The Six Wives of Henry VIII (1970): Season 1, Episode 1 - Catherine of Aragon - full transcript

(TRUMPET SOUNDING)

(COUGHING)

(TRUMPET SOUNDING)

Your Majesty.

—Your Majesty, I am more...
—Dr de Puebla.

I have come with His Royal Highness
the Prince of Wales to see the Princess Catherine.

Her Royal Highness' parents have given orders.

—My instructions are...
—Your instructions?

Sir, as Spanish ambassador.

By the laws of Spain, a royal bride
may not be seen before her wedding,

even by her bridegroom.



Dr de Puebla, this is England.

His Majesty King Henry VII,
His Royal Highness Prince Arthur,

to see Her Serene Highness
the Princess Catherine of Aragon.

Your Majesty.

-Her Royal Highness has retired for the night.
—Then we will visit her in her bedchamber.

A moment.

Welcome. Welcome to England.

(SPEAKING IN SPANISH)

-Her Serene Highness...
—My son, Prince Arthur, your future husband.

(COUGHING)

(BELLS RINGING)

(CHOIR SINGING IN LATIN)

(DOOR OPENING)

Dr de Puebla.



(SIGHS)

Does she understand her situation?

If you mean, my Lord of Surrey,
does she know it? No.

—She prefers not to know it.
—You mean she's stupid?

No. Stupidity is not a matter of choice. This is.

The Princess Catherine prefers
not to know certain things.

—It is a royal attribute.
—Well, I'm glad there's something royal about her.

Come, de Puebla, confess it.
Your princess is a pauper,

a widow, an unsuccessful suitor
for the hand of her late husband's brother.

Her Royal Highness and Prince Henry
are betrothed.

(SCOFFS) Betrothed is a long way
from being married, as every ambassador knows.

Incidentally, I've heard it said

that Her Royal Highness
has no great opinion of her ambassador.

I wonder who told you that.

The duenna doesn't like you either.

—Whose side is she on, I wonder?
—Side?

Does Dona Elvira support the claims
of Princess Catherine's father

or Princess Catherine's sister
in their disagreement?

As a member of the Princess' household,
she takes no part in affairs of state.

How about Dona Elvira's brother?

Has it never occurred to the Princess
that the King may not wish to ally himself

to a Spanish royal family
who are squabbling among each other?

When the Princess Catherine wants something,
she sees no difficulties in the way of achieving it

and wishes to hear of none.
It is another royal attribute.

An awkward one for you.

My poor Princess. She is very young.

She is motherless. She is far from home.
I must do what I can for her,

though she thinks I do nothing.

You'll not make her Queen of England,
do what you may.

—We shall see.
—Dr de Puebla.

Your Royal Highness.

—Have you an audience with the King today?
—Yes, Your Highness.

His Majesty commanded me to call upon him
at 10:00 this morning.

Then, if you are not too busy discussing matters
of interest to His Majesty,

perhaps you would be so good
as to ask him for some money for me.

I do ask him, Your Highness, every time we go.

Every time you're not engaged
in making jokes, or...

Be glad the King laughs at my jokes.
When he has laughed, then he listens.

—A little.
—And does nothing.

Dr de Puebla,

my ladies, my Spanish ladies,
how can they marry without dowries?

They are in rags. I am in rags.

When we are here at court, we are disgraced.

And when we are at Durham House,
I cannot maintain my household.

I am selling my plate to buy food.

Your plate is part of your dowry.
You must not sell that!

What else can I do? We are hungry.

We are hungry.

—I know. I know.
—Then do something!

(BELLS RINGING)

Your Royal Highness, I must go to His Majesty.

—Dona Elvira.
—He will do nothing, as usual.

Why don't you speak to the King?
While we are staying here at court...

What can I say to him? Can I ask him for money?

Can I beg him to let me marry his son
because, if I don't, I have no place in the world?

What will become of me?

Unless I marry Prince Henry,
what will become of me?

How can I go back to Spain unmarried?
My father would never receive me.

And even if he did,

—what will become of me?
—Have you thought of appealing to your sister?

—My sister?
-Queen Juana.

Would she help me?

If she were to come here with her husband,
if she saw and understood your situation,

assuredly she would help you.

That ill—bred, vulgar little man.
How can your father employ him as ambassador?

King Henry likes him
because he too is ill—bred and parsimonious.

—Dona Elvira, my father—in—law...
—Is apt to forget

that you are a royal princess of Spain.

But if he saw you with your sister.
Why don't you write to her?

Tell her how you long to see her
and her husband here in England.

Puebla, you know, the people
would always rather be robbed than pay taxes.

DR DE PUEBLA: That depends, Your Majesty,
on what the taxes are for.

True, very true.
If it is for war, good. Everyone is happy.

Tell the people they are to be killed and pillaged,
their homes destroyed, their women raped

and they must pay for it into the bargain,
and they're perfectly agreeable.

Give them what I have given them,
years of peace and good government,

and then say, "This must be paid for,"
they will hate you forever.

So, you see, since I do not wish to go to war,
I have to be as economical as I can.

So the Princess Dowager
is short of money, is she?

—The, uh... Oh, the Princess of Wales.
—Not yet.

She and Prince Henry are betrothed.

—But, then, when he was 15...
—The age at which the marriage

—was to have taken place.
—The Prince protested against betrothal.

—He did?
—On the grounds that it contravened

canon law for him to marry his late brother's wife.

There is a papal dispensation.

—Was this protest made publicly?
—Before a select company.

So, if at any time in the future
the marriage should not be...

Precisely.

See here, my good friend.
When you persuaded me into this marriage...

(EXCLAIMS) Your Majesty.

Oh, very well.
When you persuaded King Ferdinand of Aragon

and Queen Isabella of Castile
to allow their daughter to marry my son, Arthur,

she brought with her the goodwill of all Spain

to be a powerful buttress
against the enmity of France.

But now Queen Isabella is dead.
Her daughter, Juana, is Queen of Castile,

and they say she and her husband
are plotting to seize Aragon as well.

So, what benefit could there be now

in a marriage between Prince Henry
and Princess Catherine?

Especially since King Ferdinand
hasn't even paid the second part of the dowry.

I understand, when Prince Arthur died,

there was some question
of returning the first part of the dowry.

There never was any question of returning
the first part of the dowry.

Well, you will write to King Ferdinand

about the terms on which
our merchants may trade with Spain.

Yes, Your Majesty.

And tell him you understand his daughter
is in need of money.

Oh, by the way,

you'd better warn Princess Catherine
to be careful how she sells her plate.

Its value, you may recall,
was to form the third part of the dowry.

Uh, de Puebla.

I understand Princess Catherine's sister,
Queen Juana, had a daughter

of marriageable age.

(GRUMBLING)

(DOOR SLAMS)

Your Royal Highness, I am afraid...

—Dr de Puebla, I have written to my sister.
—Your sister?

Queen Juana of Castile, suggesting that
she and her husband should visit me here.

You see, Dona Elvira cares what becomes of me,
though you do not.

Dona Elvira. Did she suggest this?

—Let me send it for you.
—No.

—Dona Elvira will send it for me.
—But, Your Royal Highness...

Your Royal Highness, please believe me,
if you send that letter...

The King is considering a marriage between
Prince Henry and Queen Juana's daughter, Eleanor.

But Dona Elvira said...

Dona Elvira's brother is in Flanders,
plotting with your sister against your father.

Dona Elvira has been my duenna
ever since she came to England.

She has been like a mother to me.
I would trust her as I trust my own mother.

Your Royal Highness, have you lived
for 15 years in the court of Spain,

and have now lived for five years more
in the English court,

and you still haven't learnt
that you can trust nobody?

Not even you, Dr de Puebla.

You can trust me in one thing.

I have fought for this marriage
for nearly 20 years. I will not see it destroyed.

There is no question of that.
Prince Henry and I are betrothed.

—But, Your Royal Highness...
—At your next audience with King Henry,

you will please ask him for some money
for the expenses of my household

when I return to Durham House.

And ask him to be so good as to supply me
with a new duenna. Now leave me.

—Shall I send...
-Leave me!

Dona Elvira.

So the Princess' duenna
has gone to visit her brother in Flanders.

—Rather unexpectedly.
—Very unexpectedly. Will she be gone for long?

Almost indefinitely, I think.

Well, the Princess Catherine certainly can't
go on living at Durham House without a duenna.

—My mother would be greatly shocked at the idea.
—So if some noble English lady could be found...

And yet, when she is visiting the palace,
she comes under the protection of my mother.

Yes, Your Majesty, but when she returns
to her own household at Durham House...

—Why should she?
—Your Majesty?

Well, she's always complaining about the expense
of her household. Here's a way of saving it.

Yes, that is the answer.
In future, she can live at court all the time.

That way, she can save herself
the expense of her own household

and save me the trouble
of finding her a new duenna.

A very happy solution, don't you think?

So, I am to lose my household.

I am to live at court like a pensioner,
a pensioner without a pension.

How am I to pay my servants,
my Spanish servants?

I brought them here. I am responsible for them.
And my ladies, how am I to find you dowries?

Dowries, Your Highness?

If you could have enough money for a new dress,
that would be something.

—Francesca.
—I know it's hard for you.

Oh, don't worry about us, Your Highness.

If we have no dowries,
then the Englishmen must take us without.

(GRUMBLING IN SPANISH)

Oh, Maria!

If I were married, then as Princess of Wales,
I would have my own income,

even during the King's lifetime.

The marriage treaty was signed years ago.

All de Puebla had to do
was to arrange the marriage.

Instead of that, he accuses my...

I believe the whole affair was a plot
between him and King Henry

to rob me of my household
and to save King Henry money.

And now de Puebla says
he is ill in bed and can't see me.

I'll write to my father.

I'll write to my father and
ask him to send me a new ambassador.

Don Gutierre Gomez de Fuensalida.

I have brought 65,000 ducats of Aragon,
and I now claim...

Of Aragon?

Which are worth more than
the escudos of Castile mentioned in the document.

I now claim, on behalf of His Serene Highness

King Ferdinand of Aragon,
the fulfilment of the said marriage contract.

This is what we all desire, Ambassador.
And King Henry, who dearly loves the Princess,

desires it more than anyone.

You have brought the 65,000 ducats,
and I trust also the jewels and plate

which were to form the third part of the dowry?

My Lord Bishop, you know quite well.
The Princess brought those with her in 1501.

We know no such thing.
What she brought then was her own property.

—It was part of her dowry!
—On the contrary,

it was her own personal property,
her household goods,

which on Prince Arthur's death
reverted to his heir, that is King Henry VII.

Although he has kindly allowed
Princess Catherine to continue to use it.

—But...
-Are you suggesting

that the Princess' dowry should be paid
to the King with the King's own goods?

But...

They must accept the Princess' plate and jewels.
It was expressly stated in the marriage treaty.

Of course, the depletions must be made good.

I warned King Ferdinand
the Princess was having to sell her plate,

but he took no notice.

(GROANS)

Now, what I would suggest...

(DOOR CLOSING)

It is outrageous, simply outrageous,
that you should have had to sell your plate.

Mind you, Your Highness, I'm afraid
you have been guilty of some little extravagance.

—Extravagance?
—But, then, these are small matters.

You have been having to act as your own
ambassador, I know, for the last three years,

but now I am here to guide you,
and will take all these things off your shoulders.

—Will he buy us food?
—Francesca.

Yes, Your Royal Highness,
if you will forgive my mentioning it,

the quality of your purveying
leaves much to be desired.

The fish that we had at dinner,
I wouldn't have given it to my horse boy.

Your Highness, it was stale.

—Yes, I know.
—You know?

If you buy fish in the market which is a day old,
it doesn't cost as much.

You mean you buy stale fish for your table
because it is cheaper?

Well, of course. It is better than going hungry.

You may be certain I shall complain
in the strongest possible terms,

not only to your father, but to King Henry.

—No. No, don't do that.
—And I noticed you were not given

your correct precedence
when you dined with the King yesterday.

Oh, what does that matter?

As soon as I am married,
I shall have my proper place by right,

and all these slights and discomforts
will be forgotten.

Not by me!

You are a royal princess of Spain and I owe it
to myself and to my royal master

to see that you are treated by these English
with all honour and observance,

Your Royal Highness.

At last, it seems Your Highness
has found a champion.

Yes.

We understand, Ambassador,
that you are now prepared to discuss

the possibility of King Ferdinand making good

the depletions
in Princess Catherine's plate and jewels.

I am. Though there would have been no need
for any depletion

if King Henry had made proper provision
for the Princess' maintenance.

I should have thought that it was the duty
of a father to provide for his unmarried daughter.

—Princess Catherine is a widow.
-But we have been given to understand

that the marriage with Prince Arthur
was not consummated and therefore...

That has nothing to do with it!

The Princess is living in England
and is betrothed to the Prince of Wales.

Your King is notorious
for his meanness and double—dealing,

-but I should have thought that...
—That is enough!

I refuse to listen to another word.

While the Spanish ambassador
sees fit to insult our King,

the Council must utterly refuse to meet with him.

-But how can we discuss the marriage treaty?
—How indeed?

The English want to delay the discussions.

King Henry has another marriage
in mind for the Prince.

He is waiting to see whether
King Ferdinand defeats his enemies

before he finally commits himself.

—Then what do you suggest?
—I suggest nothing.

I am ill.

The Princess said
she'd send her personal physician to you.

Yes, her own physician
and her wishes for my recovery.

King Henry too is not well, you know that?

Oh, well or ill, he's delayed long enough.
You must see him. You must tell him.

I must see him? I tell you, I can do no more!

(SIGHING)

Do you think you can twist
the King of England's ears?

I understand that King Ferdinand

has now sent enough money
to cover the value of the missing plate.

Yes, and he now expects forthwith the public
betrothal of Prince Henry and Princess Catherine.

I shall, of course, require a paper announcing
in full the dower rights of the Princess.

Dower, er...

The land and property
she holds as Dower Princess.

—That is out of the question!
—Out of the... You dare to tell me...

And it is a suggestion which, in your position,
the King of Aragon would be ashamed to make.

Ashamed? The King of Aragon was not ashamed

to allow his daughter to live like a pauper
in a foreign country!

(COUGHING)

My King does not keep
his money locked up in chests.

He gives it to his victorious soldiers.
You will take my suggestion.

You will remember that,
and be careful how you provoke him.

(STRAINING) Go away!

(WHISPERING) Go away.

Dower rights?

But I renounced those
on the signing of the marriage treaty.

I renounced those six years ago.
Do you think I want the title of Princess Dowager?

I am the Princess of Wales.
I am betrothed to Prince Henry.

Shall I need dower rights
when I am Queen of England?

—Go to the King at once and...
—I can't do that, Your Highness.

Why? Why can't you?

Because the King has said
that he refuses to see me.

Then, if the King will not see you, neither will I.
Now leave me.

Your Highness. Your Highness.
The Prince is coming this way.

Can we make such a distinction
between human and divine learning?

Surely, my lord.

Well, it is true the Bible comes from God,
but then God gave man also his mind,

and therefore human learning
also comes from God.

Doesn't that mean, Your Highness,

that you're setting up your mind
in opposition to God's?

No, no. It means that I want to use
all God's gifts to his glory, as best I may.

That would suggest that the mind of a pagan
was of the same value as the mind of the Pope.

Your Highness, it is hopeless.
We must go back to Spain.

To Spain? Never.

Your Highness,
this marriage will never take place. Never.

How long is it since Prince Arthur died?
More than six years.

And your marriage to Prince Henry
is further away than ever.

Everyone knows it, Your Highness.
Everyone except yourself.

(WHISPERING) Francesca!

Don Fuensalida knows that it is hopeless.

He is making arrangements
to send your dowry out of the country.

Fuensalida is a traitor!

And you are a traitor, too,
to speak of going back to Spain!

Never speak to me of it again!

I suppose you too wish to go back to Spain.

Wherever you go, I will go.

I am betrothed to Prince Henry.

My mother wished the marriage to take place.

I would rather die
than go back to Spain unmarried.

(CRYING) Your Highness.

I would rather die.

(BELL TOLLING)

—Maria.
—Lord Willoughby.

—Well, what's happening? What news?
—The Council has met twice already.

I'm told they were discussing
the matter of the Prince's... The King's marriage.

His marriage to whom?

There is one party for a French marriage
to Marguerite d'Alencon,

—and one for the Hapsburg, Princess Eleanor.
-But none for...

None that I've heard of.

What will become of her if...
What will become of her?

I'm more concerned with what becomes of you.

Lord Willoughby, the Princess comes first with me.
She always wi ll.

If she goes back to Spain, I will go with her.

Would her father welcome her
back to Spain unmarried?

-Perhaps if she could speak to the King?
—(CHUCKLES) What good would that do?

I suppose there never has been a young man
so protected from the world.

He's lived all his life with priests and tutors.

One had to go through the old king's bedchamber
to get to his room.

He even went out into the garden
by a private door.

—All his life he's done as he was told, and now...
—He will do what the Council tells him.

Poor Princess. Mat/re de 0/05, my poor Princess...

(DOOR OPENING)

—My Lord of Surrey.
-Oh, he always brings bad news.

I was told Her Royal Highness was in the gallery.

—Yes, she's...
—Ah.

—Your Royal Highness.
—My lord.

His Majesty begs to be allowed
to wait upon Your Highness.

His Maje... Oh, yes.
Yes, I shall be glad to receive the King.

—When will His Majesty...
—When I left His Majesty, he was already...

You mean he is coming here now?

—Your Royal Highness.
—Your Majesty.

Thank you for receiving me with so little warning.

May I express the sorrow that I feel
for the death of your father?

—He was like a father to me, too.
—Thank you.

He expressed a dying wish
which I hope you will help me to fulfil.

That is why... That is why I have come to see you.

I will do whatever Your Majesty wishes.

My father's last request was...

(CLEARING THROAT)

It was that you and I should be married
as soon as possible.

And Catherine, dearest Catherine,

it is my wish too.

(FANFARE)

(CROWD CHEERING)

HENRY: Not just to have a fine court
and wear rich clothes and jewels,

I want...

What do you want?

What do I want? Besides you?

How the people cheered you today.

The English people have always been kind to me,
even when everyone else was unkind.

I promise you that no—one
will be unkind to you again. Word of a king.

—I would rather have word of a Henry.
—Word of a Henry?

—So what do you want, besides me?
—I want...

When my father came to the throne,
England was nothing,

a bankrupt country whose leaders had been
fighting among themselves for generations.

He's given us wealth
and put money in the treasury,

but that's not enough.

Did you know your father wants me
to take an army into France?

Yes. Yes, he thinks
the power of France is a danger to us all.

I'll fight another Agincourt

and win back all our possessions
in Aquitaine and Bordeaux.

And while I'm in France, I'll make you regent here.

—Will you hold England for me against the Scots?
—I'll hold the world for you against all comers.

And then we'll bring the golden age
back to England.

That's what I really want,
not just to have a rich court, but a famous one,

famous for poets, musicians and painters,
famous for scholars...

Yes, you already have scholars
among your friends: Erasmus, Colet,

—Thomas More.
—Thomas More.

Yes, but they're your friends, too.
That's the best of it.

This is something else we can share.

You're the only woman I know
who would understand and help me.

You're so wise and learned.
Catherine, let's go hawking tomorrow!

-Oh, yes, let's! I love it so much!
—You ride so well.

—Yes, not as well as you...
—And in the afternoon, we'll have a tournament.

—I'll wear your favour in my helmet.
—Yes, Henry.

—And then, in the evening, we'll dance.
—You must be careful.

I get tired before you do.

You're such a little thing. I could blow you away.

I'm strong enough to bear you a son, pray God.

Pray God.

(MEDIEVAL MUSIC PLAYING)

(SINGING IN FRENCH)

(MEDIEVAL MUSIC PLAYING)

(READING IN LATIN)

(HENRY GROWLING)

(CATHERINE LAUGHING)

Oh, I tell you, Catherine, if I were free now,
there's not another woman in the whole world

who I would want to marry.

(WHISPERING) Except you, Catherine.

(BELLS RINGING)

My Lord Willoughby, I believe these bells
have not stopped ringing since New Year's Day,

when the child was born.

You must admit, my lord,
they have good cause to ring.

A son and heir for the King might keep them
ringing for a year instead of two months,

especially after that first stillborn child.

The King is worse than ever now.
"Where's the Queen?

"I must show this to the Queen.
The Queen must be the first to know."

Matrimonial devotion is a virtue, no doubt,
but it can be carried to excess.

Surely not.

You say that because
you're about to be married yourself.

Your opinion on marriage is about as reliable

as that of a condemned murderer
upon capital punishment.

One can see no harm in it. The other, no good.

I'm sure I shall always believe
that husband and wife should love each other.

A king and queen are not husband and wife,
they are fluctuating sources of power.

While King Henry feels as he does
towards Queen Catherine,

this country will always
be governed at one remove

—by that wily old Spanish fox, her father.
—Do not expect me to wish the King less fond.

While my future wife serves Queen Catherine,
the Queen's happiness makes her happy

and Maria's happiness makes me happy.

Well, I'll join in your raptures
in the Queen's son and heir,

so I think that after two months
those damned bells have rung quite long enough.

(BELLS STOP)

My Lord of Surrey,
I never knew you had such power.

(SINGLE BELL TOLLING)

(SOBBING)

Maria, what is it?

A message has just come from Richmond.
The prince...

Not dead? The child is not dead?

—How is the Queen?
—I was with her when she heard the news.

The King is with her now.

No one else could comfort her as he can.

Don't cry any more.
Dearest, dearest Catherine, don't cry any more.

—My little boy.
—I know, I know.

Little boy.

You wanted a son so much.

I wanted to give you a son.

We're young. We'll have more sons. We will.

Nothing matters so long as we love each other.

# I love and shall

# Until I die

# Grudge who will

# But none deny

# So God be pleased

# Thus live will I

# Hunt, sing and dance

# For my pastance

# Who shall me let?

# All godly sport

# For my comfort

# My heart is set #

INEZ: The song he wrote for the Queen.

Did he?

—Is that for the King?
—Yes.

One of his new shirts. Of course, I only hem them.

—The Queen embroiders them herself.
—Mmm—hmm.

—It's all she's good for.
—Mistress Anne!

Hmm?

Well, after all, 18 years of marriage and nothing
to show for it but a handful of stillborn sons.

—And the Princess Mary.
—Well, if you ask me, it's an act of God.

On the Queen? How can you say that?

There's no—one so good, or so devout,
or who does so much for the poor.

Yes, buying their loyalty.
But she couldn't buy a son.

Well, we all know it's not the King's fault.

—If you mean...
—Henry Fitzroy.

—We do not speak of him here.
—Oh? Or of his mother, Bessie Blount?

Certainly not.

Your stitches are getting awfully large.

I was in France when the King
made Henry Fitzroy Duke of Richmond,

but I heard that the Queen was furious.

And who could blame her?
I mean, Duke of Richmond.

After all, that was the title the King's father had
before he was made King.

That boy, Henry Fitzroy,
would never be made King.

—Not a...
—Bastard?

You're probably right.
Anyway, Bessie Blount was a fool.

Princess Mary is the heir to the throne.
She will be queen one day.

—Unless the King has a legitimate heir.
—Yes. Anything is possible by the grace of God.

Possible? That would need a miracle.
When was her last pregnancy? Eight years ago.

Mistress Anne!

—The King doesn't even go to her bedchamber now.
—He does!

He goes every evening to hear vespers with her.

—Vespers?
—Mmm!

Vespers.

Haven't you heard
the rumours of the King's marriage?

Rumour? What rumours?

(GIGGLING)

—Maria!
—Inez.

Or should I say Countess?

Ah, Inez, how can you be so foolish.
It is Maria, of course.

I was so sorry to hear
of the death of your husband.

Thank you. Thank you.
It seemed such a very short time to be happy,

but perhaps we were fortunate
to have the happiness at all.

The Queen will be so pleased
to have you with her again.

—How is she?
—Not very well.

She hasn't been well now for so many years,

but she's always cheerful, never complains.
Well, you know her.

Yes, I know her.

(ANNE LAUGHING)

Who is that?

—Anne Boleyn.
—Oh.

She was in France last time I was at court.
So that is the lady.

She's just like all the others,
only bolder and more knowing.

She's every reason to be knowing.
No doubt she's learnt it from her sister.

They say this one is quite different
from her sister.

Different?

They say she has not yet given the King
what he wants.

(CHUCKLING) That is impossible.
The King would soon lose interest if she didn't.

Maybe she thinks
he would soon lose interest if she did.

How much longer can she...

—Does the Queen know about her?
—Certainly not.

The Queen never knows.

WOLSEY: The Queen must be told, Your Highness.

—I know! I know.
—She must be told at once.

—The ecclesiastical court has found in your favour.
—Not in my favour.

It found that the marriage was open to question.

Now the Pope's dispensation must be annulled.
I will see to that,

but Your Grace must tell the Queen.

(STAMMERING) Yes, I mean to tell her,
but it must be done gently.

Of course, Your Grace.

You can simply tell her that you have doubts
about the validity of your marriage,

that an ecclesiastical court
has confirmed those doubts

and that you are seeking the Pope's assistance.

Meanwhile, you think it best to separate.

(GRUMBLES)

If you go on living with her after you have
discovered the illegality of the marriage,

you will endanger your marriage
with the French Princess.

But you think we can obtain a divorce?

Oh, yes. I see no difficulty about that,
with the Queen's consent.

After all, it is now a marriage in name only
and the terms you offer are very generous.

Why should she refuse?

MARY: "For they judge it a great point of cruelty,

"that anybody in their most need of help
and comfort should be cast off and forsaken,

"and that old age,
which both bringeth sickness with it,

"and is a sickness itself, should unkindly
and unfaithfully be dealt withal.

"But now and then it chanceth,

"whereas the man and the woman
cannot well agree between themselves,

"both of them finding other, with whom
they hope to live more quietly and merrily,

"that they by the full consent of them both
be divorced asunder and married again to other.

"But that not without the authority of the council,

"which agreeth to no divorces,

"before they and their wives
have diligently tried and examined the matter.

"Yea..."

My dear Lord, we are so pleased to see you.

—What are you reading?
—Mary is reading Thomas More's Utopia.

Ah, Utopia.

(BOTH SPEAKING IN LATIN)

I can well explain it,
since Thomas More has first explained it to me.

He came to supper with us yesterday,
and was so pleasant and merry.

—We were sorry that you could not be with us.
—I had some business.

Mary, set a chair for His Grace.

—I would like to speak to you alone.
-Oh, of course.

—Mary, go back to the Countess of Salisbury now.
—Yes, madam.

My dear little Mary.

-Won't you sit down, my lord?
—No.

Mary's tutor is pleased with her?

Very pleased. I think she loves to learn
more than she loves to play.

Do you remember what you once said to me?

—Said to you?
—About establishing learning in the land.

Mary is your daughter in that.

One day, she too will help to unite all Europe
in one noble Christian fellowship of learning.

-But her music? Is she practising as she should?
-Oh, yes. She loves it dearly.

She knows how much you love it
and she longs to please you.

You haven't heard her play for a long time.

No. No, I've been, uh...
I haven't been able to. I've been...

Catherine, I am greatly troubled in my mind.

—What is it? Can I help?
—Yes, yes, yes. You always help me.

Catherine, someone has shown me...
I have seen... There is a text in Leviticus.

—Leviticus?
—Which... Yes.

Chapter 20. There, verse 21.

"And if a man shall take his brother's wife,
it is an unclean thing.

"They shall be childless."

Well, that's the text.

Learned and pious men have told me that,
because you were first married to my brother,

our marriage is unlawful in the sight of God.

You and I, we are living in sin together,

and that is why we have no son.

Well, that's the text,

and it proves that there is only one answer.

Now that we know the truth, we must separate.

You can choose some place away from court
and live there in retirement.

You can go anywhere you like
and have anything you want, of course. Anything!

Where would you... Where would you like to go?

Catherine?

(WAILING)

Oh, Catherine, don't cry.

Don't!

Oh, you must understand, Catherine.
It's not that I don't love you any more.

I still do, as I always have.

If we could continue to live together,
I should be so glad, but...

My... My conscience. It won't let me, Catherine!

Oh, Catherine, don't!

Catherine!

(WHIMPERING)

She has already written to her nephew
the Emperor,

and to the Pope,
telling them about Wolsey's plots against her.

The Pope will declare the marriage valid
and then all this will be over.

The Pope will help her. He must!

Cardinal Lorenzo Campeggio, Your Grace,
the papal legate.

—Your Majesty.
—Your Eminence.

I'm sorry that my ill health and the discomforts
of the journey have delayed my arrival.

Well, now that you are here,
perhaps we can move with some little speed.

Indeed, Your Highness.

His Holiness is most anxious that this unhappy
state of affairs between you and Queen Catherine

should be composed as soon as possible,

and that the bonds of marriage
should be strengthened and purified.

But the bonds of marriage between us
do not exist.

That is what you are here to prove.

That is the question, Your Grace,
that we are here to try.

Try, by all means,
but there is only one possible conclusion.

The Queen and I have been living in sin together

and my conscience will not allow me
to continue to do so.

Such a conclusion would lead to great scandal.

—Especially since the Pope's dispensation...
—Did not meet the case.

For example, among other things,
this word forsan, "perhaps",

implies a doubt in the Pope's mind, which makes
the dispensation inadequate to the purpose.

But the present Pope would readily make good

any deficiencies that might be found
in the dispensation.

That would not please the King's conscience.

But to call the efficacy of the Pope's dispensation
into question,

it would lead to scandal and divisions,

and give offence to the Emperor,
the Queen's nephew, to suggest that...

His Holiness is most anxious that
a reconciliation should be effected.

But if that is not possible,
there might be another way.

—The Pope feels for you sincerely, but...
—But?

But he must consider also
the welfare of the Church.

Will the Church be best defended by yielding
to an attack on the sanctity of marriage?

By no means.

Before I left Rome, he impressed upon me
his most earnest desire

that you and the King should be reconciled.

The King and I have never quarrelled.
We love each other dearly.

Wicked men have put doubts into his mind.

—Once these doubts are resolved...
—I have had a long talk with the King,

and he assures me that
these doubts will never be resolved.

The Pope could resolve them.

Madam, you must understand that
these matters can lead to many and great evils.

To enmity between the King and the Emperor.
To divisions within the English Church.

To scandal throughout Christendom.

But there is a way in which all this can be avoided.

I would remind you of
the saintly wife of King Louis of France, who...

Who entered a nunnery
so that her husband might marry again.

Yes. I know what a faithful servant of the Church
you have always been.

And if it pleases you to enter religious life,

the King assures me that all your dower rights
would be preserved.

—Dower rights?
—And the King is very willing to agree

that your daughter
shall be granted the right of succession,

immediately following his immediate male heirs.

My daughter is the only legitimate heir
to the throne.

For my part, I have no calling to the religious life.

While my husband lives, I am his wife.
His own true wife.

If it were not so, I would have been his whore,
and my daughter, a bastard,

and that I will never say.

Then I must warn you that
when the matter comes to trial...

No court in England has the power to try it.
It can only be tried in Rome.

The King means to bring it to trial here,
and that I shall preside with Cardinal Wolsey.

The matter to be tried is whether or not the Pope
had the right to grant dispensation

for the King to marry his brother's wife,

and whether the dispensation he granted
was legally valid.

—And that leads us to the...
—It was legal, but unnecessary.

The marriage between King Henry's brother
and myself was never consummated.

I came a virgin to King Henry,
as he to me, and therefore I am his lawful wife.

If I were torn limb from limb for saying so,
I would rise from the dead to say it again.

But that is a matter very hard to prove
after all these years, witnesses...

There is one witness who will speak the truth.

I am very sure of that.

Well, Norfolk,
so the Queen is coming to court after all.

Didn't you expect her to?

I did hear she said this court wasn't qualified
to try her case.

With the papal legate here
to preside with Wolsey?

—Now that she's here, I wonder what she'll do.
—Hold her tongue, if she's got any sense.

Try to get out of the affair
with some degree of dignity.

Anyway, what difference does it make
what she does?

Wolsey and the papal legate
will manage it all between them.

Much as your niece is now managing the King.

My Lord of Suffolk,
Lady Anne Boleyn has no part in this affair.

This is solely a matter for the King's conscience.

Oh, yes, of course.
That's what Wolsey thought, at first.

—Henry, King of England, come into the court.
—Here, my lords.

Catherine, Queen of England, come into the court.

(BANGING STAFF)

Catherine, Queen of England, come into the court.

(MEN MURMURING)

My lord,

since I can expect no impartial judgment
in this court,

I appeal to you,
as the head of all justice in the land.

How have I offended you?

I have always been your true and loving wife,

and have borne you many children,
though it pleased God to take them from me,

for no fault of mine.

There can be no question
but that we are truly married.

For when I first came to you, I was a virgin,
as you yourself have often said.

I put it to your conscience
to say whether this is true or no.

My lord,

I beg of you to spare me this court.

But if you will not, I appeal my case to God.

(MEN MURMURING)

Catherine, Queen of England, come into the court.

Madam, they're calling for you!

I have nothing to do with this court.

Catherine, Queen of England, come into the court!

CROWD: Long live the Queen!

(KNOCKING)

It's the door, I suppose.

Who is this?

—Eustache Chapuys.
—Who?

—The Emperor's new ambassador.
—Really?

What a moment to arrive!
I wonder what he thinks of his master's aunt now.

The power of the King, the Pope,
the English Church and nobles,

ranged against one woman.

Hardly a fair contest, eh, my lord?

Hardly a fair contest.

And since it has pleased Queen Catherine
wilfully to absent herself from this court,

duly and lawfully summoned,

the said Queen Catherine
is hereby declared contumacious.

The court will continue in her absence.

HENRY: As touching the Queen,

if she may be adjudged to be my lawful wife,

nothing could be more pleasing to me,

for she is a woman of great gentleness,

humility, wisdom and all good qualities.

So that I tell you, if I were to marry again,

and knew that the marriage
was lawful in the sight of God,

I would surely choose her above all women.

And I well remember
Prince Arthur saying next morning,

"Give me to drink, sirs. That was warm work."

(ALL LAUGHING)

And he was given wine, and he drank.

And he said,
"Last night, my lords, I was in Spain."

And what did you take His Royal Highness
to mean by that?

Well, there was only one thing
we could understand by such words,

spoken by a young bridegroom
after his wedding night.

And what was that?

Why, that the Princess Catherine, as she then was,
was no longer a virgin.

(MURMURING)

And in addition to these
who have subscribed their names

to testify as to the justice of the King's cause,

are to be added the names of Dr John Fisher,

—the Bishop for Rochester...
—That is not my hand nor seal!

(CROWD MURMURING)

My Lord of Rochester...

Because, although you asked me,
I would not consent.

No, no, but you did agree
that I should subscribe for you

and set a seal to it myself.

Under your correction, my Lord Archbishop,
nothing could be more untrue.

For I held then as I hold now,

whom God hath joined together,
let no man put asunder.

(LORDS CHATTERING)

You sent for me, my lord?

The French army has been defeated in Italy.

The Pope is now at liberty to oblige the Emperor,
the Queen's nephew.

What hope of divorce now?

—Well, my Lord Cardinal?
—Campeggio may not know of it yet.

—If we could...
—You'd better speak to the Queen yourself.

I have no doubt you will know what to say to her.

My lord, forgive this lack of ceremony.
I did not expect you here.

Madam, if we may go to your private room.

If you have anything to say to me, my lord,
pray say it openly.

There is nothing you can allege against me
which all the world cannot hear.

(SPEAKING IN LATIN)

I should prefer if you would speak to me
in English, although I do understand Latin.

Madam, I have come to give you
my own private counsel.

I would wish that it should be in private.

I am grateful for your solicitude on my behalf,

but since truth and justice are on my side,
I have no need to ask for mercy.

Good day, my Lord Cardinal.

Therefore it has pleased His Holiness the Pope
to advoke this case to Rome.

The right of this court to try this case
is now withdrawn.

(CROWD MURMURING)

You had lost one of these pearls,
but I have matched it with one of mine.

Mmm. Nobody embroiders as you do.

That was a very good supper, too.
Your suppers never give me indigestion.

I only wish you came here more often.

Thank you.

—Will you thank me in another way?
—Mmm—hmm?

May I have Mary with me here?

You know where she is.

If you want to, you can go to her.

—My place is with my husband.
—As you please.

You know it is not as I please.

How can you treat me like this? I am your wife.

I love you and you have always said
that you loved me.

I do love you, but you are not my wife.

I can bring a hundred learned men
to prove that you are not my wife!

Bring your hundred learned men!

I can bring a thousand learned men
from all over Europe to say that I am your wife,

I always have been your wife and I always will be!

—Always.
—Madam?

Maria, bring me those handkerchiefs
I was embroidering for the King.

I must have them ready for him
when he comes again.

The King! Oh, the King!

There's the King!
He has a new coat covered with emeralds!

—Is the lady with him?
—Yes, there she is. In cloths of gold.

She's wearing cloths of gold! And the emeralds!

And there's Sir Thomas Boleyn and her brother.

All the court is leaving.

(FANFARE PLAYING)

—Except...
—Come away from the window, Inez.

He is going to Woodstock with all the court.
Did you know?

-But he will send for me.
—Has he left you before without saying goodbye?

But he will send for me.
We always appear together in public. Always.

You know that Wolsey died
on his way to the Tower.

Yes, so I heard. Poor man.

His fate was sealed as soon as Campeggio
transferred the trial to Rome.

—Yes.
—And Thomas More has become Lord Chancellor.

Yes. I am so afraid for him.

For the Bishop of Rochester, for all my friends.

If they obey the King,
they must go against their conscience.

And if they disobey him, they may lose their lives.

And it is all because of...

But what can I do?

If only the Pope would declare
that our marriage is valid

and order the King to leave that woman.

—If only he would do that. Why does he delay?
—He's afraid of losing the King's friendship.

But doesn't he need
the friendship of my nephew the Emperor?

Well, he needs them both.
That is why he prevaricates.

The Pope is afraid of losing England
to the Lutherans,

and he needs the Emperor's help against France.

But my husband is endangering his immortal soul,
doesn't the Pope understand?

He is endangering his immortal soul!

And the souls of all those who,
through fear and ambition, are supporting him.

He still loves me.

If only he could be made to leave that woman
and come back to me,

then I know I could...

Madam...

Madam, there is a way.

The people love you.

If you would take it, there is a way.

Your Majesty, the Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk
are here with a message from the King.

I will come.

—My lords.
—Madam.

The King has left for Woodstock with his court...

I shall be glad to follow His Majesty
at his good pleasure.

That is not his pleasure.

His orders are that you are to go at once
to More House in Hertfordshire.

DUKE OF SUFFOLK: Wolsey's old house.
He won't be wanting it any more.

If I am not to be with the King,
then I will go to the Tower.

The King does not wish...
You are to go to More House.

And your household is to be severely reduced.

My household?

Let me have my confessor, my doctor
and two of my women. That will be enough.

Or if that is not allowed,
I will go out onto the streets

—and beg my bread, for the love of God.
—There will be no need for that, madam.

The King wishes you to be properly attended,
as befits his brother's wife.

I must also tell you that it is the King's will
that you should not appear in public

as often as you have done lately.

Because the people love you.
They love you, madam!

I shall be ready, madam,
to attend you to More House

—tomorrow morning.
—Madam.

Will the Princess Mary
be allowed to join me there?

Princess Mary...
Your daughter has been sent to Richmond.

When will I see her?

—When will I see her?
—At any time.

You can have anything you want
if you'll meet the King's wishes.

You mean I can see my daughter

if I will declare her a bastard.

Madam.

Word of a Henry.

I believe the Emperor Charles
has grown a moustache.

So I believe, my lord.

It is not a pretended divorce.

If Catherine won't accept it,
she must take the consequences.

And I wish the Emperor
would cease to meddle in my affairs.

Be careful, my lord,
how far you provoke the Emperor.

When I tell him what you say, he may meddle
in your affairs with more than words.

He has an army raised and in the field.

I don't want to have the Emperor as my enemy.
He needs my friendship, as I wish for his.

The Emperor will never take the field against me
in this cause, you know that.

And when you next write to Princess Catherine,
you can tell her so as well!

—Your Majesty.
—The Emperor will never go to war with me!

But Catherine might.

My dearest love.

Catherine might.

If she took the field against me,
she could cut the country in two.

No.

—Madam...
—No.

I tell you, half the nobility of England
would rise in your defence,

and all the common people.

They hate Norfolk and all the Boleyn crew,
as much as they hated Wolsey.

If you would only put yourself at their head.
No, not even that.

Only say the word, and Princess Mary
will be rescued to ride with the army.

Only say the word.

No.

I have brought England little good.
I don't want to bring her harm.

—It is your only hope, madam.
—No.

I still hope. The King still loves me.

If only the Pope would order the King on pain
of excommunication to leave that woman...

Madam, the whore is pregnant.

—Pregnant?
—Last Christmas.

And since then, they have been secretly married.

(CROWD CHEERING)

(HOOVES CLOPPING)

I'm sorry that I cannot rise to greet you, but
I have pricked my foot and it is painful to stand.

—What is this message you have for us?
—It is hereby declared to the Princess Dowager...

Why do you read this to me?
There is no such person here.

This will do you no good, madam. Continue.

"That the Princess Dowager's marriage
to His Majesty being declared invalid,

"and His Majesty having contracted
a true marriage

"with the most illustrious Lady Anne Boleyn,

"the said Lady Anne is the only Queen of England,

"and the heirs begotten of her body
are the only true heirs to the said Majesty,

"King Henry VIII."

Henceforth, madam, you will style yourself
Princess Dowager.

My title is Queen, and that it will be until I die.

Your death may not be so very far away.

You know that Sir Thomas More and john Fisher
have gone to the Tower,

only for refusing to recognise the King's marriage?

Yes, I am very sorry for it.
They are both good men.

But I would die a hundred deaths before
I would damn my husband's soul, or mine.

His Majesty has been lenient with you
until now, but...

If I am to be put to death,
all I ask is that it be a public execution.

(CATHERINE COUGHING)

Her Majesty is not well.

This house is on the marshes,
and the damp and the constant mists

are destroying Her Majesty's health. I must ask...

There are only two more
slight matters of business to discuss

with the Princess Dowager
once she's signed this account of our interview.

What is this? "The Princess Dowager said"?

The Queen said.

The Queen.

The Queen.

Now I will sign it.

Catherine, the Queen.

CATHERINE: What further business?

I've called a meeting of the members
of your household.

They will be required to sign a paper promising
to address you henceforth as Princess Dowager.

Before you speak, Countess,

I think I should perhaps also point out
that under no circumstances

will the Countess of Willoughby
be allowed to remain with you.

And the other business?

I'll leave Suffolk to deal with that.
Good day to you, madam.

My lord...

Your Majesty, Inez had better sign.
You must have someone you can trust.

No, I will not be served by...

Maria, as soon as he has gone,
send Inez up here with two others.

You will know who.
We will stay in here and bolt the door.

—They won't dare to break it down.
-Oh, let me stay.

No. Not against the King's express command.

—Why should I have to do it?
-Oh, do it and be done with it.

(SUFFOLK CLEARING THROAT)

Are you still here, my lord?

—What further business have you with the Queen?
—My errand is with the Princess Dowager.

There is no such person here.

These fits and starts will do you no good at all.
You do not understand your position.

I understand my position perfectly,

and the place in life
to which it has pleased God to call me.

It is you, my Lord of Suffolk,
who do not perfectly understand yours.

—I'm a servant of the King.
—And I am his wife.

What is your errand?

The King requests... Commands...
Will you be so good as to convey to me that...

What? What have you come for this time?

It can't be my jewels. They were stolen from me,
when was it... Let me see... Oh, yes.

They were stolen from me last Christmas.

The King commands that you should deliver to me
the christening robe.

The christening robe which...

You are to deliver to me the christening robe.

I absolutely refuse.

I have instructions to find the robe
if I have to search your rooms.

—You shall not search them.
—I have orders to search them, if need be.

Stand aside!

You will not search this chest unless
you first throw me to the ground.

I shall tell the King what...

—I shall tell the King!
—Tell him what you please!

(DOOR CLOSING)

Our son wore it.

It is not the King. It's that...

—It's that woman. I hope the whore miscarries.
—No.

They say the King is tired of her already.
They spend all their time quarrelling.

Oh, poor creature.
She is as little to be envied as I am.

(MAN LAUGHING)

The news came today, madam. It was a girl.

—A girl?
—Yes.

They've called the little bastard Elizabeth.

It's said... It's said that they asked
the Princess Mary to wait on her,

but she refused.

My poor daughter.

My poor Mary.

—Sir, the Princess Mary...
—Lady Mary.

Your daughter is ill.
She is surrounded by those who wish her dead.

She is with the Queen's aunt, Lady Shelton.

—I will send my own physician.
—Read this letter from her mother, I beg of you.

Let her be nursed by her mother.
Let her go to her mother.

Or let her mother go to her.

If Catherine will acknowledge

the title of Princess Dowager, she may go
where she likes and do what she pleases.

Declare herself to be a whore
and her daughter a bastard?

Do you think she will ever do that,
knowing her as you do?

She must. She must!

I shall have a son next time.

A son and heir.

—Inez.
—Yes, madam?

—You said she is pregnant again?
—Yes.

But they say the King hardly ever sees her.

—There's talk... There's talk of divorce.
-Oh, no.

Not while I am alive.

The King knows that if he should divorce her,
he would still be married to me.

No, Inez.

While I am alive, mistress Anne is safe.

—What do you think of this affair in Italy?
—My lord, I hear from her physician...

The King of France plans to attack your Emperor.

My lord, I hear from her physician
that she is very ill.

May I be allowed to go and see her?

If the Emperor wants Milan,
he's going to need my friendship. Don't you think?

My lord, the...
The Princess Catherine has no money.

She is glad of the food which the poor people,
out of their love for her, bring to her door.

Oh, that's no affair of mine.
Let her talk to Cromwell about it.

—My lord, the Princess is...
—Of course, I might join

with the King of France, against the Emperor,
if he continues to meddle in my affairs.

And if the Pope excommunicates me,
I'll declare the Pope a heretic.

After all, I'm already supreme head of the Church,
so what can he excommunicate me from?

You see, I know my power now.

And I must thank the Princess Dowager
for teaching me how to use it.

My lord, the Princess is ill.

I beg that I may be allowed to go and see her.

Go to her when you like.
They tell me she won't live long.

When the old harridan is dead,
then all my troubles will be over.

Eustache, my dear friend.

How good to see you.
Tell me the news, all the news.

Well, most important, the Pope has declared
Anne Boleyn's marriage invalid.

He commands the King to return to you
on pain of excommunication.

If only he would have done that nine years ago,
but it will help Mary.

—How is she? Is she better? Tell me how she is.
—Much better. And happy.

—The King has sent for her to be with him.
—I knew he would.

—He still loves me. I know he still loves me.
—Certainly he loves you. He always has.

That is why at times he has behaved
as though he hated you.

He was a prisoner of his love for you,

and you know that prisoners hate
even the kindest jailer.

Is that why he has been so cruel?
Because he loved me?

The monks he tortured and killed,
his friends More and Fisher,

the monasteries he despoiled,
the religion he destroyed,

he who was once defender of the Faith,

was this because of me? Have I made him cruel?

(CATHERINE COUGHING)

My friend, was I wrong?

No. No, you followed your conscience,
when no—one else did.

Conscience and love,
and that can't be wrong, can it?

—Can it?
—Never.

Never.

Sir.

She has written a letter to the King,
to be given to him on her death.

Was it true? Has the King sent for Princess Mary?

—And the other, was that a lie also?
—The other?

Was she wrong?

—My dear Countess...
—Maria. Maria is my Spanish name, speak to that.

When Her Highness first came to England,
it is said that there were great storms all the way.

The ship was nearly lost.

Yes, I know. I was with her.

When a storm strikes, it sometimes happens

that everyone on board runs about
from side to side, trying to save themselves.

There is no hand at the wheel.

The ship yaws to and fro
with every gust and every wave.

And then some hand
more determined than the others

grips the wheel and turns the ship into the wind
and holds it there.

Perhaps this course drives it upon the rocks.

But although the ship may be broke,
some fragments of it remain.

Our Princess...

Our Queen, when danger threatened,

turned her ship's head into the wind
and held it upon the only course she knew.

The course of truth.

It struck upon the rocks
of passion and circumstance,

and all aboard perished.

Herself, the King she loved,
her friends, the other woman, the Church,

even Spain, perhaps, all perished.

But they did not disappear without trace,
as they might otherwise have done.

Some spars and timbers of that ship
remain to show...

To show?

That there were human beings there.

And that they cared profoundly about
the terms on which they lived and died.

Europe sundered.

A kingdom nearly plunged in revolution.

The power of the Catholic Church
weakened forever.

And yet it was such a little thing.

She wouldn't say that she was not married
when she was.

She would not say it.

CATHERINE: Last/y, [make this vow.
Let mine eyes desire you above all things.