Jane Boleyn, Henry Parker and Anne Boleyn's coronation, 1533

The 1st June 1533 not only saw Anne Boleyn’s triumph, her Coronation; it was also a triumph for the Parker family, particularly for Jane Boleyn and her brother, Henry Parker.

On the 30th or 31st May, Jane’s brother, Henry Parker, was made a Knight of the Bath. Creating Kings of the Bath had been a coronation ritual for over two hundred years and Henry was following in the footsteps of his and Jane’s father, Henry Parker Lord Morley, who had become a Knight of the Bath when Henry VIII was crowned in 1509. Now for his son, becoming a Knight involved a series of rituals.

First Henry would have served the King water, or a dish from the first course at dinner, “in token that they shall never bear none after that day”. He was then taken to the White Tower along with seventeen other young men and they had individual baths, with pieces of soap wrapped in clean, white linen cloths, prepared for them. Their hair would have been cut and beards shaved, then permission was asked from the King to proceed with the bath itself. They were then lowered into the bath and took the oath of Knighthood.

Henry then would have stepped out of the bath and lay in his bed to dry. Then, with the help of squires, Henry was dressed in a black cloak with long sleeves and a hood before making his way to the cold, stone chapel, accompanied by music from the musicians, to spend hours of darkness in prayer and meditation. When dawn approached, he confessed his sins and took part in mass, removing his hood briefly at the elevation of the host. Before taking the sacrament, they offered tapers, each of which had a small coin fastened to it, to the worship of God and thanks to the King.

They were then lead back to their beds to have a few hours of sleep. Henry was then woken-up again and helped to dress by squires, then, mounted a horse, which was also prepared according to ancient ritual. Henry Parker would have then rode to the door of the room in which Henry was waiting, dismounted, then, walked towards the King who would then have buckled the sword from Henry’s waist, smacked the side of his neck saying “Be ye good knight”, before kissing him. He then dined, then prayed, then was dressed in a blue robe. He was now Sir Henry Parker.

In the meantime, Jane Boleyn, who probably would have not have seen her brother being made into a Knight of the Bath, was preparing for her own big moment. On the day before Anne’s coronation, Jane was to accompany her as she made her way from the Tower, through the streets hung with velvet and cloth of gold, to Westminster. Along the route were many ordinary citizens leaning out of windows, or pushing their way to the front of the crowds, trying to catch a glimpse of Anne. Being very near behind in Anne’s train, Jane would have also been focussed upon by the crowds.

Anne appeared in a litter covered in silver cloth of Gold and the horses that drew it were draped in silver damask. Anne herself wore white cloth of Gold and a jewelled circlet which shone on her dark hair which was worn loose around her shoulders. Then, riding almost immediately behind was Jane, in a prominent place even before Anne’s own sister. This was well above that to which her rank entitled Jane to and proved how close she was to Anne. Jane rode side-saddle with six other ladies, including Lady Mary Howard and the Countesses of Derby, Worcester and Sussex. Jane wore a sumptuous gown of crimson velvet and red cloth of Gold.

Then, the big day arrived. Jane accompanied Anne again in a prominent position in Anne’s trail, following her into Westminster Abbey and being close by as Anne sat upon St. Edward’s Chair and was crowned. Then, wearing a coronet of her own, Jane followed Anne back to a richly decorated Westminster Hall for a magnificent banquet to a fanfare of trumpets. Jane was seated in a position of honour at a table reserved especially for the ladies of the court, including Jane’s mother Alice. Jane had spent many years in court up until now and had taken part in masques. However, they were no comparison to the lavishness of the events surrounding the coronation. This was a coronation that Jane was not going to forget.

Source – Julie Fox, 2007.

Image - Anne Boleyn, played by Natalie Dormer, in "The Tudors".