Check-Mate

                   

One of the pleasures of reading biographies is getting insights into characters, whether we can identify with them or not. While away from my desk I read British author and historian Alison Weir’s biography of the six wives of Henry VIII— a colorful composite of history with amazing stories. I feel as though I’ve hit the mother lode of characterization. Each woman is unique and complex. There was so much information that I thought it would be fun to come up with a Queen Wife characterization list that anyone can use for their own writing.


Hear Ye Hear Ye:
First there was Catherine of Aragon who had the virtues of being intelligent and brave, but she was also intransigent. She was Henry’s devoted for wife for 24 years. But after a point she should have entered a nunnery and everyone would have been happier. Henry cast her aside when she didn’t provide an heir. Don’t you know people who are so sure they are right that they are willing to destroy all around them? Are they fueled by virtue or by false pride?


And then there’s Anne Boleyn, who was charming, seductive, and had the King’s passion and attention. But she also had a bad temper and when she began to panic about her relationship with the King, she behaved so outrageously that she pushed him away. If she could have stopped angering the King, she might have lived longer. Fear influences and changes a person’s behavior. Don’t you know people who undercut their relationships with others because of something they do?


Jane Seymour was a docile and devoted wife. King Henry said he loved her best of all his wives. She gave Henry his heir. But she was lonely because she would only associate with people of her stature. Don’t you know people who seem to have it all, but are really lonely on the inside? How does a person suffer with isolation when they cut themselves off believing they are better than everyone else?


Then there was Anne of Cleves, whose misfortune it was to be plain. She suffered an unbelievable insult when Henry put her away. Poor thing, but somehow with her compliance to accept her fate she wound up happiest of the wives. She found the secret to contentment. And the property and funds she acquired most likely helped. Had she lived today she could have written a best-seller. How do your characters search for happiness?


Fifth, and most tragic, was Catherine Howard, whose biggest problem was that she was young, naïve and committed adultery. Her tenure as Queen was short-lived. Learning about Catherine Howard gives a taste for the wild, and being out of control. Don't you know someone who is headed for disaster and there’s not a thing you can do?


And finally the sixth and final wife, Catherine Parr, who had the most modern feel to her because she knew what was going on and used it to her advantage. She became nursemaid to the fat and aging Henry. She was the least likeable character because she seemed so calculating, but I suppose anyone marrying a man who had two of his wives executed, would be cautious. How far will your characters go to get what they want?


What do you think? Any of the queenly wives remind you of either people you know that you can spin into a character? Or a character you have used in a story?