"What does this letter say?" "I thought Your Majesty just read" "I asked you to tell me what this letter says, my Lord Hertford." "The letter accuses Queen Katherine of dissolute living before she was married to Your Majesty, while she was living with the Dowager Duchess of Norfolk." "There was two men." "A music teacher named Henry Manox, and a gentleman called Francis Dereham." "And that her way of life was not a secret, that many knew of it." "Who wrote the letter?" "It is not signed." "Whoever left the letter says he only wrote it because he did not have the heart to tell you by mouth." "It's a forgery!" "Yes, Your Majesty." "The accusations in this letter are maliciously intended." "Many calumnies are published about well-known persons, are they not?" " Yes, Your Majesty." " Nevertheless, my Lord," "I charge you to investigate the matter thoroughly." "Do not desist until you have reached to the bottom of the pot." " Majesty." " In the meantime, the Queen shall be confined to her apartments, with only Lady Rochford in attendance- until her name is cleared." "My Lord." "Majesty." "Your Majesty." "No, the other hand." "What?" "Sergeant?" "What is this?" "My Lady, you are confined to your apartments, with only Lady Rochford to attend you, for as long as it please the King." " No!" " Please, Katherine!" " Joan!" " Don't let them take me!" "Joan!" "Joan!" "Why?" "Why must I stay here?" "Please tell me." "I don't understand." "Forgive me, my Lady." "But from now on there will be a guard posted just beyond the door." "Please." "Francis Dereham, you are under arrest." "Under arrest for what?" "For what, I ask you?" "I want to ask you some questions about what went on, some years ago, at Lambeth, between Katherine Howard, as she then was, and two men:" "Henry Manox and Francis Dereham." "You know what I'm talking about, don't you?" "There's no need to be afraid, Mistress Bulmer." "No harm will come to you- so long as you tell me the truth!" "Is that clear?" "Yes, sir." "I understand that this man," "Henry Manox, was a music teacher?" "Did you ever see him or hear of him taking liberties with Katherine Howard?" "Yes, sir." "He told me he was in love with her." "I told him," "I said if my lady of Norfolk knew of the love between him and Mistress Howard, she would undo him, because she is from a noble house, and if you marry her, some of her blood will kill you." "And what did Manox say?" "He said, "Hold your peace, woman!" "My designs are" ""of a dishonest kind." "I doubt not I shall achieve my purpose."" "She said to him that he would have her maidenhead, though it be painful to her, knowing he'd be good to her afterwards." "And did he-have her maidenhead?" "No, sir, for she started seeing someone else." "And would that man be Francis Dereham?" "Yes, my Lord." "Did you know Katherine Howard at Lambeth, when she was 14 or 15 years old?" "Yes, sir." "Did you have carnal knowledge of her?" "We-played some games." "We pretended to be man and wife." "It amused her." "Did you know her carnally?" "You should know, Mr. Dereham, that we have spoken to some of the maids who used to sleep in the same dormitory." "They say that you crept into the Queen's bed for a hundred nights or more." "She was not the Queen." "Let me ask again." "Did you have carnal knowledge of Katherine Howard?" "No!" "I thought you were not altogether honest with me, Mr. Dereham." "I wanted to show you what we do to people who are dishonest." "Who don't tell the truth." "I'll tell you the truth." "Certain accusations have been made against the Queen." "What kind of accusations?" "Oh, that she was light, immoral, dissolute..." "With certain men..." "Before she came to court." "I can't believe it to be true." "But since the accusations are made," "I must know all the facts." "But since this inquisition is in progress, be careful who you speak to." "I'll have no spark of scandal against her name." "Yes, Your Majesty." "I have a good hand." "What do they know?" "Why have I been confined like this?" "I don't know." "Someone has told them something!" "Who?" "What has he told them?" "What has he told them?" "Why are you crying like this?" "It's not about you!" "I have to speak to him." "I have to speak to the King." "He'll understand." "We have some evidence that Katherine Howard gave you a gold chain and rich cap, as a gift." "Why did she buy you such gifts?" "Because she loved me." "Loved you?" "Yes, my Lord." "She told me: "I promise you" ""I do love you with all my heart."" "She promised by her faith and troth that she would take no other husband but me." "You were pre-contracted then?" "Yes, sir." "It was understood between us that we would get married." "That's why..." "That's why you knew her carnally?" "Yes, sir." "We didn't think we were doing anything wrong." "She was going to be my wife and I her husband." "We'd made promises before God." "Why did you not marry her, then?" "I left Lambeth for a while and went to Ireland." "When I returned, Katherine was already at court." "The Queen recently took you back into her employment." "On what grounds?" "The Dowager Duchess was kind enough to speak highly of my talents." "You have admitted to the fact that you had carnal knowledge of the Queen before her marriage to the King." "But did you also know her carnally afterwards?" "No, sir!" "No!" "On my honour!" "On your honour, Mr. Dereham?" "My Lady?" "His Excellency is here." "Eustace!" "Please, sit." "Thank you, Lady Mary." "You are too gracious." "I had to see you." "There are many rumours at court." "And it seems the Queen has been confined to her apartments." "Why?" "Nobody knows." "But the rumours speak of her misconduct." "I knew it." "I knew she was always a light young woman, dedicated only to pleasure." "And the sad fact is, Lady Mary, that the Howards are a great Catholic family." "No, Eustace, the sad fact is that Katherine Howard was never a good Catholic, nor ever a good wife." "Nor even less a Queen!" "What have you discovered?" "Katherine Howard was a loose young woman." "You surely knew that!" "I was told that her upbringing had been unconventional." "I didn't know how unconventional." "I didn't suspect that at fourteen years old she was sleeping with two older men!" "You met her!" "You saw the look in her eyes." "She was never innocent." "And who is innocent, my sweetheart?" "What did Dereham confess?" "Only that he'd slept with the Queen before she was married." "Do you believe him?" "I don't know." "I may ask again." "Husband, you must be careful." "If you remember, you were among those who offered Katherine Howard up to the King." "Do you suppose I ever forget that?" "But that's why I must be harder on her than anyone else." "Since I was the most deceived." "I must to bed." "I have things to do in the morning." "I bid thee, all three of thee, good night." "Good night, brother." "So..." "What shall we call your child, Thomas?" "Sir Edward- can you not tell me what's happening?" "I beg you." "No one tells me anything." "Please... please..." " Madam, I am forbidden to talk to you." "No, no." "You must speak to me." "Madam, I can't..." "On my life!" "Just something!" "Why am I confined here?" "What has anyone said?" "They have taken Dereham to the Tower." "Also some of the maids who attended the Dowager Duchess." "Oh... my God." "That's all I know." "Now, Madam, you will have to excuse me." "I can say no more." "His Majesty the King." "Your Majesty." " Your Majesty." " Your Majesty." "Your Grace?" "Your Majesty, my Lord Hertford, and other Councillors, have made diligent inquiries into the question of the misconduct of the Queen." "And?" "Your Majesty" "I have to tell Your Majesty that, even from my preliminary investigations, we believe the allegations against Queen Katherine have a sound basis in fact..." "The Queen received the attentions of her music master," "Henry Manox, when she lived with the Dowager Duchess of Norfolk." "Manox swears under oath that she never gave him her maidenhead..." "But that instead it was given to a man called Francis Dereham." "There is ample proof that they spent many nights together..." "Naked." "Dereham claims that he was pre-contracted to the Queen, so he did no wrong by having carnal relations with her, and that their relationship was over when he left for Ireland and the Queen for Your Majesty's court." "Unfortunately..." "Queen Katherine took this same Dereham back into her employment during Your Majesty's late progress, appointing him her personal secretary and usher." "I have to say that she has betrayed you in thought- and if she had an opportunity- would have betrayed you in deed." "My Lady." "Sir Thomas?" "What is it?" "Madam, I have come to tell you that for your offences against the King, all your household has been discharged." "Your coffers and chests will be sealed and placed under guard, and I am also come here to collect all your jewels and return them to His Majesty." "Please, Sir Thomas- Everything in here is where is the King?" "I must see him." "Madam, I must tell you that the King and his Council have ordained that, for your offences, you have forfeited the title of Queen, and must be known as Lady Katherine Howard." "You will be taken to Syon Abbey today, to wait upon the King's further pleasure." "Where is the King?" "I need to speak to him." "You don't understand." "I have to speak to him." "Then everything will be all right." "Don't you understand?" "Everything will be all right." "His Majesty is at Chapel." "But I fear he will not speak to you." "Lady Katherine!" "Stop her!" "Guards!" "Katherine Howard!" "Stop!" "Katherine Howard!" "Stop!" "You are arrested." "Stop!" "Do not proceed!" "Katherine Howard!" " Your Majesty!" "I must speak to you." "Please, please, Your Majesty!" "Please, it's me-Katherine!" "It's Katherine." "It's Katherine." "Please." "Please." "Henry!" "Henry, please!" "No!" "Your Majesty!" "No, please!" "Henry!" "No, please!" "Please, Henry!" "Please!" "Risley." "Risley!" "Majesty." "Go and fetch Bishop Gardiner." "I must speak to him." "Yes, Your Majesty." "Why are you doing this?" "Why are you doing this?" "I've already told you everything I know!" "His hands, my loves." "His hands." "What are you going to do to me?" "No!" "No!" "No!" "No!" "No!" "NO!" "Your Grace." "I must warn Your Grace that the poor creature, ever since she came here, has been in such lamentation and heaviness that I never saw in any creature." "Sometimes in a frenzy, that I had to remove every implement that might have harmed her." "Lady Katherine!" "Lady Katherine!" "Bishop Gardiner is come to see you." "Lady Katherine?" "Lady Katherine, do not weep, for I am come here with a letter from His Majesty which offers you his most gracious mercy." "Madam, the King offers you mercy." "What?" "What did you say?" "Here is His Majesty's letter." "In it, he offers you mercy, despite the- uh-grievous offences you have committed against him, if you will only openly confess your faults." "There." "You see?" "I humbly thank the King, who has shown me more grace and mercy than I could have hoped for." "But, first, I must ask you some questions." "And you must answer as truthfully and honestly as you will reply at the Day of Judgment." "Katherine!" "The King offers his hand in mercy." "There is nothing to be frightened of." "Come." "Come!" "Sit down." "Alas, my Lord, that I am alive!" "The fear of death does not grieve me as much as the remembrance of the King's goodness," "for when I remember how gracious and loving a Prince" "I had, I cannot but sorrow." "But this sudden mercy, more than I could have looked for, makes my offences appear to my eyes more heinous than they did before." "You confess that this Francis Dereham came often to your bed at Lambeth?" "Yes, my Lord." "He has lain with me, sometimes in his doublet and hose, and sometimes naked, but I mean, not so naked that he had nothing upon him, for he had always his doublet on; but I mean" "naked when his hose was pulled down." "In order to know you carnally?" "Was there a pre-contract between you?" "Did you intend to marry him?" "He sometimes called me "wife" when we were together, and I called him "husband."" "Still-I think it was no contract." "If there was a contract, then your marriage to the King would be invalid- you might face shame..." "But you would not forfeit your life." "He promised to love me with all his heart..." "But I think it was no contract." "Did Dereham have carnal knowledge of you after you became Queen?" "No, my Lord." "He never did." "I will go back to London and draft a plea of forgiveness for you to submit to the King." "Wait!" "I have important things to say." "My Lady?" "I never consented to sex with Francis Dereham." "He used importunate force against me." "In a manner-violence." "He raped you?" "The Queen confessed?" "Yes." "She told me that Dereham raped her." "I'm sure she was lying as" "I'm sure she's lying about other things too." "But I do believe that there was some form of pre-contract between them, which would invalidate the marriage." "And she claims to be innocent after the marriage?" "Of course." "And you believed that?" "You don't believe it?" "I don't believe anything Dereham says." "It might not be Dereham." "Why does Your Grace say that?" "You have the Queen's confession?" "Yes, Your Majesty." "The Queen begs for mercy." "She confesses that she was so desirous to be taken into Your Grace's favour, so blinded by desire for worldly glory, that she did not consider how great a fault it was to conceal her former faults from Your Majesty." ""Considering that I intended" ""ever during my life" ""to be faithful and true to Your Majesty."" "Then we can proceed with the annulment?" "I think it would be best, Your Majesty." "I don't believe that you didn't have carnal knowledge of the Queen after her marriage to the King." "Please don't!" "It is the truth- because someone else had succeeded me in her affections." "Who?" "WHO?" "Thomas Culpepper." "Thomas Culpepper?" "The King's groom?" "Yes, sir." "How well did you know this man, Thomas Culpepper?" "Quite well." "I flirted with him and met him sometimes by the back stairs, and gave him gifts." "He called me his " sweet little fool."" "And did you commit adultery with him?" "No, my Lord." "I never did- although Lady Rochford encouraged me to do so." "Lady Rochford encouraged you?" "Yes, she did." "And then she spread a vile rumour that we were lovers, which we never were." "You don't deny that you met with the Queen in secret on many occasions?" "No, my Lord." "But you deny that you ever committed adultery with her?" "I do." "We never passed beyond words." "If you don't tell me the truth, Mr. Culpepper, you will be tortured till you do." "I'm telling you the truth." "Which isn't to say I didn't want to go further!" "I intended and meant to do so with the Queen, and she with me." "My God." "That evil intent in itself constitutes high treason." "But it was Katherine who led me on!" "She wanted it, not me." "And her servant, Lady Rochford, she provoked it and acted as a procuress, like some madam in a brothel!" "Why are they blaming me?" "It's not my fault." "I had to stand guard when they met in the Queen's chambers, or even her stool closet." "I didn't want to." "I didn't like doing it." "Once I even had to stop the King coming into the Queen's bedchamber, because Culpepper was already there." "Do you think they had carnal knowledge at those times?" "I cannot think it otherwise, considering all the things I heard and saw between them." "Guard!" "Do you think I shall die, my Lord?" "Do you think I shall die?" "Constable!" "Open up!" "Your Majesty asked me at the beginning of this investigation not to desist until I had got to the bottom of the pot." "Majesty, I fear to say that I am already scraping the bottom, and a good companion of Your Majesty, a fellow of trust, seems certain to have betrayed Your Majesty- committing adultery with the Queen, your wife." "Who is he?" "Your groom, Thomas Culpepper." "So far, both of them have denied the charges, though neither of them denies the many illicit meetings they had on the backstairs and in the Queen's stool closet during Your Majesty's last progress." "Lady Rochford and other maids of Her Majesty have come forward with corroborating evidence of their frequent intimacies." "Finally, this letter was discovered in Mr. Culpepper's chambers." "It is the Queen's handwriting." "She writes:" ""It makes my heart die to think" ""I cannot always be in your company."" "And, "I heard that you were sick and never longed so much for anything as to see you."" "And it is signed:" ""Yours as long as life endures" """ "Katherine."" "What has happened is your fault!" "Your fault!" "You solicited me to marry her!" "How misfortunate I am to have had so many ill-conditioned wives!" "I vow that any pleasure that wicked bitch got from her wantonness will be nothing-nothing- in comparison to the pain she going to feel at the hand of my torturer!" "Well done, wife." "What shall we call him?" "Thomas." "Very well." "Thomas he is." "You want to ask Lady Rochford some more questions?" " Yes." " There's no point, Sir Thomas." "Lady Rochford has gone mad." "Death to you!" "There you are." "Majesty?" "His Grace, the Duke of Suffolk." "You've never read the Bible, have you, Charles?" "No, Your Majesty." "I've always allowed others, with more knowledge than I, to read it for me." "In that case, you've missed many great sayings and truths," "Like this one here in the Book of Solomon, where it says:" ""The lips of a harlot are "a dropping honeycomb." ""Her throat is softer than oil." ""Yet in the end," ""she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a double-edged sword."" "Why have you come?" "King Francis has sent you a letter." "What does it say?" ""I am sorry to hear of the displeasure and trouble which has been caused "by the lewd and naughty behaviour of the Queen." ""But knowing my good brother to be a prince of prudence,"" "virtue, and honour," ""I do require him to throw off the said displeasure" ""and wisely, temperately, like myself," ""not reputing his honour to rest in the lightness of a woman," ""but to thank God of all," ""comforting himself in God's goodness." ""The lightness of women cannot bend the honour of men."" "You tell Francis to go" "Tell His Majesty that we are grateful for his solicitations." "Yes, Your Majesty." "What of Dereham and Culpepper?" "Have they been arraigned for treason?" "They were tried together." "At the last moment, Culpepper changed his plea to guilty, but both were found so." "They are due to be hanged, drawn and quartered together at Tyburn." "Tell the judge to commute Culpepper's sentencing to beheading." "I hate Dereham more, since he spoiled the Queen for me." "Now, what of Lady Rochford?" "She has been found guilty of misprision and treason- but, since she is insane, she cannot be executed." "You tell Richard Rich to pass a bill in Parliament making it legal to execute an insane person for treason." "Do you hear?" "Yes, Your Majesty." "You were one of those who placed Katherine Howard in front of me." "Were you not, your Grace?" "Any regrets?" "Charles." "Majesty." "You should be ashamed of yourselves!" "Traitor!" ""Master Culpepper," ""I heartily recommend me unto you," ""praying you to send me word how that you do." ""I heard that you were sick," ""and never longed so much for anything as to see you." ""I would you were with me now that you might see" ""what pain I take in writing to you." ""It makes my heart die to think" ""I cannot always be in your company."" "I beg you all to pray for me." ""He, Dereham," ""gave me lots of lovers' tokens." ""He knew a little woman in London with a crooked back," ""who was skilled in making flowers of silk," ""who made for him a French fennel to give to me." ""And later, a heart's ease for a New Year's present," ""and some sarcenet, which I had made into a quilted cap." ""He called me "wife,"" ""and touched the secret parts of my body." ""I remember I gave him a collar and sleeves for a shirt." ""And one day," ""he snatched a silver bracelet from me and kept it," ""saying, 'Here, wife, "'a gift for me.'" ""And he kissed me often and so passionately" ""that everyone said he would never have kissed me enough."" "No!" "No!" "Katherine Howard, you are indicted for having led an abominable, base, carnal, voluptuous, and vicious life before marriage like a common harlot- with several persons." "You led the King by word and gesture to love you, concealing your contract with Francis Dereham to the peril of the King and his children begotten by you." "And after marriage, you showed the same Dereham notable favour, while inciting Thomas Culpepper to carnal knowledge, telling him you loved him above the King." "It is my duty to escort you to the Tower." "My Lady." "Sir Edward." "Don't let them." "No." "Thomas?" "Oh God!" "Oh, Thomas!" " My Lady." " No, no, no, no!" "No, no!" "No, No!" "No, Thomas!" "Is she condemned?" "Yes, Your Majesty." "What of the others?" "Dereham and Culpepper have been executed and the bill allowing a mad person to be executed for treason has become law." "I want to have a party." "Here is a list of guests." "Yes, Your Majesty." "Katherine Howard, I have to tell you that you are going to die." "You will be taken to your place of execution tomorrow morning, the 13th of February, escorted by members of the Privy Council." "May I ask one favour?" "Will you bring the block to me- so that I might know how to place myself and... make trial of it?" "As you wish." "Is there anything else you need?" "Do you want a confessor?" "No." "I have spoken to God so rarely," "I did not think He would know who I was." "Ladies." "Something sweet?" "What do you think?" " Your Majesty." "Ah!" "A beautiful Queen." "Madam." " Do you want to say a few words?" "I ask forgiveness for my sins, from His Gracious Majesty," "from God, and from all of you." "Shall I say more?" "No, my Lady." "That is already sufficient." "Thank you." "It's time, my Lady." "I have come here to die." "Oh, my Lady!" "I die a Queen." "But I would rather die the wife of Culpepper..." "Life is very beautiful."