, daughter of earl of wiltshire but an exotic quality to her. Natalie Dormer brings her to life!
I have read a few books about Anne and all of them were very good
I very much enjoy learning about Anne and her daughter Elizabeth Of the few portraits I have seen of Anne and her daughter they look so much besides the red hair, but in all I think Anne was very interesting and the quotes about her are amazing!!
I can’t believe her last speech just before she was going to be executed. She must be such a courageous and extraordinary woman. She had four days in the Tower to digest the news of her upcoming execution. It must have been quite a torture. I certainly believe that there was really something special about her.
she was truly one of the most execptional women in our countries past, so strong and brave. you really have to admire wommen like her, they shine out from the pages of history 🙂
oh and love the website 😀
My wish is that Henry could see what became of his daughter Elizabeth. I believe shame and a great feeling of loss he would have for his decision to cast Anne aside & execute her for Jane. She was his perfect match. What a fool he was. Anne & Elizabeth are, in my mind, two of the greatest women of all time. I too wish I could go to the UK. Once there, I will not want to come home to Virginia. How ironic that I live in the state named after her daughter. And although it may be estimated, my birthday is one day after Elizabeth’s. What an honour!
Im doing a National History Day project over why Henry changed the church, how he did it, and the reactions to it. Im currently trying to find resources of any kind. Letter, quotes, movies, well just anything and everything. Anne has been one of my major focuses right now, and I would greatly appreciate any and all advice, resources, websites, book titles. Over the short time of this project, I have became more interested in her and as well as the time period it’s self. Please also note my project will not be going as far back as the Tudors, but any information will be welcomed. Please also note, that my partner and I have a 500 word limit, and have already stretched our limits. Thanks you for comments and advice.
Henry never met with Anne after her arrest. That scene from Anne of the 1000 days was the movies! I wish there were more quotes by her. She was too much woman for that fat pansy Henry.
Henry never met with any of his wives after he had cast them off. He was a coward that way, like most tyrants. There is a legend that Catherine Howard ran along the galleries of Hampton Court calling to Henry, trying to see him; the legend is that her ghost still runs along those galleries.
anne boleyn was cheating on the king and was disrespectful she deserved to be killed.
Hi Barbara,
There is no evidence that Anne did cheat on the King and it is more likely that she was framed and suffered an awful miscarriage of justice. See https://www.theanneboleynfiles.com/17934/anne-boleyn-a-cheat-who-deserved-death-i-dont-think-so/ where I have laid out the evidence for and against. Hope that helps.
Even if she was an adulterer which she was not that still does not mean she deserved to be beheaded. Nor is being disrespectful deserving of execution. Besides Henry had the marriage declared null and void therefore there was no marriage for her to cheat on! Something dear Henry didnt quite think through if you ask me…
I do not get why women would be disgraced and “beheaded” when men back then did it all the time.
So unfair.
Really, you think so? Ann knew the consequences of screwing up. She would not have risked that for her future. There was also Elizabeth to consider.
That is just utter nonsense. All of the historical documents sway to the fact that Cromwell did the King’s nidding by the trumped up charges. Ann Bolyen was a tragic figure in history. Ironically, she is “the Most Happy.” She was beautiful and intelligent. Intelligent enouigh not to have committed adultery against the King.
Says who? HenryVIII? convenient.
Grow up!!!
What utter BS. The ‘evidence’ against Anne was complete fabrication, especially the confession of Mark Smeaton which was extracted under torture or threat of it from a terrified boy. The occasions he says he was sleeping with the Queen at certain places, were occasions when she was elsewhere.
Henry wanted to be free of her so he could marry Jane Seymour. Only an idiot would believe the charges were genuine and all those innocent men had to die just to hold up those trumped up charges.
I don’t believe Henry ever loved Anne; I believe if she had given in to him in the first place she would have been cast aside and lived to a ripe old age. And this country would still be Catholic.
I love this quote by William Shakespeare, and if you think about it is is actually quite true too.
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more; it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.
Im very in love with all that tells me about the tudor dynasty, but for some reason i can’t seem to find that much about Mary, Daughter of Henry and Catharine of Aragon.. is there a similar site like this about the life of Mary Tudor 1?
There is plenty about Bloody Mary, hence the drink. She wrongfully tried to return England back to the Catholic state, causing untold blood shed. Basically the English people were burned by Thomas Moore if they were Calvinist or following Luther, then with the conversion via Henry VIII th and Thomas Cromwell, the church was prosecuted and many executed for holding to Catholic tenets.
Then when Jane Seymour’s son died and after another Jane was killed by Mary’s troops, Mary began her bloody campaign against those who had wronged her mother, trying to force England back to the church, it was a disaster, and Elizabeth was soon Queen, her first task unfortunately was she had to have Mary executed as Mary was reportedly still trying to retake the throne.
One of the most brutal aspects of hereditary kingdoms is that they often resulted in the execution of relatives to hold on to power. The Plantagenet Dynasty also often had to be put to death due to their claims.
Think you’re confusing history – Elizabeth didn’t kill her sister. Perhaps you’re confusing it with Mary Queen of Scots.
HI
it is true Mary Tudor /Mary 1 of England was also known as Bloody Mary she had to
remove Lady Jane Grey she was married to Guilford Dudley who was a younger sibling of the famous Lord Robert Dudley who Elizabeth Tudor was very fond of JANE GREY
was the daughter of Frances Brandon and who’s parents are Henry v111 youngest sister Mary Tudor his best friend Charles Brandon Henry Grey who’s great great grandparents Elizabeth Woodville and John Grey of Groby Elizabeth was mother of Elizabeth of York Mary 1 did try to bring the old faith of catholic to England when she died Elizabeth was queen and in the end she had to kill her cousin Mary Queen of the
Scott’s who grandparents were Margaret Tudor Henry v111 oldest sister and James 1v
Robert Dudley married 2 times Amy Robsart and then Catherine Knolly the grand daughter of Mary Boleyn Ann Boleyn’s sister
Mary died in 1558 after a five year reign of terror against protestants, leaving the throne to Elizabeth. How on earth do you imagine she killed her sister, Mary? She did have Mary Queen of Scots executed much later in her reign, but like many who are not really knowledgeable about English history, you seem to think they are one and the same.
Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned by Elizabeth when she came to England after being forced off the Scottish throne and spent some twenty years imprisoned in various castles. All the time there were plots to murder Elizabeth and put her on the English throne.
There is a sister site to this one, Mc.Hoeijmakers, called the Elizabeth Files, there is quite a lot on there about Mary, try that for starters. Plus there are lots of books too if you like to read 🙂
Was you refering to Lady Jane Grey, as the other Jane, Randi? cos she wasn’t killed by Mary’s troops, she was imprisoned in the Tower, and Mary had her executed at a later date…
I think Anne was able to face her execution/death some-what calmly, because she was, truly, a Christian person. She knew where her soul was going, she was aware that the only one that needed to know her heart and her sins was the Lord.
In that, I truly believe she was as at peace as she was capable of. All of the accusations and lies, and the imprisonment had to have taken its toll.
YES
Claire,
What do you think of Alison Weir’s opinion on Henry and her reluctance to implicate him at all. I found it so difficult getting through her book on Anne because I feel it is patently clear that Henry was involved. Nothing would have happened without his approval and the Seymour’s were moved in next “door” some two months – I believe- before Anne’s death and the Executioner was sent for nine days before her trial. I mean really.
Love to hear what you think Claire.
I have always wondered if Henry and Ann had incompatible positive/negative blood types – This would explain a successful first baby and the consequent still borns, etc. Just a thought.
My professor at Arizona State is Retha M. Warnicke!! I’ve taken a surey of England with her and a class called Tudor Monarchy. She is amazing! I’d highly recommend her book on Anne Boleyn and her latest work, Wicked Women of Tudor England
Thank you for this
I love Anne
She is transcendental and my fav historical woman 🙂
Two years ago I was presented with the rare (and quite illegal ;-)) opportunity to come as close as possible to the garves of Queen Anne and Queen Katherine as they rest in the chapel. After paying my sincere respects to the Beef Eater at the Tower for his duty as a veteran, he showed me his gratitude by allowing me to get in closer than is normally allowed, but only after I assured him I would not take pictures and I would keep a sense of decorum. I promised him I was there to pay my deepest respects to both women, who were at one point in history, sovereign queens of England, regardless of their fall from grace, which was not of their own making.
It was a remarkable moment as I stood there, reading their names and somehow hoping that they know, wherever they are, their names are cleared and people still remember and honour them.
Someday I hope to return to that same spot in the chapel and greet them once more.
that was absolutely amazing you had that opportunity. I cant get enough of thie stories about her. i cant wait to one day visit this area. i wounder if there is viewing of where she was executed. I so wish her father could have been too 🙁
i want to see where she had to wait in the tower. I would love to see the castle.
I am beginning to think that cromwell was the arch villain. he and anne were in conflict hence survival of the fittest. he played a mastercard and maybe just maybe fooled henry who consequently was convinced of annes guilt. She has plagued me for almost half a century n am am still ‘seeking that shall not be found’ !!
I agree with you, what was sad was that with her martyrdom they lost a huge supporter of the church of England thank god it was carried on.
I think that it was Henry who orchestrated the whole thing.After all he was king and as Claire said in another article,what happened to Catherine Parr in 1546(she was nearly executed for heresy but managed to convince the King not to go ahead) shows that Henry’s wives couldn’t fall without his express agreement. I think Cromwell was doing as the King commanded. He even admitted to Chapuys later that year that the King put him up to it!
Interesting thing to me about history is who writes it and why. They call Mary Tudor Bloody Mary and she killed 300, but Henry l0,000, from what I understand Why not Bloody Henry? . He was obsessed with his male heir business, so that his Tudor name should be preserved.He may have been delighted by Anne, because he couldn’t have her. She actually told him to pound sand. She was in love with Lord Percy, I think, and Wolsey, at the behest of Henry, sent him away. She was roped into that relationship, and did not want to be a trifle like her sister, Mary. She got to marry a psychopath.
Interesting that his daughter, Elizabeth, never married. Why would you with a father like that? Everything is expedient to Henry. In his case, the means justify the end.
Elizabeth was an incredible Queen, and I think it is interesting that she promises her hand to everyone, and gives it to no one. Her father taught her all she needed to know about dangerous marriages.
Very much so. An amazing Queen Elizabeth was indeed.
Barbara Beitel You are so right
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I sometimes think of that Anne would have said if she knew, that Elizabeth would become when she grew up, I think she would have bursted with pride!
Anne did know. And Henry never could accept it. That a woman would be a better ruler than he. Anne told him to her last breath almost. But what is ment to be shall be.
Please visit Hever castle, where Anne live as a child and King Henry visited her.
It is exciting as well as a sad , when you walk in and around the castle . I will go back again because there is so much to se and think about
Hi there,
What I find most interesting is that Prof. George Bernard in his book ‘Fatal Attractions’ (2010), practically bases his opinion of Anne Boleyn, (which is quite degrading) on a poem/ letter by Lancelot de Carles, ‘A Letter Containing the Criminal Charges Laid Against Queen Anne Boleyn of England’. However, the quotes used here (which also appear in the poem/letter) by de Carles show none other than a high regard of respect for Anne.
Eustace Chapuys was an ardant enemy of Anne Boleyn and went out of his way to pass on gossip about that would invariably be third hand and therefore distorted. He was the biggest gossip monger at the court of Henry and refused to believe otherwise. He never met Anne so did not know her, he knew of her highly sophisticated education and that she was extraordinarily intellegent. He did come face to face with her on one occasion and felt obliged to bow in her presence. We must not forget that the role of the Ambassador was to pass on goings-on at whosever court they attended and what tall tales there were to tell. In this Chapuys was a past master, sometimes embelishing information to heighten sitiuations. This is an avenue worth exploring as to the thinking of Chapuys amd his motives.
Queen Anne was indeed a wonderful woman.i dreamed that I met her and she said
‘everything and everyone has their price.Mine was paid in blood and jewels,yet there are none so blind as those who cannot see.’
I took this to mean that yes she was in it for the fame and fortune and wanted to be queen more than Henry’s wife ,yet she was either lied to or lied to herself and her naivety was taken advantage of.
It was all about family. Her family wanted to be in a higher ranking. She was their way in to it. Anne actually wanted to marry another. Anne did not make it easy for Henry. Not at all. She actually hated him at first but came to love him. It took her a long time to get to that point. There was only but a short moment where the 2 were truly in love. Other wise they had a love hate relationship. Constantly fighting. But they could not be with out each other. A force kept them not able to live with out each other. In the end Anne was the one who paid the price with her life. She knew it was going to happen. Even before she and Henry got married she was always paranoid. Always feeling that her end was coming.
Had Henry given her one last chance like she begged for he would have received the son he so desperately wanted. But he didn’t want to chance it being like Catherine. Having several still births and miscarriages. Anne did indeed have 2 miscarriages. Both boys. The last one was into the second trimester. She was almost 6 months along.
i agree. I think she could have borne him a son.
I can’t get enough of Tudors. I live near Greenwich, where Greenwich palace used to be. There is nothing left of it unfortunately, but a plaque wich says that Elizabeth I was born here I think. I often look at the Roayl stairs descending the river Thames there, which Anne must have used going to the barge….I can feel their spirit here, and like someone else said above, here is where everything happened…. another reason why I love London.
Wow Id love to be there
I’ve never been there. But with the dreams I have. It’s like I live there.
Where did this quote that Elizabeth I said come from:
‘I may not be a lion, but I am a lion’s
cub and I have a lion’s heart.’
“I worry not for myself but for my lovely Elizabeth.”
“What is to come of her if something is to happen to me?”
“I feel something is to happen. Am I to burn.”
“How will I pay for not giving him a son?”
“Tell me my brother. Will my daughter become a bastard?”
“As he has made Mary his bastard.”
“I tell you, I do not have long.”
“I’m affraid”
“Quick leave, his spies are everywhere. Most likely they have already heard.”
“Away with you. Stop telling me all will be well.”
Late coming in, i know but…
Anne was innocent of all. she was wonderful, and loyal to her husband. in any rate there is no evidence that she committed any offences to the King. Why he divorced Anne is beyond me considering NEW
why he divorced Anne is beyond me considering NEW EVIDENCE shows he had no intention of divorcing Anne and marrying Lady Jane Seymour.
What new evidence?
I think Henry never really got over her, tell threw to the end
We can all surmise but at the end of the day – ” History can only say to the defeated alas, but cannot help or pardon”. Enigmatic to the end Anne herself tells us, “Ye seek for that shall not be found.” I know I’ve spent my whole life trying, but we will never know. All we can do is honour her memory and defend this truly remarkable lady, Anne, Queen of England. God bless you always.
After Queen Anne was executrd, was anyone, anyone the little bit sad or unhappy? Or are we the only ones, 482 years later, wish Anne, with pomp and circumstance, be reinterred in Westminster Abbey with her daughter Queen Elizabeth the First?
I watched my daily clip of our Beloved, Martyred Queen going to her exdcution. Her speech has lost none of its Power, due to its great content, and the emotional, expert portrayal by Ms. Bujold, of our Brave, Beloved, Eternal Queen Anne. Rest in Peace forever. She is in our hearts for all time!
Could someone please tell me why Anne has not been exhumed and put in Westminster Abbey or St. Paul’s Cathedral. After all she was Vindicated by Queen Victoria.
I must be reading the wrong books.
Thank you in advance…..Dave.
There’s no proof that the skeleton found during the Victorian chapel repairs is hers. And nobody agrees completely about her looks or someone could make an effigy. But the memorial at the execution site is beautiful at least and she’s well known despite Henry’s attempt to obliterate her from history.
where can I buy Elizabeth 1rst replica checquers ring—?deb-thanks regards
But Elizabeth is yours. Watch her as she grows; she’s yours. She’s a Tudor! Get yourself a son off of that sweet, pale girl if you can – and hope that he will live! But Elizabeth shall reign after you! Yes, Elizabeth – child of Anne the wh*re and Henry the Blood-Stained Lecher – shall be Queen! And remember this: Elizabeth shall be a greater queen than any king of yours! She shall rule a greater England than you could ever have built! Yes – My Elizabeth shall be Queen! And my blood will have been well spent! – – Anne Boleyn
Did Anne Boleyn really say this quote?
No, that’s fictional and is from Anne of the Thousand Days.