Divorced, Beheaded - oh, it must be Anne Boelyn!

We took advantage of a beautiful autumn day to go to Hever Castle.  Hever Castle is about 40 miles south of London set in that incredible English countryside.

Built in the 13th century, it was the home of the Boleyn family.  You remember Anne...

Anne was the 2nd queen consort of Henry VIII.  Anne could not produce a male heir to the throne and Henry tired of her.  Anne ended her days in the Tower of London charged and found guilty of adultery, treason and incest. Henry commuted Anne's sentence from burning to beheading.  Henry also sprung for an expert swordsman to do the deed - no common axe for this queen!  Who said he had no heart!!!

The property came into Henry's possession (didn't everything??) after Anne's father died.  Henry in turn gave it to Anne of Cleves as part of the annulment of their marriage.

The castle still has one of Henry's private locks, taken with him on his various visits to noblemen's houses and fitted to every door for his security.

The house fell into a bit of disrepair and was sold to the American millionaire Waldorf Astor.  It was used as a family home until it was sold in 1983.  

   Astor is credited with creating these beautiful gardens.  There is a maze, large pond, lots of statuary and plenty of places to enjoy it in solitude.  

The gardens were lovely - I need to come back here in the summer when it is in bloom.

We left thinking about Anne's role in Tudor history. I think Anne's greatest contribution was that she was the mother of Queen Elizabeth I - a very amazing lady.
We were also reminded of that old English ditty...

Divorced, beheaded, died

Divorced, beheaded, survived!