安妮·博林：生平故事和寫給國王的絕筆信

Anne Boleyn was born in England, in 1504, the daughter of Sir Thomas Boleyn, and Elizabeth Howard, who was the daughter of the Duke of Norfolk. She spent much of her childhood at the French court, after which she returned to England in 1522.

At this time, Henry VIII, King of England was married to Catherine of Aragon of Spain, who was the still-virginal wife of his deceased older brother Arthur. Henry was a unique person, possessing a strong personality and high intellect. He loved to dance, and enjoyed archery and hunting, and had an interest in religion, but his passions were eating, gambling and women, and throughout his life, he continued to be unfaithful. His first wife Catherine had failed to provide him with the male heir he needed to assure the continuance of the Tudor Dynasty. All of their children died in infancy except a daughter, Mary.

In 1527, he met Anne Boleyn, a well-educated and quite tantalizing woman of 23. However, Anne had witnessed the king use her sister Mary for sexual favors, then discard her. Consequently, she was determined that should she yield to Henry, the price for her sexual favors would only be if he married her.

Infatuated with Anne, Henry now had to find a reason to get rid of Catherine. When English policies found France more important than Spain, which was her country, Henry decided to seek an annulment on the grounds of incest. He got what he wanted, and the annulment was granted, however only after a separation with the Church of Rome, an action that brought about the English Reformation.

Now free to pursue Anne, Henry did so and won her affections in August 1532, only because she was now sure he would marry her. By January 1533, Anne was pregnant with Henrys child, so a secret wedding was arranged for January 25, in spite of the fact that Henry was still not formally divorced from Catherine. That June 1533, Anne was crowned queen.

In a short time, their marriage displayed signs of trouble, for two reasons. The first was that Henry had been unfaithful to his first wife, and saw no reason to stop this behavior once he married Anne. Secondly, Anne was a strong-willed person, unlike the submissive Catherine, and voiced her objections to his carrying on with other women. Annes downfall began on August 7, 1533, upon giving birth to their first child, a daughter, the future Elizabeth I. This did not please Henry who so desperately needed a son. In future attempts, Anne had three miscarriages, and the king was growing tired of her. Her only hope to revive their marriage would be in producing a son.

During the summer of 1535, while staying as guests of the Seymour family, Annes nemesis arrived in Jane Seymour, who had been one of Annes maids of honor. Jane caught Henrys eye, but she like Anne, would not submit sexually until an offer of marriage was made. Anne, now pregnant again, gave birth to a stillborn male baby in January 1536. With this, her hopes of remaining married to Henry diminished.

Henry VIII now was sure he had to free himself from Anne, so that he could marry Jane, in the hope of producing a son. To get this accomplished, the king instructed Thomas Cromwell1 to devise a way to have her executed. Cromwell came up with a plan that charged Anne with witchcraft, and tacked on adultery, accusing her of having sex with five men in the household, all charges that were false and trumped up.2 The only evidence gathered against her was provided by a musician, whose testimony was elicited under torture.

Anne was arrested and taken to the Tower of London, where she was imprisoned awaiting trial. In May 1536, at the same time that Archbishop Thomas Cranmer was annulling her marriage to Henry, she was tried by twenty-six nobles. But, these nobles had been intimidated, and threatened with their own lives, should they not deliver a sentence desirable to the king. Anne was found guilty and her punishment was to be put to death. Her harsh sentence was pronounced by her own uncle, the Duke of Norfolk.

To further enhance Cromwells and the kings trumped up plans, the five so-called lovers from the household were beheaded on May 17, 1536. Soon, it would be Annes turn, but not before Henry called upon a master headsman from France, to ensure that his sword would cut off her head in one stroke. It is said that Henry had pity on her and wanted to ensure she did not suffer in the beheading, but rather it may be more true that he wanted to ensure her swift death for his own selfish reasons. Originally scheduled for May 18, her execution was postponed one day until this headsman arrived.

May 19 came with Anne still protesting her innocence. As she was preparing to leave the Tower, she was still wearing a gold pendant, her first gift from the king. In making her way to the block, she gave the pendant to Captain Gwynne of the Tower Guard. Legend says that as Anne was walking toward her fate, she kept looking back as though she would be rescued at any moment by the kings equestrians. Her innocence ignored, she was beheaded and died this day, 1536.

As she sat in the Tower awaiting her fate, she wrote her last letter to the king, protesting her innocence while reaffirming her continued devotion to him, as well as a plea to spare the lives of the five men, who were accused of having adultery with her.

So here are Annes final words, believed to be written on or about May 15, 1536.

Sir; If, as you say, confessing a Truth indeed may procure my safety, I shall with all Willingness and Duty perform your Command. But let not your Grace ever imagine that your poor Wife will ever be brought to acknowledge a Fault, where not so much as a Thought thereof proceeded. And to speak a truth, never Prince had Wife more Loyal in all Duty, and in all true Affection, than you have ever found in Anne Boleyn. Neither did I at any time so far forget myself in my received Queenship, but that I always looked for such an Alteration as now I find; for the ground of my Preferment being on no surer Foundation than your Graces Fancy, the least Alteration, I knew, was fit and sufficient to draw that Fancy to some other Subject.

Try me good King, but let me have a Lawful Trial, and let not my sworn Enemies sit as my Accusers and Judges; yea, let me receive an open Trial, for my Truth shall fear no open shame; then shall you see, either mine Innocency cleared, your Suspicion and Conscience satisfied, the Ignominy and Slander of the World stopped, or my Guilt openly declared. So that whatsoever God or you may determine of me, your Grace may be freed from an open Censure to follow your Affection already settled on that Party, for whose sake I am now as I am.

But if you have already determined of me, and that not only my Death, but an infamous Slander must bring you the enjoying of your desired Happiness; then I desire of God, that he will pardon your great Sin therein; and likewise mine Enemies, the Instruments thereof; and that he will not call you to a strict Account for your unprincely and cruel usage of me, at his General Judgement-Seat, where both you and my self must shortly appear, and in whose Judgement, I doubt not (whatsover the World may think of me) mine Innocence shall be openly known, and sufficiently cleared.

When the kings marriage to Catherine was annulled, the king was the head of the Church of England. In 1536, after Annes execution, Henrys first wife Catherine died, and the king married Jane Seymour. She died in 1537, but with her they would produce his badly needed son, Edward VI. Henry remarried in 1540 to Anne of Cleves, who became his fourth wife, whom he married in the hope of securing the Protestant involvement of Germany. However, Henry VIII disliked her appearance which caused him to get a divorce within a short time of their marriage. That same year, 1540, Henry married his fifth wife, Catherine Howard, but had her executed two years later on the grounds of infidelity. In 1543, Henry would marry his sixth and last wife, Catherine Parr, who survived him.

Henry VIII died in 1547, and was succeeded by his son, Edward VI.

安妮·博林1504年出生于英格蘭，是托馬斯·博林爵士和伊麗莎白·霍華德的女兒。她的母親是諾?？斯舻呐畠?。安妮·博林童年的大部分時間在法國宮廷度過，1522年返回英國。

那時，英國國王亨利八世已與西班牙阿拉貢的凱瑟琳公主結婚，凱瑟琳是亨利八世已故兄長亞瑟的遺孀，但仍是處女。亨利為人與眾不同，個性很強，頭腦聰明。他喜歡跳舞、弓箭和打獵，對宗教也感興趣，但是美食、賭博和女人卻是他的熱情所在。一生之中，他對妻子們連連不忠。第一任妻子凱瑟琳未能誕下亨利所希望的男性繼承人以延續都鐸王朝。他們的孩子都幼年早夭，除了一個名為瑪麗的女兒。

1527年，亨利遇到安妮·博林。安妮受過良好的教育，芳齡23歲，風姿撩人。然而，安妮曾親眼目睹了她的姐姐瑪麗與國王私通，后又遭拋棄。因此，她下定決心萬一她不得不委身于亨利，前提是亨利必須得娶她。

亨利被安妮迷得神魂顛倒，當下得找到一個理由擺脫凱瑟琳。當時對于英國的外交政策，法國比西班牙更重要，而凱瑟琳正是來自西班牙。因此亨利決定試圖以亂倫罪為名廢除婚姻關系。在脫離羅馬教會之后，他們的婚姻宣告無效，亨利得償所愿， 但是脫離羅馬教會這一行為導致了英國的宗教改革。

亨利獲得自由身，展開追求安妮的行動，1532年8月終獲佳人芳心，因為那時安妮已經確定亨利會娶她。1533年1月，安妮已經懷了亨利的骨肉，因此盡管亨利尚未與凱瑟琳正式離婚，二人仍于1月25日秘密舉行了婚禮。1533年6月，安妮被加冕為王后。

很快，他們的婚姻出現了問題，原因有二：其一是亨利曾經對他的第一任妻子不忠，在與安妮結婚后，他并沒有覺得應該終止這種行為。其二，安妮與順從的凱瑟琳不同，她意志剛硬，聲明自己反對亨利再與其她女人有染。安妮失寵始于1533年8月7日。他們的第一個孩子——一個女兒——降生了。她便是日后的伊麗莎白一世。亨利急切地想要一個男嗣，女兒的出生令他不悅。后來安妮幾度懷孕，卻三次流產，國王漸萌厭棄之心。安妮挽救婚姻唯一的希望就是生出一個兒子來。

1535年夏天，安妮到西摩家做客，遇到了克星簡·西摩。簡曾經是安妮的侍從女官。她吸引了亨利的目光，然而她與安妮一樣，不愿在沒有婚約的前提下委身亨利。當時安妮再次懷孕，1536年1月誕下一名男嬰，卻是死胎。至此，她對于維系與亨利的婚姻關系也不報什么希望了。

此刻亨利八世已決意要擺脫安妮，這樣就可以迎娶簡給他生個男嗣。為達目的，國王命令托馬斯·克倫威爾設法處死安妮。克倫威爾設計指控安妮使用巫術以及與五名男子在家中通奸。所有指控皆屬子虛烏有。唯一不利的證據是一個男樂師在屈打成招后提供的證詞。

安妮被捕，審判之前一直被關押在倫敦塔。1536年5月，大主教托馬斯·克蘭默宣布安妮與亨利的婚姻無效。與此同時，安妮經歷了26名貴族的審判。他們受到國王的脅迫，一旦審判結果不和國王之意，則性命堪憂。安妮被判有罪，處以死刑。這一酷刑的宣判者正是她的舅舅，諾?？斯?。

為了使克倫威爾和國王的誣陷大計更加萬無一失，五名所謂的情人在1536年5月17日被砍頭。很快，安妮的斷頭之期將近，亨利從法國召來一位熟練的劊子手，以保證一刀就能砍下安妮的頭顱。據說亨利對安妮懷有惻隱之心，希望能夠確保她在行刑時沒有痛苦。不過，更真實的說法也許是他因為一己之私而希望安妮快點死掉。斬首原定于5月18日，但由于等待那名劊子手而推遲了一天。

處決當天，安妮仍然聲明自己是清白的。準備離開倫敦塔之際，她仍然戴著一個金項墜，那是亨利送給她的第一件禮物。臨上斷頭臺，她把這個項墜交給了倫敦塔守衛格溫上尉。傳說安妮邊走邊頻頻回頭，似乎在企盼國王的騎士隨時有可能送來赦免令。但她的清白無人理會，1536年5月19日，安妮身首異處，香消玉殞。

被囚倫敦塔等候處決之時，安妮曾寫給國王一封絕筆信，信中表明自己的清白，重申自己對亨利一如既往的感情，并請求赦免那五名被指控與她犯有通奸罪的男子們的性命。

安妮下面的這封絕筆信據說寫于1536年5月15日或者這日前后。

陛下，如您所說，如果我坦白事實也許可以免我一死，我將會竭我所愿、盡我所責遵照您的命令行事。但是，請陛下不要設想您可憐的妻子會被迫承認虛假之事，因為我從未想過要犯那樣的過錯。事實上，安妮·博林對國王忠貞不渝、全心全意、一往情深，再無人能及。從未忘記自成為王后以來時刻伴君左右，但從未停止窺探陛下對我之心是否有變，此刻終知君心已變。陛下之愛乃我之根本、我行事之優先；陛下心意的絲毫改變，我明白，無不當之處，但足以使您的愛轉向她人。

陛下，審判我吧，但務必公正地審判，不要讓我不共戴天的仇敵成為我的控告者和審判者。是的，當眾審判我吧，因為我的忠貞不畏公開的羞恥；這樣您就會看到，要么我沉冤得雪，您不再猜疑、心中釋懷，世人對我的羞辱和誹謗盡數停止，要么我的罪行昭告天下。那樣，無論上帝或者陛下您怎樣處罰我，您都不會因為追求自己的愛情而受到任何公開的責難。您的愛情已經給了那個人，拜她所賜，我才淪落于此。

但是如果陛下心意已決，那么我的死以及那些無恥誹謗定會給您帶來您所希望的欣喜。希望上帝能夠寬恕您的罪過；同樣我也能寬恕我的敵人和他們所用的卑劣手段；希望上帝不會召您去他的大審判席之下，命您一五一十地講出對待我低劣而殘酷的手段。用不了多久，您和我都將會面臨上帝的審判，而我堅信（無論世人怎樣看待我）我的清白將公諸于眾，大白于天下。

在國王與凱瑟琳的婚姻無效之際，國王成為英國國教之首腦。1536年安妮被處決之后，亨利的第一任妻子凱瑟琳去世，國王迎娶簡·西摩。這位新王后1537年就去世了，但是她為亨利生下了他夢寐以求的男嗣，愛德華六世。1540年，亨利迎娶克利夫斯的安妮公主作為他的第四任王后，希望以此拉攏信奉新教的德國。然而，亨利不喜歡安妮的長相，致使婚后不久便離婚。同年，亨利娶了第五位王后凱瑟琳·霍華德，兩年之后又以通奸罪處死。1543年，亨利娶了第六位王后，也是最后一位，凱瑟琳·帕爾。這位王后死在了國王之后。

亨利八世1547年去世，他的兒子愛德華六世繼位。

1. Thomas Cromwell: 托馬斯·克倫威爾(1485—1540)，出身平民之家，卻成為亨利八世的首席國務大臣，英國近代社會轉型時期杰出的政治家，但最終被亨利八世斬首。

2. tack on: 添加; trump up: 捏造。