Page 32 - All About History - Issue 180-19

the son that he needed in order to secure his
Henry VIII appears to have dynasty. Yet it was not destined to be a smooth
written many love letters to Anne
and was utterly captivated by her or straightforward process.
The ‘Great Matter’ dragged on for more than
five years, during which time Anne’s influence
– and that of her family – grew, but she became
increasingly frustrated. The king believed that
Wolsey would be able to achieve an annulment
for him, but when the case was referred to
the Pope in Rome in 1529 the Boleyns became
convinced that Wolsey was working against
them. Anne’s father hated Wolsey as much as
she did, and their faction plotted his destruction.
In October 1529 he was stripped of his office of
Lord Chancellor, and the following year he died
at Leicester en route to the Tower and possible
execution. When she heard the news, Anne
celebrated the demise of her enemy.
The delay in Henry’s annulment left Anne
feeling increasingly vulnerable as her position

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