Today in 1514 princess Mary Tudor, sister to Henry VIII, married Louis XII by proxy in Greenwich Palace. She was 18 when she married Louis, and he was 52. Supposedly she extracted a promise from Henry VIII that she could marry whomever she chose when Louis died. She went over to France in October, and within a few months Louis had died. The rumor was that it was from over exerting himself in the bedchamber, but it was likely from gout.
Afterwards Mary waited a few weeks to make sure she wasn’t pregnant, and then Henry sent Charles Brandon to go and fetch her, and bring her back to England. It was then that Mary called in her promise of being able to marry to her choosing, as she married Charles Brandon in secret. The couple was severely punished, but they were able to make their way back to the King’s good graces after paying a hefty fine, leaving them strapped for cash the rest of their lives.
That’s your Tudor Minute for today. Remember you can dive deeper into life in 16th century England through the Renaissance English History Podcast at englandcast.com where there is an episode on Mary Tudor.