Within days of Elizabeth's birth to Henry and Anne, Henry made it known that Mary was to cease using the title of princess. In other words, with her mother's marriage already being declared null and void, Mary was being bastardized. Immediately Mary wrote a letter to her father expressing her disbelief that he would ask for such a thing:
"This morning my chamberlain came and informed me that he had received a letter from Sir William Paulet, controller of your House, to the effect that I should remove at once to Hertford castle. I desire to see the letter, in which was written "the Lady Mary, the king's daughter,' leaving out the name of princess. I marveled at this, thinking your grace was not privy to it, not doubting that you take me for your lawful daughter...If I agreed to the contrary, I should offend God; in all other things, you shall find me an obedient daughter." [9]
Mary's courage in her letter to her father surely did show that she was a descendant of her 'warrior queen' grandmother Queen Isabella. Mary was willing to stand her ground in the fight to protect her title as princess. However, this whole scenario was telling of what her father thought of Mary. "In Henry's eyes, his elder daughter was illegitimate." [10] In order to keep Mary in check, he placed Elizabeth in the same household as Mary and reduced Mary's household staff, whom Henry thought was encouraging Mary's dissent. It is during this time that Mary cared for Elizabeth. Yet Mary was still facing pressure from her father to relinquish her title as princess. Mary continued to resist, and she found words of encouragement from her mother, who wrote to Mary to be strong, "Almighty God will prove you; and I am very glad of it, for I trust He doth handle you with a good love...I pray you, good daughter, to offer yourself to Him...for then you are sure armed." [11]
Yet the fight Mary was putting up did take a toll on her. Her household had been reduced to a few faithful servants, the letters from her mother, and a powerless ambassador from Charles V, Eustace Chapuys. Furthermore, no matter how much she held out on the battle with her father to hold her title as princess, few people dared to acknowledge her as princess. [12] Physically, Mary became ill. Her father had an ounce of remorse and sent his own physician, Dr. William Butts, to examine Mary. On September 2, 1534, Dr. Butts recorded his examination of Mary:
"I came to my Lady Mary this day at 7 o'clock, whom I find in a mean state of health, but at the beginning of her old disease [emphasis added]. I have caused her mother's physician to be sent for, with the apothecary. The cause of this rumour by the ambassador [Chapuys], as I can learn, comes of two things: that she [Mary] being diseased in her head and stomach, my lady Shelton sent for Mr. Michael, who gave her pills, after which she was very sick and he so much troubled that he said he would never minister anything to her alone; and this signified sharply to the ambassador." [13]
Current medical analysis of Mary's condition points towards dysmenhorrea, or excruciating cramps that occur during one's menstruation. [14] What is interesting to note about dysmenhorrea is that there is a condition known as secondary dysmenhorrea, which according to WebMD "is pain caused by a disorder in the woman's reproductive organs. These cramps usually begin earlier in the menstrual cycle and last longer than common menstrual cramps." [15] Later on in her life, Mary would undergo a false pregnancy where she believed she was pregnant when in reality she was not. It is worth keeping this condition in mind when wondering why Mary mistakenly thought she was pregnant twice while she was Queen. In poor health and with few people to trust, 1536 approached, and Mary's nightmare only took a turn for the worst.
*__________________Author's Note__________________*
As a princess, Mary's upbringing was all peaches and butterflies right? What we've seen so far is drama that some today may be familiar with: living with a divorce amongst one's parents, estrangement from one's father, hatred over one's new stepmother. Meanwhile, some may argue that none of this would've happened if Mary was the son that King Henry VIII wanted. The fact that she was a girl meant she was cast aside because women were viewed as unfit heirs to the throne.
Mary would always be fighting an uphill battle to become queen, and we'll see that in the sections to come.
See you next time.
- L. A. Rivera
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The Real "Bloody Mary" ✓
Non-Fiction"Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary." She's held responsible for the burning of nearly 300 protestants, granting her the infamous title little girls chant today in dark mirrors. But do you know her true story? The story of how her father bastardi...
