Hans Holbein the Younger and Anne of Cleves

Hans Holbein the younger a great painter and miniaturist.

Known as one of the best portrait painters of the 16th century, Hans Holbein the Younger, was born in Augsburg in 1497/98, belonging to a renowned family of artists.

Since a young age, Hans and his elder brother Ambrosius (also a painter) received their first lessons in their father's workshop, the famous painter Hans Holbein the Elder, also from their uncle Sigmund Holbein. ( Hans Holbein the Elder and his brother Sigmund used to work together).

In 1514, the young Hans Holbein moved to Basel, Switzerland where he worked as a book illustrator, and there he became friend of some very important people, such as the Humanist Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam, and it was indeed in Basle where he painted various portraits of Erasmus. In 1518 he travelled through  Italy .

He did get married in 1520 to Elsbeth, the widow of a tanner called Ulrico de Schmid.  Elsbeth was a little bit older than Holbein, she posed for her husband various times as a model.

Due to the religious and political conflicts in Europe at the time, Holbein decided in the year 1526/27 to go to England, he had a letter of recommendation from his friend Erasmus , to be given to Thomas More, who was a lawyer and an important figure at the Tudor Court.

Holbein was very welcome at the English Court, at the time Henry VIII was still married to Catherine of Aragon,  daughter of the Spanish Catholic Kings.

In England one of the first portraits that he painted was precisely the portrait of his protector, the English Politic and Humanist Thomas More, followed by many portraits of people who were nearly always Court personages .

In 1528 Holbein returned to Basel, but in 1532 decided to move back to England with the knowledge that his great friend  and protector Thomas More was now the king's Lord Chancellor. (Holbein left his family behind).

In 1535 Hans Holbein was named "The King's Painter" producing portraits of Henry VIII and his family, also designing jewellery and other precious objects.

Sir Thomas More a fervent Catholic, opposed the ideas of Henry VIII , when the king wanted to cancel his marriages to Catherine of Aragon,  marry Anne Boleyn, and make religious changes. 

Sir Thomas More refused to sign the oath  of Henry's supremacy, and so he resign from his job as Chancellor, he was then imprisoned in the Tower of London  by order of the king, accused of treason he was decapitated three months later on the 25th of July 1535.  

Thomas More's head was then pierced through with a spike and hanged  and displayed  in London Bridge. After a month and just before the head was  going to be thrown into the Thames, his eldest daughter Margaret managed to obtain it and kept and preserved it until 1544 when she died, at the age of 39. It is believed that she was then buried  with her father's head inside her coffin.    

Other great protectors of Holbein eventually encountered the same end, Anne Boleyn  decapitated on the 19th May 1536,  and Thomas Cromwell beheaded on the 28th July 1540 .

Hans Holbein was also a great master of the miniature painting technique, which he learned in England  from  Lucas Horenbout, and amongst other miniatures is worth mentioning the famous, wonderful and controversial portrait of Anne of Cleves, fourth wife of Henry VIII .

 For Royalty at this time, a way to known in advance the face of a potential  wife, was from the use of miniature portraits. They were also easy to transport.

Following Jane Seymour's  dead, the search for a new wife started and also  negotiations with Royal European Houses, several were the candidates considered by Henry VIII, and various portraits were draw or painted.

In 1538, Thomas Cromwell send Holbein to Brussels, the king commissioned a portrait of Christine of Denmark, the sixteen- year- old widowed  Duchess of Milan, Holbein had a three hours drawing session, and the portrait was painted later on in England, in oil. 

Christine was a very beautiful and intelligent young lady, Henry considered her as a possible queen consort, he very much loved Holbein's portrait, but Christine was not interested in Henry VIII, she turned him down commenting "if I had two heads I would gladly  put one at the king's disposition".

Cromwell also send Holbein to France commissioning various effigies, for the king,  among them a portrait of Anne of Lorraine. (some drawings and painting of Holbein are in our days unfortunately lost).

Mary of Guise was another presumable future wife for Henry VIII, the king said to the French Ambassador "I am a great person and I need a great wife", apparently  on knowing this Mary responded, " I may be a great lady, but I have a small neck".  

In Germany  Holbein also painted a portrait of Amelia the younger sister of Anne of Cleves, the two princesses were both candidates as prospective wife of Henry VIII, once the portraits were observed by the king, he choose Anne.

Although the marriage of Henry VIII and Anne of Cleves was a marriage of  political convenience ,  instigated by Cromwell,  when the king sent Holbein to the Court of  Dresden in Germany in the summer 1539, he asked Holbein not to flatter the sisters, but to paint their portraits in a precise manner.

The portrait of Anne that Holbein presented to the king,  was a beautiful miniature painting, an elegant composition, rich in colour and detail.

 When Henry saw the princess for the first time in person, in Rochester, it is well known that it was  an unfortunate encounter, and he was disappointed and annoyed by Anne's reaction. The king then commented, "I like her not".

Perhaps Holbein painted Anne in this portrait more attractive than what she was in person, although Holbein had the reputation of always painting the sitters with great resemblance and precision.

The French Ambassador in England, Charles de Marillac described Anne as a women of middle beauty, tall and slim her hair was long and blonde, looking assured and resolute , amiable and docile, perhaps she was not as pretty as the king wished, but according to reports of the time, was neither as ugly as described in our days .

Anne was 25 years old although she looked a little bit older, she only wrote and spoke German, she didn't have an especial education, and neither had the  abilities that the king would have liked, she was only very good at sewing, and enjoyed playing cards games. 

The wedding was postponed for a couple of days, Henry asked Cromwell to find a way to cancel the marriage, Impossible!! they could not put at risk the political alliance that they have agreed with Anne's brother, William Duke of Cleves.

Persuaded by Cromwell, the wedding took place, but swiftly after six month the marriage was cancelled, the king was in a hurry, he had already his eyes in a nineteen  year old young lady, her name was "Catherine Howard" a  maid- of- honour of Anne of Cleves, and a cousin of Anne Boleyn.

It was alleged that the marriage with Anne was not consummated and also the fact that the princes was betrothed to Francis Duke of Lorraine &Bar( since she was twelve years old  and Francis ten). 

 Although this agreement broke down in 1535. Nevertheless this provided further ground for the annulment.  Anne was quite happy to agree with the king, and so they remained good friends.

Henry VIII assigned a generous allowance to Anne, and gave her several residences, she was often invited to court, which she loved and had a privileged position as " the King's beloved sister". She also had a very good relationship with  Henry's daughters, Mary and Elizabeth.

Anne outlived all Henry's other wives, she died on the 16th July 1557, during Mary Tudor's reign, she was 42 years old, and was buried in Westminster Abbey , London. 

Although the wife of Henry who lived the longest was Catherine of Aragon,  who died at the age of 51. She was also the wife who remained married to the English King for the most years .

Thomas Cromwell Earl of Essex, lost eventually the king's favour, accused  of treason, imprisoned without trial, and decapitated on Tower Hill on 28 July 1540, he was 55. Although not certain, it is often said that he suffered a terrible death as apparently the axe of the executioner was blunt.

Holbein's paintings, enrich in our days the European and American Museums, his work has a marvellous personal style, that progressed  year after year, showing his work an incredible attention to detail, his miniatures are pure perfection.

Although some of his work is lost, Holbein has left us a vivid record of Henry VIII's Court.

This great artist died in England in 1543, at about the age of 45, during an epidemic plague.