May 31, 1533: "Queen Anne Boleyn departed from the Tower of London, where she had stayed for the last two nights, for her grand Coronation procession.
Anne was dressed in the French fashion of filmy white with a coronet of gold and was seated in a litter of white satin, with white cloth of gold inside and out, drawn by two palfreys, who were draped in white damask.
This was the first time the citizens of London would get a proper glimpse of their new Queen- the woman whom their King had changed everything they had known- from religion to the succession- in order to marry.
A popular legend has it that Anne was booed and hissed at by the people, but there is no reliable contemporary source to back up this myth. It is most likely that the people were curious rather than hostile.
The account of the Coronation procession is largely taken from the book "In the Footsteps of Anne Boleyn” by Sarah Morris and Natalie Grueninger, and is written as though we are following the procession, which the book does.
* Tower Hill - in the Trinity Gardens, follow the stone pathway which will bring you to the site of the Tower Hill scaffold which bears a poignant plaque. Anne's procession skirted Tower Hill on its way to Fenchurch Street. Continue along the path and exit the garden through the gate at the top of the gardens, crossing the road onto Cooper's Row. Walk down into Crutched Friars and up Lloyd's Avenue until you reach Fenchurch Street.
* Fenchurch Street - The church St Gabriel's stood here (burned down in the Great Fire of 1666), in the middle of the road. It was here that Anne's procession stopped for the first entertainment. Built up against the eastern wall of the church was a tableau designed to celebrate Anne's French links and her friendship with France. The tableau included children dressed as merchants who welcomed Anne to the city in both English and French. In fact, the procession was headed by twelve servants belonging to the French Ambassador. A huge compliment for France to be featured so prominently- and a snub to the Emperor. After enjoying the tableau, the procession split around the church and continued on its way down Fenchurch Street, with Anne's scarlet-clad ladies following behind their mistress. Continuing down until you reach the corner of Fenchurch and Gracechurch Street.
* Gracechurch Street - Here, Anne was faced with her first reminder of her reasons to be gracious - and grateful. On the corner of Fenchurch and Gracechurch Street she was shown a tableau designed by Holbein. No words were spoken but the meaning would have been very clear to the six-month pregnant Queen as she read the Latin versus held aloft by actors representing the classical figures of Calliope, Apollo and the muses of art and learning: "Anna comes the most famous woman in the world, Anna comes, the shining incarnation of chastity, in snow white litter, just like goddesses, Anna the queen is here, the preservation of your future". The group were seated upon a model of Mount Parnassus and its sacred fountain, of which the wine flowed freely for the Londoners to enjoy. Turning right up Gracechurch Street continuing on until you reach Leadenhall Market on the right.
* Leadenhall - Here, again the message of the eagerly longed for male heir was reinforced to Anne. Backing onto the entrance of Leadenhall Market, Anne saw an open castle painted inside with clouds, angels and cherubs. Seated on top of a green hillock within the castle were figures representing St Anne (mother of the Virgin Mary) and her descendants, including Jesus - the message was clear - Anne the Queen would rival the maternal success of Anne the saint. Cross onto back onto Gracechurch street turning left onto Cornhill.
* Cornhill - In Anne's day there was a conduit here, which carried water down from the springs in the hills above London. It was at the conduit that the next tableau was staged. Figures representing the Three Graces waited to greet the Queen, each announcing themselves as, 'Glad Heart', 'Stable Honour' and 'Continual Success'. Continuing down Cornhill, cross Bank Junction and turn right onto Cheapside.
* Cheapside - in Anne's day this was the widest of the city streets and the focus of pageants, public gatherings and of course, coronation processions. With the buildings draped in a magnificent display of cloth of gold and velvet, Anne was greeted by all the livery companies standing on one side of the street and the general citizens on the other. Opposite Honey Lane she was treated to Latin speeches and music; static displays and heraldic devices. Then onto Eleanor Cross, which was located opposite the church of St Mary le Bow, where the Aldermen presented her with a gold purse containing 1,000 marks. Continuing down Cheapside, turn left onto New Change, and cross the road onto Carter Lane. St Paul's Cathedral will lie in front of you to the north.
* St Paul's - on Carter Lane which backed onto St Paul's churchyard, and it was near here that Anne saw her next entertainment. An empty throne sat at one of the gates to the churchyard, mounted high ready for its new occupant. Three elaborately dressed women waited below, the central figure holding aloft the cheerful message "Come my love, thou shalt be crowned". The watching crowd was thrown wafers bearing the words, "Queen Anne, when thou shalt bear a new son of the King's blood, there shall be a golden world unto thy people." After watching a sweet display of 200 children reciting Latin poems to their new Queen, with a 'joyful, smiling face' Anne said "Amen"- a lovely brief insight into her mood on this wonderful day.
The procession continued down Fleet Street and out of the City through Temple Bar on its way to Westminster. Anne would have had no inkling of the tragedy that lay ahead of her, she would undoubtedly have briefed a sigh of relief that everything had gone well, and to know that she would be crowned the next day. She had come a long way from the Anne that had made her debut at court in the pageant all those years ago." - The Anne Boleyn Society
(Geneviève Bujold and Richard Burton as Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII in 'Anne of The Thousand Days', 1969)
#Tudors #TudorEngland #AnneBoleyn #HenryVIII #LondonHistoryDay #OnThisDay
* * *
Avail of easy and fast online loan at
www.tala.com Philippines
Linkback:
https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=122494.0
