Tracy Borman is the chief historian of Historic Royal Palaces. Her new novel, The House of Boleyn, is out today from Grove Atlantic. Below, she discusses myths and misconceptions about Anne Boleyn.
I’ve spent most of my career studying Anne Boleyn and have an almost daily reminder of her bloody fate at the Tower of London, where I work when I’m not writing books.
Her story has been told many times, but in my new novel, The House of Boleyn, I wanted to bring a fresh perspective—and, crucially, to strip away the layers of myth and misrepresentation that have distorted it over the centuries.
To do so, I set it entirely at Hever Castle, the Boleyns’ beautiful and much-loved family home. It was fascinating to explore what this famous family was truly like behind the courtier mask: how they used Hever to escape the snakepit of Henry VIII’s court, plan their next move, enjoy their triumphs, and lick their wounds.
There was not a nook or cranny of this fairytale-like castle that I didn’t explore while conducting my research. I was thrilled to discover a secret cupboard hidden in the panelling of Anne Boleyn’s bedchamber, where I like to think she concealed her secret love letters!
On the subject of Anne’s love life, perhaps the most remarkable discovery I made was that her heart lay not with Henry VIII but with someone closer to home (I’m not going to say who—that would spoil the book!).
I also loved bringing the lesser-known Boleyns out of the shadows, in particular Anne’s formidable grandmother Lady Margaret Butler and her sister-in-law Jane, Lady Rochford, who is so often—and, as I found out, unjustifiably—cast as a villain.
Having spent years immersing myself in the Boleyns’ story, what became startlingly clear was how misunderstood they have been. Contrary to the popular image of Anne’s father, Thomas, as a grasping courtier who pushed her into Henry VIII’s path to further his own ambitions, the evidence strongly suggests that he tried to protect Anne from a king he knew to be deadly.
Neither did Anne herself aim for the crown from Day 1. In fact, she did everything she could to avoid it.
But there’s only so long you can say no to Henry VIII.
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