Her marriage had taken place on the feast of the Epiphany, 1540, and in July of the same year Henry was united to Katharine Howard, grand-daughter of the Duke of Norfolk.  This young woman’s reputation was already so notoriously bad, that it is impossible to believe that the king could be in ignorance of the fact.  Nevertheless, for the time being, he was deeply in love, and his scruples and righteous anger were wont to come—­afterwards.  Marillac describes the new queen “as rather graceful than beautiful, and of short stature.”  He says:—­

“The King is so amorous of her that he cannot treat her well enough, and caresses her more than he did the others.  She and all the Court ladies dress in the French style, and her device is Non autre volonte que la sienne.  Madame de Cleves is as cheerful as ever, as her brother’s ambassador says.”

But others besides Anne of Cleves had reason to mourn, and Melancthon complained that atrocious crimes were reported from England, that the divorce with the lady of Juliers was already made, and another married, and that “good men of our opinion in religion are murdered.”

On the 27th September, the papal nuncio wrote grimly to Cardinal Farnese, that “So far” the King of England was pleased with his new wife, and the other, “sister of Cleeves has retired and ‘lives.’” Rumours, however, were persistently current that Henry intended to take back Anne, until in November, Marillac informed his master that the new queen had “completely acquired the King’s grace,” and that the other was “no more thought of than if she were dead.”

But Marillac had soon reason to see that in making this statement he had somewhat exaggerated.  The Princess Mary seems to have been well informed of the loose character and behaviour of Katharine Howard, and contrived to find pretexts for a long time for absenting herself from court, so that the queen complained to Henry that his daughter did not treat her with the respect she had shown to the two former queens.

But Anne of Cleves had no scruples about associating with Katharine, and was perhaps keen to note every detail concerning her brilliant rival, who had been more successful than herself in capturing the king’s roving fancy.  She was probably as much in the dark as most people, as to the politico-religious embarrassment she constituted.

The French ambassador gives an amusing description of her New Year’s visit to the court:—­

“Sire, to omit nothing that may be written about this country, Madame Anne, sister of the Duke of Cleves, formerly Queen of England, passed the recent festivities at Richmond, four miles from Hampton Court, to which place the King and also the Queen sent her, on the first day of the year, rich presents of clothes, plate and jewels, valued at six or seven thousand crowns.  And on the second day she was summoned to appear at Hampton Court, where she was very honourably conducted