Part 1, Katherine of Aragon: Chapter 5 Summary and Analysis

This lengthy chapter describes, in meticulous detail, Henry VIII's royal court, of which Katherine became an indispensable part when she finally married him on June 11, 1509. There were, the author writes, several defining characteristics of the court, the most obvious being its extravagance. Henry and Katherine were, she contends, the most expensively and elaborately dressed of all the European monarchs of the period. Katherine was particularly fond of appearing in public (which she did constantly) wearing rich-looking clothing, an aspect of her personality that came even further to the forefront as she both matured into her role as queen and fulfilled her responsibilities as wife—which means, essentially, being constantly pregnant. Henry was desperate for an heir, and the author makes a point of saying that while there was always doubt about whether...