Katharine Parr: The Last Wife of Henry Viii
by It can be argued that the main reason Henry VIII married Katharine Parr was because he knew he was going to die soon and wanted a woman who could look after him.
Katharine Parr had been married twice before marrying Henry VIII; she was the most wed out of all his wives. Both her previous husbands had been old and she had been a nurse to them as well as a wife. By the time Henry was looking to marry again, now onto his sixth marriage, he knew that he was coming close to the end of his life. Henry was often ill and suffered from an ulcerous leg. Even though he had physicians, he needed a woman that could care for him. He knew from experience that a younger wife would not be able to do this, learning the hard way from his marriage to Kathryn Howard, so he needed a wife that he could trust.
Katharine Parr meets Henry VIII
Katharine was married to her second husband, Lord Latimer, when she caught the eye of Henry. She had been in court in place of her ill husband, mostly in the company of Thomas Seymour – her true love. In court, she enjoyed the company of men who she could debate with, however this is probably not what attracted Henry’s attention; after the problems he had with his second wife, Anne Boleyn.
Not only would Henry have been looking for a wife that would be loyal to him and be a ‘nurse’ to him, he would have been looking for a woman who would have been a doting step-mother to his children. Even though Mary Tudor now no longer needed tutors and guardians, his youngest two children, Elizabeth and Edward, did. Katharine had already proven herself to be a caring step-mother to the children of her second husband, even though she had no children of her own.
Katharine Parr Marries Henry VIII
Even though Katharine was in love with Thomas Seymour and planned to marry him after the death of Lord Latimer, Katharine had to bow to the will of Henry. She knew that not doing as he asked would lead to trouble for herself and the possibility of losing her head. However, she also feared that marrying him would mean that she would lose her head; Henry’s wives had a history of not being treated well.
Katharine married Henry VIII however her protestant ways almost caused her trouble. Although she would have been raised a Catholic, Katharine was well-educated and interested; which is why she often debated with the men in court.
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