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Catherine Willoughby (Brandon)

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love_uk
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Catherine Willoughby (Brandon)

Post by love_uk » Sun August 9th, 2009, 7:08 am

Has anyone come across an HF bio of Catherine? She seems to have led a very interesting life. If not, I may have to write one myself!

http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/Bios/Cathe ... oughby.htm
Joan

My test of a good novel is dreading to begin the last chapter. ~Thomas Helm

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boswellbaxter
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Post by boswellbaxter » Sun August 9th, 2009, 1:22 pm

Kelly Hart, who wrote The Mistresses of Henry VIII, is writing a biography about Katherine Willoughby entitled The Seventh Wife. She also figures heavily into Hart's Mistresses book.
Susan Higginbotham
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Amanda
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Post by Amanda » Sun August 9th, 2009, 9:56 pm

She is also the main character in Susanna Dunn's THe Sixth Wife. She is the Catherine Parr's best friend.

Though I must add, that I didn't really like the character!

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boswellbaxter
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Post by boswellbaxter » Mon August 17th, 2009, 2:31 am

There's a rather old biography of her called A Woman of the Tudor Age by an author with the splendid name of [size=-1]Cecilie Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby Goff.[/size]
Susan Higginbotham
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Chatterbox
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Post by Chatterbox » Mon August 17th, 2009, 3:21 pm

Was she actually a mistress of Henry VIII, or did he simply lust after her? I will be interested to read that book, as she had quite an incredible life. Suzannah Dunn's book (the only one of hers I found readable) barely scratched the surface... Despite the fact that her mother had served Catherine of Aragon so loyally, Catherine Willoughby Brandon ended up fleeing Mary I's England to live in Switzerland, I believe -- she had become a staunch adherent of the 'reformed' faith (what we'd probably now consider to be a Lutheran/Calvinist). Less cerebral than Jane Grey, but I find her more interesting because she tried to find ways to live in the world as it was vs the way she wanted it to be.

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boswellbaxter
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Post by boswellbaxter » Mon August 17th, 2009, 3:34 pm

I have the Hart book but didn't get that far--my antennae went up early on when Hart described George Hastings as trying to regain the "earldom of Hastings" forfeited by his grandfather William Hastings. Huh? Since when was William Hastings an earl? From skimming, though, it doesn't sound as if Hart is saying that Henry went so far as to have sexual relations with Katherine Willoughby, only considered her as a replacement for Katherine Parr.

There's another book about her that focuses on her reformationist sympathies. Will have to take a look for this in the library:

http://www.amazon.com/Women-Reform-Comm ... 151&sr=8-1
Susan Higginbotham
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Post by Chatterbox » Mon August 17th, 2009, 3:44 pm

Oh dear, that sounds like a major blooper...

Henry VIII, despite his reputation, doesn't seem to have had all that many mistresses, esp. when compared to Francois Premier or even his own grandfather, Edward IV. Bessie Blount, Mary Boleyn and ... ? I'm sure he had some other casual flings en route, but given that he seems to have remained faithful to Anne Boleyn for the better part of a decade, and that he appears to have been incapable in later life, the small # of candidates is surprising.

That other book looks absolutely fascinating, tks for the link. I'm going to check out the reference library website; I'm sure they probably have it.

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