Part 1, Katherine of Aragon: Chapters 3 and 4 Summary and Analysis

In the third chapter, the author recounts the process by which Henry VII convinced Ferdinand and Isabella that Katherine should marry young Henry. At first Ferdinand and Isabella were reluctant, partly because of ongoing political instability in England and partly because they too were aware of the Bible verse prohibiting a man from marrying his brother's widow. They agreed to seek a special dispensation (exception) from the Pope allowing the marriage. Meanwhile, Henry VII's wife Elizabeth died shortly after giving birth to another child, plunging the English court into mourning. The author here suggests that Henry, who was devoted to his mother, never recovered from his grief, was looking for a replacement for her love in his wife, and when he didn't find it in one, sought it in another.

Shortly...