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Curated category

People executed under Henry VIII

  • Anne BoleynAnne Boleyn's exact birth year remains a subject of historical argument, with scholars proposing either 1501 or 1507 as the correct date.
  • George Boleyn, Viscount RochfordGeorge Boleyn entered the world around 1504, born into the powerful Boleyn and Howard families. His father Thomas held titles that would eventually make him…
  • Catherine HowardCatherine Howard entered the world in Lambeth around 1523, born into a family that held high rank but little money. Her father was Lord Edmund Howard, the…
  • Francis WestonSir Francis Weston entered the world in 1511 as the only son of Sir Richard Weston. His father held estates at Ufton Court in Berkshire and Sutton Place in…
  • Henry Norris (courtier)Henry Norris arrived into a world fractured by the Wars of the Roses. His grandfather Sir William Norris fought at the Battle of Stoke Field on the 16th of…
  • Thomas MoreThomas More entered the world on the 7th of February 1478 within the City of London. His father Sir John More was a successful lawyer who later became a…
  • Nicholas Carew (courtier)Nicholas Carew entered the household of the future King Henry VIII at six years old. He shared his education with the boy who would become England's most…
  • Thomas CromwellThomas Cromwell is thought to have been born by or around 1485 in Putney, then a village in Surrey providing a ferry service across the Thames upstream from…
  • William Brereton (courtier)William Brereton, born around 1487 or perhaps as late as 1501, emerged from a prominent Cheshire family. His father was Sir Randle Brereton of Ipstones…
  • Edmund DudleyEdmund Dudley was born around 1462 or perhaps in 1471. His father Sir John Dudley lived at Atherington in West Sussex. The boy grew up as the grandson of…
  • Richard EmpsonRichard Empson was born about 1450 in Northamptonshire. His father Peter Empson held property at Towcester and Easton Neston.
  • Mark SmeatonMark Smeaton stood in the round window of Queen Anne's chamber at Winchester on a Saturday before May Day. He was around 23 years old when he died, yet his…
  • John FisherJohn Fisher entered the world around the 19th of October 1469 in Beverley, Yorkshire. His father Robert worked as a prosperous mercer who died in 1477 when…