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Decoding the Enigma: Top 10 Unbelievable Fun Facts About Anne Boleyn You Never Knew!

illustration of anne-boleyn
Dive into the captivating world of Anne Boleyn, where historical intrigue meets surprising tidbits – a realm where the beheaded never goes out of style!

1. Six-Finger Myth Debunked

Six-finger discount at the nail salon? Not so fast: There's actually no historical evidence to support the myth that Anne Boleyn had an extra finger on one of her hands. The rumor first surfaced in 1585 during her daughter Elizabeth's reign, thanks to Nicholas Sander's fabrication designed to besmirch Anne's reputation. No 16th-century sources indicate that she possessed a supernumerary digit, and such an abnormality would have likely precluded her marriage to Henry VIII in the first place, since it was commonly associated with witchcraft.
Source => sellymanormuseum.org.uk

2. Adultery and Treason: Political Setup?

Lock up your daughters, mothers, and wives – Anne Boleyn is on the loose, and her reputation is a hot mess of scandalous proportions! But here's the unexpected twist: historical evidence suggests that the charges of adultery and treason brought against Anne Boleyn were likely politically motivated, and her guilt remains unproven to this day.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

3. Art Shows Standard Ten Digits

Anne Boleyn, notorious for fingertips so fancy she was accused of witchcraft: In reality, the six-fingered tale was merely a myth fabricated by her enemies, and we have the art world's finest "handiwork" to disprove the claim—contemporary portraits emerging as finger-wagging evidence, showing nothing more nor witchy than the standard ten digits.
Source => history.com

4. The Cultured and Intelligent Queen

Witch trials, schmit-ch trials: Anne Boleyn was actually more of a cultured Hermione Granger than the evil sorceress her gap-toothed grin suggested! Known for her exceptional education and intelligence, this head-above-the-rest queen grew up in France, influenced by religious piety and courtly love, before returning to England and ensnaring Henry VIII's heart - reshaping the religious landscape and founding the Church of England faster than you could say "wingardium leviosa!"
Source => departments.kings.edu

Mary Boleyn's Scandalous Affair

5. Mary Boleyn's Scandalous Affair

You know what they say: never horse around with your sister's neighbor – especially when he's the king! In a twist worthy of a royal reality show: Anne Boleyn's sister Mary may have had a scandalous affair with King Francis I of France, who allegedly called her "The English Mare," but no evidence supports any hanky-panky with Henry VIII prior to Anne's royal wedding.
Source => historyhit.com

6. Anne's Divine Prayer Mixtapes

Before the era of "Netflix and pray," Anne Boleyn was busy collecting prayer-based mixtapes to keep up with her divine groove: she owned three exquisitely crafted Books of Hours, filled with personalized texts, prayers, and heartfelt inscriptions, including an endearing dialogue exchanged with Henry VIII as he tried to obtain a divorce from Catherine of Aragon.
Source => onthetudortrail.com

7. Not All Anne's Fault in Wolsey's Downfall

You know how it's always "blame it on the girl next door"? Well, in Cardinal Wolsey's case, it wasn't entirely the fault of Anne Boleyn: Anne Boleyn's influence over King Henry VIII certainly played a role in his quest for an annulment from Catherine of Aragon, but it was Wolsey's control over the Church and State, and the enemies he made along the way, that led to his ultimate downfall.
Source => activehistory.co.uk

8. Secret Pre-Dawn Royal Wedding

Talk about an early bird wedding special: Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn secretly tied the knot in a hush-hush ceremony just before dawn at Whitehall, allegedly officiated by Dr. Rowland Lee, with only a few witnesses and a likely non-existent papal license to grace the union. Even their close supporter, Thomas Cranmer, didn't have a clue about the nuptial surprise for weeks!
Source => englandcast.com

9. Anne Not the First Queen with Coronation Parade

In a royal game of "Anything you can do, I can do better," Anne Boleyn wasn't the first English queen to waltz through the streets of London in a fancy-shmancy coronation parade: In fact, queens like Eleanor of Provence and Isabella of France had already struck a coronation catwalk pose way before Anne's grand strut on 31 May 1533.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

Royal Love Letters Discovered in the Vatican

10. Royal Love Letters Discovered in the Vatican

Henry VIII's courting game may have been the original DM slide: love letters from King Henry VIII to Anne Boleyn were discovered in the Vatican Library of all places, with the likely theory being they were swiped from Anne during the king's tumultuous quest for an annulment to marry her. The letters, penned in French, gush with affection and even reference a bracelet with Henry's portrait – a true 16th century selfie.
Source => englishhistory.net

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