Tudor facts

Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon lasted 24 years (1509-1533), making it by far his longest relationship, yet he claimed it was never valid because she had briefly been married to his deceased brother Arthur in 1501.

Henry VIII’s fourth wife, Anne of Cleves, outlived him by 10 years and received a generous divorce settlement in 1540 that made her one of the wealthiest women in England, including Richmond Palace and Hever Castle.

Elizabeth I maintained a passionate correspondence with Thomas Seymour in 1547-1548 when she was just 14, leading to a scandal that nearly destroyed her claim to the throne when Seymour was executed for treason in 1549.

Norwich maintained its position as England’s second largest city throughout most of the Tudor period, with over 12,000 residents by 1579, largely due to an influx of Dutch and Flemish Protestant refugees who established ‘New Draperies’ – innovative lightweight fabric production that revolutionised English textile manufacturing.

In 1485, Coventry was England’s fourth largest city with over 6,000 inhabitants, but by 1563 its population had crashed to just 3,474 people – a devastating decline of nearly 50% that reflected the broader economic crisis hitting many Tudor towns as traditional cloth trade routes shifted.

Tudor Plymouth boomed from a modest fishing village of roughly 1,500 souls in 1500 to a bustling town of around 7,000 by 1600, becoming a major English port rivalling Bristol and others after London, fuelled by the burgeoning Atlantic trade. The Barbican’s quays saw increased merchant activity, with significant harbour improvements noted around 1580.

When Henry VIII dissolved Glastonbury Abbey in 1539, the town’s economy suffered a significant blow, likely leading to a population decline. While the abbey’s closure impacted local employment and pilgrimage trade, the precise extent of the population decrease is difficult to ascertain, though it undoubtedly marked a period of hardship for Glastonbury.

Kenilworth Castle in Warwickshire received a massive Renaissance makeover from Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, in the 1570s including England’s largest castle garden with intricate knot gardens, a 20-foot-high fountain, and an aviary – all designed to impress Elizabeth I during her 19-day visit in July 1575.

Mary I remained unmarried until age 37 when she wed Philip II of Spain in 1554, making her the oldest Tudor monarch to marry for the first time, driven by desperate hope to produce a Catholic heir.

Richmond Palace, rebuilt by Henry VII after a fire in 1497 and completed by 1501, introduced revolutionary Renaissance features to England including the first recorded use of brick chimneys arranged in decorative clusters and glass windows in every major room – Elizabeth I died there in March 1603.